Evaluation of optimal age at first conception in gilts from data collected in commercial swine herds

The purpose of this study was to find the economically optimal period of first conception in gilts, addressing the issues of lifetime reproductive performance and expected herd life. A profit equation was used to combine the effects into one economic parameter. The data were from 14,910 gilts on 54 farms throughout The Netherlands. The average number of pigs born alive in the first litter increased with older age at conception. In the second litter a similar, but much smaller, effect was observed. Age at first conception had no effect on number of pigs born alive in the third or greater litter. Gilts bred at an older age had a shorter expected herd life than gilts bred at a younger age. Evaluating the reasons for culling revealed that infertility became a more important reason with increasing age at first conception. The proportion culled for infertility increased linearly from 18% at conception on d 200 to 24.5% at conception on d 300. Combining the effect of litter size and herd life led to the conclusion that the profit per gilt (sow) was not significantly affected by her age at first conception. It is concluded that the optimal economic age at first conception was considered to be approximately 200 to 220 d of age when the cost of housing and feed of the gilt from entry to first conception were taken into account.