Barington Kristiane, Hansen Marie Høy, Andersen Amanda Bastian, Pedersen Ken Steen, Larsen Inge
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ridebanevej 3, Frederiksberg C, 1870, Denmark.
Porcine Health Manag. 2024 Dec 20;10(1):61. doi: 10.1186/s40813-024-00413-6.
Umbilical lesions in pigs have a negative impact on animal welfare and productivity. It has been suggested that lifting young piglets by one hind leg may be a risk factor for developing omphalitis and umbilical hernia. However, the hypothesis that lifting piglets by one hind leg should stretch the umbilical wall and impede the healing of the umbilicus has not yet been investigated. The present study examined if piglets caught, lifted, and carried by one hind leg have an increased risk of developing lesions in the umbilicus and the hind legs compared to piglets caught, lifted, and carried with support under the abdomen.
In a commercial indoor sow herd, 1901 piglets were randomly allocated into two groups on the day of birth. Piglets in Group 1 (986 piglets) were caught, lifted, and carried by one hind leg (either left or right, as the same leg was not necessarily used each time). Piglets in Group 2 (915 piglets), were caught, lifted, and carried with support under the abdomen. All piglets were lifted 8-10 times during the first 14 days of life as a part of routine management procedures. From each group, 50 female piglets, 14 days old, were randomly selected and euthanised for necropsy and histopathological evaluation.
The risk of having haemosiderophages in the umbilicus was 1.4 times higher in piglets caught, lifted, and carried by one hind leg compared to piglets caught, lifted, and carried with support under the abdomen (p = 0.01). No other variable differed significantly between the groups. Omphalitis was present in 68% and 58% of piglets in Groups 1 and 2, respectively. Moreover, umbilical herniation was present in 14% and 12% of piglets in Groups 1 and 2, respectively. Lesions were present in the hind legs of piglets in both groups and included synovial hyperplasia, neutrophilic granulocyte infiltration, oedema, and haemorrhage.
Female piglets caught, lifted, and carried by one hind leg did not have an increased risk of umbilical hernia, omphalitis, or joint lesions compared to piglets caught, lifted, and carried with support under the abdomen.
仔猪脐部病变会对动物福利和生产力产生负面影响。有人提出，单提一条后腿提起仔猪可能是发生脐炎和脐疝的一个风险因素。然而，单提一条后腿提起仔猪会拉伸脐壁并阻碍脐部愈合这一假设尚未得到研究。本研究探讨了与在腹部支撑下抓捕、提起和搬运的仔猪相比，单提一条后腿抓捕、提起和搬运的仔猪脐部和后腿发生病变的风险是否增加。
在一个商业化室内母猪群中，1901头仔猪在出生当天被随机分为两组。第1组（986头仔猪）单提一条后腿（左或右，每次不一定使用同一条腿）抓捕、提起和搬运。第2组（915头仔猪）在腹部支撑下抓捕、提起和搬运。作为常规管理程序的一部分，所有仔猪在出生后的前14天内被提起8 - 10次。从每组中随机选取50头14日龄的雌性仔猪，实施安乐死后进行尸检和组织病理学评估。
与在腹部支撑下抓捕、提起和搬运的仔猪相比，单提一条后腿抓捕、提起和搬运的仔猪脐部出现含铁血黄素巨噬细胞的风险高1.4倍（p = 0.01）。两组之间的其他变量无显著差异。第1组和第2组分别有68%和58%的仔猪出现脐炎。此外，第1组和第2组分别有14%和12%的仔猪出现脐疝。两组仔猪的后腿均出现病变，包括滑膜增生、中性粒细胞浸润、水肿和出血。
与在腹部支撑下抓捕、提起和搬运的仔猪相比，单提一条后腿抓捕、提起和搬运的雌性仔猪发生脐疝、脐炎或关节病变的风险并未增加。
