Farm Animal Livestock Accommodation and Maintenance.
Indoor farrowing system
– Accommodation requirements of the sows and piglets
Pigs should be provided with dry substrate, ideally straw. They should be given the correct food in the correct amount; there also should be easily accessible water for the pigs. The pen area should be clean, hygienic and safe. The area where the sow gives birth to her piglets is named a farrowing crate. A farrowing crate is a box that is movement restricting to the sow, but it reduces the change of her accidently crushing the piglets. The piglets will be drawn into an area called a creep when not suckling. The creep contains heat lamps with food for the piglets.
– Health and Safety.
• Transport
• Machinery and equipment
• Preventing falls and working at a height
• Child and public safety
• Heath problems including manual handing, dust and noise
• Using chemicals, pesticides and veterinary medicines safely
• PPE
Solutions:
• Give instructions and train workers in safe and efficient handling. Doing this will help reduce risks to the workers as they will better understand how to manage the pigs and remain safe while doing so. If workers have not been instructed clearly and safely, they should keep away from the pigs to avoid possible damage to themselves, another worker or the pigs.
• Ensure pigs are always watched and avoid facing away from the pigs. In case a pig decided to bite or attack a worker, the pigs should always be watched. If turning away from the pigs it should be in a location where the worker is unable to be hurt by the pigs.
• The design and the layout of buildings and facilities are important. In the buildings, there should be fire escapes and fire extinguisher and blankets in case of fire. It should be easy to navigate and exit in case of emergency and be suitable for the habitation of the animals and for the worker’s jobs. This would require secure buildings, fixtures and fittings that are well maintained and easily accessible if required.
• Ensure an escape route in all buildings and areas. Workers should have easily accessible escape routes when working with the pigs in case sows or boars become agitated or attack. There must also be fire exits placed so they can be accessed in event of a fire.
• Ensure the sow is either restrained or segregated away from her piglets when working with them. Due to the sows’ maternal nature, sows should be kept in a separate area, or contained when a worker is interacting with them for the worker’s safety. As sows are protective of their piglets they may attempt to attack the worker if they feel the worker is a danger to their piglets.
• Use pig boards to herd and move the pigs around. Pig boards ensure it is harder for the pigs or piglets to move past when trying to herd them. These should be used when herding in case of potential attempts of attacking the worker. The boards should be held down low to block access to, and past, the legs. This will help prevent any injuries, such as biting.
• Hold young pigs by the hind legs and support their chest when lifting them up. This means the pig cannot kick out at the worker, avoiding injuring the worker. The chest should be supported to reduce stress for the pig and to avoid the possibly of it damaging itself.
• Pig over 12kg should not be lifted by workers; this is to avoid possible damage to the worker are the pig may try and kick out or it may struggle, possibly injuring the worker. CON
• Boars should be able to hear, see and smell other pigs as it keeps them calmer
• Reducing the size of the boar tusk, this makes it safer for the workers and other pigs they may interact with. If the boar had larger horns they could harm the workers or other pigs; therefore if you reduce the size of the tusks it will reduce the harm that could occur if attacked.
• Avoid OHPL or reduce contact
• Do not lift anything over tractor or loader height within 10m horizontal of OHPL
• Put RCDs over outlets/switches/light fittings
• Use water resistant outlets/switches/light fittings
• Have them checked every 3-5 years (fixed) or 6-12 months (portable)
• Ensure machinery is correctly maintained and receives regular services (keep record)
• All staff are trained and hold a certificate of competence
• Users supplied with correct PPE
• Ensure tractor operators know the key elements of safe working on slopes
– PPE needed.
• PPE is needed on always while working, for the workers’ safety and the biosecurity of the animals. This PPE should include:
• Hard hats, these are to be used to help protect against falling objects and so should be used to avoid damage to the head of the workers. These should be worn in areas where there are objects that could fall on top of the worker’s heads. The helmets must be checked often to ensure there is no form of damage to the helmet. Damage may include cracks, splitting, indentation or breaking. If the helmet does break it should be replaced with a safe one or be fixed.
• Steel toed boots, this is in case a worker may have their foot stepped on by a sow or a piglet if they are moving them. Though a piglet may not do much damage, a sow could do large amounts of damage to the toe. Wearing steel toes could prevent damage to that area of toe.
• Overalls, the purpose of overalls is to protecting the biosecurity of the pigs and other animals. As the overalls are not to be worn externally of the compound this will protect the pigs from external illnesses that could affect them as well as protecting external animals from diseases and humans from zoonotic diseases.
• Gloves will help in protecting the worker from biting or other damages that could occur. The gloves will also help in stopping large amounts of germs transferring onto the worker; they can also help by reducing the likelihood of catching or transferring a disease.
– Brief overview of Current relevant welfare legislation / codes of practice, including the five needs.
The five needs are the fundamental basics for the welfare of animals. All animals and livestock owners must function within these requirements: Need for a suitable environment;
Need for a suitable diet; Need to be able to exhibit normal behaviour patterns; Need to be housed with, or apart, from other animals; Need to be protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease. These laws must be abided by to keep the business operating; failure to comply with the laws can see the business being prosecuted.
– Systems for removal of pig wastes
There are many different systems that can be used to remove pigwaste, a system should be chosen that best suits the environment, the budget and the amount of waste produced.
• Manure share involves giving manure to other farmers for use on fields. This works well because it allows for manure to be removed without having to make it into sludge or dispose of it in unsanitary ways. It helps other farmers as it means they do not need to put fertilizer on their crops and helps the pig farmers as it rids the farm of the excrement. This system would work better for smaller farms as they do not produce large amounts of excess manure.
• Composting is a way to remove waste, the slurry or the separated solid of manure can, if mixed with carbon, be composted. The compost made is sellable and can help in generating money.
• Aerobic Treatment involves bubbling either air or oxygen through the manure slurry, this is done so by either mixing the slurry, or by pumping the air into the slurry. Usually pre-treatment will be used, but not treated during or after. Odour can be reducing by making the breakdown of volatile fatty acids more efficient. The slurry will be stored inside the ground.
• The aerobic cap treatment is extremely similar to aerobic treatment with the main difference being that only the upper layer of the slurry has air passed through it. This prevents the odour being realised at the surface while the rest of it is trapped underneath.
– Minimising stress to sows and piglets
There are multiple was you can minimise stress to sows and their piglets; one of these ways is that there should be quite a high light density inside pens.
There should be space for sows and piglets to move around and not be kept in a single location.
Enrichment may help reduce stress to sows and piglets; providing hay will allow sows to build nests for her piglets, as well as this it allows for CON
Piglets should be weaned after 28 days otherwise the piglets and the sows will become highly stressed.
Flooring should not be slippery as this prevents pigs from slipping when walking from one place to another, but it should be smooth to help prevent damage to hooves of pigs or their legs.
Outdoor farrowing system
– Accommodation requirements of the sows and piglets
The sow should give birth in an arch outdoors, inside she will create a nest for her piglets, this will help keep them warm. The sow will provide her piglets with milk when the suckle her.
– Health and Safety.
– PPE needed.
PPE is to be worn at all times while on site, it should be worn for the safety of workers, people and other fauna:
Hard hat are used to help protect against falling objects and help to avoid damage to the head of the workers. These should be worn particularly in areas where there are objects that could possibly fall on top of the worker’s heads. The helmets must be checked often to ensure there is no damage to the helmet so it will continue to provide protection to the wearer. Types of damage may include such things as cracks, splitting, indentation or breaking. If the helmet does happen to break, it should be replaced with a safe one or be fixed.
Steel toed boots; if a worker has their foot stepped on by a sow or a piglet, steel toed boots will help protect against damage. Though a piglet may not do much damage, a sow could do large amounts of damage to the toe.
Overalls, the purpose of overalls is to protecting the biosecurity of the pigs and other animals. Overalls are not to be worn externally of the compound and so this will protect the pigs from external illnesses that could affect them, not only this but it also helps by protecting external animals from diseases and humans from zoonotic diseases.
Gloves should be worn to reduce the possibly of transfer of diseases as well as reducing spread of germs. Gloves also protect against such attacks as biting of a worker.
– Brief overview of Current relevant welfare legislation / codes of practice, including the five needs.
The five needs are primary rules set for the welfare of animals. Companies must work win in the law to be able to operate, these are: Need for a suitable environment; Need for a suitable diet; Need to be able to exhibit normal behaviour patterns; Need to be housed with, or apart, from other animals; Need to be protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease.
– Systems for removal of pig wastes
There are several ways you can remove pig waste, it is best to decide on a system while considering the geography, expense and complexity of the system.
• Anaerobic Treatment involves transforming multiple insoluble materials into soluble materials. From the transformed materials volatile fatty acids are formed, to stop these from creating odour they are then transformed into biogas.
• Artificial Wetlands are created by pouring separated slurry liquid into a system containing multiple shallow ponds. Pond plants are placed inside the ponds as they consume the nutrients from the liquid slurry. The water left over can then be put into a stream, made use of or evaporated.
• One method involves putting pig excrement into fish ponds. The nutrients inside the manure provide nutrients for fish and algae that inhabit the pond; this can post a potential health risk if people were to eat the fish however.
• Evaporation can be used to remove water from manure, the manure is heated, and as it is heated the water will begin to be evaporated till it disappears. The manure can then be disposed of in other ways.
– Minimising stress to sows and piglets
Stress to sows and piglets can be reduced in multiple ways:
One of these ways is to only handle the piglets if necessary,
Task 2
Indoor farrowing systems
Advantages
Pigs in indoor farrowing systems are in a controlled environment allowing them to be health checked easily; any pigs seen with problems can be removed for examination. The environment of the pigs is also controlled; this means they can have normal ventilation and light, but be sheltered from the elements. Pigs in indoor farrowing systems can also be moved about easily, instead of having to follow and guide them across fields, they only need to go a short distance. Another advantage is that sows are unlikely unable to crush their piglets as there are methods to separate the sow and her piglets while they remain in the same pen. As the pigs are contained it is easier for the farmer and workers to watch the pigs and try and prevent any problems from occurring.
Disadvantages
Pigs in indoor farrowing systems are usually unable to exhibit natural behaviour such as foraging for food or creating a nest before giving birth. The problem with this is that it may cause stereotypical behaviour; this is seen in some pigs that are kept indoors. Stereotypical behaviour isn’t seen as commonly in indoor farrowing systems that allow the pigs to free roam; some examples of stereotypical behaviour in pigs are belly-nosing and tail-biting. While some stereotypical behaviour is harmless, like belly-nosing, others are not; tail-biting is the example that was given, this is problematic as it can lead to infections or other such illnesses. To move onto the next point, illnesses can be passed quicker to the fact the pigs are in a smaller confined area. Running an indoor farrowing area is expensive due to additional costs such as food, heating and substrate.
Outdoor farrowing systems
Advantages
Pigs in outdoor systems can live in more naturalistic environments, this is useful as it allows them to live more naturally and exhibit more naturalistic behaviours. Examples of these behaviours are things like foraging for food and building a nest for her piglets before giving birth. Due to being able to exhibit natural behaviours as it makes the pigs happier and stops stereotypical behaviour from occurring. CON
Disadvantages
Pigs that live in outdoor systems have both good and bad points, an example of a negative point is how widespread the area is where sows and piglets are kept; the problem with this is how it can be somewhat difficult to track the pigs if they are needed to be found quickly. In connection with this is if the pigs or piglets are sick or hurt it may be harder to help them or move them if it is necessary to do so. Another negative point of outdoor farrowing systems is that it is harder to interact with the piglets when doing such activities as weighing them or checking them. Though it is possible to lead the sows away from their piglets, if she believes they are under threat she will likely attack the worker that is handling them. One problem that may occur is that the pigs will dig us the ground as the forage for food. The problem with this is it makes it harder for the land to grow back. To stop the mass digging up from occurring some farmers may put nose rings on the pigs; however, this means the pigs are restricted in what they can do.
Schedules
Both types of farrowing systems demand laborious work to maintain the correct standards for the pigs.
Task 3
While both indoor and outdoor farrowing have negative and positive points, there are points the make one system more suitable then the other one. While indoor farrowing is more expensive, it allows for the workers with watch the sows and piglets closely; on the other hand, while outdoor farrowing is more realistic and provides more stimuli, it will be harder to monitor the piglets and come to their aid if necessary.
The indoor farrowing system is more efficient and effective then the outdoor system. There are multiple reasons to this belief, the first of these reasons being it is safer for the piglets. If born outside there is a higher chance of the sow sitting on and accidently crushing her piglets, however, indoors this is not the case as the farrowing crate helps reduce mortalities as it restrains the movement of the sow. As there are lesser mortalities there are more piglets that survive. Indoor farrowing systems allow for easier access to the sow and her piglets if necessary, be it for just checking their health and wellbeing to getting medical attention for the sow. If sows and piglets are indoors you can monitor their daily intake of food unlike if they are outdoors. You can feel sows the specific amount as well as for the piglets.