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Variability in feeding behaviour of group-housed sows using electronic feeders

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

J. C. Eddison  and
N. E. Roberts
J. C. Eddison
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture and Food Studies, Seale-Hayne Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Land Use, University of Plymouth, Newton Abbot, Devon TQ12 6NQ
N. E. Roberts
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture and Food Studies, Seale-Hayne Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Land Use, University of Plymouth, Newton Abbot, Devon TQ12 6NQ
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Abstract

The feeding patterns of sows using electronic feeders were monitored automatically (via a computer interface) over a period of 15 months. This paper reports on the variability in the size of the first meal of the day in relation to total daily food intake. The results demonstrated a pattern that bears some similarity to that observed by other workers, namely that sows tend to take all their daily food allocation in a single meal. In general, sows (79%) ate most of their daily allowance in a single visit to the feeders. However, on a significant minority of occasions (21%) this was not the case. The results also showed that there was a considerable number of sows (87% of the herd) that fed in a variable pattern, i.e. considerable variation in the proportion of their daily allowance taken in a single visit. This unpredictability was found throughout the sow herd. Some, but not all of this variability could be attributed to differences between parities (P < 0·001) and also there was some evidence that some sows, when newly introduced into the herd, were more variable in behaviour than more established sows. However, a large amount of variation remains unexplained. The need to provide flexible sow management to accommodate individual behaviour is discussed. Additionally, appropriate sampling periods of considerable duration are shown to be important in describing feeding patterns of group-housed sows.

Keywords

feeding behavioursows
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Science , Volume 60 , Issue 2 , April 1995 , pp. 307 - 314
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1995

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