Koketsu et al.

Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1

DOI 10.1186/s40813-016-0049-7

REVIEW Open Access

Factors for improving reproductive

performance of sows and herd productivity
in commercial breeding herds
Yuzo Koketsu*, Satomi Tani and Ryosuke Iida

Abstract
We review critical factors associated with reproductive performance of female breeding pigs, their lifetime
performance and herd productivity in commercial herds. The factors include both sow-level and herd-level
factors. High risk sow-level groups for decreasing reproductive performance of female pigs are low or high
parity, increased outdoor temperature, decreased lactation feed intake, single inseminations, increased
lactation length, prolonged weaning-to-first-mating interval, low birth weight or low preweaning growth rate,
a few pigs born alive at parity 1, an increased number of stillborn piglets, foster-in or nurse sow practices
and low or high age at first-mating. Also, returned female pigs are at risk having a recurrence of returning to
estrus, and female pigs around farrowing are more at risk of dying. Herd-level risk groups include female pigs
being fed in low efficiency breeding herds, late insemination timing, high within-herd variability in pig flow,
limited numbers of farrowing spaces and fluctuating age structure. To maximize the reproductive potential of
female pigs, producers are recommended to closely monitor females in these high-risk groups and improve
herd management. Additionally, herd management and performance measurements in high-performing herds
should be targeted.
Keywords: Benchmarking, Production factors, Reproduction, Sow, Swine

Background Review
Information technology has enabled the collection Pigs weaned per sow per year (PWSY)
and storage of many data about commercial pig The number of pigs weaned per sow per year (PWSY)
herds. As this technology advances there are expand- [1] is commonly used as a benchmarking measurement
ing possibilities for data collection, collaboration and to compare the productivity of breeding herds, either be-
data analysis. Farm data analysis could increase the tween herds in a country or between countries. The tar-
dissemination of useful information to maximize sows’ get values for PWSY have increased from 20 to 30 pigs
reproductive potential, and also improve herd prod- over the last three decades, and it is likely that genetics
uctivity and stable output in breeding herds. However, and sow management can increase PWSY up to 30–40
the use of these farm data is still limited. This review pigs in the future (Fig. 1). However, even though PWSY
will use farm data to assess critical factors associated is a good measurement for herd productivity in the short
with reproductive performance of sows, their lifetime term, it is not the best measurement for sow longevity,
performance and herd productivity in commercial nor a good measurement for piglet quality or welfare of
herds, and also discuss the limitations of using com- piglets and sows. There is serious concern that herds
mercial herd data for such data analysis. with high PWSY may produce many runts or small pig-
lets. The increase in numbers of pigs born alive (PBA),
up to 20.3 pigs as shown in Fig. 1, means that the birth
weight of piglets is getting lower and also that some light
* Correspondence: koket001@isc.meiji.ac.jp piglets are not able to receive enough colostrum from
School of Agriculture, Meiji University, Higashi-mita 1-1-1, Tama-ku, Kawasaki, the sow. This is a problem because lower colostrum
Kanagawa 214-8571, Japan

© The Author(s). 2017 Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and
reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to
the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver
(http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 2 of 10

Fig. 1 Example of a productivity tree for 40 pigs weaned per sow per year

intake and lighter birth weights have been associated productive days, and also decreases PBA which in
with a higher preweaning mortality and poorer post turn decreases longevity and lifetime productivity in
weaning growth performance [2]. So piglet quality and the sows.
welfare may be compromised when sow prolificacy is
genetically increased to such a high level, unless genetic Lifetime performance
improvements are directed to increasing the uterine cap- It is important for producers to maximize reproduct-
acity, the number of functional teats and milk produc- ive potential during sows’ lifetime in order to de-
tion in sows. crease production costs and economic inefficiency in
commercial breeding herds [7]. Lifetime performance
Reproductive performance in commercial herds includes longevity, which is measured as the number
Reproductive performance of sows of parity at culling or removal, and also lifetime PBA,
There are two branches in productivity trees of PWSY lifetime number of pigs weaned and lifetime non-
in breeding herds (Fig. 1): one is the number of pigs productive sow days [8].
weaned per sow, and the other is the number of litters Annualized lifetime PBA is an integrated measurement
per sow per year. The number of pigs weaned depends of sow reproductive productivity that combines lifetime
on the number of PBA and preweaning mortality, PBA with lifetime sow days. The annualized lifetime
whereas the number of litters per sow per year depends PBA is calculated as the number of lifetime PBA divided
on non-productive days, lactation length and gestation by a sow’s reproductive herd life days x 365 days. The
length. sow’s reproductive herd life days is the number of days
Sow reproductive performance includes both fertility from the date that the sow was first-mated to its re-
(e.g.: weaning-to-first-mating interval: WMI) and pro- moval. Additionally, annualized lifetime pigs weaned can
lificacy (e.g. PBA). The WMI is highly associated with be considered as an integrated measurement of sows’
gonadotropin secretion through the hypothalamic- lifetime reproductive productivity that combines sow
pituitary-gonadal axis of the sows [3, 4]. In terms of performance (i.e. PBA and preweaning mortality) with
fertility, the number of litters per sow per year is also lactation management including nursing and fostering
affected by farrowing rate (FR), as well as by reservice techniques.
intervals and culling intervals via their effects on
non-productive days. Nonproductive days of gilts and Sow-level factors for reproductive performance
sows are also increased by abortion occurrences in Ordinary factors
commercial herds [5]. Meanwhile, prolificacy mea-
sured as PBA, is mainly affected by increasing ovula- Low or high parity Low parity females, especially preg-
tion rates and decreasing embryonic or fetuses nant gilts and parity 1 sows, have lower reproductive
survival rates [6]. However, there appear to be some performance than sows in parities 2–5, including lower
limitations to genetically increasing PBA due to de- FR, higher returns and fewer PBA. As the number of
creasing piglet quality. In addition, both fertility and parity increases, reproductive performance also in-
prolificacy are influenced by herd effects or the herd’s creases, reaching a peak between parities 2–5 before it
sow management. Another factor that is critical for then declines. For example, PBA is greatest between par-
sow fertility and prolificacy is sow mortality, because ities 3 and 5, whereas FR is highest between parities 2
increased mortality increases death intervals and non- and 4. Parity 1 sows also have a prolonged WMI which
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 3 of 10

can be explained by the immature endocrine system in number of pigs born at subsequent parity decreased by
these growing young animals, and also by their low feed 0.6 pigs for parity 1 sows, whereas it only decreased by
intake during lactation which decreases gonadotropin 0.2 pigs for parity 0 females (Fig. 2 [18]). Another ex-
secretion [3] leading to restricted follicle growth in their ample is that WMI in parity 1 sows increased by 0.8 days
ovaries. as maximum temperature rose from 25 to 35 °C,
Additionally, there is a case for a second parity dip whereas in parity 2 or higher sows WMI only increased
which is a decreased PBA in parity 2 sows compared by 0.3 days [17]. These results indicate that parity 1 sows
with parity 1 sows [9]. This poor performance in parity 2 are 3 times more sensitive to decreases in reproductive
sows appears to be associated with low feed intake in performance due to such temperature changes than are
the first lactation in parity 1 sows [10]. In general, parity gilts or sows at parity 2 or higher. This type of sensitivity
1 sows in commercial breeding herds commonly do not in parity 1 sows appears to be related to their immature
consume sufficient nutrients and energy in order to endocrine system and the low feed intake of parity 1
grow adequately and reach their mature reproductive sows during lactation.
performance level.
Aged sows also have lower reproductive perform-
ance than parities 2–5 sows. There are various rea- Lactation feed intake and its patterns It is critical to
sons for this lower performance. For example, optimize feed intake in lactating sows. Lower lactation
ovulation and fertilization rates decrease in aged sows. feed intake is associated with lower average weaning
Also, they tend to have increased embryonic mortality weight of piglets, prolonged WMI, low FR, as well as
or pregnancy loss, and also more stillborn piglets due more returns or more culled sows due to reproductive
to slower responses to the space demands by growing failure, and also fewer PBA at subsequent parity [10].
fetuses and to the stimuli from parturition processes This is particularly the case with parity 1 sows where
[11]. Additionally, both aged sows (parity 5 or higher low feed intake during lactation is detrimental to post
sows) and gilts are at higher risk of having an abor- weaning reproductive performance. In addition to the
tion than parities 2–5 sows [12]. amount of feed intake, some lactational feed intake pat-
terns (e.g., major dip) are related to prolonged WMI and
High temperature in summer Fertility and prolificacy more culled sows due to reproductive failure. However,
decrease during summer months [13]. For example, FR current increases in lactation length and the use of ad-
is lowest in summer, and also there are fewer PBA to vanced automatic feeders for lactating sows may reduce
summer-mated sows than to winter or spring mated- these risks to reproductive performance.
sows. Pigs are short day breeders and so photoperiod is
a major factor for reproductive performance of pigs in
European countries [14]. The associations between high
temperature and reproductive performance have been
extensively studied in Asian and European countries
[15–18]. It has been hypothesized that reduced repro-
ductive performance in summer occurs through a com-
bination of high temperatures reducing GnRH secretion,
and also impairing ovarian follicle development that
compromises corpus lutea functions resulting in low
progesterone concentrations [13].
Climate data in meteorological stations near studied
herds have been used to quantify the association be-
tween maximum temperatures and sow performance
[15–18]. For example, increased outside temperature de-
creased FR and total number of pigs born, while it in-
creased returns, WMI and sow mortality.
Also, various studies have shown that the impact of
the outdoor temperature on reproductive performance
varies depending on parity number. For example, as the
temperature increased from 20 to 30 C0, FR in parity 1
sows dropped by at least 10% whereas it only dropped Fig. 2 Sensitivity of subsequent total number of pigs born to 21-day
pre-service temperature varies with parity [18]. *This study included
by 2-5% in the other parities [19]. Additionally, as out-
27,739 gilts and 127,670 parity records of sows in 95 Japanese herds
side temperature increased from 25 to 30 C0, the total
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 4 of 10

Lactation length There has been concern about early In contrast to higher risks for low parity sows in sum-
weaning systems in the U.S.A. being associated with sub- mer, aged sows are more sensitive to winter minimum
optimal reproductive performance, such as prolonged outdoor temperature, with more aged sows than low
WMI, low FR and fewer PBA at subsequent parity [20]. parity females dying around the due date [27]. Such
Also, short lactation length decreases average feed intake problems may explain the increased aged sow deaths in
during lactation. However, since 2000, the U.S.A. swine winter, and be related to aged sow responses to cold or
industry has been moving from early weaning to in- to large variation in daily temperature changes during
creased lactation length [21] in order to improve growth winter. Therefore, it is recommended that producers pay
performance in nursery and grower pigs. Also, in the E. attention to peripartum pigs in order to perform assisted
U. countries the weaning of piglets from a sow at less farrowing, especially when they are likely to experience
than 28 days of age has been prohibited since 2013 [22]. high or low temperature.
However, there is another concern that some nurse sows
with increased lactation length can lose too much of Performance factors
their body reserves due to high milk yields, and so they Some reproductive performance factors are also predic-
may have prolonged WMI and lower FR. tors associated with other types of performance. So,
some performance factors can be used to predict other
Number of inseminations or matings A single insem- types of reproductive performance in sows. For example,
ination with 3 x 109 spermatozoa during the 24 h before prolonged WMI is associated with lower FR and fewer
ovulation resulted in a fertilization rate of 92–95% on an PBA, as shown below.
experimental farm [23]. However, in commercial herds,
a single insemination, due in part to late timing, is often
related to lower FR and fewer PBA [24, 25]. The occur- Weaning-to-first-mating interval (WMI) Sows with
rence of single inseminations is associated with reserved prolonged WMI have lower FR and fewer PBA than
females, gilt age at first-mating of 150–224 days or 262 those with WMI 3–6 days [32, 33]. The WMI tends to
or higher days, and WMI of 7 days or more [24]. In the be increased by short lactation length and low feed in-
U.S.A. single inseminations have been practiced together take during lactation [10]. In addition, prolonged WMI
with the use of a GnRH antagonist given intravaginally is related to a short duration of estrus and to a shorter
in gel form [26]. This practice may enable the U.S.A. in- interval between onset of estrus and ovulation [34, 35].
dustry to reduce costs while still having reproductive One consequence of this is an increased risk of insemin-
performance levels similar to those with multiple ating at a suboptimal time, which can be a major cause
inseminations. of low FR and few PBA. As previously mentioned, the
use of a GnRH antagonist, given to sows intravaginally,
Peri-partum period or farrowing event A farrowing facilitates synchronized estrus in weaned sows. If this
event is a major risk factor for sows in all parities practice becomes common, WMI may become a less
and seasons. Our study showed that approximately important factor for other types of reproductive
68% sow deaths occurred in the period from 4 weeks performance.
before farrowing to 4 weeks after farrowing [27]. The
mortality risk for sows increases with parity, with our Farrowing failure or return to service Return-to-service
survival analysis showing that aged sows (e.g., parity 6 commonly occurs in commercial breeding herds, with
or higher) are at the highest risk of dying in the peri- approximately 10% of female pigs that fail to farrow
partum period [28]. being reserved. It has been shown that FR decreases
Sow mortality increases during summer months in the by at least 10% with each reservice [36]. Returned fe-
U.S.A. [29]. Also, the summer mortality risk in low par- males tend to have estrous behavior that is different
ity sows rises with increased outside temperature during from non-returned females. These behavioral differ-
the week before the due date. It appears that lower par- ences include having short estrus duration or weak
ity females that have immature bodies are more sensitive estrus signs, both of which are hard to detect when
than multiparous sows to maximum outside temperature determining appropriate timing of inseminations.
around the due date. Pigs are particularly susceptible to Analysis of 114,906 females found that 38% had one or
heat stress because they have limited sweat glands and a more returns in lifetime [37]. Any such occurrence in-
weak cardiovascular system [30]. Heart failure and dis- creases non-productive days of female pigs and
tortions in abdominal organs are two major causes of decreases their productivity. In the study, 33% of the
death in female pigs [7]. Additionally, some pathways re- first-returned females had a second return in the same
lated to postpartum dysgalactia syndrome [31] are pos- or later parity. In particular, 41% of first-returned gilts
sibly associated to sow deaths. had a second return. So females having a return-to-
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 5 of 10

service are at risk for having another return (Fig. 3), and prolific sows. Also, the lack of any difference in WMI be-
these returned females should be closely monitored. tween the PBA groups suggests that the other less prolific
Reservice intervals account for 30% of NPD, which groups of sows are not inferior in terms of fertility. Fur-
should be minimized. The reservice intervals are cate- thermore, the lack of difference in 21-day adjusted litter
gorized into 3 groups: regular, irregular and late weights between the PBA groups implies that there were
returns with respective re-service intervals of 18 to no differences in milk yields between the prolific sows and
24, 25 to 38 and 39 to 150 days post-service [38]. less prolific sows. So, prolificacy appears to be independ-
Gilts have more regular returns than sows, and sows ent of fertility or milking capability.
have more irregular returns than gilts. A regular re-
turn indicates either no conception or failure of ma- Birth or weaning weight and preweaning growth rate
ternal recognition. An irregular return implies Birth or weaning weight and preweaning growth rate are
successful conception but a subsequent early preg- not in the productivity tree of breeding herds in Fig. 1,
nancy loss, and a late return suggests late pregnancy but they do indicate the quality of piglets, and positively
loss [11]. Our study found that 19, 10 and 12% of fe- affect their post weaning growth performance. Increased
males that had respective regular, irregular and late colostrum intake reduces piglet mortality, and increases
returns had a second return of the same type [37]. preweaning and post weaning growth performance [2].
Also, higher preweaning growth in piglets is associated
Number of pigs born alive (PBA) A southern European with higher post weaning growth performance [41]. The
study has shown that PBA in parity 1 is a factor that can preweaning growth rate can be increased by manage-
help producers to identify prolific sows at an early stage ment tools such as the use of a milk replacer [42] and
[39]. In the study, sows were categorized into 4 groups two-step nursing [43].
based on the 10th, 50th and 90th percentiles of PBA at par- The birth weight and preweaning growth rate of piglets
ity 1. The sows that had the most PBA in parity 1 contin- that will become replacement gilts are characteristics of
ued to produce the most PBA throughout all the litter-of-origin for subsequent reproductive performance
subsequent parities (Fig. 4), and also had higher FR up to of sows in later life [44]. Higher preweaning growth in re-
parity 2. Overall, this most prolific sow group had 23 pigs placement gilts is associated with a lower age at puberty.
or more lifetime PBA and 10 pigs or more annualized These characteristics appear to affect the subsequent re-
PBA than the group with the fewest PBA in parity 1. A productive performance of sows. Lower birth weight is as-
sow’s PBA is determined by genetic potential and also en- sociated with more PBA in the litter, whereas weaning
vironmental or management factors [9]. So appropriate weight and preweaning growth are affected by sow milk
management for gilt development is important to increase production and producers’ lactational management.
the numbers of these prolific sows. Also, treating long toes Therefore, extremely light gilts born to sows that farrowed
could help to maintain these good sows. large PBA should not be selected as replacement gilts.
However, no differences have been found between the Furthermore, increased preweaning growth is critical to
PBA groups categorized at parity 1 for the number of pigs improve subsequent sow performance in later life.
weaned, WMI or 21-day adjusted litter weights [39, 40].
The lack of any difference between the PBA groups for Number of pigs weaned The use of foster-in and nurse
the number of pigs weaned indicates that extra piglets sows are common practices because modern sows far-
born to the most prolific sows were fostered on less row many PBA per litter, but the practices may impair

Fig. 3 Subsequent return occurrences in first-returned female pigs by parity [37]. *This study contains 65,3528 service records of 114,906 female
pigs on 125 EU farms
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 6 of 10

Fig. 4 Pigs born alive (PBA) at different parities for 4 sow groups. The 4 groups were categorized by the basis of the 10th, 50th and 90th
percentiles of PBA at parity 1 [39]. *This study includes 476,816 parity records of 109,373 sows entered into 125 southern EU herds. Sows were
categorized into 4 groups based on the 10th, 50th and 90th percentiles of PBA in parity 1

the metabolic state of sows and decrease post weaning mated at an earlier age [39]. This difference is probably
reproductive performance [43, 45]. Sows with an in- because sows with high age at first-mating are likely to
creased number of pigs weaned or having heavier litter become low-efficiency sows as a result of having in-
weights at weaning could have decreased post weaning creased culling intervals due to reproductive failure.
reproductive performance due to an increased loss of Increased age of gilts at first-mating is also associated
body reserves and an impaired metabolic state during with increased PBA in parity 1 [39]. However, this bene-
lactation. However, a study of Danish commercial herds fit is limited, because even when the gilt age increased
found that nurse sows selected by farm staff tended to from 200 to 300 days there was only a small increase in
be highly prolific sows with a good body condition score PBA of about 0.3-0.4 pigs. In the U.S.A., southern
and high lactation feed intake [43]. So, nurse sows had European countries and Japan first-mating of gilts is typ-
more PBA at subsequent parity than non-nurse sows. In ically carried out at approximately 240 days in order to
addition, it is a widely accepted practice to let parity 1 increase body weights and to ensure more body reserves
sows have 13–14 piglets, by using foster-in, in order to in replacement gilts that are to be first-mated.
develop and stimulate all mammary glands [46]. These
sows will have more pigs weaned than other sows. Number of stillborn piglets By definition, stillborn pig-
lets are those piglets that are alive at the initiation of far-
Age of gilts at first-mating Gilt development and man- rowing but die intrapartum [1]. In practice, the stillborn
agement is critical to optimize the lifetime reproductive piglets in commercial herds are categorized as piglets
performance of sows. However, even though recording the found dead behind the sow at the first check up after
age of gilts at first estrus and the dates of heat-no-serve parturition, with no sign of decomposition [48].
can help improve gilt development and management, they As is the case with age of gilts at first-mating and
are rarely recorded in commercial herds in North WMI, the number of stillborn piglets is related to other
America. Instead, age of gilts at first-mating is commonly aspects of reproductive performance. For example, a
recorded [47], meaning that age of gilts at first-mating is greater abortion risk for higher parity sows and sows far-
still an important factor in farm data analysis of PBA and rowing increased numbers of stillborn piglets has been
lifetime performance in commercial herds. For example, reported in both southern European and Japanese herds
age of gilts at first-mating is associated with type of return. [5, 12]. Such an association could be explained by man-
Late returns increase in higher aged gilts [37], which may ual interventions for farrowing difficulties or by infec-
have degraded ovary and corpora lutea functions, as well tious agents, such as porcine parvovirus or porcine
as low progesterone concentrations [13]. In contrast, regu- reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus [11].
lar returns increase in low aged gilts at first-mating, prob-
ably, due to their immature endocrine systems. Herd-level factors
Another example of the importance of gilt age at first- Herd characteristics or herd factors, including herd
mating is that sows first mated at a high age of 278 days groups by productivity, herd size, management practices,
or more old, had lower lifetime performance than those production systems, within-herd variability, age structure
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 7 of 10

and facility types can all be analyzed as herd-level than ordinary herds, but 20 and 200% higher culling
information. rates in parities 6 and 7, respectively [50]. It appears
that high-performing herds have a different data man-
High-performing herds agement system and culling decision making process
The concept of high-performing herds came from best- [51] to those in low-performing herds.
practice benchmarking, which has been used to provide
target values for reproductive performance and efficiency Herd size
in breeding herds [49]. Herds can be categorized into In a southern European study, PBA in parity 1 increased
two categories based on PWSY: high-performing herds by 0.3 pigs as herd size increased from 180 to 1,300 fe-
and ordinary herds. male breeding pigs [39]. Larger herds are associated with
High-performing farms behave differently from ordin- higher PWSY due to having fewer non-productive days,
ary farms. For example, analysis showed that as max- shorter farrowing interval and lower preweaning mortal-
imum temperature increased from 25 to 35 Co, WMI of ity [52], and they may have more rapid genetic improve-
sows in high-performing herds increased by only ment and a better production system than small herds.
0.3 days, whereas that in ordinary herds increased by Also, it is possible to hire more specialized staff and use
0.8 days (Fig. 5). The negative effect of high temperature better facilities for large herds than for small herds. Fur-
on WMI was 60% less in high-performing herds than thermore, high-performing herds have a larger herd size
that in ordinary herds. So, the results indicate that high- than low-performing herds. So herd size can be used as
performing herds practice better management that can an indicator of how advanced a production system is, in-
alleviate 60% of unfavorable effects of high temperature cluding the amount of investment, the quality of the fa-
on WMI of sows [17]. cilities and human resources, and the level of genetic
Additionally, high-performing herds have higher FR improvement.
and lower return risks across parity than ordinary
herds. Consequently, these high-performing herds Herd management factors
have fewer non-productive days, such as reservice Information relating to herd management factors in-
interval and culling interval. Also, the high- clude gilt development programs, insemination timings,
performing herds have more PBA and more pigs farrowing and lactation management, farrowing spaces
weaned across parities than ordinary herds. In par- and culling guidelines. For example, analysis of insemin-
ticular, a low FR in low-performing herds is a major ation timings shows that gilts in herds that perform first
contributor to prolonged non-productive days, and so insemination immediately after first detection had higher
low-performing herds are recommended to improve FR than those that delay insemination [53]. Furthermore,
FR in order to reduce non-productive days [40]. With when breeding herds were categorized into low FR herds
regards to culling management, high-performing herds and ordinary herds, based on the 25th percentile of aver-
have 5-10% lower culling rates from parities 0 to 5 age FR, fewer of the low FR herds inseminated gilts “im-
mediately” or sows by “6-12 h,” compared to ordinary
herds [25]. Also, the low FR herds had more single in-
seminations than ordinary herds, probably because of
their later insemination timing. Another finding from
herd management analysis is that actual culling intervals
for mated gilts and sows were at least 30 days longer
than the guideline culling interval [54]. Therefore, it
may be advisable for staff on such farms to check the
timing of AI in relation to ovulation by using ultrasound
scanning of ovaries in gilts [23].

Within-herd variability for number of mated females

A consistent flow of pigs through a production facility
becomes more important as production systems become
Fig. 5 Sensitivity of weaning-to-first-mating interval to post farrowing more standardized. Within-herd variability in the flow of
maximum temperature varies with farm type [17]. *This study pigs in a breeding herd can be measured as the number
comprises 87,428 parity records of 61,558 sows farrowed in 103 of females mated per week, over a 52-week period. Small
Japanese herds, which were classified into high-performing herds within-herd variability in the number of females mated
and ordinary herds on the basis of pigs weaned per mated
16–19 weeks previously is associated with higher annual
female per year
FR, decreased non-productive days, higher PWSY [55]
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 8 of 10

and increased utilization efficiency of farrowing spaces motility parameters and the optimum number of motile
[56]. Additionally, a statistical process control chart [55] cells in a dose [58]. However, more research is needed
is used to monitor within-farm variability in production on integrating field data about boar semen factors with
or pig flow in breeding herds. reproductive performance of sows.

Number of farrowing spaces

Limitations and challenges of data analysis using
A limited number of farrowing spaces is a frequent pig
commercial herd data
production bottleneck in most breeding herds. However,
There are several limitations with observational studies
more efficient utilization of farrowing spaces can be
that would not occur in controlled experiments. For ex-
done by reducing within-herd variability. A survey on
ample, herd health, nutrition, management practices and
commercial swine farms found that a higher utilization
genotypes may not be well controlled in observational
efficiency of farrowing spaces is associated with lower
studies. Also, some commercial herd data may be re-
within-herd variability measured as the coefficient of
corded incorrectly. Additionally, multiple observations
variation (%) for the number of females mated 16 weeks
per sow are not independent units of observation. Data
previously [56]; the coefficient of variation can be de-
in sows within the herd are also in a two-level structure
creased by stabilizing the number of sows and gilts
because management practices, production systems, fa-
mated, and improving the farrowing rate. Improved far-
cilities and herd health programs vary between herds:
rowing space utilization efficiency enables farms to in-
i.e., sows are not independent of the herd. However,
crease the number of female inventory. Also, decreasing
even with such limitations, farm data analysis using ap-
production variation enables producers to solve the
propriate exclusion criteria and multi-level statistical
bottleneck problem and to produce stable output in
models can disseminate practical and readily applicable
commercial herds.
information to swine veterinarians and producers about
production issues that are difficult to investigate by con-
Fluctuating age structure
trolled experiments.
It is necessary to have a stable age structure in breeding
herds in order to maintain constant pig production.
Using 24-month time-plot charts in parity proportions Conclusions
of parity 0 and parities 3–5 females, 148 herds were cat- There are sow-level and farm-level risk factors for
egorized into two groups: stable and fluctuating age suboptimal reproductive performance of sows. The sow-
structure groups [57]. The fluctuating group was illus- level factors include both ordinary factors and perform-
trated as the plot lines of parity 0 and parities 3–5 pro- ance factors. The ordinary factors include low or high
portions crossed over 24 months, whereas the stable parity, high temperature, decreased lactation feed intake,
group was expressed as the two parity proportion lines increased lactation length and a farrowing event,
never crossed. It was found that there was no difference whereas the performance factors are prolonged WMI,
in average female inventory between the stable age returns, few PBA, light birth weight or low preweaning
structure herd group and the fluctuating age structure growth rate, foster-in or nurse sow practices, early or
herd group. However, the stable age structure herds had late age at first-mating and farrowing stillborn piglets.
higher FR, lower non-productive days, higher sow lon- The herd-level factors include female pigs being fed in
gevity and higher PWSY than the fluctuating age struc- breeding herds that have low efficiency, late insemin-
ture herds [57]. This is because the herds with a stable ation, high within-herd variability, limited numbers of
age structure had higher proportions of parity 3–5 sows farrowing spaces, fluctuating age structure and poor
and a lower proportion of gilts than the fluctuating age semen quality. It is useful for veterinarians to know
structure herds. Therefore, age structure variability in about the factors affecting sow reproductive perform-
breeding herds is associated with lower herd efficiency ance in order to maximize a sow’s potential and to
and sow longevity. Additionally, analysis of the age optimize their client’s breeding herd productivity. How-
structure in herds with high efficiency and high sow lon- ever, in order to empower farm data analysis it is neces-
gevity showed the proportions of parities 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 sary to ensure correct data recording, data collection
and 6 females to be 22, 16, 14, 13, 12, 10 and 7%, and data integrity checks.
respectively [50].
Abbreviations
FR: Farrowing rate; PBA: The number of pigs born alive; PWSY: The number
Boar and semen factors of pigs weaned per sow per year; WMI: Weaning-to-first-mating interval
Farm data analysis of boar semen factors can identify
the risk factors for poor performance at semen or boar, Acknowledgement
sow and herd levels, and it can also determine the Authors thank Dr. I. McTaggart for his critical review of this manuscript.
Koketsu et al. Porcine Health Management (2017) 3:1 Page 9 of 10

Funding 16. Bloemhof S, Mathur PK, Knol EF, van der Waaij EH. Effect of daily
This work was supported by the Research Grant Kiban-A (2012–2016) and environmental temperature on farrowing rate and total born in dam line
the Graduate School GP 2016 from Meiji University. sows. J Anim Sci. 2013;91:2667–79.
17. Iida R, Koketsu Y. Quantitative associations between outdoor climate data and
Availability of data and materials weaning-to-first-mating interval or adjusted 21-day litter weights during
Data sharing not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated or summer in Japanese swine breeding herds. Livest Sci. 2013;152:253–60.
analyzed during the current review. 18. Iida R, Koketsu Y. Interactions between pre- or postservice climatic factors,
parity, and weaning-to-first-mating interval for total number of pigs born of
Authors’ contributions female pigs serviced during hot and humid or cold seasons. J Anim Sci.
YK, ST and RI contributed to reviewing the topics and writing the present 2014;92:4180–8.
article, and agree with the contents of the review. All authors read and 19. Iida R, Koketsu Y. Lower farrowing rate of female pigs associated with
approved the final manuscript. interactions between pre- or post-service climatic factors and production
factors in humid subtropical and humid continental climate zones. Anim
Competing interests Reprod. 2016;13:63–8.
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23. Soede NM, Wetzels CCH, Zondag W, de Koning MAI, Kemp B. Effects of
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ultrasonography, on fertilization rate and accessory sperm count in sows.
J Reprod Fertil. 1995;104:99–106.
24. Takai Y, Saito K, Koketsu Y. Factors associated with a single-mating
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