Pig

Tramadol vs. Lidocaine administered intraperitoneally and in incisional lines for the intraoperative and postoperative pain management of romifidine-telazol-anesthetized swine undergoing umbilical hernia repair

The aim of the study was to compare the analgesic efficacy of tramadol and lidocaine for local anesthesia during umbilical hernia repair in swine. The study was performed on 66 large white crossbred swine. The swine received a mixture of...

Year Published: 2023Topics: AnalgesiaAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Costa, G. L., Spadola, F., Di Pietro, S. et al. 2023. Tramadol vs. Lidocaine administered intraperitoneally and in incisional lines for the intraoperative and postoperative pain management of romifidine-telazol-anesthetized swine undergoing umbilical hernia repair. Animals 13(18), 2905.

Pig sedation and anesthesia for medical research

In clinical veterinary practice, proper training and expertise in anesthesia administration and monitoring are essential. Pigs are suitable experimental animals for many surgical techniques because they are similar in size to humans and have a short reproductive cycle. This makes...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Anesthesia & SedationAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Costea, R., Ene, I., Pavel, R. 2023. Pig sedation and anesthesia for medical research. Animals 13(24), 3807.

Cognitive tasks as measures of pig welfare: A systematic review

Cognitive approaches are increasingly used to assess animal welfare, but no systematic review has been conducted on pigs despite their cognitive capacities. Our aims were two-fold: first, to assess the popularity and heterogeneity of this approach by quantifying the different...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Ede, T., Parsons, T. D. 2023. Cognitive tasks as measures of pig welfare: A systematic review. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10.

Adapted original music as an environmental enrichment in an intensive pig production system reduced aggression in weaned pigs during regrouping

In intensive swine production systems,, the practice of regrouping unfamiliar pigs is common, often leading to aggressive behavior. Although the effect of different musical genres composed for humans has been evaluated in pigs to mitigate aggression, there have been few...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Alvarez-Hernandez, N., Vallejo-Timarán, D., de Jesús Rodriguez, B. 2023. Adapted original music as an environmental enrichment in an intensive pig production system reduced aggression in weaned pigs during regrouping. Animals 13(23), 3599.

Play fighting versus real fighting in piglets (Sus scrofa): Similar patterns, different structure

When animals engage in ‘non-serious' fighting (play-fighting) they ‘borrow' motor patterns especially from the aggressive context. It may be difficult to distinguish play- and real-fighting. This is particularly true for piglets (Sus scrofa), which can use play-fighting as a substitute...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Cordoni, G., Collarini, E., Gioia, M. et al. 2022. Play fighting versus real fighting in piglets (Sus scrofa): Similar patterns, different structure. Behavioural Processes 203, 104778.

Understanding the behaviour and improving the welfare of pigs

With growing concern from consumers and regulatory agencies about the welfare of farmed animals such as pigs, the livestock sector must assess how animal welfare can be improved whilst ensuring livestock production remains economically and environmentally sustainable. Understanding the behaviour...

Year Published: 2021Topics: Body Modification/Mutilation, Euthanasia, Husbandry & Management, Reproduction, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Edwards, S. (Ed.) 2021. Understanding the behaviour and improving the welfare of pigs. Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing Limited, Sawston, Cambridge, UK. 594 p.

The beneficial effects of providing prepartum sows with nesting materials on farrowing traits, piglet performance and maternal behavior: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Sows are highly motivated to engage in nest-building behavior prior to farrowing. Studies have shown that providing nesting material to farrowing sows reduces the occurrence of redirected nest-building behaviors, improves farrowing traits and maternal behavior, and decreases pre-weaning mortality. However,...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Rearing & Weaning, ReproductionAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Monteiro, M. S., Muro, B. B. D., Carnevale, R. F. et al. 2023. The beneficial effects of providing prepartum sows with nesting materials on farrowing traits, piglet performance and maternal behavior: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 259, 105795.

Play behaviour positively relates to weight gain, feeding behaviour and drinking behaviour in weaner pigs (Sus scrofa)

Engagement in play behaviour has been associated with the presence of positive affective states and, thus, proposed to be an indicator of positive animal welfare. However, the interpretation of play in animals remains challenging due to the complexity of motivating...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Franchi, G. A., Larsen, M. L. V., Kristoffersen, I. H. et al. 2023. Play behaviour positively relates to weight gain, feeding behaviour and drinking behaviour in weaner pigs (Sus scrofa). Applied Animal Behaviour Science 259, 105836.

Validation of non-invasive sensor technologies to measure interaction with enrichment material in weaned fattening pigs

Measuring animal behaviour is important in the assessment of animal welfare. When interaction with the enrichment material (EM) can be measured, it can be used for detecting an increasing/decreasing interest in a certain EM. In this study, non-invasive sensor technologies...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Veldkamp, F., Garcia-Faria, T. I., Witjes, V. L. et al. 2023. Validation of non-invasive sensor technologies to measure interaction with enrichment material in weaned fattening pigs. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 263, 105923.

Welfare and performance of finishing pigs on commercial farms: Associations with group size, floor space per pig and feed type

Based on data from a field survey of 85 Norwegian farms, we aimed to investigate associations of group size, floor space per pig and type of feed with selected welfare- and performance indicators in finishing pigs. On each farm, we...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & Management, Stocking DensityAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Andersen, I. L., Ocepek, M., Thingnes, S. L. et al. 2023. Welfare and performance of finishing pigs on commercial farms: Associations with group size, floor space per pig and feed type. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 265, 105979.