During a 4-year (2007–2010) survey, the presence of Brucella suis infection in domestic pigs in Sardinia was investigated. Serum samples were collected from breeding pigs located on 108 commercial farms with documented reproductive problems and analysed using the Rose Bengal (RBT) and complement fixation (CFT) tests for screening and confirmation of Brucella, respectively. Of the 1251 serum samples analysed by RBT, 406 sera, originating from 36 farms, were positive for B. suis. CFT was positive in 292/748 sera analysed, confirming positivity in all 36 pig herds. Pigs with international complement fixation test units per ml (ICFTU/ml) values ⩾160 were slaughtered, and their organs collected for bacteriological examination and testing by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Brucella spp. strains were isolated in culture from 13/502 organs analysed, and subsequently identified as B. suis biovar 2. PCR detected positivity to Brucella spp. in 19/285 organs analysed. These results confirm the presence and emergence of B. suis infection in domestic pigs in Sardinia.

Linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH), a deficiency in enamel formation visible on mammal tooth crowns, can be used as a retrospective indicator of physiological stress and developmental health in humans and animals. In this first study, for north-western Europe, the condition has been recorded from prehistoric (mesolithic) and recent populations of wild boar, and from domestic pigs belonging to early farming (neolithic) communities. It was possible to show that LEH occurs in recent and ancient populations of wild boar from north-west Europe, and that the occurrence of the condition can be explained by the same events within the animal's life (birth, weaning, winter starvation) as has been previously suggested for archaeological domestic pig samples. The frequency of LEH is consistently low within all ancient and recent populations of wild boar studied, a remarkable observation given the pronounced differences in the living conditions of these two diachronically well-separated groups, mainly linked with the increasing human pressure on recent populations of wild animals. Early domestic samples generally show high LEH frequencies, although considerable variation exists between the samples. It is suggested that these high frequencies are, in general, the result of domestication, while the variation could be related to differences in early husbandry. The observation of LEH, therefore, provides a valuable tool for studying the history of animal domestication.

The suckling behaviour of 327 piglets from 39 litters of primiparous domestic sows Sus scrofa f. domestica was analysed regarding the development of territorial suckling consistency during a 5-week suckling period. Additionally, the consistent use of a certain teat pair (1–7) during the whole suckling period was related to weight gain within the suckling period and to social dominance after weaning and mixing of the piglets. The piglets increased their suckling stability consistent with a three-parametric exponential model delivering a time-dependency that is typical for learning curves and which may be a useful methodological approach for studies on behavioural ontogeny. Thus, the development of suckling stability can be regarded as a continuous learning process. After extremely rapid learning within the first 4 days of life a moderate increase of suckling consistency with final stabilization occurred within the second week. After this time, the piglets maintained a high suckling consistency of about 95% up to the end of the observed suckling period. The anterior teats were preferred, whereas piglets suckling at the posterior teats showed a tendency to have lower weight gains and poorer dominance values. However, the lowest suckling stability (consistency) was found with piglets occupying the middle teats. The study shows that individual differences (e.g. weight gain, position in a social hierarchy) have their roots in early ontogenetic characteristics of the neonates (e.g. suckling behaviour, physical strength). The results are discussed with regard to findings and interpretations of behavioural ontogeny in pigs.