Piglets weaned /sow/year Today, many systems are hitting 25 pigs per sow per year, and some are on the threshold of 30 pigs per sow per year, reaching that level for weeks, and individual sows are achieving 40 pigs per sow per year, he observes. Sure, weaned pig, sow feed and liquid propane fuel costs have risen significantly. How many litters of pigs can a sow have in a year? A mature sow can have one to two litters per year.The newborn or neonatal litters in feral hogs average 4-6 piglets and can range from 1-12. Similar to the newborn litter size, the number of lactating teats per sow averages 4-6 and varies from 1-12. As such, the number of lactating teats is highly correlated with the number of piglets in the sow’s litter.Statistics show that indoor breeding herds are now weaning 25.78 pigs per sow per year on average, while outdoor herds are producing 21.74 pigs per sow annually. Good results, but closer examination of Agrosoft-derived data shows there’s still scope for improvement.
Table of Contents
How many piglets does a sow have?
A well fed sow will produce at least 10 piglets (litter) from each pregnancy and may have 2 litters each year. After studying this unit you should be able to: 1 Care for the pregnant sow. 2 Recognise when the sow is about to farrow (give birth).
What is the average number of piglets born?
Hogs are very prolific; a sow can have two litters of pigs a year. The average litter size is 7.5 pigs, and it is not uncommon for a sow to have 12-14 pigs per litter. The gestation period of a sow (from the time she is bred until she farrows) is 114 days.
What determines the number of piglets per litter?
Weight at first mating. The weight of gilts when they are first bred, and oestrus number, strongly influence first litter size, which in turn determines subsequent litter size.
How many piglets can a sow have in a lifetime?
He says on average, most sows have 3.5 to 4 litters in their lifetime. “We need to do better than that,” Stalder says, adding increasing the pigs per litter could cause structural and reproductive issues with sows.
How many piglets does a sow produce per year?
Pig farmers attempt to optimize the number of piglets per sow per year, with 30 piglets per sow per year considered to be an optimal rate of productivity. Domestic breeding sows are first bred when they are around 1 year old, and most are sent to slaughter after four litters, at around 3 years of age.
How many piglets do feral hogs have per litter?
Feral hogs have five to six piglets per litter and average 1.5 litters per year. Pig farmers average 23 piglets per year per breeding sow. Pig farmers attempt to optimize the number of piglets per sow per year, with 30 piglets per sow per year considered to be an optimal rate of productivity.
How many pigs are weaned per sow per year?
The number of pigs weaned depends on the number of PBA and preweaning mortality, whereas the number of litters per sow per year depends on non-productive days, lactation length and gestation length. Sow reproductive performance includes both fertility (e.g.: weaning-to-first-mating interval: WMI) and prolificacy (e.g. PBA).
How much does it cost to feed a pig a year?
22 pigs per sow per year = $11.82 per pig; 25 pigs per sow per year = $10.40 per pig; and 30 pigs per sow per year = $8.67 per pig. Two years ago, sow feed costs were half of that, reducing the cost/pig proportionately, he adds.
