399 Towards improving pig livability: Strategies to understand and mitigate sow mortality

Abstract

Abstract In response to increased sow mortality due to pelvic organ prolapse (POP), the Iowa Pork Industry Center (IPIC) at Iowa State University assembled a team to pursue better understanding of potential causative factors of sow POP in order to move towards developing and disseminating prevention strategies to help reduce POP incidence. One hundred and four commercial sow farms, representing approximately 385,000 sows across the U.S., were enrolled in a survey-based project. The farms varied in POP incidence rate, production system, geography, genetics, and management practices. This study cultivated a collaborative network of multidisciplinary experts across the swine industry and partnerships with producers across the U.S. Results of the project have allowed better understanding of the degree of the issue and prioritization of risk factors for future research in the pursuit of reducing POP-related sow mortality. A major outcome of this project was direct guidance on the most valuable experimental approaches to better understand the physiology occurring within a sow preceding POP so the most effective measurements can be determined when evaluating or testing potential on-farm mitigation strategies. We have continued to evaluate the utilization of a perineal scoring system during late gestation to assess risk of prolapse and to identify putative biological factors associated with POP risk for individual sows hypothesizing that sows differing in perineal score (and differing risk of POP) in late gestation would have physiological differences indicative of the underlying physiological conditions preceding POP. As expected, differences in immune cell populations, markers of inflammation, vaginal microflora, and steroid hormones exist between sows with differing levels of risk for POP prior to experiencing a prolapse. These projects are supported by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research and National Pork Board projects #17–224 and #18–147 in addition to a vast network of industry collaborators.