A Few More Tips to Help Increase Pig Litter Size Make sure you’re considering your stocking densities and don’t overuse your boars. Young boars can be used for up to 4 consecutive services per week, while mature ones can be used for 6 services per week. The semen quality as well as the timing of insemination both need to be perfectly in line to produce adequately-sized litters. Shipping issues can sometimes be to blame. When relying on artificial insemination, check the semen as well as the techniques. The same goes for any boars if you can identify them as the problem (it usually has to do with poor semen quality). If you’re breeding a boar and a sow, make sure you are culling sows who produce small litters. When mating your sows and gilts, make sure you do it in the middle of standing estrus (about 20 hours from the beginning) and repeat after 24 hours. High ambient temperatures have been linked to reduced boar fertility and smaller litter sizes. If you can, try to breed your animals when the weather is not too hot or too cold. Low light conditions and irregular temperatures have often been linked to small litters, too. You might suspect these diseases if your piglets are born mummified or if litters are small in general.įortunately, most reproductive diseases can be prevented with vaccinations. The most common include parvovirus or PRRS.īoth can cross the placenta and infect the litter, causing piglets to die in utero or immediately upon birth. There are all kinds of reproductive diseases that can cause small litters in pigs. Heavy parasite loads often cause fertility issues in pigs and can lead to other lingering reproductive issues as well. Get your pigs on a good deworming regimen. While it can be difficult, sows that produce small litters need to be culled. Maintaining a farrowing line that is more fertile and productive can help address this issue in your herd. If you can, select gilts based on ovulation rates (which can be tough to calculate, but possible) as well as their mother’s histories. I already mentioned genetics but it’s worth mentioning again. There are a few factors to rule out when you are trying to increase the number of pigs per litter. Here are some things you can consider when you’re trying to figure out why your litters are too small.

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