The Recipients' Parity Does Not Influence Their Reproductive Performance Following Non-Surgical Deep Uterine Porcine...

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Biology
• Animal Science
• Veterinary Medicine

Background:

• Non-surgical deep uterine (NsDU) embryo transfer (ET) technology is advancing commercial swine production.
• Factors influencing NsDU-ET effectiveness require further investigation, particularly recipient characteristics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of weaned sow parity on fertility and prolificacy following NsDU-ET.
• To determine the suitability of different parity groups as recipients for NsDU-ET.

Main Methods:

• 120 weaned sows were grouped by parity (1, 2, or 3-5).
• Thirty fresh embryos were non-surgically transferred into one uterine horn per recipient.
• Insertion success, pregnancy rates, farrowing rates, and litter characteristics were assessed.

Main Results:

• NsDU-ET catheter insertion was successful in 98.3% of recipients.
• Sow parity did not influence insertion difficulty or accuracy.
• No significant differences were observed in pregnancy rates (74.8%), farrowing rates (71.2%), litter sizes (9.6 ± 3.3), or piglet birthweights across parity groups.

Conclusions:

• Weaned sows from parity 1 to 5 are suitable recipients for NsDU-ET programs.
• This finding broadens the application potential of ET in commercial swine farms.
• NsDU-ET offers a viable option for enhancing piglet production efficiency.