Is it possible to reduce claw and leg lesions on piglets by using soft floors in farrowing pens?

The incidence of damage to the claws and legs in piglets caused by the floor in farrowing pens is a widely known problem and very common in today's pig herds. Although the association between floor and damage has been known for over 35 years, no suitable solution has been found to reduce the negative impact. The purpose of this study was to make a literature study to document the experiences of the use of different types of flooring in farrowing pens and also, in an own study, examine if soft floor in farrowing crates could lead to reduced damage to the claws and legs in piglets compared to concrete floor. The study was conducted in two herds, A and B. In each herd, farrowing pens with concrete floor and concrete floor with polyurethane coating were compared. Data was collected from four and three batches in herd A and herd B respectively. In total, 270 piglets from 24 litters in herd A and 219 piglets from 18 litters in herd B were examined. The examination recorded number of injuries on; horn, sole, accessory digits, coronets, knees, fetlocks and hocks and the number of foot injuries, arthritis and claws abscesses. The definition of injury was perforated skin and all injuries were recorded on each individual piglet. In herd A, diameter of knee injuries and injuries on teats were also registered. The results showed that the piglets on the polyurethane coated floor in herd A had a significantly (p <0.05) lower number of injuries on their hocks compared to the piglets on the concrete floor. The proportion of piglets with injuries on hocks was 23.0 % on concrete and 3.3 % on polyurethane. For damages to the coronets, fetlocks, knees and diameter of knee injury there was a tendency (p <0.10) to fewer injuries and smaller wounds on the knees for piglets on the polyurethane coated floor. In herd B, the number of injuries on the horn and sole were significantly (p