Keep an eye on piglet heat mats

Piglet heat mats set too hot could cause an increase in overlying, according to Paul Thompson, vet consultant for ACMC.

He says problems of overlying have been seen where mats have been set too hot as piglets choose not to lie there. “Watching the behaviour of piglets is crucial to setting the temperature,” says Mr Thompson.

Mr Thompson recommends checking for common problems such as individual mat failures, mats with piglets of different ages being controlled by one controller and the temperature sensor being positioned so that the mat is “trying to heat the farrowing house”.

To prevent problems he says infra-red thermometers could be used to assess the temperature of mats quickly.