[The effect of the microclimate in the insemination facility on conception in sows after the first insemination]

In the course of the year, the temperature and relative humidity of the insemination hall of a large pig farm were studied in ten three-week periods. The results were compared with the conception rate of sows inseminated in these periods. The macroclimatic conditions were also studied, and the influence of macroclimate (including temperature and relative humidity) on the microclimate of insemination hall was evaluated. The studied microclimate parameters were found to influence the conception of sows in the first three weeks after insemination. Highly significant differences (significance level of alpha = 0.01) were recorded in the conception of sows after the first insemination, in the occurrence of optimum and increased temperatures, in the occurrence of optimum and increased relative humidity in the summer and winter months. A significant difference at the significance level of alpha = 0.05 was found when the occurrence of increased relative humidity was compared. A high temperature was recorded only in the summer months. In summer and in the first half of autumn (from the 9th of June to the 13th of October) when increased to high temperatures and increased to high relative humidity prevailed in the insemination hall (optimum temperature only in 2.0 to 23.3% of the period; optimum relative humidity in 11.1 to 50.0% of the period), the sow conception rate after the first insemination was low (45.5 to 49.7%). In autumn the microclimatic conditions in the insemination hall returned to the optimum. From the 4th of November to the 16th of February the optimum temperature (optimum in 71.6 to 89.7% of the period) and optimum relative humidity (optimum in 74.2 to 90.7% of the period) prevailed in the insemination hall, enabling an improvement in the conception of sows after the first insemination (71.4 to 80.1%). The temperature inside the insemination hall was influenced by changes in outside temperatures whereas the relative humidity inside the insemination hall was influenced mainly by internal factors.