Articles - Genetics and reproduction

We can predict a sow's production based on the number of piglets born alive at first farrowing. In addition, the best sows' performance will outdo the others' continuously.

This tool allows us to model the growth of animal body tissues in vivo and to study the effect of different factors (genetics, gender, nutrition) on this growth.

This trick consists in using a spring for holding the semen bag during the insemination.

This article explains how the massive use of hormones helps synchronize heats and farrowings when workload scheduling, synchronization and production rates stability are priorities.

A strict schedule allows us to concentrate all the important events, and time periods where more attention/work is required, within the working days.

Although piglet birth weight is the most influential factor affecting piglet survival other behavioral factors such as vitality and vigor of piglets at birth contribute to the overall likelihood of the offspring surviving.

Sows inseminated with encapsulated semen had more sperm cells concentration at the site of fertilization.

Encapsulation allows to reduce the dose per sow and a sequential release of sperm.

Thanks to the combination of a decrease in the number of stillborn and an almost 30% decrease of preweaning mortality (down to 10.2%), the ultimate goal is finally achieved: to wean an additional piglet per sow.

As you probably know, the name pig333 web comes from the length of the sow's gestation, which is "3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days". This paper proposes the necessity to review the length of gestation on our farm.

These tests have several practical applications, as the detection of boars that are linked to the appearance of hernias or the susceptibility towards certain enteric diseases or even syndromes like the PFTS.

The veterinarian is called from a new established herd in Brittany because some clinical signs appear on gilts from the two first deliveries introduced in the farm.

We should be cautious when setting the number of sperm per insemination dose, so the urge to reduce it does not make us use a number that is under the fertility threshold. Something that may be productive and/or profitable for a certain farm may not be so for another farm.

The procedure is simple, quick and well tolerated by the recipient sows.

There is an unusual increase of the returns-to-oestrus at 31-39 days. The majority are due to sows previously negative to the pregnancy ultrasound testing, and the returns-to-oestrus happened before 42 days.

The farrowing interval is one of the production parameters more commonly used as an indicator of the production efficiency of a farm.

Does the complexity and expense of genomics mean that it will only be available to the major global pig breeding companies in the future? If the price of genotyping continues to reduce, it may be possible for medium and smaller size breeding companies to share funding and identify desired genotypes.

This article suggests some solutions to the main problems encountered in pregnancies with group housing.

The two main factors that make that certain farms have not been successful adapting to the animal welfare regulations are design and handling/management.

Which factors affect the WTSI? Among the factors with a biggest influence we have: inadequate intake during lactation, season of the year, and length of the lactation.

One of the greatest long-term potentials for genomic selection is to identify specific genes or genomic regions with a significant impact on pig health and to aid selection for disease resistance and/or disease tolerance.

Novel cryopreservation methods and containers are designed to increase semen cryosurvival without disturbing production of conventional liquid semen doses. This provides opportunities for gene banking and preserved fertility when inseminated deep intra uterine, alongside undisturbed commercial AI-dose production.

Small piglets with a low viability are a growing problem, and they represent one of the main causes of pre-weaning mortality.

Lameness is the second most common cause for the culling of sows.