The Midlands Producer Group wound up its spring workshop season with a thorough examination of pig unit ventilation – which you must get right to ensure the optimum environment for pigs. More than 20 producers met at Weedon for a meal before the trouble-shooting session led by John Chambers from J C Consulting. He offered producers specific advice on air flow and ventilation in their most problematic buildings and there was a good discussion about one unit where the producer had brought along photos of the buildings in question.
A
couple of key points from the evening were:
-
Avoid
investing money in new ventilation systems if the buildings themselves are old
and poorly insulated
-
Draughts
and poor ventilation are major contributors to tail biting problems but are not
the only ones – there are many factors. Manipulable materials are important but,
likewise, are not always the solution to tail biting.
You
can order the new BPEX Pig Unit Ventilation DVD with more practical advice from
John on maximising pig performance by e-mailing kt@bpex.org.uk
or calling 02476 478793.