Farm Animal Welfare

Pig Neonatal Hypothermia Prevention

Hypothermia is a leading cause of neonatal piglet mortality, occurring when piglets lose heat faster than they can generate it. Effective heat provision is a critical welfare intervention immediately after birth.

Key Facts

Piglets are born with minimal subcutaneous fat and limited thermogenic capacity
Critical temperature for neonatal piglets is 32-36 degrees C in the immediate post-birth period
Heat lamps, floor heating, and covered creep areas provide supplementary heat
Wet piglets lose heat particularly rapidly and should be dried promptly
Hypothermia causes weakness that prevents teat access, perpetuating a welfare spiral

Welfare Considerations

Hypothermic piglets experience progressive weakness, inability to compete for colostrum, and death from a combination of cold, starvation, and immune failure. This is a preventable welfare tragedy that can be almost eliminated through attention to farrowing area temperature, prompt drying of piglets, and provision of adequate supplementary heat. Supervision at farrowing significantly improves individual piglet welfare.

What You Can Do

Support training programmes on neonatal piglet welfare and hypothermia prevention
Advocate for farrowing supervision standards that ensure early thermal support
Choose pork from farms with demonstrated low neonatal mortality rates