, sows were kept in groups
of 10 and part of the housing facility was littered with straw. Five to
7 days before the expected farrowing date, sows were moved to the
farrowing house. The farrowing crates (160 cm [W] 230 cm [L]
60 cm [H]) had a creep area for the piglets and a sow lying/suckling
area provided with lateral rails for piglet protection. Sows were
restrained (60 cm [W] 200 cm [L] 110 cm [H]) and had no access
to any environmental enrichment, as is common practice in the
farrowing phase. The flooring in the piglet area consisted of plastic
slatted floors with solid plastic floor in the piglet creep area. The
flooring in the sow area was fully slatted. Piglets had ad libitum
access to water throughout the study.
Th