A family system in enriched pens as a novel method of pig housing (1981)

Stolba, A.

Abstract

A housing system for pig families in enriched pens was designed taking into account the ethological requirements for pig housing previously researched by observing pigs in a semi-natural enclosure. Each pen is composed of nesting, activity and rooting areas and includes a corridor connecting neighbouring pens. The main substrate is straw. Preliminary results on behaviour, growth, reproduction, feeding levels and management procedures are given for the first year of running the family system. The study shows what basic ethological research in domestic animals can contribute to the applied design of housing conditions appropriate to a species's behaviour.