WelFarmers: Space allowance and flooring

The project recently identified its first round of candidates under the theme "Space allowance and flooring.” The practices range from stocking densities to kind of floor, light, or use of straw. More information about the selected practices will be included in future publications.

1. Drained flooring: Drained flooring is characterized by slot openings that make up no more than 10 percent of the total pen area. These openings allow waste to pass through, helping to maintain a cleaner, drier, and non-slip floor. Frequent discharge of the manure will result in low emissions from the slurry. Additionally, it aids in the pigs’ thermoregulation by preventing them from lying in wet areas, which is crucial for their comfort and health.

2. Feeder with shoulder separation: Using a shoulder separation to divide the feeding area improves daily gain, feed utilization, and production value per pig. These separations can be installed in various feeding systems.

3. Sprinkling system: A sprinkler system or similar device promotes good animal welfare by enabling pigs to thermoregulate optimally. It also keeps the slatted floor moist, enabling pigs to divide the pen into different functional areas and mark the dunging area.

4. Breeding future breeders by increasing available space: From arrival at 19-20 kg until departure at approximately 120 kg, the gilts are stocked at a density of 1.2 m²/sow. This results in greater animal growth and homogeneity, as well as fewer sows eliminated as unfit.

5. Comparative analysis of rearing under various scenarios: This project aims to investigate the impact on animal welfare, health, and production indexes of two homologous farms with different densities.

6. Gilts need space to grow with long tails: If you want to raise gilts with long tails, there are a few things you must take into consideration. There must be enough space in the pen so that the pigs can avoid confrontation with each other, and they must be able to eat simultaneously.

7. New and old, both works: This farm has two buildings: an old one and a new one built in 2018. However, similar results can be achieved in the old pig house, which was renovated in 1997.

8. Pens for smooth production: This pig house was renovated in 2020 to comply with legislation from one of the strictest countries.

9. Light, space comfort: This building was designed with animal welfare and environmental respect in mind. It was installed in 2018. It is a prototype. Although it was functional from the beginning, improvements have been made, such as sloping the walls and installing a straw distribution system.

10. Reducing fattening density: The practice is to reduce the density of the fattening process (entry at 27-30 kg). Compared to their original practice, farmers put one less pig in the pen (14 instead of 15 pigs), which increases the space per pig from 0.68 m² to 0.73 m² without a trough, or from 0.75 m² to 0.80 m² with a trough. Additionally, they sort the pigs frequently, starting at 150 days of age. They move at least one pig from the pen to a pre-departure room, where the pigs are fattened for one week before departing for the slaughterhouse.

11. Effect of extra space on performance: This study examines how providing extra space during the finisher period enabled pigs to maintain a high daily growth rate until sale.

12. Finisher lower stocking density: In 2020, a trial was conducted on the farm to compare the effects of different stocking rates on the average daily gain and feed conversion ratio of finisher pigs.

13. Solid flooring with extra space for finishers: This facility features solid flooring, increased space, two accessible areas for pigs, and a slurry removal system for better environmental emission control.

14. Good space allowance, microclimate and environment: This farm was built in 2016 with the goal of maximizing animal welfare, minimizing environmental impact, and reducing the use of antimicrobials.

15. Happy straw 30+: This farm exceeds the minimum EU pig welfare legislation requirements by at least 30%: 0.5 m²/head in post-weaning (up to 30 kg live weight), 1.3 m²/head in fattening pens (over 30 kg live weight), and 2.6 m²/head for sows.

16. Space for organic pigs: Organic farming started in December 2016. Both the indoor and outdoor spaces comply with EU Regulation 2018/848.

17. 1m2 pig space allowance for finishing pigs: The farmer observed significant improvements in performance, carcass quality, and animal welfare when the space allowance increased to one square meter per pig during the finishing phase.

18. Higher space allowance for 85-110kg: The pens have fully slatted flooring with wider slats to enhance the comfort of the pigs. Pigs are introduced in homogeneous groups based on sex and weight to reduce aggression and promote socialization. This approach maintains a peaceful environment and supports animal welfare.

19. Increase space allowance in the fattening pens: The farmer identified an opportunity to address the issue of high summer temperatures without investing in significant structural changes. The farm aimed to mitigate the heat stress that pigs were experiencing, particularly during the hottest months, by increasing the space allowance per pig.

20. Backyard indoor with straw and outdoor access: All animals are kept on full flooring with straw bedding in the indoor area and have access to an outdoor paddock. The animals are free to choose between the indoor and outdoor areas.

21. Porc relaxat: Starting in 2021, increased animal welfare measures were implemented by reducing growth density to ensure 0.7475 m² per head. This improved the pigs’ welfare by reducing aggression, increasing average daily gain, and improving the feed conversion rate.

22. Use of absorbent material and sufficient space: This company provides 0.8 m² per pig from 30 to 110 kg until delivery to the slaughterhouse. Absorbent material is used to ensure the fattening pens are dry. Calcium carbonate is used for this purpose, with a quantity of 50 g/m² applied at least twice per week.