Farm data analysis for lifetime performance components of sows and their predictors in breeding herds

This is our Friday rubric: every week a new Science Page from the Bob Morrison’s Swine Health Monitoring Project. The previous editions of the science page are available on our website.

For our US-based audience, we hope that you had a great Thanksgiving despite the circumstances. We are grateful for the ever-growing readership of this blog. Thank you for your support!

This week, we are sharing a report by Drs. Koketsu and Iiada from the School of Agriculture in Kanagawa, Japan. Their study focuses on the best predictors of lifetime performance in a breeding herd.

Key points

  • This review characterizes components of sow lifetime performance (longevity, prolificacy, fertility and lifetime efficacy) and its inter-relationships.
  • In the sow lifetime performance trees, annualized piglets weaned and annualized piglets born alive measured as lifetime efficiency are proposed as integrated measurements for sow lifetime performance.
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