Lecture 8- Judging Breeding Gilts Flashcards
(20 cards)
What are the goals of
the breeding gilt?
Wean pigs
What is she expected to bring to
the operation?
Long lasting productive life span
How does a commercial hog farmer
make his/her living?
Sell pigs
What to we need pigs to be,,,
-Built to last
-Longevity
-Correct and appropriate build
What traits are similarly selected for?
-Soundness
-Genuine power, good body shape
-Appropriate build
In breading animals what’s out no1 priority:
Breeding Animals: Function is no1 priority
(muscle takes back seat)
Functionality def:
“Designed to have a practical use”
What traits are crucial to be labelled
functional?
- Structural correctness
- Soft, maternal body type
- Sound reproductive traits
What is functional vs practical?
- Use functional in females
- Use practical in males
What’s the number 1 priority in breeding hogs?
Same evaluation method as market hogs
When evaluating structure of swine where do we look first?
ALWAYS START AT THE GROUND
Ground up approach, systematic approach
* Toes
* Pastern
* Shoulder/blade
* Hock
* Hip
* Spine
Body condition score of Guilt when entering sow herd
Guilt BC 4 when entering sow herd, lactational pull on sow is massive (lactation draws resources out of reserved and can put them in bad condition)
They then swing 3.5-2 in between the rest
What are the reasons sows are
culled besides structure?
-Old age
-Bad mom
-Reproductive failure (NO1 reason) They reproductively fail due to poor body condition
what’s key for body type?
- Fleshing ability is key
- Correlated to reproductive success
- Soft bodied, maternally focused gilts are
likely to cycle back sooner out of the crate - MUST MAINTAIN PRODUCTIVITY
What underlines are important in swine?
- Number of teats
- Must be at least 6
- Free of pins, blunt or inverted teats
- Evenly spaced
“Prominent, refined, evenly spaced teats”
How many teets does it take to be registered underline
6 on each side
What do you need to avoid for vulvas?
Avoid
* Infantile
* Blunt
* Severely tipped (getting AI rod through is challenging)
What type of growth quality’s do we want?
- Growth is still important
- Scale (frame size) still plays a role
- Length of body
- Length of cannon
- Height at top of shoulder
- Aids with quality and balance
Why is power still important?
- Still important for breeding hogs
- Not first priority
- Genuine width/squareness
- Some fat is required
- More often criticized for being too lean
- Lactation is an energy sink
How does balance correlate with all of the
previous traits?
- Good structured, good bodied gilts that have
extension and are proportional in their depth
and underlines are typically well balanced - Secondary trait that is linked with other
fundamental selection criteria
