Adrenal cortex activity, reproduction and welfare of pregnant gilts in a group housing system

1991 ◽  
Vol 1991 ◽  
pp. 64-64
Author(s):  
M.T. Mendl ◽  
D.M. Broom ◽  
A.J. Zanella
Keyword(s):  
Social Environment ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Housing System ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Detailed Data ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
The Social ◽  
Group Members ◽  
High Production ◽  
Large Groups

On many farms in Britain, the housing of pregnant sows in groups, principally in electronic sow feeder systems, is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to housing them individually in stalls or tethers. When sows are housed in large groups, particularly in "dynamic groups" where individuals are continually leaving the group to farrow and re-joining it after lactation, aggression between group members may become a problem. Aggression may give rise to social stress and injuries and may also have detrimental effects on production. In order to ensure good welfare and high production in group housing systems, it is essential to gain some fundamental knowledge as to how individual sows are affected by the social environment in which they live. This paper examines how a group of gilts responded to being introduced into an electronic sow feeder system and mixed with unfamiliar animals. Detailed data on behaviour, physiology and reproduction were collected for each individual in the group /in an attempt to examine whether the way in which individuals responded to the social environment had consequences for measures of their welfare and productivity.

scholarly journals Development of an Information Model for the Personality’s Social Portrait Formation Using OSINT Technology

2021 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mykhailo Mozhaiev ◽  
Pavlo Buslov
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Information Model ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Source Information ◽  
Information Models ◽  
Behavioural Patterns ◽  
The Social ◽  
Group Members

The results of the development of an information model for the personality’s social portrait formation are presented. The modelling has been carried out using OSINT technology that is the technology of legal obtaining and using open source information. In the result of the analysis, it has been found out that the social portrait is a heterogeneous semantic network consisting of personalized data. It has been defined that people organize formal and official communities of various orientations and the number of such communities associated with a particular person is practically unlimited. When formalizing the decision-making process, the concept of a group social portrait (GSP) has been introduced, which takes into account the community’s social tendencies united by certain common properties, group members' interpersonal interactions and their behavioural patterns. The obtained information models of personal and group social portraits let to take into account all the main properties of the objects under study, their tonality and significance, as well as to conduct an analysis of the implicit dependencies determination. The next step is to move on to considering the diversity of the digital social environment elements.

scholarly journals Prevalence and risk factors of claw lesions and lameness in pregnant sows in two types of group housing

2011 ◽  
Vol 56 (No. 3) ◽  
pp. 101-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Pluym ◽  
A. Van Nuffel ◽  
J. Dewulf ◽  
A. Cools ◽  
F. Vangroenweghe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Economic Loss ◽  
Housing System ◽  
Free Access ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
Individual Housing ◽  
Claw Lesions ◽  
Locomotor Disorders

Claw lesions and lameness in sows are an important welfare concern as well as a cause of considerable economic loss. These problems are more common in group housing than in individual housing systems. Given that group housing for gestating sows will become mandatory in the EU from 2013 onwards, the aim of the present study was: (1) to determine the prevalence of lameness and claw lesions in sows housed in groups during gestation, and (2) to analyze whether the type of group housing system and sow-related factors were associated with lameness and claw lesions. Eight Belgian pig herds with group housing of gestating sows were selected. Four herds used pens with electronic sow feeders (dynamic groups), the other four herds kept their sows in free access stalls (static groups). All sows were visually examined for lameness at the end of gestation. Claw lesions were scored after parturition. Information about feed, housing conditions and culling (strategy) was collected, as well as information about parity and breed. Of all 421 assessed sows, on average 9.7% (min. 2.4%, max. 23.1%) were lame. Almost 99% of the sows had one or more claw lesion with overgrowth of heel horn (93%) and cracks in the wall (52%) as the most prevalent lesions. Neither for lameness nor claw lesions was significant differences found between the two types of group housing. Lameness decreased while the mean claw lesion score increased with ageing. These results suggest that lameness can be caused by reasons other than claw lesions, especially in older sows. Although no difference was found between the two types of group housing, a huge variation between herds was observed. Moreover, as the prevalence of lameness and claw lesions in group housing is quite high and group housing will become mandatory in 2013, further investigation on risk factors of locomotor disorders in sows is necessary.

Effect of continuous access to feeding stalls during mixing on behavior, welfare, and performance of group-housed gestating sows in different social ranks

2016 ◽  
Vol 96 (3) ◽  
pp. 386-396 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lihua H. Wang ◽  
Yuzhi Z. Li
Keyword(s):  
Social Rank ◽  
Skin Lesions ◽  
Housing System ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Aggressive Interactions ◽  
High Ranking ◽  
Continuous Access ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
Reduced Frequency ◽  
And Performance

This study was conducted to evaluate a strategy of using feeding stalls to protect low-ranking sows in group-housing systems. Sows (n = 150, parity 1–9) were mixed at weaning in pens of 15 sows. Control pens allowed sows to access feeding stalls for 1 h of feeding daily during the initial 2 d after mixing. Treatment pens allowed sows to access feeding stalls continuously. Social rank was determined based on outcomes of aggressive interactions among sows after mixing. Low-ranking sows used the feeding stalls more frequently (P < 0.01) than high-ranking sows during the initial 6 h after mixing. Continuous stall access reduced frequency of aggressive interactions (P = 0.05) and, consequently, reduced skin lesions (P = 0.05) of sows in the pen. Neither continuous access to stalls nor social rank affected performance of sows. These results suggest that low-ranking sows used feeding stalls as hiding spaces to escape from aggressive interactions during mixing, which reduced skin lesions caused by aggression and improved the welfare of sows in the group-housing system studied.

scholarly journals Carry-over effects of the social environment on future divorce probability in a wild bird population

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1817) ◽  
pp. 20150920 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antica Culina ◽  
Camilla A. Hinde ◽  
Ben C. Sheldon
Keyword(s):  
Social Environment ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Mating Strategies ◽  
Detailed Data ◽  
Bird Population ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Selective Pressures ◽  
Individual Fitness ◽  
The Social ◽  
Carry Over

Initial mate choice and re-mating strategies (infidelity and divorce) influence individual fitness. Both of these should be influenced by the social environment, which determines the number and availability of potential partners. While most studies looking at this relationship take a population-level approach, individual-level responses to variation in the social environment remain largely unstudied. Here, we explore carry-over effects on future mating decisions of the social environment in which the initial mating decision occurred. Using detailed data on the winter social networks of great tits, we tested whether the probability of subsequent divorce, a year later, could be predicted by measures of the social environment at the time of pairing. We found that males that had a lower proportion of female associates, and whose partner ranked lower among these, as well as inexperienced breeders, were more likely to divorce after breeding. We found no evidence that a female's social environment influenced the probability of divorce. Our findings highlight the importance of the social environment that individuals experience during initial pair formation on later pairing outcomes, and demonstrate that such effects can be delayed. Exploring these extended effects of the social environment can yield valuable insights into processes and selective pressures acting upon the mating strategies that individuals adopt.

scholarly journals Effects of Different Housing Systems during Suckling and Rearing Period on Skin and Tail Lesions, Tail Losses and Performance of Growing and Finishing Pigs

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 2184
Author(s):  
Anita Lange ◽  
Michael Hahne ◽  
Christian Lambertz ◽  
Matthias Gauly ◽  
Michael Wendt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Skin Lesions ◽  
Housing System ◽  
Finishing Pigs ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
Tail Biting ◽  
Tail Docking ◽  
Lactating Sows ◽  
Fattening Period ◽  
And Performance

Feasible alternatives to stressful weaning and tail-docking are needed to inhibit tail biting. Therefore, we investigated the effects of housing systems for 1106 pigs that were weaned from: (1) conventional farrowing crates (FC), (2) free-farrowing pens (FF), or (3) group housing of lactating sows (GH) into (1) conventional rearing pens (Conv) or (2) piglets remained in their farrowing pens for rearing (Reaf). Tails were docked or left undocked batchwise. All pigs were regrouped for the fattening period. Pigs were scored for skin lesions, tail lesions and losses. After weaning, Conv-GH pigs had significantly less skin lesions than Conv-FC and Conv-FF pigs. After regrouping for fattening, Reaf-GH pigs had significantly less skin lesions than Conv pigs, Reaf-FC and Reaf-FF. The frequency of tail lesions of undocked Conv pigs peaked in week 4 (66.8%). Two weeks later, Reaf undocked pigs reached their maximum (36.2%). At the end of fattening, 99.3% of undocked Conv pigs and 43.1% of undocked Reaf pigs lost parts of their tail. In conclusion, the co-mingling of piglets during suckling reduced the incidence of skin lesions. Rearing in the farrowing pen significantly reduced the incidence of tail lesions and losses for undocked pigs. No housing system negatively affected the performance.

scholarly journals Group housing and social dominance hierarchy affect circadian activity patterns in mice

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 201985
Author(s):  
Yuri Robbers ◽  
Mayke M. H. Tersteeg ◽  
Johanna H. Meijer ◽  
Claudia P. Coomans
Keyword(s):  
Social Environment ◽  
Social Dominance ◽  
Dominance Hierarchy ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Dominance Rank ◽  
Dominant Male ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Male Mice ◽  
Female Mice ◽  
The Social

In this study, we investigated the effect of social environment on circadian patterns in activity by group housing either six male or six female mice together in a cage, under regular light–dark cycles. Based on the interactions among the animals, the social dominance rank of individual mice was quantitatively established by calculating Elo ratings. Our results indicated that, during our experiment, the social dominance hierarchy was rapidly established, stable yet complex, often showing more than one dominant mouse and several subordinate mice. Moreover, we found that especially dominant male mice, but not female mice, displayed a significantly higher fraction of their activity during daytime. This resulted in reduced rhythm amplitude in dominant males. After division into separate cages, male mice showed an enhancement of their 24 h rhythm, due to lower daytime activity. Recordings of several physiological parameters showed no evidence for reduced health as a potential consequence of reduced rhythm amplitude. For female mice, transfer to individual housing did not affect their daily activity pattern. We conclude that 24 h rhythms under light–dark cycles are influenced by the social environment in males but not in females, and lead to a decrement in behavioural rhythm amplitude that is larger in dominant mice.

The social and feeding behaviour of growing pigs in deep-litter, large group housing systems

2003 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 173-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.S Morrison ◽  
P.H Hemsworth ◽  
G.M Cronin ◽  
R.G Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Feeding Behaviour ◽  
Growing Pigs ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Large Group ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
The Social

scholarly journals Kin selection, not group augmentation, predicts helping in an obligate cooperatively breeding bird

2012 ◽  
Vol 279 (1743) ◽  
pp. 3861-3869 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. E. Browning ◽  
S. C. Patrick ◽  
L. A. Rollins ◽  
S. C. Griffith ◽  
A. F. Russell
Keyword(s):  
Cooperative Breeding ◽  
Social Group ◽  
Kin Selection ◽  
Convincing Evidence ◽  
Breeding Bird ◽  
Direct Benefits ◽  
The Social ◽  
Group Members ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Large Groups

Kin selection theory has been the central model for understanding the evolution of cooperative breeding, where non-breeders help bear the cost of rearing young. Recently, the dominance of this idea has been questioned; particularly in obligate cooperative breeders where breeding without help is uncommon and seldom successful. In such systems, the direct benefits gained through augmenting current group size have been hypothesized to provide a tractable alternative (or addition) to kin selection. However, clear empirical tests of the opposing predictions are lacking. Here, we provide convincing evidence to suggest that kin selection and not group augmentation accounts for decisions of whether, where and how often to help in an obligate cooperative breeder, the chestnut-crowned babbler ( Pomatostomus ruficeps ). We found no evidence that group members base helping decisions on the size of breeding units available in their social group, despite both correlational and experimental data showing substantial variation in the degree to which helpers affect productivity in units of different size. By contrast, 98 per cent of group members with kin present helped, 100 per cent directed their care towards the most related brood in the social group, and those rearing half/full-sibs helped approximately three times harder than those rearing less/non-related broods. We conclude that kin selection plays a central role in the maintenance of cooperative breeding in this species, despite the apparent importance of living in large groups.

Sow behaviour and welfare in voluntary cubicle pens (small static groups) and split-yard systems (large dynamic groups)

2002 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-74 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.L. Durrell ◽  
I.A. Sneddon ◽  
V.E. Beattie ◽  
D.J. Kilpatrick
Keyword(s):  
Skin Lesion ◽  
Physical Environment ◽  
Housing System ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Skin Damage ◽  
Agonistic Interactions ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
Dynamic Group ◽  
Social And Physical Environment ◽  
Observation Period

AbstractThe welfare of sows kept in two different group housing systems, namely voluntary cubicle pens housing small static groups and a split-yard housing system housing a large dynamic group, were examined. Each week, four newly weaned sows were introduced into either a voluntary cubicle pen or the split-yard system, with a total of eight groups of four sows introduced into each system. Behavioural and skin lesion data were recorded during the sows’ first 5 weeks in either system. Agonistic behaviours were performed more frequently during week 1 than in subsequent weeks in both housing systems (P < 0001). Sows in the voluntary cubicle pens spent more time standing inactive (P < 0001) and spent less time in exploratory (P < 005) and locomotory (P < 001) behaviours. However, sows in the split-yard system had higher skin lesion scores (P < 001) and engaged in more social (P < 005) and agonistic interactions (P < 005). These agonistic interactions included attacks (P < 005) and fleeing (P < 0001) throughout the 5-week observation period and fighting (P < 0001) during week 1 only. The split-yard system, therefore, appeared to offer sows a more stimulating social and physical environment than the voluntary cubicle pens, but also led to higher levels of aggression and skin damage. Both housing systems, therefore, appear to compromise sow welfare in different ways.

177 Quantifying Cortisol in Hair as a Chronic Stress Biomarker in Group-housed and Stall-housed Sows During Gestation

2021 ◽  
Vol 99 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
Talia Everding ◽  
Crystal L Levesque ◽  
Yolande Seddon ◽  
Jorge Y Perez-Palencia
Keyword(s):  
Random Effect ◽  
Cortisol Concentration ◽  
Housing System ◽  
Group Housing ◽  
Hair Cortisol ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
Treatment Interaction ◽  
The Right ◽  
Main Effects ◽  
System Time

Abstract The objective of the study was to determine hair cortisol concentrations in sows in two different housing systems. Sows (n = 66, parity 0–6) were housed at the SDSU sow facility and assigned to one of two housing systems, stalls (STL) or group pens (PEN). The STL sows (n = 34) were housed in gestation stalls from breeding until d111 ± 1.1 of gestation; PEN sows (n = 32) were moved to 3 pens approximately 24 h after breeding in a dynamic group sow housing system. All females were housed in stalls at least 5d prior to breeding. All sows were moved to farrowing crates at approximately d111 of gestation. Hair was shaved from the right hip within 5d of breeding (defined as d0). At d37, d74, and d111 of gestation the same area was shaved and hair collected; samples from d37 and d111 were analyzed for cortisol. In the statistical model, main effects of housing system, time, and their interactions were tested with parity as random effect. Sows were later assigned a parity group [0–1 (n = 23), 2–3 (n = 17), and 4–6 (n = 26)] to assess the interactions between parity and treatment. There was a treatment by parity interaction (P &lt; 0.05) where parity 0–1 STL group had higher cortisol (75.6 pg/mg) than parity 0–1 PEN group (24.2 pg/mg) and no effect of housing on parity 2–3 and 4–6 groups. Across parity, STL sows had greater (P &lt; 0.05) overall hair cortisol than PEN sows (49.4 vs 19.8 ± 8.0 pg/mg hair). Hair cortisol concentration tended to be lower (P = 0.06) at d37 than d111 (29.4 vs 39.8 ± 8.0 pg/mg) and no time by treatment interaction was observed. These results suggest that young sows experience greater stress in individual stall housing than in group housing and that cortisol increases with progressing gestation regardless of housing system.

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