Browsing by Subject "Tail biting"

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    Attraktives Beschäftigungsmaterial zur Reduktion von Schwanz- und Ohrschäden beim Schwein
    (2021) Kauselmann, Karen; Schrader, Lars
    Tail biting is a behavioural disorder that often occurs in commercially housed domestic pigs. It may affect welfare of involved pigs and cause economic losses for the farm. The causes of tail biting are multifactorial, which is why preventive tail docking is the most comon method to reduce tail damages in pigs until today. However, besides invasive interventions, the use of enrichment materials can reduce tail biting by increasing species-specific exploration behaviour. Thereby, the rapid habituation of pigs poses a challenge in the selection of enrichment materials. Within the research project “Label-Fit – Schweinehaltung fit für das Tierschutzlabel”, different plant-based enrichment materials for rearing and fattening pigs were investigated, which can be used in conventional housing systems with slatted floors. The aim of the present study was to identify attractive enrichment material based on the exploration duration. Furthermore, the influence of the enrichment materials on tail and ear damages was investigated in pigs with undocked tails. Prior to three long-term investigations, two choice tests were carried out for better delimination of plant-based enrichment materials considered attractive for pigs. Therefore, pigs were offered enrichment materials of different structure or, in the second test, straw with different edible additives. In both tests materials were offered in parallel in six boxes. By means of the individually recorded exploration durations, pigs showed clear preferences for pelleted materials and preferred chopped straw with edible additives, such as maize kernels. These results were used to select enrichment materials for further long-term investigations. In the three long-term investigations, material dispensers were equipped with an UHF-RFID system to record exploration durations of the pigs at the material dispenser filled with enrichment materials. Enrichment materials were offered in an alternating order and at each change of material the tails and ears of the pigs were recorded according to the “Deutscher Schweine Bonitur Schlüssel” (DSBS) regarding partial losses and skin injuries. In the first long-term investigation, rearing and fattening pigs received four enrichment materials with different structures (lucerne pellets, straw pellets, chopped hay and chopped straw) in a two-weekly change. Rearing pigs preferred pelletized materials, while fattening pigs showed preferences for chopped hay and lucerne pellets. Furthermore, exploration duration increased from rearing to fattening. When offering the enrichment materials that achieved the highest exploration durations in rearing (lucerne pellets or straw pellets), the fewest partial losses of the tails were recorded. However, when offering straw pellets in rearing, most injuries at the tails occurred. The second long-term investigation dealed with the question, if exploration duration of rearing and fattening pigs for chopped straw can be increased by adding maize kernels. Compared with pigs that received chopped straw without maize, pigs that received chopped straw with maize kernels showed higher exploration durations at the material dispenser during rearing and fattening. Furthermore, exploration duration could be increased from rearing to fattening, although there was no change of the material within the groups. Additionally, saisonal differences in the diurnal pattern of exploration of pigs were found. Interestingly, pigs that received chopped straw without maize kernels showed fewer length losses of the tails compared to pigs that received chopped straw with maize kernels. In the third long-term investigation, rearing and fattening pigs received different flavoured straw pellets in a weekly change. Different preferences for flavours were found between rearing and fattening pigs. During rearing, highest exploration durations were recorded for straw pellets with fried onion flavour or almond flavour. During fattening, pigs explored straw pellets without flavour or with strawberry flavour longest. Exploration duration could be maintained at a constant level from rearing to fattening. Most skin injuries at the tails occurred when using vanilla flavour or fried onion flavour during rearing, whereby vanilla, unlike fried onion, was one of the flavours with the lowest exploration durations. On the basis of the present investigations clear preferences of pigs for specific plant-based enrichment materials could be shown, which increased species-specific exploration behaviour. However, enrichment materials for which high exploration durations were recorded could not reduce tail damages, such as partial losses or skin injuries. This illustrates that, apart from the access to enrichment material, further factors influence the prevalence of tail damages, which have to be considered in relation to each other.