3.5 Buchtenelemente Abdeckung Liegebereich

	Foreword
1	Introduction
2	Farrowing pen
2.1	Farrowing pen – size
2.2	Farrowing pen – layout
2.3	Farrowing pen – floor design
2.3.1	Farrowing pen – Floor design: Lying comfort for the sow
2.3.2	Farrowing pen – Floor design: Slip resistance
2.4	Farrowing pen – Pen structure
2.5	Farrowing pen – Run-out area
3	Pen components
3.1	Pen elements – pen walls
3.2	Bay elements – Storage aids
3.3	Pen elements – troughs/drinking troughs for sows and piglets
3.4	Pen components – Piglet protection cage
3.5	Pen components – Cover for sow resting area
3.6	Pen components – Piglet nest
3.6.1	Pen elements – piglet nest: size and floor design
3.6.2	Pen elements – piglet nest: Position
3.6.3	Pen elements – piglet nest: Covering/walls
3.6.4	Pen elements – Piglet nest: Temperature in piglet nest
3.6.5	Pen elements – piglet nest: Piglet nest temperature control
3.6.6	Pen elements – piglet nest: Heat source
3.6.7	Pen elements – piglet nest: Heating the piglet nest
3.6.8	Pen elements – Piglet nest: Lighting
4.1	Organic material – enrichment material
4.2	Organic material – Manure removal and slurry technology
5.1	Climate – Creation of climate zones
5.2	Climate – Temperature regulation
6	Cleaning and Disinfection
	Bibliography

Bay elements

3.5 Cover for the sow's lying area

Figure 47: A cover in the sow’s lying area creates a farrowing nest.
(Image: Schulte-Remmert)

In free farrowing systems, there are pen designs in which the ‘nesting area’ is screened off by a cover (Fig. 47). This provides the sow with an undisturbed area for nest-building, farrowing and resting.²⁵ In a study by Damm et al.²⁹, sows with a farrowing area closed at the top exhibited significantly more nest-building behaviour prior to farrowing than sows without a closed farrowing area. However, no positive effect on crushing losses was observed. When setting up a ‘nesting area’, an easy-to-operate mechanism for opening and closing the cover should be installed to ensure proper animal monitoring and assistance during farrowing.

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Bay elements

3.5 Cover for the sow's lying area