JOHN GADD ▶▶▶ Moving pigs S


trange, isn’t it, that one of the most commonest jobs on the pig farm – moving them – is covered poorly in the textbooks, while that of transporting them during the shipping process has received ample attention by researchers Grandin, Peders-


en, Gonyou, McGlone and others. In this area stress affects meat quali- ty at slaughter and is bad for the processor, the consumer, the pigs themselves and of course the stockpersons.


Recalcitrant pigs There is nothing more frustrating than a recalcitrant pig! I first encoun- tered the problems of re-allocating space and comfort for our 1,100 sows 50 years ago, and learned a lot about the logistics of it all. With a farm with that number of sows, each move was a logistical exercise and I learned a lot. So let us have a look at some of the advice obtained for a large unit, which is just as applicable to much smaller ones.


Two types of pigs, behaviourally You don’t need me to tell you that there are two types of pigs genetically. To make handling easier, different techniques are advised.


Nervous pigs These will be calmed somewhat by daily movement among them. Keep moving at walking pace to accustom such pigs to flow round you and past you. Around 20 seconds to a minute a day for 50 pigs; not all the time necessarily, but this I found useful for a few days prior to ship- ping. It helps, too, if the more nervy strains in adjacent pens can see


you doing so. Putting-by a little time to do this, and observing as you go, needs to be part of our stockmanship skills these days. And with the growing trend for keeping sows in groups – is now essential.


Docile pigs In contrast one should not spend too much time in among such pigs, as this could make them so tame that they resent being driven. Inspect them over the pen wall as far as possible, entering when a closer look is deemed advisable.


Some advice from the pig barn Alleyways should be at least 1 metre wide. This allows two pigs to walk side by side. No pig chooses to be the leader when entering new sur- roundings. But two pigs together give each other confidence and some competition in curiosity, if one alone is allowed to be curious this holds things up. If the passage is narrower than this, don’t over-crowd, and three pigs at a time is best. But big units will laugh at this, not surprisingly. Try not to stockpile pigs in an aisle well before driving – this really gets them stirred-up/nervous that something is about to happen. Calm pigs are easier travellers.


Well-known for his writing on pigs


across 38 years, John Gadd has writ- ten over 2,600 articles and pa- pers. His speciality is the cost-effectiveness of pig technology. Prior to be- coming an inde- pendent writer and consultant, he had a long ca- reer in the British pig industry, from being stockman to chief pig advi- sor.


10 ▶ PIG PROGRESS | Volume 34, No. 6, 2018


Drafting and sorting Keep things calm, move slowly, never use electric prods, or slap with sticks, shout and bang gates. Stirred-up pigs will stick together for comfort and be more difficult to separate. The sorting board remains the simplest and best device when pigs have to be sorted or just moved, as was shown in research by John McGlone. When exiting a building, pigs do not like air blowing on to their faces, so stop the ventilation for a while or pressurise the system so that the airflow rides with them. Pigs are hesitant to exit a barn from a dark surface across a distinctly lighter one – such as a narrow threshold bar or a puddle reflecting light. Conversely, entering a building causes hes- itancy in most animals; pigs especially don’t like entering an obscured area, so always light the entrance room well – this was shown in research by Temple Grandin.


Natural reluctance to leave a familiar environment To avoid that natural reluctance in pigs forced to leave a familiar envi- ronment, attach a temporary 5 m of stout plywood to the pens near the door. This will prevent the pigs’ desire to ‘fraternise’ on their way out and hold things up. Avoid having anyone visible ahead of the batch, such as a truck driver ‘being helpful’ and standing by the vehicle ramp. He is a distraction and can even be considered by the pigs as a threat. In fact he is a biose curity risk and should stay in the cab, as you don’t know where he has been beforehand.


Next time I shall provide some diagrams which reduce and can even eliminate ‘jamming’ at the loading/treatment ramps.


What the textbooks don’t tell you about...


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