Inclusion of grass/clover silage in the diet of growing/finishing pigs – Influence on pig time budgets and social behaviour

This study investigated how inclusion of grass/clover silage affected the time budgets and social behaviour of growing/finishing pigs. The behaviour of 128 pigs was observed through video recordings. Pigs fed intact or chopped silage spent a larger proportion of their time active compared with pigs...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Acta agriculturae Scandinavica. Section A, Animal science Animal science, 2013-06, Vol.63 (2), p.84-92
Main Authors: Presto, M, Rundgren, M, Wallenbeck, A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Budgets
diet
finishing
Grasses
Hogs
roughage
silage
social behavior
social interactions
Swine
swine feeding
time budget
wounds
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Summary:This study investigated how inclusion of grass/clover silage affected the time budgets and social behaviour of growing/finishing pigs. The behaviour of 128 pigs was observed through video recordings. Pigs fed intact or chopped silage spent a larger proportion of their time active compared with pigs fed silage in pelleted form or fed only cereal-based feed. There was a trend for pigs fed silage in pelleted form or fed only cereal-based feed to respond strongly to social interactions more often than pigs fed intact or chopped silage, irrespective of initial performing pig behaviour. Pigs in groups fed intact silage had a lower number of wounds from violent social interactions on their bodies. Thus, additional provision of silage in an environment enriched with straw can further improve pig welfare.
ISSN:1651-1972
0906-4702
1651-1972
DOI:10.1080/09064702.2013.793734