1. The majority of pigs today are raised in total confinement
Swine Housing
The majority of pigs today are raised in total confinement

2. Confinement Production
What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of raising swine in confinement?

3. Advantages Less labor per cwt of pork produced
A more stable environment
Fewer parasites
Less disease problems
Increased productivity

4. Disadvantages Buildings and equipment are very expensive Energy costs
Reproductive problems
Waste disposal

5. Waste Handling
Manure disposal is a critical part of raising pigs in total confinement (3-4 T/200 lb hog/yr.
Typical methods of handling waste in confinement buildings include:
Gutter flush to a lagoon
Manure pit
Mechanical scraper

6. Floors in Swine Buildings
Solid concrete
Partially slotted
Total slotted
Expanded metal
Plastic coated expanded metal
Plastic

7. Farrowing Facilities
In the past individual farrowing houses were quite common when sows and pigs were raised on pasture
Today most farrowing houses are ‘central’ in design.
Central farrowing houses consist of one or more rooms that accommodate groups of sows

8. Farrowing House Continued
Most producers use farrowing crates
Years ago the majority of sows were kept in individual pens prior to and after farrowing
Crates are preferred today because they result in more pigs weaned per litter

9. Nursery Facilities
Nursery barns often contain several rooms with each room designed to accommodate the number of pigs from an individual farrowing room
Small pens designed to handle 6 to 8 pigs are very common although some pens may be large enough to handle 16 to 25 pigs

10. Nursery Building Continued
The facilities are designed to provide a fairly stable environment
These facilities may be designed to accommodate 3 week old pigs or perhaps 10 d old pigs
Supplemental heat is provided via heat lamps, radiant heaters or perhaps heat in the floor

11. Grow-Finish Facilities
Environmentally enclosed (totally enclosed) buildings are the most popular today
Open-front buildings popular in the 60s
Modified open front (MOF) buildings were popular in the 80s
Hoop buildings are the most recent
Space requirements of 8-10 sq.ft./hd for G-F

12. Waterers Nipple waterers are very popular in confinement
Water cups are also popular
Some buildings (particularly gestation buildings) may use a concrete feed trough as a place to provide water after feeding
Rule-of-thumb = provide one waterer/15 pigs

13. Feeding Equipment
Self feeders are generally used for nursery and grow-finish pigs
Breeding stock are generally limit fed via floor feeding or in self feeders
Pigs per feeder space range from 2 for nursery pigs to 4-5 for finishing pigs.

14. Terms you should know Segregated early weaning (SEW) Split-sex feeding
Phase feeding
Multiple-site systems
All-in-all-out (AIAO)

15. Terms defined
SEW = refers to weaning the pigs at days of age when they are still protected from diseases via passive immunity from the mother’s milk. These pigs are removed from the sow and placed in a separate building.

16. Terms continued
Split-sex feeding = refers to feeding gilts and barrows separate since gilts are normally leaner than barrows and as a result have a higher protein requirement.
Phase Feeding = refers to frequent changes in the diet to more closely meet the specific nutrient requirements for various weight groups.

17. Terms continued
Multiple-site systems = generally refers to having a different location for breeding-gestation-farrowing versus nursery versus grower-finishing.
AIAO = refers to a management system where all animals from a particular building or room are moved in and out on the same day.