Practical enrichments for growing pigs on commercial farms
Miranda Smit, Martyna Lagoda – At the 2026 PSC Producer Meetings, Miranda Smit and Martyna Lagoda presented data from a trial at a commercial barn and a research barn looking at environmental enrichment for pigs. Enrichment gives pigs opportunities to...
Improving feed efficiency in pork production through individual thermal efficiency index
Feed efficiency is essential in pork production optimizing growth and maximizing nutrient use. This project will validate the use of thermal efficiency index (TEI) for evaluating feed efficiency in growing pigs. This study investigated the relationship between thermal efficiency and...
2026 PSC Producer Meetings Presentations
2026 PSC Producer Meeting Presentations In collaboration with Zoetis, PIC Canada, and Nutrition Partners AGENDA “Intro – PSC celebrating 35 years” Murray Pettitt, Ph.D. – CEO at Prairie Swine Centre Murray welcomed all participants and gave a short overview of...
Improving sow management and performance using precision feeding records
In 2029, Canadian pork producers will need to make the transition to group sow housing, following the updates to the Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Pigs. This project addresses the timely issue of assisting producers in...
Creep feeding and piglet development: new format and formulation approaches
Weaning is stressful for piglets, especially for fast-growing piglets who may show signs of anemia. Providing creep diets to piglets can potentially reduce weaning stress and improve piglet health, however pellet size may affect their interactions and motivation to eat...
Comparing groups and stalls – what does the data say?
Shuang Luo, Jen-Yun Chou – Many producers worry that a move from sow stalls to group sow housing could hurt productivity, especially due to pregnancy loss or fertility problems. Researchers looked at records from 12 commercial swine farms in Saskatchewan—six...
Successful floor feeding: how to do it right
Jen-Yun Chou – This is Part 2 of the ‘Barn Insights Series’, which focuses on practical solutions to group sow housing. In this second part, Jen-Yun describes her visit to Dave DeVries’ sow barn in Ontario. They use a floor...
Ph.D. Opportunity – Evaluating Alternative Farrowing Systems
INVESTIGATION INTO DIFFERENT FARROWING SYSTEMS FOR INTENSIVELY REARED SOWS Description: Prairie Swine Centre’s Ethology department presents a new PhD opportunity with the objective of evaluating alternative farrowing systems on the welfare and productivity of sows and piglets. Prairie Swine Centre...
Centred on Swine Volume 34 No 2
Topics for this edition include:
Enrichments for phase of production
Miranda Smit, Ken Engele, Jen-Yun Chou- Environmental enrichment plays a different role as pigs grow and age. For example, enrichment for growing pigs focuses mainly on reduction of boredom and stress, improvement of performance, and prevention of damaging behaviours, whereas...
2025 Annual Research Report
The 2025 annual research report is ready to download. You will find topics that cover the areas of Nutrition Developing an Indigestible Protein Index to Investigate the Effects of Dietary Protein in PigsImpact of fibre on performance and intestinal health...
