Influence of housing and social changes on growth, behaviour and cortisol in piglets at weaning

• Published in: Physiology & behavior Vol. 107; no. 1; pp. 59 - 64
• Main Authors: Colson, V, Martin, E, Orgeur, P, Prunier, A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Inc 20.08.2012; Elsevier
• Subjects: Abdomen; Age Factors; Animals; Animals, Newborn; behavior change; Behavior, Animal; Behavioral psychophysiology; Behaviour; Biological and medical sciences; Body Weight - physiology; Conspecifics; Cortisol; Environmental changes; Exploration; Fighting; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Housing; Hydrocortisone; Hydrocortisone - metabolism; Life Sciences; Other; Piglet; piglets; Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Saliva; Saliva - metabolism; Social behavior; Social Change; Social interactions; Stress; Swine - growth & development; Swine - metabolism; Videotape Recording; Weaning; Welfare; Behaviour; Weaning; Welfare; Piglet; Cortisol; Saliva; Stress; Corticosteroid; Social housing; Steroid hormone; Growth; Antiinflammatory agent; Hydrocortisone; Glucocorticoid; Pig; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Animal; Adrenal hormone; Artiodactyla; Behavior; Ungulata; saliva; cortisol; stress; behaviour; piglet; welfare; weaning
• ISSN: 0031-9384; 1873-507X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.06.001

Abstract The present experiment aimed at evaluating the relative effects of environmental and social changes on behaviour, growth and salivary cortisol of piglets at weaning. On Day 0, 26-day old piglets were weaned and allocated to one of four treatments: neither environmental nor social change (C), environmental change (E), social change (S), and both changes (SE). Overall, 6 replicates of 10–12 animals/pen/treatment were analysed. Piglets were video recorded during the first three days after weaning to observe social behaviour and general activity. Saliva was collected between 07:00 and 09:00 on Day 0 just before weaning (D0H7), on Day 1 (D1H7) and Day 2 (D2H7 and D2H16) to measure cortisol. Saliva cortisol did not change after weaning in C piglets but increased significantly at D1H7 in S and SE piglets, at D2H7 and D2H16 in E and SE piglets. Compared to C piglets, numerous behaviours were altered in SE piglets: more total lying (P < 0.08), less lying on the belly, less environmental exploration, less playing, more fighting regardless the day, more lying awake inactive on Day 0 (P < 0.05). Compared to C piglets, E piglets displayed more total lying but less environmental exploration whereas S piglets showed less lying on the belly but more fighting (P < 0.05). Present results show that moving piglets to a new environment as well as mixing them with unfamiliar conspecifics at weaning have stressful effects which are additive.