Cause of piglet death
(I) Extrusion occupies 28%-46% of all pre-weaning deaths. Although this figure does not reflect the cause of death, it tells us that many piglets cannot escape from the sow in time.
The following practices can help reduce the number of piglets killed by the squeeze:
1. Keep piglets warm and dry to help them eat milk as soon as possible after birth. This makes the piglets stronger and gives them the ability to avoid being crushed by the sow.
2. To care for sows, if individual sows are disturbed during childbirth, all piglets should be housed in a nursery or box with heat lamps until the end of the birth. Most of the losses caused by extrusion occur during the delivery process and on the first day after birth.
3. Record the performance of each sow during childbirth, which reminds you to pay attention to potential problems with the sow during the next delivery.
(b) Piglets Weak and weak piglets are piglets that are drowsy at birth. This may be the result of longer delivery, lower energy reserves, or genetic causes. These piglets usually do not eat colostrum and are therefore easily hungry and are crushed by sows. Those piglets should be placed under a separate nipple to facilitate feeding.
(iii) Hunger The loss of hunger death in the birth circle accounts for 21% of all pre-weaning deaths.
1, Piglets with low birth weight (less than 0.90 kg birth weight) have a lower chance of survival. Because they cannot compete with large, strong companions before the limited energy reserves are consumed, they can compete for space around the breast. Without timely care, the piglets will die within 3 days in cold weather.
2, larger piglets will die of hunger. Piglets born 7 days or so are hungry depending on the sow. When piglets develop rapidly, some sows cannot produce enough milk to meet the growing needs of whole litter piglets. In addition, when the piglet misses one or more feedings, the other piglets will quickly eat empty nipple milk (regardless of how short the nipples are). Experienced managers will soon learn to identify hungry piglets.
(d) The disease states that about 19% of piglet deaths are caused by disease. In this type of death, dysentery and other digestive disorders are usually the most important cause. In general, disease is not the main cause of piglet death. However, there are times when the disease is the main cause of the death of a litter or even a group of piglets. Due to the potential danger of this disease outbreak, it is very important to provide young piglets with a dry and clean environment.
(e) Cold As mentioned earlier, piglets are likely to be cold because the body is wet, coats are sparse, there is little subcutaneous fat, and the body's temperature control mechanism has not yet fully developed. When the ambient temperature is lower than 34°C, the piglet is subjected to cold stimulation.
In order to maintain the temperature of a small environment, heating lamps are used within a few weeks after birth and after childbirth. The heating time of the heating lamp depends on the piglet's health condition and the temperature of the house.
When using a 250 watt bulb and the height is less than 45 cm, the temperature under the lamp is too high and the piglet will not adapt. When the height of the lamp is higher than 45 cm, it will not do much. Hang the bulb 45 centimeters from the ground to allow the ambient temperature to reach 34 °C.
In order to minimize the evaporation of skin moisture and energy reserves of piglets, the method of drying the water of the piglets after birth can be used. When the piglets gain heat through trembling, the energy reserves can be quickly exhausted in cold environments. Drying your newborn piglets with a towel can stimulate piglets and increase their ability to move.
The provision of a warm and wind-proof supplementary area for piglets is also an effective method for ensuring the small environment of piglets. The supplementation area provides piglets with a warm, dry resting place and protects the piglets from the cumbersome sows. The piglet supplementation area should have a fixed floor.
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