ANIMAL CARE
Martin Family Farms is committed to ensuring the welfare of our animals. Our standard operating procedures (SOPs) are overseen by a committed veterinarian staff and are always designed to promote the health and well-being of our pigs.
We also have an SOP for daily observation and intervention.
Check out our Animal Care video featuring one of our certified veterinarians and our Animal Care Guides below to see how MFF prioritizes our pigs.
DAILY HEALTH CHECKS
Daily individual health checks recorded by the caretaking team are an essential part of sow farm management.
RECORD KEEPING
Record-keeping and tracking each pig’s health history/ production numbers is a large part of animal caretaking, especially in Sow Production, is the use of individual sow records. These records are excellent communication tools amongst our team and allow for improved care and health in the long term.
NUTRITION & DIET
Diets provided to our herd are specifically designed to provide appropriate nutrition based on age, size, and maturity.
FEEDING PROCESS
We utilize electronic sow feeding technology which provides individual meals to each gestating animal based on caretaker choices. The electronic sow feeder reads each ear tag and delivers the designated food daily.
WATER PROCESS
Plentiful, fresh, clean, water availability is a critical part of caretaking. Nipple drinkers and troughs are readily available anytime a pig desires refreshment.
MAINTAIN CLEANLINESS
Farrowing rooms are power-washed, sanitized, dried, and disinfected after every litter of pigs is weaned. This process assures that each group of newly born piglets is not exposed to disease pressure from past groups of pigs.
COMFORTABLE HOUSING
Pigs of the 1950s and 1960s continued to be predominantly outdoors. As animal caretaking technology and practices have improved, a cornerstone change has been to move animals indoors to provide a more comfortable and consistent environment to allow the pigs to thrive.
HUMANE HANDLING
Share how low-stress handling techniques are used to reduce anxiety and create a safe environment, especially during transport.
