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R. MOODY, . ROYER’S FARM GLENN M. STAHLMAN TAP ENTERPRISES INC. TRI-STATE MARINE
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3 Walnut Lane R.D. #1 Cumberland, Md. 21502 Fleetwood, Pa. 19522 Route2s6
ewton, P- 45089 xk Winfield, Pa. 17889 Phone 301-777-0582 Phone2ls-929-2884 Deale, Md. 20751
e 412-87. jBO4 Phone 717-837-3201 Phone 301-867-1447
Reproductive efficiency key in swine breeding
By JOANNE SPAHR
■ LANCASTER - The
purebred swine industry
needs to put more emphasis
on reproductive efficiency
and must base its selection
of stock on good sow lines,
says Dwight Younkin, Penn
State Extension swine
specialist. Speaking to a
gathering of hog growers at
file recent Lancaster County
swine day, > Younkin made
the point that while the swine
industry has taken great
strides in improving carcass
characteristics in recent
years, it has stood still or
possibly regressed in the
area of reproductive ef
ficiency.
“In this area, the swine
industry hasn’t changed
much over the past 30
years,” exclaimed Younkin.
“We just haven’t put the
emphasis on really selecting
for reproductive efficiency.”
To stress his point, he
showed the group a sale
catalogue. Typically, it
contained herd sire
references but no dam
references.
“The purebred industry
must put much more em
phasis on this,” he stated
firmly.
Characteristics which
Younkin advised the group
to look for in sow lines are
easy breeding, early sexual
maturity, easy farrowing
ability, good dispositions,
easy adaptation to en
vironment, good underline,
and good underpinning.
“Your replacement gilts
should come from this type
of sow line,” he stated.
Good management "of
replacement gilts is also
important to reproductive
efficiency, he said. To
emphasize early sexual
maturity, Younkin
suggested taking the gilts off
growing/finishing units at
five to five-and-a-half
months of age and putting
them in a pen beside a boar.
Within 10 days to two weeks
after they have been exposed
to the boar, they should
cycle. Those that don’t
should be culled.
( “Twenty per cent of the
gilts you raise in your
lifetime won’t settle - and
those don’t cycle. So, if these
young gilts don’t cycle
within the two week period,
cull them,” Younkin ad
vised.
He also suggested limiting
feed and trying to get the
females bred at ap
proximately eight months of
age or about the time they
have their third cycle.
According to Younkin, one
of the main problems in
breeding efficiency is
mismanagement of boars.
“Not enough boar power is
the problem,” he stated.
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R.D. #3, Box 409 Route 213 and 544 Cogan Station, Pa. 17728
Altoona, Pa. 16601 Chestertown. Md. 21620 Phone 717-435-2921
Phone 814-944-6045 Phone 301-778-4454
His advice to the hog
growers is to get a good
aggressive boar, and not to
always look for the biggest
boar available, since that
animal could be the slowest
sexually maturing.
Other traits to look for in
the male animal are a good
underline and good un
derpinning.
Continuing on the topic of
boars, Younkin told the
group, “I’d like to see more
information on sow
references for reproduction -
- get all the records you can
on the boar.”
As far as management of
the male is concerned,
Younkin advised the group
to buy boars at six months of
age, take them home, get
them adapted to the new
environment, and then try
them out.
“Start mating him at
seven to eight months of age
and make Sure he mates
properly,” notes Younklin,
adding that checking the
animal before he is needed is
one way to find out if he has
problems with his
reproductive tract.
Management of the
breeding herd is also a key
factor in reproductive ef
ficiency.
“One problem is that not
enough time is spent with the
breeding herd,” Younkin
told his audience. “I tell
Dwight Younkin
many breeders that they
should spend as much time
with their breeding herd as
they do in their farrowing
house.” Explaining this
further, Younkin pointed out
that each gilt and boar is an
individual that operates
differently, and each
producer should know the
various animals for better
management.
Therefore, daily ob
servation, hand mating, and
record keeping are all im
portant to proper handling of
the breeding herd.
“Anyone with any number
of sows should have a
breeding center where the
environment is conducive
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 4,1978
for the job to get done,”
stated Younkin. This area
should be comfortable for
both the sow and farmer.
Younkin also stated to the
group that anyone with a
good size number of spws
should have an ultrasonic
pregnancy checker which
research has found to be 96
to 98 per cent accurate.
“They’re not that ex
pensive,” he said, “and,
they’re pretty accurate.”
According to Younkin,
there is no one particular
type of sow confinement
which is better than another.
The main ingredient is
management, so he told the
group to choose the system
which is best for them in the
case of housing and feeding.
However, there are a few
basics which should be
followed.
In tight quarters, each
individual sow must have a
minimum of 16 square feet of
space, must have water, and
should have a warm spot out
of the draft to prevent
stacking up.
In Summer the breeding
herd should be kept cool,
especially in the case of
boars since they can become
sterile for a period of weeks
if they become too hot.
“In late July, August and
September we typically find
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a low conception rate,’
noted Younkin.
Sows should also be kept
cool up to three weeks aftei
cycling.
For disease control
Younkin advised the
audience to subject one
segment of the breeding
herd to the total breeding
herd so that they can ex
change organisms and build
up immunities.
“It takes two or three
weeks for sows to build up
immunities after they have
contact,” explained
Younkin, “so all this shoulc
be done three weeks ahead of
time.”
To conclude his presen
tation, Younkin again ad
vised the group to keep
better records and to base
the selection of the herd on
good sow lines.
) have a
nice weekend...
.remember to say thank you
AGRI-BUILDER
Stale.
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