The Visual Guide to
Porcine Reproduction
Obstetrics: Farrowing
Milk Letdown.
Swollen mammary glands and beads of colostrum at the ends of the nipples. Impending parturition.
Utrecht (1976)
Impending Parturiton.
Swollen mammary glands as parturition approaches. Sow on sanitary mesh. Sow will generally come to milk 12 hours before farrowing.
Evans LE (2009)
Swelling Mammary Glands.
Increasing mammary gland development in a gilt 12 to 24 hours before farrowing.
Smith MC (2011)
Mammary Glands at Labor.
Enlarged mammary glands and turgid nipples of a sow in labor.
Smith MC (2011)
Sow in Labor.
Swollen hyperemic vulva indicative of a sow in labor.
Smith MC (2011)
Active Labor.
Signs of labor: mammary enlargement, swollen hyperemic vulva, and abdominal contractions.
Smith MC (2011)
Sow Off Feed.
Typically, a sow will go off feed during the farrowing process (notice her feed bin).
Smith MC (2013)
Vaginal Examination.
Examination of the birth canal for the degree of dilation and the presence of a fetus.
Smith MC (2011)
Spontaneous Delivery.
Spontaneous delivery of a piglet. It is still contained in the amniotic membrane.
Utrecht (1976)
Septicemia.
The rash along the top of the mammary glands signals septicemia after one pig was retained.
Utrecht (1976)
Heat Lamp and Pad.
Keeping the newborn piglet warm and dry with a heat lamp and a mat.
Smith MC (2011)
Farrowing Huts.
Pasture farrowing huts. They are to be used during the Spring and Fall only because they lack climate control.
Evans LE (2009)
Older Style Gestation Crates.
These are gestation crates for sows after breeding until they are moved to the farrowing crates. The gestation crates are outlawed in some states and countries for humane reasons.
Evans LE (2009)
