Why would my pregnant pig have premature piglets and then die?

Question

What could be a reason for a pig to have premature piglets? My pig was due until next week and she had labor signs and died along with all her piglets about 2 weeks ago. I would like to know any info since we still have 7 pregnant pigs due this week

Dr. Strydom, DVM · Accepted Answer

So sorry to hear you are having this issue. There are a range of causes of abortion in the pig. Majority of abortions are non-infectious and some 90% are never diagnosed. Causes of abortion can be simply divided into four categories. If you have an abortion problem I suggest you discuss these issues with your veterinarian. 1. Seasonal effects: 70% of all abortions fall into this category. Remember it is normal for sows to farrow in the spring, and therefore, there is a natural tendency for pregnancies to be lost in the summer and autumn. There are many factors believed to be involved in the summer infertility/autumn abortion syndrome – reduction in light length, effect of heat, loss of appetite in the summer, etc. 2. Environmental effects: Sows may be subjected to stress factors relating to their environment: draughts, excessive heat stress, inadequate cooling, change in the feeding routines, changes in stock people, bullying when introduced into a new group and trauma from moving through narrow doorways. All of these factors singly or combined can result in abortion in the individual sow. Injections can also result in abortions at times. 3. Mycotoxins: Although difficult to prove, mycotoxins have long been suspected as being responsible for abortions. In any case of 2 or 3 abortions over a short period of time, clean out the feed bins and feed lines. Never feed moldy feed to animals. Moldy straw can also play a significant role in the causes of abortion. 4. Infectious causes: There are a range of infectious causes of abortion. Examples include swine influenza, erysipelas, swine fever and leptospirosis. PRRSv (porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus) can also be responsible for severe abortion storms when a new stain enters a naive population of pregnant sows. So, as you can see, there are so many factors that come into play here. It is impossible for me to tell you exactly what happened. If you want to know 100% you would have needed the vet out to do a necropsy (autopsy) on the sow and send tissue samples out the the lab for analysis. Otherwise we are just guessing. My recommendation is to consult with a local vet to get the best outcome with the rest of the sows. I hope this helps. If you have more questions feel free to ask again. Best wishes!

Why would my pregnant pig have premature piglets and then die?

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