Pregnancy and birth

A sow is pregnant for 115 days, this is called a gestating sow. This number is easy to remember: it is
exactly 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days. Two checks are made to see if the sow is pregnant: the farmer or
the vet makes an ultrasound scan after 3 weeks and after 6 weeks. A sow that is going to give birth for
the first time is called a gilt. These young sows sometimes need assistance at the birth. On average a
sow gives birth to 12 piglets each pregnancy. A sow is pregnant on average 2.3 times a year.

Baby phase
A piglet drinks its mother's milk for 28 days. A sow produces 10 litres of milk per day, which is enough to
feed all her piglets. After 1 week the piglets are also given solid feed in the form of easily digestible
pellets. After 3 weeks the sow starts producing less milk and as the growing piglets get hungrier, they are
given more pellets to eat.

Young pigs
After 4 weeks the piglets are moved to a separate pen for a period of 6 weeks. At this stage the piglets
weigh about 7 kilos. This creates more space in the farrowing house. The gilts and castrated boars are
housed in groups of 10 to 12 animals. This creates a calm, sociable atmosphere in the group. The
animals are provided with:

A heated place to rest

A full feed trough
Fresh drinking water
A separate area for dunging
Toys such as a chain, a ball or a bag

Adult phase
From a weight of about 23 kilos the pigs are transferred to the fattening or finisher farm. This may be an
entirely separate farm or a building or section on the same farm (farrow-to-finish integration). At the
fattener farm the pigs are housed in groups. Here they grow in 16 weeks to reach a weight of about 115
kilograms. Then they are sent to slaughter

A day in the life of a typical pig farmer

The morning
7:00 - 8:00

Feed sows and piglets

8:00 - 8:45

Eat breakfast with the family and take the children to school

8:45 -10:00

Check sows that aren't pregnant

- check if sows are in heat (ready to be mated)
- order semen

10:00 -12:00 Inspect pregnant sows and piglets

(check if they need more/less feed, vaccinate against sickness etc)

Meeting with colleagues to discuss allocation of tasks, matters requiring attention etc.
The afternoon
12:00 - 12:30 Inseminate sows
12:30 - 13:00 Lunch with the family
13:00 - 15:00 Clean the pens
15:00 - 16:00 Visit by farm advisor/ veterinarian
- discuss the feed strategy
- discuss how to optimise the climate in the pig houses
16:30 - 17:30 Feed sows and piglets

Update the records.

The
evening
17:30 18:30
18:30 19:00
19:00 20:00
20:00 21:00
21:00 22:00

Eat with the family

Clean the hygiene sluice

Take the children to bed and have a shower

Do computer entries and the books

Relax and watch TV

22:00 -

Final inspection of the sows in the farrowing

22:30

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