Assessment of the Non All-in All-out System and the All-in All-out System for Sows and Their Suckling Piglets

Abstract

The goal of this study was to investigate the behavior of sows and their piglets reared using the non-all-in all-out system and the all-in all-out system during a 3-week lactation period. The 24 LandracexYorkshire sows (range of parity: 2 to 4) and their litters (range of litter size: 8 to 13 piglets) for each treatment (8 sows/replication) were used in this experiment. The sows were housed in farrowing crates (0.6x2.1 m) located in pens (2.4x1.8 m) with totally perforated metal flooring. The crates were kept in an experimental room that was thermostatically controlled to approximately 23°C. A 250-W infrared heat lamp was turned on above the creep area during lactation. The sows and piglets were conventionally managed. The animals were recorded during a 24-h period at 1, 4, 7, 14 and 21 days postpartum. The videotapes were scanned every minute to obtain an instantaneous behavioral sample. In the behaviors of sows, lateral recumbency decreased and ventral recumbency increased from 1 day postpartum to 21 days postpartum. In comparison to the AIAOS, sows in the NAIAOS spent much less time on lateral recumbency (p<0.01), whereas they spent much more time on ventral recumbency and sitting at 4 days postpartum (p<0.05 and p<0.05). In the behaviors of piglets, lying increased and unsuccessful suckling decreased until 21 days postpartum. Compared to the AIAOS at 4 days postpartum, piglets in the NAIAOS spent less time lying (p<0.01), whereas they spent much more time walking and unsuccessful suckling (p<0.01 and p<0.05). These results suggest that the all-in all-out system may be preferable to the non-all-in all-out system for promoting welfare.