Ranking for fight lesion scores is not consistent over time

Abstract

Aggressive behaviours such as fighting compromise the welfare of group-housed gilts and sows. The extent of lesions that result from fighting is a simple measure of the aggression received by individual animals within a group, and is a potential measure of individual behaviour (Turner et al. 2006). However, group dynamics and individual behaviour can change over time. The hypothesis investigated in this study was that for individual gilts regrouped within parity over time, post-selection and pre-farrowing lesion scores might not be a consistent indicator of aggressive behaviours.