Martínez-Macipe Míriam, Mainau Eva, Manteca Xavier, Dalmau Antoni
IRTA Veïnat de Sies S/N, 17121 Monells, Spain.
UAB, Veterinary School, Campus Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain.
Animals (Basel). 2020 May 5;10(5):798. doi: 10.3390/ani10050798.
Understanding the natural behaviour of pigs in free-range conditions facilitates interpretation of their behaviour in intensive conditions. Studying six different farms over two years at different seasons, with climatic and management variations, allowed for a general description of Iberian pig behaviour and which factors have an influence on it. The main activity found was resting (56.5% of the time observed), followed by exploratory behaviour. However, this exploratory behaviour was higher when animals were fed only with natural resources than when fed with concentrates (50% versus 17.8%, respectively). In addition, pigs used bathing areas in summer that were not visited in winter. Negative social behaviour was seen more frequently than positive social behaviour, accounting, in total, for 1% of the total activity of animals. Pigs situated at the centre of the groups tended to remain more relaxed, while the peripheral animals remained more alert and vigilant. Our results indicate that foraging behaviour accounts for a significant proportion of pigs' active time, but this proportion is much more reduced when pigs are fed concentrates. Therefore, behavioural needs in pigs reared in intensive conditions should consider that exploratory behaviour is reduced when pigs are fed with concentrates.
了解伊比利亚猪在自由放养条件下的自然行为有助于解读它们在集约化条件下的行为。在两年时间里，对六个不同的农场在不同季节进行研究，这些农场存在气候和管理方面的差异，从而得以对伊比利亚猪的行为进行总体描述，并确定哪些因素会对其产生影响。观察到的主要活动是休息（占观察时间的56.5%），其次是探索行为。然而，与仅喂食浓缩饲料相比，当动物仅以自然资源为食时，探索行为更为频繁（分别为50%和17.8%）。此外，猪在夏季会使用洗浴区，而冬季则不会前往。负面社交行为比正面社交行为更频繁出现，总计占动物总活动量的1%。位于猪群中心的猪往往更加放松，而外围的猪则保持更加警觉和警惕。我们的研究结果表明，觅食行为在猪的活动时间中占很大比例，但当猪喂食浓缩饲料时，这一比例会大幅降低。因此，在集约化条件下饲养的猪的行为需求应考虑到，当猪喂食浓缩饲料时，探索行为会减少。
