Kendall Weger, Technical Services Specialist at PIC, presented a lot of great data and tips around P1 development in her presentation at the PSC Producer Meetings. A sustainable P1 development program should consist of three important areas, including selection intensity, gilt eligibility at first mating and parity 1 preparation. The first step in a P1 development program is selection intensity, which is all about the gilt pool and making sure the right quantity and quality of gilts are available for selection decisions to start off with the best females. There are four elements that are important in gilt eligibility at first mating: age at puberty, age at breeding, body weight at breeding, and number of estruses. The last area of the P1 development program, which is often overlooked, is preparation of gilts for their first farrowing and lactation. In summary, a solid gilt program needs to be considered a foundation for improving retention, lower sow death rate and maximum weaning performance.
P1 development strategies for peak performance (full article)
