Publications by authors named "Heath Harper"
Article Synopsis
- Cross-fostering is a common technique in the swine industry aimed at balancing litter sizes, but there's a lack of clarity on which methods enhance piglet growth and survival rates.
- This study focused on how variations in piglet birth weights after cross-fostering affect preweaning mortality and weaning weight, utilizing different birth weight categories and litter compositions.
- Findings revealed that Light piglets had higher preweaning mortality in mixed litters, while Heavy piglets experienced greater mortality and reduced weaning weight in uniform litters; Medium piglets showed no significant differences between litter types.
Litter sizes of commercial sows have increased considerably over recent decades, and often exceed the number of functional teats on the sow. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of litter size after cross-fostering relative to sow functional teat number on piglet preweaning growth and mortality. A total of 39 litters (561 piglets) were used in a randomized complete block design; blocking factors were farrowing day and sow parity, body condition score, and functional teat number.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCross-fostering is commonly used in commercial swine production to equalize litter sizes and/or adjust piglet birth weights within litters. However, there is limited published information on optimum cross-fostering procedures. This study evaluated the effects of within-litter birth weight variation after cross-fostering (using litters of 14 piglets) on piglet preweaning mortality (PWM) and weaning weight (WW).
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