Darin, can you comment?

BIOS · Post by **BIOS** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 4:34 pm

We had a Hamp gilt that we gave a shot of lut to on 114 days and she mis carried on the 118 day with three dead pigs, big ones at that, any ideas? Never went into labor, almost thought she had a false pregnancy
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Darin · Post by **Darin** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 7:24 pm

Did you try to intervene on day 115?

It would seem to me that she was in labor, even if it wasn't apparent and that she finally was successful on day 118, but way too late. She probably just didn't try. Sorry to say, but we are talking about a hamp, and one with a litter of only three at that. Some females are simply not very maternal, and you will find more of these among the hampshire breed than many others. I think all you could really have done is reached in at day 115 to see if she was open and ready to farrow. She may have been, or may not. The prostaglandin shot (lut. or estrumate) would not have contributed to the piglets being stillborn. It simply would have initiated the labor process by removing the CL and stopping the production of progesterone. Labor would commence from there. If the labor process itself took 2-3 days (which it apparently did) that's why the pigs were stillborn.

Now, if you had given oxytocin after the lut. I would surely attribute that as contributing to the stillborn piglets. Never give oxy until you know the sow is in labor and you can assist with the farrowing.

BIOS · Post by **BIOS** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 8:37 pm

Thanks Darin, So what you are saying is that the lut didnt actually kill the pigs it was the labor that finished them off?
She had milk at 114 days and we had the next full day to farrow so we gave her the shot. I doubt that if we would of let her go on her own without the lut she would not been able to pass the pigs on her own due to the size of them.
What is your procedure on lut, do you follow up with another shot?

ter · Post by **ter** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 9:04 pm

The shot did not kill them, it was the long labor without intervention. When we induce labor and as soon as we see brownish discharge if there isnt a pig on the ground within 30-45 min we try to go in and check. We have had pigs in labor that you never saw trying to push and had to pull the first one or two out before the gilt would do anything. If we keep having to pull them out we will give oxyitocin to help with contractions and get the gilt/sow to do something other than lay there.

BIOS · Post by **BIOS** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 9:19 pm

Thanks Ter, I was beginning to think lut was a bad thing, it was our lack of knowledge that killed those pigs. However they were huge and might not have been able to pull the pigs alive.

ter · Post by **ter** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:08 am

With small litters like that, sometimes you get some pretty big pigs. Just make sure that you have an OB snare on hand for the next time. If she passed them, you could have pulled them. Although, depending on how long it would have taken to pull them out they could have been stillborn already. Just depends. Our first litter we only had 2 born one still born, the other alive. We had to pull both with an ob snare and it took us a long time to try to get that little one out. Partially due to the size, and partially due to our inexperience. My fiancee and I both had to pull on the snare with all our might to get that first baby out. Weighed the little guy and he was almost 6 pounds at birth.