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Agriculture
Special Issues
Improvements of Reproduction and Growth Performance in Pig Farming
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Improvements of Reproduction and Growth Performance in Pig Farming

A special issue of Agriculture (ISSN 2077-0472). This special issue belongs to the section "Farm Animal Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 September 2024 | Viewed by 1347

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Pavel Nevrkla

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Animal Breeding, Faculty of AgriSciences, Mendel University in Brno, Zemedelska 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic
Interests: pig rearing technologies; pig breeding and nutrition; reproduction of sows; pig performance; welfare of pigs; meat quality
Dr. Eva Weisbauerova

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pig Breeding, Institute of Animal Science, Prague-Uhrineves, Kostelec nad Orlici, Komenskeho 1239, 517 41 Prague, Czech Republic
Interests: fatty acids; pig breeding; pig nutrition; meat quality; feed technology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Pig breeding is going through some challenges associated with intensive production, which is related to the production of feedstuff and issues of pig welfare or health, both in terms of sow breeding and pig fattening. Human work is continuing to decrease, while various minimalizing technologies and robotization are being applied. At the same time, in many countries local pig breeds are entering the field of pork production, reaching satisfying productive parameters with the potential to supplement the demand for pork meat. It needs to be emphasized that the global consumption and popularity of pork are high, which enhances the demands on the reproductive potential of sows and, at the same time, on the growth of pigs, while maintaining low feed consumption. Reproductive as well as productive performance are closely related to the genetic foundations of pigs, hybridization, housing systems, and varying feeding strategies.

This Special Issue is focused on factors that affect the reproductive and productive performances of pigs, including meat quality, such as productive strategies of farms in both conventional and organic production, the application of innovative feeding strategies, housing systems respecting the welfare of pigs, and the utilization of various breeds as well as hybrids, in a broad context, providing knowledge from different countries.

Dr. Pavel Nevrkla
Dr. Eva Weisbauerova
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agriculture is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • pig
  • growth of pigs
  • reproduction of sows
  • meat quality
  • sustainability
  • housing
  • feeding
  • innovation
  • pig hybridization
  • local production

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

14 pages, 419 KiB  
Article
Backfat Thickness at Pre-Farrowing: Indicators of Sow Reproductive Performance, Milk Yield, and Piglet Birth Weight in Smart Farm-Based Systems
by Hong-Seok Mun, Keiven Mark B. Ampode, Eddiemar B. Lagua, Veasna Chem, Hae-Rang Park, Young-Hwa Kim, Md Sharifuzzaman, Md Kamrul Hasan and Chul-Ju Yang
Agriculture 2024, 14(1), 24; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14010024 - 22 Dec 2023
Viewed by 1117
Abstract
The importance of backfat thickness in sows lies in its correlation with nutritional status, reproductive performance, and overall health. Identifying the optimum backfat thickness is crucial for determining the ideal energy reserves needed to support successful reproduction and lactation. This research aimed to [...] Read more.
The importance of backfat thickness in sows lies in its correlation with nutritional status, reproductive performance, and overall health. Identifying the optimum backfat thickness is crucial for determining the ideal energy reserves needed to support successful reproduction and lactation. This research aimed to determine optimal backfat thickness (BFT) of sows in relation to reproductive and lactation performance. In this study, 32 lactating sows were housed in a controlled environment and assigned to four groups based on their BFT before farrowing: <17.00 mm, 17.00–17.99 mm, 18.00–18.99 mm, and ≥19.00 mm. The data were analyzed with One-way analysis of variance, and the association between backfat thickness and sow reproductive performance was examined through Spearman’s correlation analysis using SAS software. The results revealed no significant difference between the groups in total born, total born alive, and litter size weaned, but the piglets’ survival rate during the lactation period is lower from sows with BFT < 17.00. Moreover, piglet birth weight and body weight at Day 3 were significantly lower in sows with BFT < 17.00 mm. The BFT of sows at weaning showed significant differences among the groups associated with the backfat thickness before farrowing. No significant difference was found in the duration of farrowing. The return-to-estrus interval was longer in sows with <17.00 mm BFT than in those with 17.00–17.99 mm, 18.00–18.99 mm, and ≥19.00 mm backfat thickness, with estrus intervals of 7.17, 6.25, 5.31, and 5 days after weaning, respectively. Numerically, calculated milk yield (MY) is lowest in sows with BFT < 17.00, and the highest MY was obtained from sows with BFT 18.00–18.99 mm. In conclusion, sows with at least 17.00 mm BFT before farrowing are ideal for increasing the lifetime productivity of sows. This study provides valuable insights into the importance of sow management during gestation for subsequent reproductive success. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Improvements of Reproduction and Growth Performance in Pig Farming)
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