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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/20469
Description
Title
Design of the sow feeder: A systems approach
Author(s)
Taylor, Ian Alexander
Issue Date
1990
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Curtis, Stanley E.
Department of Study
Animal Sciences
Discipline
Animal Sciences
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Agriculture, Animal Culture and Nutrition
Engineering, Agricultural
Language
eng
Abstract
A multidisciplinary approach was used to study the design of feeders for sows. This included: (1) the evaluation of commercially available feeder designs; (2) a survey of sows' head, front torso, and gross body dimensions; (3) a description of the kinematics of eating in sows; and (4) the design and evaluation of prototypes leading to the development of an effective feeding device for sows.
A ninety-six-fold difference in mean feed leavage and a nineteen-fold difference in mean feed spillage were found across the ten commercially available models of sow feeder studied. Leavage and spillage were found to be affected by both the particular model's design and individual differences among sows in how they ate. There was the suggestion of a strong relationship between the nature of the feed-access space provided by a design, the spatial requirements of the sow's size, shape, and eating posture and movements, and the resulting effectiveness of this combination. Large, consistent differences among feeder designs also were observed in terms of injury to the sow and maintenance and sanitation factors.
Thirteen linear external body measurements as well as body weight were registered for each of 84 sows representing various genetic backgrounds and ages. Gross body and, more specifically, head measurements relevant to the sow's eating posture and movements were recorded to form a data base from which the initial suggestions of the dynamic-dimensional criteria for sow feeder design could be drawn.
If allowed to eat in a spatially unrestricted fashion, the sow in general displays little body movement except for the rhythmic actions of mandible, rostral disc, and tongue. Dynamic space envelopes were defined using empiric relationships based on certain static head dimensions. These envelopes can be used to evaluate the suitability of feeder designs.
A sow feeder was designed that facilitated comfortable, noninjurious, nonwasteful ($<$.5%) eating by the sow. These design improvements were made possible by the increased understanding of the sow's needs resulting from earlier phases of this dissertation research. To achieve this, the sow was directly involved in the design process.
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