Sows - English edition

P ig S ig n a ls

Photo: Els Korsten

Kees Scheepens is the driving forces behind the Pig Signals concept. As a researcher, international vet and pig breeder, Scheepens has a background that enables him to make practical knowledge about pigs accessible to other pig farmers. As a breeder, he keeps Berkshire pigs for their highly prized and flavourful meat. ‘My primary aim in breeding is the flavour of the meat.

I enjoy raising pigs and I enjoy the delicious meat.’

Marleen Felius is a professional artist. ‘Since childhood I have been fascinated by farm animals.’ She has been painting works with cattle as the central focus since 1968. She also illustrates trade journals and books, including Pig Signals®, Het Varken (The Pig) and Cow Signals®. Felius travels the world collecting information about livestock breeds and types of animal husbandry. This resulted in the standard reference work Genus Bos: Cattle breeds of the world. and De Koe (The Cow).

‘ Fa r ro w ing 30 p ig le t s p e r y e a r is

A practical guide to lactation management and fertility

PIG signals

®

Sows is part of the Pig Signals concept. Pig Signals® comprises a broad assortment of books and training programmes which have the aim of increasing the expertise of pig farmers. Group presentations and study club evenings are based on photographs, images and sounds from the daily practice of pig farmers. In an unconventional fashion, the participants in these meetings become actively involved and their questions about daily practice are answered.

a w o r ld - c la s s p e r f o r m a nc e f o r y o ur s o w.

And y o u a re t he c o a c h.’

As a pig farmer your goal is to get the maximum number of healthy piglets, while balancing your own wishes with animal welfare and developments in society. But how? First of all by observing your sows well, and by acting before any problems arise.

This will increase the size of your litters and reduce the number of piglets you lose.

Sows starts with you, the breeder. Organise your farm so that it suits both your needs and those of the animals: efficient for you and comfortable for your sows. Sows next discusses the entire trajectory from farrowing to gestation, paying special attention to the culling of older sows and the selection of gilts. The aim is to have sows in peak condition for easy farrowing and maximum milk production. And to quickly get them back into oestrus, inseminate them successfully and have another easy gestation.

Become aware of ‘pig signals’. A refusal to eat, for example, should be noticed immediately. What has caused it? Is the sow too warm, not drinking enough or being overfed? And do you see the difference between stillborn piglets and those that have been crushed after farrowing? Understanding the cause is half the solution.

Sows is a part of the Pig Signals® series.

Pig Signals® provides access to practical expertise for animaloriented pig production.

www.pigsignals.com

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

Marrit van Engen has an ideal combination of animal production and veterinary expertise thanks to her studies in both animal husbandry and veterinary medicine. ‘Following a brief observation, breeders must be able to see how a sow feels. I help them to develop “antennas” for this observation.’

Marrit van Engen visits pig farms in her role as an adviser in pig reproduction.

As part of this work, she developed the FertilAid® concept. On behalf of Pig Signals®, she provides farm training sessions and lectures.

S ow s

Sow s

Abo ut t he a ut ho r s and the ar tis t

SOWS A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO LACTATION MANAGEMENT AND FERTILITY

Sows is full of practical tips and information to achieve optimal production results, with clearly written text and informative photographs and illustrations. After reading this book you will coach your sows to a series of worldclass performances!

For books and customized editions, please contact:

P.O. Box 4103 7200 BC Zutphen The Netherlands T 00 31 0575 54 56 88 F 00 31 575 54 69 90 E info@roodbont.com I www.roodbont.com For presentations and on-farm training sessions, please contact:

Marrit van Engen Kees Scheepens www.roodbont.com

On-farm training sessions are also provided during which the participants learn about behavioural signals which they may not have noticed on their own farms.

The activities have the following aims: • to help you really see your pigs and prevent ‘farm blindness’ • to show you how to include evaluations as part of your daily routine • to brush up your practical knowledge • to teach you how to work with chec lists • to improve the performance of your pig herd Pig Signals® has also become a well-known quality brand outside the Netherlands. Pig farmers are benefiting from this expertise via training programmes and books in countries all over the world.

Hogevleutweg 5 5681 PD Best The Netherlands T/F 00 31 499 31 01 42 E info@farmulaone.nl I www.farmulaone.com

Authors

Marrit van Engen

Kees Scheepens

For books and customized editions:

Content editors

Dr. Steven Jagger (Pig nutritionist)

Dr. Rob ten Doeschate (Poultry Nutritionist)

P.O. Box 4103 7200 BC Zutphen The Netherlands T 00 31 0575 54 56 88 F 00 31 575 54 69 90 E info@roodbont.com I www.roodbont.com

Translation

Charles Frink,

Language Centre Wageningen UR

P U B L I S H E R S

English editors

Sue Stewart, Stewart Translations

Ian C. Anderson BVM&S MRCVS

For presentations and on-farm training sessions:

Photography

Marrit van Engen

FarmulaOne V.O.F. Hogevleutweg 5 5681 PD Best The Netherlands T/F 00 31 499 31 01 42 E info@farmulaone.nl I www.farmulaone.com

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

Colophon

Illustrations

Marleen Felius

Design

Dick Rietveld, Erik de Bruin, Varwig Design

Special thanks to: Jan Hulsen, Geertjan van Groenland, Paul van der Meyden, Arie van Nes, John Nijhoff, Mark Roozen, Jan Smeijers, Nicoline Soede, Nico Wertenbroek, Hendrik Wevers, 'De Tolakker' and many pig farmers.

No part of this book may be duplicated, photocopied, reprinted or reproduced in any form without the prior written permission of the publisher.

The authors and publisher have made every effort to ensure the accuracy and completeness of information contained in this book. However, we assume no responsibility for damage, of any kind whatsoever, resulting from actions and/or decisions that are based on this information.

Sows is part of the Pig Signals速 series, together with Piglets and Finishing Pigs.

Pig Signals速 is a registered trademark of FarmulaOne. 息 Roodbont Publishers B.V., 2012 More information about Pig Signals速: www.pigsignals.com ISBN 978 90 8740 012 5

Contents

Introduction

4

1 The sow in action

6

4 The gestating sow?

32

Looking back and looking forward

7

Gestating or not?

32

The breeder

8

Return to service or small litter

33

Using indicators for better breeding

9

Embryo survival

33

Keeping the farm healthy

10

Analysis of repeat inseminations

34

Multiple week systems

11

Fertility and infections

35

Group housing is the future

12

Heat stress

36

Which type of group housing?

13

Autumn dip

36

Sow mortality

37

2 Farrowing, sucking

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

The best breeders are the best feeders 38

and suckling

Satiety after feeding

39

15

5 Gilts, your farm’s future

40

16

Buy in or breed yourself?

41

Stillborn or died after birth?

17

Selection to perfection

42

Condition

18

Selection chart

43

Water and feed

19

Arrivals

44

Selection and culling

20

Feed your gilts well

44

Euthanasia

20

Inducing oestrus and inseminating

45

Weaning

21

From 25 to 30 piglets

46

3 On to the next litter

22

The heat cycle

22

Into full heat quickly

23

Heat in the farrowing unit

23

14

A clean, dry pen

14

Monitoring during farrowing Intervening during birth

Checklist to prevent introduction

Ten ingredients for an ideal service unit 24 Signals from the sow

26

Signals from the boar

27

You really can't imitate a boar!

28

When to inseminate?

29

How to inseminate?

30

and transmission of diseases

Index

47

48

CHAPTER 1

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

The sow in action

How do you achieve success with your sows? The primary precondition is a wellplanned and structured sow farm. This must be a farm with sufficient space, excellent working conditions and good planning and record-keeping. A successful pig breeder is critical, strives for improvements and enjoys his work every day.

Good lactating sows do not happen by themselves. Farms with lactation problems present a challenge for the breeder and the feed supplier.

The correct coordination of the feed composition, feed provision, sow condition, drinking water provision and climate in the farrowing pen is not a simple task. Having a sow that can easily wean 11 piglets weighing 8 kg each and still be in good condition requires great skill. But when things are going well, the motto is: ‘never change a winning formula!’ Perfecting the fertility of sows and gilts

6

Producing large numbers of healthy piglets is the primary task of a sow on the breeding farm.

is perhaps even more difficult. There is an entire range of tasks that must be performed properly.

First of all, it is important to get the sows fully into heat, in order to inseminate them correctly and to ensure that the conception rate is high after the first insemination. Only a detailed breeding and housing programme for gilts bears fruit (literally).

Sows

Looking back and looking forward Developments in pig breeding have accelerated tremendously in recent decades. By looking back at history, you understand the present-day situation better. As a result, you can continue forward with the core question: how am I going to develop my farm, beginning right now?

1950 Besides other livestock and crops, farmers kept a few sows. Pigs were supposed to be fat (30 mm of backfat on a 100 kg pig was normal), as were sows. Standard production was 15 weaned piglets per sow per year (weaned at eight weeks). Farmers organised the breeding themselves and on breeding days, the pigs were judged according to type and exterior appearance.

1958 saw the first experiments with artificial insemination, primarily to prevent disease transmission from the boar, who went from farm to farm.

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

1960 Due to the understanding that a fat sow wastes feed and is less fertile, sows were reduced to a ration of 2 kg of feed per day; thin sow syndrome and second litter drop syndrome emerged. As a result, the age at weaning went from eight weeks to four weeks. Feed acquired a higher density of minerals, vitamins and protein. Commercial farms began to get involved with breeding. Selection and production research turned the spotlight on quality at slaughter.

1970 It became common practice to double sows’ feed the day before insemination (flushing). Providing lots of feed after insemination was intended to ensure a large litter. This was refuted by later research. Individual housing ensured that every sow received her correct ration of feed: she had to gain 15 kg with each litter. Farms began to specialise in one part of the chain: nucleus, rearing, breeding and finishing. It became possible to vaccinate against animal diseases.

1980 The demand for large quantities of lean meat at low prices did not benefit meat quality. Attention focused especially on PSE meat (pale, soft, exudative) caused by stress. The halothane test separated stress-sensitive pigs from non-stress-sensitive pigs. The stress-sensitive pig tenses its legs after breathing the gas instead of relaxing.

DNA research and selection was used to breed the stress-sensitive pigs out of the pig herd.

Photographs: Geertjan van Groenland

1990 Tying sows was banned. Computer software calculated breeding values. Pig breeders began using management systems instead of the paper sow calendar. Attention began to focus on integrating parts of the chain: both sows and finishing pigs were kept on a single farm. Sperm from good boars was frozen.

C h a p t e r 1 : T h e s o w i n action

7

‘The expert’

technical aims

The breeder Proud breeders understand what they have to do.

However, working according to fixed rules and protocols is not in their nature. Nevertheless, farms that take this approach achieve the best results.

COMPETITION and achieving aims

‘The heir’

‘The entrepreneur’ economic aims

Source: M. Commandeur, 2003

Focus on technology

family needs

CARE

and fulfilling needs

‘The swineherd’ animal needs

Business oriented

Know yourself What is your primary motivation for keeping sows? Are you interested in technical innovations or the best technical results? Or are you more a stocksman who cares well for his pigs? Or are you aiming for an economic result, as a calculating entrepreneur?

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

No breeder can know everything himself, so bring in others for their knowledge, which may be new to you.

Is the light green, amber or perhaps even red?

Red: alarm, you have to respond immediately.

Amber: weak point, must be changed soon.

Green: good point, but could it be even better? By always seeking weak points (or having others look for them) and improving these points, your farm will continue to progress.

Vaccination? Which animals, which infections, which vaccines (live/killed), which ages? Get advice from a vet. Ask the right questions!

Giving injections? Prevention is always better than cure, but you can cure animals only if you act quickly. Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.

Prevent germs from spreading by giving items used in the pens different colours for every animal category. Never clean the carcase room with the broom from the farrowing unit. Extra equipment also shortens the walking routes. This saves labour costs.

8

An eye for detail. Look and evaluate critically.

If you have plenty of light in the pen, you will be able to see more.

A nose for new things.

Enjoying the work results from short walking routes, wellorganised work and few sick animals. Your staff are highly motivated because their work is meaningful and they have responsibility for and knowledge of the results.

Always work in the same way by using protocols.

This makes the work clear to everyone and recordkeeping becomes easier. This is especially useful for new employees or relief staff. Post the protocols at places where they are sure to be seen in the farrowing house and in the hygienic entry room.

Sows

using indicators for better breeding

and few animals can quickly lead to incorrect conclusions. Comparing your own indicators with averages from the country or the region – or integrating your indicators with farms of equal size/production method/product – has an encouraging effect and shows you how your farm compares. Is everything going well, or is there room for improvement?

Use numerical indicators as a gauge to see if the farm can operate even better. If you record data accurately in the management software, then you can obtain the correct information from the software. The analysis of numerical indicators requires a great deal of experience and a good head for figures.

For example, analyses involving short time periods

Sow arrivals

Culling sows

Number of delivered piglets/sow/year

Number of delivered piglets/litter

Oestrus duration

Length of gestation

Length of lactation

Weaning-gestation interval

Number of live born piglets/litter

Piglet deaths: -Farrowing pen -Weaned piglets

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

Making the correct adjustments to many factors yields many piglets! For proactive management, the indicators lower down in the diagram are most useful.

Weaning-service interval

These sows in a corner of the service unit, while inconspicuous, are causing lost days. Every lost day costs two euros. Limit lost days by scanning for gestation, selecting in the farrowing pen and culling immediately after weaning.

Repeat inseminations

Total number of farrowed piglets/litter

This is the wrong way: a filthy sow chart at the back of the pen which is hardly legible. Writing down data is the basis for the information you obtain from the management software: incorrect data IN = incorrect data OUT. For example, you can preprint as much information as possible on the sow chart.

Target values Slowly but surely, from 27, to 28, to 29, to 30 piglets per sow per year!

Establishing target values and making a plan for improvement leads to even more progress. Every year, target values are modified, evaluated and discussed. For example, a feasible target value for the coming year could be the results from the best three months of the past year.

Indicator g index Farm farrowin s/sow Weaned piglet s/litter Live born piglet s/litter Stillborn piglet til weaning % Mortality un s/litter Weaned piglet ce interval Weaning-servi Lost days

C h a p t e r 1 : T h e s o w i n action

Lost days

Achieved 2,38 27,4 13,1 1,6 12,0 11,5 6,8 10 5 20

Target value 2,38 27,5 13,0 1,0 8,0 12 6,0 8 7 20 13

...

Traffic light at green green green red red green amber amber green green green

9

Keeping the farm healthy

Trucks not only pick things up, but sometimes deliver them as well: they pick up piglets, but also introduce new diseases. A simple delivery cubicle prevents truck and driver from contaminating the clean part of the farm.

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

It is essential to prevent the introduction and transmission of disease organisms on the farm. Although this seems completely obvious, in practice the measures are often inadequate.

When new animals arrive there is a high risk that a new disease will be introduced to the farm, so don’t bring in any animals without knowing which diseases are present on the farm of origin, and use a quarantaine building. Rodents, pets and manure are also sources of infection. Break the infection cycle that goes from sows to piglets and back again.

You can do this by strictly separating the materials and farm clothing for each building (using different colours), using a multiple week system or keeping only one animal group in each building. If the farm buildings are new, it is advisable to purchase gilts with a high health status.

Less animal movement on the farm, fewer infected animals, fewer infected animals, less disease.

Prevent introduction and spread of disease? See page 46.

Hygienic entry rooms can be inexpensive, like this one.

Make sure there is a hot shower and that no detours are available: the temptation to bypass the hygiene procedure is great. As an absolute minimum, wash your hands and put on socks, overalls, a cap and boots that are kept on the farm.

LOOK-THINK-ACT Is this all in-all out?

You can clearly see that the all in-all out method is not being consistently applied here. In the all in-all out system, the age difference between the piglets can never be more than one week. Do not transfer any piglets to other rooms. By using different coloured ear tags each week, you can immediately see if piglets have been moved back to a younger group.

10

Sows

Multiple week system Advantages and disadvantages

The breeder who wants to work in a structured fashion (focusing on a single type of work) and is seeking higher health status on his farm can choose a multiple week system. In this system, the major activities no longer take place every week, but every three, four or five weeks. The breeder is compelled to work in a structured fashion, otherwise the system does not work. In this system, interim groups are forbidden. When choosing a system, consider your preferences for • weaning age, • distance between the age groups, • empty period between groups (sanitation), • size of group (feeding system, housing, labour).

The advantages and disadvantages listed below are linked to the farm and to individuals!

Advantages of the multiple week system • deliveries of large groups of uniform piglets • separated age groups, therefore better hygiene • due to the larger groups, more efficient working and better organisation • not having to do the same work every week prevents boredom • better sanitation with empty units • reduced AI costs due to less frequent deliveries • comparing large groups is a stimulus for improving the result • more attention for critical moments • due to synchronisation of oestrus, more attention for gilts • time savings by clearing out returns to service

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

Disadvantages of the multiple week system: • strict time schedule (also on holidays) • less flexibility due to planned work • a mistake with one group has consequences for multiple weeks • requires a capable manager: decisions based on rationality, not emotion • requires more peak labour

Delivering large groups of weaned piglets ensures bonuses and reduced transport costs. With the threeweek system, there are three groups of piglets on the farm. With the four and five-week systems, there are only two groups.

A sow with piglets two weeks old next to a sow still to farrow does not occur in a multiple week system. As a result, it is easier to maintain good hygiene.

Good planning required A good overview of the work plan shows a distribution of the periodic and daily activities.

System

Planning ahead is possible and essential.

1-week

On busy days, specialised personnel can

3-weeks

be used. The multiple week system requires

4-weeks

precise service planning, so that the sows

5-weeks

farrow within two days of each other and the weaning age of the piglets is close together.

C h a p t e r 1 : T h e s o w i n action

Week

1

2

3

4

Weaning

5 6

7

8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Insemination

Farrowing

No main activity

11

Group housing is the future into the group, establishing feed quantities, feeding times, climate control, inspection, a different type of administration and selecting individual sows. It is therefore important that the type of group housing system chosen is compatible with the breeder.

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

Keeping sows in groups is intended to improve the welfare of the animals. Over the long term, the technical results are usually comparable with those from individual housing. It is especially the breeder who must become accustomed to a different system. This involves finding new routines, bringing the sows

Evaluate hooves in the farrowing pen. Bad

hooves originate often from the rearing and gestation period: hard/wet/slippery floors,

increased production, less movement, fights,

steps/thresholds and abnormal leg positions.

Dung increases the risk of infection and urine is corrosive. An extra high dosage of biotin

In this small, stable group, the sows are selected following insemination based on litter number and condition; they are kept together until they are moved to the farrowing unit.

In a more dynamic group, recently inseminated sows are added to the group and the sows that are ready to farrow are moved to the farrowing unit. Changes to the group should take place in the evening because that is the quietest time. A separate gilt group is advisable.

(500- 800 ppb) can temporarily strengthen the hooves.

LOOK-THINK-ACT What causes foaming at the mouth?

Foaming at the mouth is a sign of sham chewing (stereotypical behaviour). The sow isn’t (or wasn’t) feeling well. Stereotypical behaviour is comforting to the animals due to the release of morphine-like substances.

Once they start, they keep doing it.

If many sows in the pen are sham chewing, look for the cause. Does the feed provide a satisfied feeling? Are they waiting to be fed at the feeding station? Is something wrong with the climate? Are the sows unable to flee from a dominant sow? Do they have enough lying space?

12

Sows

Which type of group housing?

The choice of a group housing system depends on your preferences: • restricted or ad lib feeding • simultaneous feeding or taking turns • physical separation during eating or not • stable group or dynamic group • controlling the feeding individually or on a group basis • straw or no straw • desired group size • the farm’s resources

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

Straw provides chewing material, stomach filling, possibilities for rooting (foraging) and a soft, warm bed to lie on.

Automatic feeding station

Feeding cubicle with aisle

Automatic feeding stations can be installed with both straw-bedded floors and slatted floors (options: separation space, heat detection unit, spray marking, learning station for gilts, second type of feed). Make sure every sow has enough time to visit the station to eat; feeding stations must be unoccupied for four to six hours per day (regulate feeding stations in terms of dosage rate, group size and number of feeding stations). Check every day whether all sows have eaten their ration and check the dosage quantity at least twice per week. Malfunctions lead to agitated sows.

Feeding cubicles with aisles are most similar to individual housing. They are used with stable groups. The sows are separated while eating. Because the slatted floor is not comfortable for lying (cold and without protection), the sows often lie in the cubicle. A separate lying space (with straw) provides social contact, which is the intention of group housing.

Characteristics of a number of feeding systems in group housing feeding Portion feeding Computer-controlled feeding stations Feeding cubicle with aisle Semi-unlimited feeding

Individual feeding No Yes No/Yes No

Restricted Simultaneous Separate eating eating Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

Source: Omschakelen naar groepshuisvesting bij zeugen. Ministerie van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap.

C h a p t e r 1 : T h e s o w i n action

13

P ig S ig n a ls

Photo: Els Korsten

Kees Scheepens is the driving forces behind the Pig Signals concept. As a researcher, international vet and pig breeder, Scheepens has a background that enables him to make practical knowledge about pigs accessible to other pig farmers. As a breeder, he keeps Berkshire pigs for their highly prized and flavourful meat. ‘My primary aim in breeding is the flavour of the meat.

I enjoy raising pigs and I enjoy the delicious meat.’

Marleen Felius is a professional artist. ‘Since childhood I have been fascinated by farm animals.’ She has been painting works with cattle as the central focus since 1968. She also illustrates trade journals and books, including Pig Signals®, Het Varken (The Pig) and Cow Signals®. Felius travels the world collecting information about livestock breeds and types of animal husbandry. This resulted in the standard reference work Genus Bos: Cattle breeds of the world. and De Koe (The Cow).

‘ Fa r ro w ing 30 p ig le t s p e r y e a r is

A practical guide to lactation management and fertility

PIG signals

®

Sows is part of the Pig Signals concept. Pig Signals® comprises a broad assortment of books and training programmes which have the aim of increasing the expertise of pig farmers. Group presentations and study club evenings are based on photographs, images and sounds from the daily practice of pig farmers. In an unconventional fashion, the participants in these meetings become actively involved and their questions about daily practice are answered.

a w o r ld - c la s s p e r f o r m a nc e f o r y o ur s o w.

And y o u a re t he c o a c h.’

On-farm training sessions are also provided during which the participants learn about behavioural signals which they may not have noticed on their own farms.

The activities have the following aims: • to help you really see your pigs and prevent ‘farm blindness’ • to show you how to include evaluations as part of your daily routine • to brush up your practical knowledge • to teach you how to work with chec lists • to improve the performance of your pig herd Pig Signals® has also become a well-known quality brand outside the Netherlands. Pig farmers are benefiting from this expertise via training programmes and books in countries all over the world.

As a pig farmer your goal is to get the maximum number of healthy piglets, while balancing your own wishes with animal welfare and developments in society. But how? First of all by observing your sows well, and by acting before any problems arise.

This will increase the size of your litters and reduce the number of piglets you lose.

co pr py ot rig ec h te t d

Marrit van Engen has an ideal combination of animal production and veterinary expertise thanks to her studies in both animal husbandry and veterinary medicine. ‘Following a brief observation, breeders must be able to see how a sow feels. I help them to develop “antennas” for this observation.’

Marrit van Engen visits pig farms in her role as an adviser in pig reproduction.

As part of this work, she developed the FertilAid® concept. On behalf of Pig Signals®, she provides farm training sessions and lectures.

S ow s

Sow s

Abo ut t he a ut ho r s and the ar tis t

Sows starts with you, the breeder. Organise your farm so that it suits both your needs and those of the animals: efficient for you and comfortable for your sows. Sows next discusses the entire trajectory from farrowing to gestation, paying special attention to the culling of older sows and the selection of gilts. The aim is to have sows in peak condition for easy farrowing and maximum milk production. And to quickly get them back into oestrus, inseminate them successfully and have another easy gestation.

Become aware of ‘pig signals’. A refusal to eat, for example, should be noticed immediately. What has caused it? Is the sow too warm, not drinking enough or being overfed? And do you see the difference between stillborn piglets and those that have been crushed after farrowing? Understanding the cause is half the solution.

Sows is a part of the Pig Signals® series.

Pig Signals® provides access to practical expertise for animaloriented pig production.

www.pigsignals.com

SOWS A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO LACTATION MANAGEMENT AND FERTILITY

Sows is full of practical tips and information to achieve optimal production results, with clearly written text and informative photographs and illustrations. After reading this book you will coach your sows to a series of worldclass performances!

P.O. Box 4103 7200 BC Zutphen The Netherlands T 00 31 0575 54 56 88 F 00 31 575 54 69 90 E info@roodbont.com I www.roodbont.com For presentations and on-farm training sessions, please contact:

Marrit van Engen Kees Scheepens www.roodbont.com

For books and customized editions, please contact:

Hogevleutweg 5 5681 PD Best The Netherlands T/F 00 31 499 31 01 42 E info@farmulaone.nl I www.farmulaone.com