The main priorities for newborn piglets are to maintain their body temperature and ensure they consume enough colostrum as soon as possible. For piglets up to 3 days old, conduct regular checks to prevent them from being crushed by the sow.
1 Colostrum management
1.1 After piglets are born, help them consume enough colostrum as soon as possible, and mark all piglets that have suckled colostrum.
1.2 For piglets with low body weight, poor vitality, or splayed legs that are worth rearing but cannot suckle colostrum on their own, assist them with colostrum. When the sow is calm or letting down milk, use a cup or container to collect colostrum by hand (as when milking a cow). Draw the colostrum into a disposable syringe and slowly inject it into the piglet’s mouth. Colostrum that has been collected may only be fed to piglets in this unit; feeding colostrum across buildings is prohibited.
1.3 Piglets weighing 0.5 kilograms need at least 15 milliliters of colostrum per feeding; piglets weighing 1 kilograms need at least 30 milliliters per feeding. Feed at least 3 times, with an interval of 1 hours between feedings.
1.4 Sow teat milk yield: front teats ≥ middle teats ≥ rear teats. Piglets will establish teat attachment 2-3 days after birth. Teat attachment should primarily be determined by the piglets’ own selection, with individual adjustments as needed. Assigning low-weight piglets to front teats or the middle area helps them survive; assigning heavier piglets to rear teats helps stimulate milk production in the sow.
2 Split-suckling (when necessary):When the number of piglets born exceeds the number of functional teats, split-suckle the piglets. Select the 2 largest piglets (to stimulate milk letdown) and the 6 smallest piglets to remain in the sow’s pen, and confine the remaining piglets. After one hour, release all the piglets. Do this once each morning and once each afternoon. Once the piglets have received enough colostrum (at least 300 milliliters; this generally takes 12 hours), foster the piglets after the breeding animals have been identified with ear notches, ear tags, ear holes, or other identifiers. As a general rule, piglets less than 12 hours old should not be fostered.
3 Insulation
3.1 During the cold winter season, when sows are farrowing, a heat lamp can be hung over the sow’s hindquarters depending on the pigs’ condition, and removed after farrowing is complete. If the temperature inside the barn is low, hang an additional heat lamp over the piglet area opposite the warming box for piglets within 3 days of age to ensure they receive the required temperature. After 3 days of age, remove it promptly as appropriate.
3.2 For piglets within 7 days of age, keep the floor in the piglet area of the pen as dry as possible. If it is damp, clean up the manure promptly and spread drying powder in the piglet area.
3.3 Observe the piglets’ lying and sleeping positions to determine whether the temperature in the warming area is suitable. If the piglets are lying evenly inside the warming box, the temperature is suitable. If they huddle together or most of them lie pressed against the sow, the temperature is low. If all the piglets lie outside the warming box, the temperature is too high. Address any abnormal conditions promptly to provide the piglets with a warm, suitable microclimate.
4Anti-crushing:For piglets within 3 days of birth, take measures to prevent crushing. While the sow is standing and eating, staff should continuously walk around the housing area and inspect it, promptly moving piglets from the lying area of the sow’s stall to the piglet area to prevent them from being too close to the sow and being stepped on or crushed. After the sow finishes eating and lies down, there is a high risk of newborn piglets being injured or crushed to death. When piglets make unusual noises, staff should quickly go to the stall where the sound came from and check. If a piglet is trapped or stepped on, quickly get the sow to stand up and rescue the piglet.