From Les Ward, Director, Advocates for Animals
Jon Day of the ADAS Terrington Research Centre argues that it is unacceptable
on welfare grounds and “bad for farm productivity” that some piglets weaned as
early as three weeks can take a further week to learn to eat solid food
(This Week, 20 March, p16).
His proposal to put garlic into the feed of pregnant sows
leaves me in despair at our stewardship of the animal kingdom.
In natural conditions, pigs are weaned between nine and twenty weeks. Rather
than tinkering with present early weaning practices, scientists should
acknowledge that this method of animal production is so severely detrimental to
the welfare of the sows and piglets that it should be abandoned.
