Chou Jen-Yun, Parsons Thomas D
Swine Teaching and Research Center, Department of Clinical Studies-New Bolton Center, School of Veterinary Medicine-University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
Front Vet Sci. 2022 Aug 23;9:903822. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.903822. eCollection 2022.
Breeder animals are an important focus in farm animal welfare assessments as they typically live the longest lives and are at the greatest risk for suffering due to their longevity. For breeding pigs, the time between the end of lactation (post-weaning) and the implantation of embryos (early gestation) is very dynamic from both a physiological and husbandry perspective. However, research to date is limited on how best to house and manage sows during this critical period of their production cycle from a welfare perspective. Previous animal-based welfare outcome measures were restricted to certain health, behavioral and physiological indicators. This systematic review used Web of Science to make in-depth comparisons among welfare-based studies that focus on sow housing during the post-weaning and early pregnancy period to identify important knowledge gaps. Only a small number of studies ( = 27) were found that met our systematic search criteria. Compared to stalls, group housing requires mixing of animals and always triggers more aggression and skin lesions at the time of mixing. The predominant use of health and physiological indicators constrained the animal-based welfare outcomes in these studies. Thus, what type of housing yields the best overall welfare outcome remains to be elucidated as none of the studies found explored the mental wellbeing of sows during this period. This systematic review defines a critical knowledge gap regarding the full impact of housing on the welfare of post-weaning and early gestation sows. This gap, and thus the true welfare impact of sow housing, will only be addressed by the use of novel, more holistic assessment methods that also capture the psychological state of the sow.
种畜是农场动物福利评估的一个重要关注点，因为它们通常寿命最长，且由于寿命长而遭受痛苦的风险最大。对于种猪而言，从生理和饲养角度来看，泌乳结束（断奶后）至胚胎着床（妊娠早期）之间的这段时间变化很大。然而，从福利角度来看，迄今为止关于在母猪生产周期的这一关键时期如何最好地饲养和管理母猪的研究有限。以往基于动物的福利结果衡量指标仅限于某些健康、行为和生理指标。本系统评价利用科学网对关注断奶后和妊娠早期母猪饲养的福利研究进行深入比较，以确定重要的知识空白。仅发现少数（n = 27）研究符合我们的系统检索标准。与限位栏相比，群养需要将动物混养，在混养时总会引发更多攻击行为和皮肤损伤。这些研究中健康和生理指标的大量使用限制了基于动物的福利结果。因此，由于所发现的研究均未探讨这一时期母猪的心理健康状况，哪种饲养方式能产生最佳的整体福利结果仍有待阐明。本系统评价明确了关于饲养方式对断奶后和妊娠早期母猪福利的全面影响的关键知识空白。只有通过使用新颖、更全面的评估方法（这些方法还能捕捉母猪的心理状态），才能解决这一空白，进而解决母猪饲养方式对福利的真正影响问题。
