GETTING-UP AND LYING-DOWN BEHAVIORS OF LOOSE-HOUSED SOWS AND SOCIAL CONTACTS BETWEEN SOWS AND PIGLETS DURING DAY-1 AND DAY-8 AFTER PARTURITION

Twelve Danish Landrace×Yorkshire sows were housed in a loose system (262×233 cm) to farrow and on Day 1 after parturition a continuous 24-h video recording was made of each sow and litter. On Day 8, 7 of the sows were recorded in a similar manner. The lying-down and getting-up behaviour of the sows, the positions and behaviours of the piglets, the social contacts from sow to piglets and from piglets towards the sows, were examined in detail. This was to assess when the piglets were most likely to be crushed and to register social contacts which might further the development of the sow-piglet bond. On 81% of occasions on Day 1, the piglets were well away from the sow when she got up, but in 6% of the observations they were resting <0.5 m from the sow, which is a risk area. In 9% of the observations, the piglets were resting in the area where the sow lay down. Sows rooted vigorously in 79% of cases before they lay down on Day 1 and 70% on Day 8. They also moved around before lying down in 18% of occasions on Day 1 and 11% on Day 8. Sows lay down carefully on 59% of occasions on Day 1 and 88% on Day 8, and used the farrowing rail on 16% (Day 1) and 5% (Day 8) of observations. Nose contact behaviour, a deliberate contact of sows towards piglets, was evident on Day 1, but had decreased in frequency by Day 8. Only 7% of this behaviour was associated with lying down or lactating, so it was not an action of the sow ensuring that the piglets were out of the way. Naso-naso contact of the piglets towards the sow was absent on Day 1, but by Day 8 it had developed in all litters. Of 244 observations made of naso-naso contact when the sow was lying down on her side, 87 were associated with lactation. The remaining 199 contacts were made while the sow was lying on her front (141), standing (32) or sitting (26). Many of the behavioural sequences described can only occur if there is enough space and are not possible in a conventional, restricted farrowing crate. The question is raised as to how important these behaviours are for the development and welfare of the piglets. © 1990.