Endocrine and behavioural responses of sows to human interactions and consequences on reproductive performance

Armelle Prunier (1) , Céline Tallet (1)

1 PEGASE - Physiologie, Environnement et Génétique pour l'Animal et les Systèmes d'Elevage [Rennes]

Even though of relatively short duration (approximately 4 h/sow/reproductive cycle), the time stockpersons spend in contact with reproductive sows and their piglets is of very high importance since it may influence both performance and welfare of the animals. During this time, numerous human-pig interactions occur, especially around birth, breeding and farrowing. These interactions can be qualified as positive, neutral or negative from the animal’s perspective. In the present chapter, the literature regarding all types of handlings of sows and their litters is reviewed. Firstly, the immediate and long term effects that painful husbandry practices could have on suckling piglets and on their relationship with humans, as well as the effects that those practises could have on sows when performed nearby, are covered. Then, the consequences of interactions with sows that distinguish between handling during transfer and handling associated with breeding, farrowing supervision and other management tasks are discussed. The consequences of handling type on the reactions of sows and piglets to humans and the possible impacts of this handling on reproductive performance are evaluated. Finally, the question of new practices that could be developed to overbalance the negative interactions inherent to pig management systems, notably by using knowledge of the way animals express their needs or state, are addressed. This review clearly demonstrates the reciprocal effects of human-animal interactions on pigs and humans with consequences not only on performance but also on pig welfare and human satisfaction at work.

Mots clés: welfare; pig; human-animal relationship; stress

Domaines: Sciences du Vivant [q-bio]

Armelle Prunier, Céline Tallet. Endocrine and behavioural responses of sows to human interactions and consequences on reproductive performance. The gestating and lactating sow, Wageningen Academic Publishers, 2015, 978-90-8686-253-5. ⟨10.3920/978-90-8686-803-2_12⟩. ⟨hal-01210734⟩