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Table 1 Animal based welfare outcomes recorded during welfare assessment on 31 farms in the Republic of Ireland

From: Prevalence of welfare outcomes in the weaner and finisher stages of the production cycle on 31 Irish pig farms

Outcome

Description

Poor body condition

Lean pig with spine, hip and pin bones visible

Bursitis

Presence of inflamed bursae (tangerine-sized or larger) on limb(s)

Manure on the bodya

More than half of pigs in the pen with > 50% of their body soiled

Shivering

Slow and irregular vibration of body or parts thereof

Panting

Breathing rapidly in short gasps carried out with the mouth

Huddlingb

Pig lying with more than half of its body in contact with another pig

Lameness

Minimal weight-bearing on the affected limb or inability to move

Skin lesions

Presence of many large and/or deep skin lesions (i.e. more than 1/3 of the body covered with lesions)

Tail lesions

Moderate: evidence of lesions but no blood visible

Severe: bloody, swollen and/or amputated tail

Ear lesions

Moderate: evidence of lesions but no blood visible

Severe: bloody, swollen and/or amputated ear

Flank lesions

Moderate: evidence of lesion but no blood visible

Severe: bloody, open wound

Lethargic

Pig appears generally listless/lethargic

Scouringa

Visible signs of liquid faeces on the floor in the pen

Coughingc

Frequency of coughs

Sneezingc

Frequency of sneezes

Pumping

Labored breathing; easily visible rising/falling of chest with each breath

Twisted snouts

Characteristic of atrophic rhinitis, deformity of the snout

Hernia and rupture

Hernia (umbilical/scrotal)/rupture present (i.e. larger than a fist)

Rectal prolapse

Internal tissue extrudes from the rectum

Skin condition

Skin is inflamed, discolored or spotted

  1. aRecorded on pen level only (i.e. present/absent)
  2. bExpressed as proportion of resting pigs
  3. cFrequency per pig during 5 min observation. All other measures are assessed by recording the percentage of pigs affected in a pen