Sow Foundation System
- Improves digestion and food passage.
- Maintains feed intake.
- Helps ensure follicles are more fully developed which translates into more eggs fertilized and developing into quality offspring.
- Contains a special blend of vitamins and nutrients to help ensure the sow stays calm and in the zone during lactation making her easy to manage and farrow quickly.
- Also contains a special formulation of macrominerals and chelated trace minerals that have increased solubility and digestibility. Combining Sow Foundation Boost and Sow Foundation Lactate aids the sow in digesting feed throughout the digestive tract. This combination may increase the probability of having a maximum number of fertilized and implanted embryos for subsequent farrowing.
In lactation, we can now obtain very high feed intakes without digestive disturbances and get higher overall productivity and longevity out of our sow herd. Compared to our previous diets, they are consuming over 25% more feed during lactation and it has greatly improved condition out of the farrowing crate, milking ability and subsequent litter size.
R.F., Nebraska
- Ensure opportunity for optimum performance by meeting the specific needs of gestating sows, which are different from lactating sows.
- Contains balanced nutrition to improve blood flow to the uterus during gestation. Improved uterine blood flow is critical to ensure the fertilized eggs have the opportunity to be properly nourished, thus increasing the probability of more fully developed fetuses and well-formed babies. Additional well-formed babies provide greater opportunity to raise a champion.
Foundation Sow Nutrition has made our sows' skin condition and hair coat look like baby pigs. After that happened, we saw an increase in farrowing rate, born live and birth weights. Also, sow body condition has improved with less feed than what we observed on the previous nutrition we were using.
C.G., Illinois
For more information on optimal sow nutrition, click here.
Sow Model
What Is The Foundation Interactive Sow Model?
The Foundation Sow Model was developed to provide swine producers a comprehensive method of evaluating the effects of changes made in their farrowing operations. It measures the relative effects of input production changes from a biological efficiency as well as financial efficiency perspective. This model can be used to provide answers to the relative benefits of changes related to nutrition and genetics, as well as basic management changes.
By only considering the input cost side of the equation with the sow herd, many potential opportunities are overlooked and the associated profits are never realized. The value of increased production levels often far outweighs any additional input costs. The Foundation Interactive Sow Model is a tool that can help you make profitable management decisions for your specific operation.
What Does It Measure?
One very important parameter measured by the model is the metabolic efficiency of the sow diet. This is calculated as the pounds of pigs weaned per pound of sow feed fed. We see this number vary by as much as 100% on farms in the Midwest and other swine producing areas. Anything over 0.15 pounds of pigs weaned per pound of feed fed falls into the excellent category. Many of today's sow herds are under 0.10 and have less than expected financial results.
The Sow Model is not designed to evaluate your cost of production in the usual manner. It is an interactive tool designed to perform comparative "what if" scenarios. The inputs required to run the program are readily found on any sow performance record keeping system. The model aids in the evaluation of the real cost of such factors as high culling rates and high death losses often seen in modern swine operations.
It is possible to look at the relative effects of a single performance parameter change, or you can evaluate the effects of multiple changes at the same time. Some of the common parameters evaluated are weaning age, total number of pigs weaned, pig weaning weight, farrowing rate, culling rate, sow death loss, non-productive sow days, feed cost, and pounds of feed fed per sow.
Please contact us or fax the completed input sheet to have a representative run the Interactive Sow Model for your farrowing operation — to see how much money you can save with Merlin!
| Merlin Sow Foundation | |||
Sow Productivity and Efficiency Comparison Report |
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For: 100 Sow Herd Sample | |||
| Performance Criteria: | Current Program | Merlin Foundation | Improvement or Difference |
| Average Wean Age | 24.0 | 24.0 | 0 |
| Avg. Pig Weaning Weight | 15.0 | 17.0 | 2 |
| Actual Litter Weaning Weight | 129 | 153 | 19% |
| Pigs Born Live / Litter | 10.20 | 10.50 | 0.3 |
| Pigs Weaned / Litter | 8.60 | 9.00 | 0.4 |
| Pigs / Sow / Year | 17.5 | 18.8 | 1.25 |
| Annual Number of Pigs Weaned | 1,750 | 1,875 | 125 |
| Days to Rebreed / Cycle | 6.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 |
| Days to Rebreed/Sow/Year | 12.2 | 10.4 | 1.8 |
| Litters (turns) Per Year | 2.03 | 2.08 | 0.05 |
| Farrowing Rate % | 70.00% | 80.00% | 10% |
| Sow Culling Rate % | 45.00% | 35.00% | 10.00% |
| Sow Death Loss % | 8.00% | 5.00% | 4.00% |
| Non-Productive Sow Days | 70 | 65 | 5 |
| Pounds of Feed/Sow/Year | 2221 | 2225 | -4 |
| Avg. Sow Feed Cost/Ton | $226.31 | $261.59 | $35.28 |
| Number of Sows in Herd | 100 | 100 | 0 |
| Total Lbs. Feed Fed | 222,100 | 222,513 | 413 |
| Total Cost Feed Fed | $25,132 | $29.104 | ($3,927) |
| Lbs Sow Feed Fed/Pig Weaned | 127 | 119 | 8 |
| Sow Feed Cost/Pig | $14.364 | $15.522 | ($1.158) |
| Lbs. of Pig weaned/Lb. Sow Feed Fed* | 0.1182 | 0.1433 | 21.23% |
| *(Measure of metabolic efficiency) | |||
| Economics: | Current | Merlin | Difference |
| 1) Average feed cost per day to maintain one gestating sow |
$0.550 | $0.556 | ($0.006) |
| 2) Average feed cost per day to maintain gestating sow herd |
$55.00 | $55.58 | ($0.58) |
| Relative Cost Comparisons: | Per Pig | Per Pig | Whole Herd Benefit |
| Extra Wean Weight Value: | $0.00 | $1.50 | $2,813 |
| Genetic Cost: | $3.70 | $2.68 | $1,440 |
| Gilt Introduction Cost: | $1.23 | $0.97 | $338 |
| Sow Death Loss Cost: | $0.35 | $0.20 | $228 |
| Sow Feed Cost per Pig | $14.36 | $15.52 | $3,972 |
| Open Days per Pig | $1.04 | $0.95 | $42 |
| Feed Milling Costs: | $0.79 | $0.74 | -$3 |
| Variable Costs Per Pig: | $21.48 | $22.57 | $8,830 |
| Additional Revenue Generated: | Per Sow | Whole Herd | |
| Assume Pig Value of $30.00 Each | $44 | $4,387 | |
| Annual Added Value Of Changes To Sow Program | $13,214 | ||