Medicine:Teeth clipping

From HandWiki

Teeth clipping in pigs is a management practice in which the sharp tips of newborn piglets' teeth are trimmed or filed to reduce the risk of injury to sows during nursing and minimize aggression-related injuries among piglets.

Some piglets are born with erupted teeth; in order to avoid sow teat injury and damage between piglets, some farms clip their deciduous teeth.[1] Lesions caused by piglet teeth are superficial, and mortality is lower among pigs that don't undergo painful procedures, including teeth clipping.[2][3]

Disadvantages

Some of the disadvantages of teeth clipping are:[1][2][4][5][6]

  • Piglets may stop eating due to pain
  • Antibiotic overuseTemplate:Elaborate
  • Decreased weight gain
  • Hemorrhage (blood loss)
  • Teeth fracture
  • Gum damage
  • Abscess
  • Mouth infections
  • Joint infections
  • Systemic infections
  • Lethargy due to infection
  • Higher stress and cortisol, which reduces muscle mass in pigs[7][8]

Many contend that the harms of teeth clipping exceed the benefits.[1]

Ethics

Teeth clipping, if done without anesthetic or analgesic (a common practice), is painful.[9] Teeth clipping often exposes the dental pulp, thereby exposing nerves, causing chronic pain. If the exposed dental pulp becomes infected, extreme pain will follow.[4]

Alternatives

Smaller litter sizes, less dense and intensive pig farming, cage-free farming, and better feed for sows. [10][2]

See also

  • Cruelty to animals
  • Overview of discretionary invasive procedures on animals
  • Intensive pig farming

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Welfare implications of invasive piglet husbandry procedures, methods of alleviation and alternatives: a review". New Zealand Veterinary Journal 63 (1): 52–57. January 2015. doi:10.1080/00480169.2014.961990. PMID 25204203. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Solutions for ending painful piglet procedures: teeth reduction" (in en). https://www.thepigsite.com/articles/solutions-for-ending-painful-piglet-procedure-teeth-reduction. 
  3. ↑ "Improving survival, growth rate, and animal welfare in piglets by avoiding teeth shortening and tail docking". Journal of Veterinary Behavior 7 (2): 88–93. 2012-03-01. doi:10.1016/j.jveb.2011.08.005. ISSN 1558-7878. https://lirias.kuleuven.be/handle/123456789/348374. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Avoiding the Need to Teeth Clip Piglets". A Greener World Technical Advice Fact Sheet No. 19. https://agreenerworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/TAFS-19-Avoiding-the-Need-to-Teeth-Clip-Piglets-v2.pdf. 
  5. ↑ "Long-term detrimental effects of tooth clipping or grinding in piglets: a histological approach" (in en). Animal Welfare 13 (1): 27–32. 2004. doi:10.1017/S0962728600026622. ISSN 0962-7286. 
  6. ↑ "Los procedimientos dentales postnatales afectan la ganancia de peso y el bienestar de los lechones" (in es). Revista MVZ Córdoba 23 (1): 6429–6437. 2018-01-10. doi:10.21897/rmvz.1238. ISSN 1909-0544. https://revistamvz.unicordoba.edu.co/article/view/1238. 
  7. ↑ "Effects of cortisol on muscle proteolysis and meat quality in piglets". Meat Science 71 (3): 590–593. November 2005. doi:10.1016/j.meatsci.2005.05.015. PMID 22060938. 
  8. ↑ "Elucidating a molecular mechanism that the deterioration of porcine meat quality responds to increased cortisol based on transcriptome sequencing". Scientific Reports 6 (1). November 2016. doi:10.1038/srep36589. PMID 27833113. Bibcode: 2016NatSR...636589W. 
  9. ↑ Schmid, Simone M.; Steinhoff-Wagner, Julia (2022-01-17). "Impact of Routine Management Procedures on the Welfare of Suckling Piglets". Veterinary Sciences 9 (1): 32. doi:10.3390/vetsci9010032. ISSN 2306-7381. PMID 35051116. 
  10. ↑ "Investigating risk factors behind piglet facial and sow teat lesions through a literature review and a survey on teeth reduction". Frontiers in Veterinary Science 9. 2022-12-02. doi:10.3389/fvets.2022.909401. PMID 36532351. 



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