Impact of an extended photoperiod in farrowing houses on

the performance and behaviour of sows and their litters

M. P. Lachance1,2, J. P. Laforest2, N. Devillers1, A. Laperrie`re3, and C. Farmer1,4
1

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Dairy and Swine R & D Centre, P.O. Box 90, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada
J1M 1Z3; 2Departement des Sciences Animales, Faculte des Sciences de lagriculture et de lalimentation,
Universite Laval, Quebec, Quebec, Canada G1V 0A6; and 3Laboratoire des Technologies de lEnergie,
Institut de recherche dHydro-Quebec, Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada G9N 7N5.
Received 7 December 2009, accepted 19 March 2010.

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Lachance, M. P., Laforest, J. P., Devillers, N., Laperrie`re, A. and Farmer, C. 2010. Impact of an extended photoperiod in
farrowing houses on the performance and behaviour of sows and their litters. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 90: 311
319. The effects of an
extended photoperiod around parturition and throughout lactation on performances of primiparous sows and their piglets
were studied. Sows were assigned to two light regimens: (1) standard (CTL, n 28), 8 h of daily light from day 112 of
gestation until day 23 of lactation; and (2) extended (TRT, n 26), 23 h of daily light from day 112 of gestation to day 4
of lactation and 16 h thereafter. Colostrum intake was estimated based on a 24-h piglet weight gain starting at the end of
farrowing. Piglets were weighed on days 4, 7, 14, 21 (weaning on day 23), 35 and 56. On days 4 and 21 of lactation, milk
and blood samples were obtained. Behaviour was recorded on days 3 and 20. Piglet feed intakes were noted post-weaning
until day 56. The TRT sows had lower concentrations of melatonin than the CTL sows on day 4 (PB0.05), but prolactin
concentrations, milk composition and colostrum intake by piglets were unaffected by treatment (P0.1). Litter growth
during lactation was unaffected (P0.1), but TRT piglets consumed less feed between 23 and 34 d of age (P B0.05) and
weighed less on day 35 (PB0.05). The TRT piglets were more active than CTL piglets on day 3 of lactation only (PB0.05).
Increasing the period of daily light in the farrowing house did not improve the performance of primiparous sows and their
piglets.
Key words: Behaviour, growth, lactation, photoperiod, piglet, sow
Lachance, M. P., Laforest, J. P., Devillers, N., Laperrie`re, A. et Farmer, C. 2010. Impact dune photoperiode prolongee en
maternite sur les performances et le comportement des truies et de leurs porcelets. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 90: 311
319. Leffet
dune photoperiode prolongee a` la mise bas et en lactation sur les performances de truies primipares et de leurs porcelets a
ete etudie. Des truies ont ete assignees a` deux traitements lumineux, soit: (1) Standard (CTL, n 28), 8 h de lumie`re par
jour du jour 112 de gestation au jour 23 de lactation; et (2) Prolonge (TRT, n 26), 23 h de lumie`re par jour du jour 112 de
gestation au jour 4 de lactation et 16 h de lumie`re par la suite. La prise de colostrum a ete estimee en utilisant le gain de
poids des porcelets dans les 24 h suivant la fin de la mise bas. Les porcelets ont ete peses aux jours 4, 7, 14, 21 (sevrage au
jour 23), 35 et 56. Aux jours 4 et 21 de lactation, des echantillons de lait et de sang ont ete recueillis. Le comportement a ete
enregistre aux jours 3 et 20. La consommation alimentaire des porcelets a ete notee post-sevrage jusquau jour 56. Les
truies TRT avaient des concentrations moindres de melatonine au jour 4 de lactation (PB0,05). Les concentrations
de prolactine, la composition du lait et la prise de colostrum par les porcelets nont pas ete affectees par la photoperiode
(P0,1). La croissance des porcelets a` la mamelle etait similaire pour les deux groupes (P0,1), mais la prise alimentaire
des porcelets TRT des jours 23 a` 34 (PB0,05) ainsi que leur poids au jour 35 (P B0,05), etaient moindres que ceux des
porcelets CTL. Les porcelets TRT etaient plus actifs au jour 3 de lactation (PB0,05). Laugmentation de la periode de
clarte par jour en maternite na pas ameliore les performances zootechniques des truies primipares ni celles de leurs
porcelets.
Mots Cles: Comportement, croissance, lactation, photoperiode, porcelet, truie

percentage of gilts that fatally savaged their piglets

(Harris and Gonyou 2003). Sow milk yield is crucial
for the growth of piglets both pre- and post-weaning
(Kavanagh et al. 1997) and there are indications that
changes in photoperiod regimen could be used as a tool
to positively influence sow lactation performances.
Indeed, sows that were subjected to 16 h of daily light
throughout lactation produced more milk than those
under 8 h of light (Mabry et al. 1982). Furthermore,
piglets that were subjected to 16 h of light while nursing
were heavier at weaning than those under 8 h of light

Newborn piglets are very vulnerable because approximately 10% die before weaning (Weary et al. 1998)
and two important causes of death are crushing and
savaging by the dam. At farrowing, 10 to 15% of gilts
show aggressiveness towards their offspring (Chen et al.
2008), and the use of an extended photoperiod (24 h
instead of 8 h of daylight) during farrowing decreased the
4

To whom correspondence should be addressed (e-mail:

chantal.farmer@agr.gc.ca).
311

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312 CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ANIMAL SCIENCE

(Mabry et al. 1982, 1983; Stevenson et al. 1983). In

contrast, other studies reported no increase in weaning
weights with 16 h of daily light instead of 8 h during
lactation (Greenberg and Mahone 1982; Gooneratne
and Thacker 1990). It is apparent that photoperiodic
changes in farrowing houses could be an interesting
avenue to improve the performance of sows and their
piglets. However, the light intensity needs to be well
characterized to allow proper comparison (Mutton
1987). Indeed, McGlone et al. (1988) stated that studies
on the effect of photoperiod could not be well interpreted
because of the lack of characterization of the light used.
Furthermore, there is no information on the possible
effects of an extended photoperiod on nursing behaviour
and activity of sows and piglets to ensure that welfare is
not affected. The present study was therefore conducted
to determine if extending the photoperiod both during
farrowing and throughout lactation can decrease the
incidence of neonatal mortality, and improve the growth
of piglets via an increase in sow milk yield. The possible
effects of this treatment on the behaviour of sows and
their piglets were also investigated and a detailed
characterization of light intensity was performed.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Animals and Treatments
Fifty-four Yorkshire  Landrace gilts were inseminated
with semen from a pool of Duroc boars. Gilts were
subjected to 12 h of light daily (0600 to 1800) from
mating to day 111 of gestation and were then randomly
assigned to two light regimens: (1) standard (CTL, n 
28) consisting of 8 h of light (0730 to 1530) daily from
day 112 of gestation until day 23 of lactation, and; (2)
extended (TRT, n 26) consisting of 23 h of light (0000
to 2300) from day 112 of gestation until day 4 of
lactation and 16 h (0730 to 2330) of daily light for the
remainder of lactation (weaning on day 23). These
primiparous sows were housed in individual stalls
(0.6 2.1 m) during gestation and were transferred to
farrowing crates on day 112 of gestation. All sows were
transferred to another farrowing room on day 4 of
lactation, approximately 72 h after the end of farrowing,
to ensure that all animals were subjected to the same
stress since TRT sows needed to be transferred due to
the change in photoperiod occurring on this day.
Farrowings took place from February to July 2008
and there were equal numbers of sows from each group
farrowing during each month.
Light emissions were quantified using a luxmeter
LI-250 Light Meter (Li-Cor, Inc., Lincoln, NE), which
was linked to a photometric sensor Licor 210SA (LiCor, Inc., Lincoln, NE). Each farrowing room consisted
of one centre aisle with three farrowing crates on each
side. In the centre aisle, there were three fluorescent
lights on the ceiling, one between each pair of farrowing
crates. Ceramic heat lamps were used instead of
standard heat lamps in the farrowing crates to ensure

there was no source of visible light during the dark

phase. There were two heat lamps in each crate. At
farrowing, one was on the side of the sow and the other
behind the sow. On day 2, the lamp behind the sow was
moved to the side of the crate where there was no heat
lamp. Light emissions were measured at eye level of the
sow (30.5 cm from the floor) at the same 21 strategic
points in all farrowing rooms. In the centre aisle, three
points were used, namely, under the middle of each
fluorescent light. Light was also quantified at three
points in each crate: in the front, under the side heat
lamp and at the back of the crate. Average light intensity
was 197917, 238917, and 176921 lx in the centre aisle
under the front, middle and back fluorescents, respectively. In front of the crates, there was an average of
5995 lx. Under the side heat lamps, light intensity was
10996 lx and behind the sow, it was 4496 lx. At each
of these points, when there were no heat lamps, there
was an approximate increase of 3 lx in light intensity.
There were no outdoor windows in farrowing rooms
and all door windows were covered to block any source
of light. Red lights (7 watts, Emerald lighting Canada,
Toronto, ON) were placed on the ceiling to permit video
recording during the dark phase, and they were always
turned on, even when not recording.
During gestation, gilts received a commercial feed
containing 12% CP, 12.65 MJ DE kg 1 and 0.63%
total lysine. From days 1 to 99 of gestation, gilts
received one daily meal of 2.05 kg and from days 100
to 112 of gestation this was increased to 3.05 kg. From
day 113 of gestation until farrowing, sows were fed two
equals meals of a commercial diet containing 13% CP,
13.85 MJ DE kg1 and 0.9% total lysine, totalling
3.05 kg d1. On the day of farrowing, gilts received 1 kg
of this diet and from day 2 to weaning, they were fed the
same diet ad libitum. Feed refusals were weighed daily
throughout lactation to measure feed intakes. Backfat
thickness of all sows was measured ultrasonically at the
last rib on days 4 and 21 of lactation (Scanmatic SM
1,
Medimatic, Hellerup, Denmark) and body weights of
sows were recorded on day 112 of gestation, day 4 of
lactation and at weaning. The interval from weaning to
oestrus was noted.
No creep feed was distributed to piglets during
lactation and they had no access to the sow feeder.
Colostrum intake was estimated using a 24-h weight
gain of piglets after birth. Piglets were weighed at 2129
52 min after birth and again exactly 24 h after the first
weighing. Piglets that were sick, had splayleg or weighed
less than 900 g were not used for these weights. Litter
size was standardized to 1091 pigs on day 2 of
lactation. Piglets were weighed on days 4, 7, 14, 21, 35
and 56. After weaning, each litter was housed in a
pen (1.9 m1.9 m) containing one feeder with three
openings, and litter sizes for TRT and CTL were 10.8
and 10.6, respectively (SEM 0.1, P 0.1). All piglets
were subjected to 12 h of daily light (from 0600 to 1800).
Three commercial diets were subsequently fed to piglets

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LACHANCE ET AL. * EXTENDED PHOTOPERIOD FOR LACTATING SOWS 313

ad libitum. The first diet, containing 20% CP, 15.25 MJ

DE kg1 and 1.4% lysine, was provided to piglets until
they had all received an average of 1.5 kg of the diet.
The second diet, containing 18% CP, 14.8 MJ DE kg 1
and 1.3% lysine, was then given to piglets until they had
all received an average of 5 kg of this diet. The last diet,
containing 17.5% CP, 14.3 MJ DE kg1 and 1.1%
lysine, was given to piglets until 56 d of age. After
weaning, feed intake of piglets was noted. To do so,
weight of the empty feeder was originally obtained and
feed given was weighed daily. On days 35 and 56, the
total weight of the feeder and orts was obtained and
daily feed intake per piglet was calculated. Animals were
cared for according to a recommended code of practice
(Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 1993) and procedures were reviewed by an Institutional Animal Care
Committee in accordance with the Canadian Council on
Animal Care.
Milk and Blood Samplings
On days 4 and 21 of lactation, a representative milk
sample was obtained by collecting milk via manual
expression from the first, third and sixth mammary
glands (two from one side of the udder and one from the
other side) following an i.v. injection of 20 IU of
oxytocin (20 IU mL 1, P.V.U., Victoriaville, QC).
Piglets were separated from their dam for 45 min before
the oxytocin injection. Milk was frozen at
208C until
compositional analyses were performed. On these same
days, jugular blood samples were obtained from each
sow by venipuncture between 1000 and 1115. Blood
samples were collected in Vacutainer tubes containing
EDTA (for melatonin assay) and in tubes without
anticoagulant (for prolactin assay). Tubes with EDTA
were put on ice immediately after sampling and, within
20 min, were centrifuged at 48C for 12 min at 2000g.
Plasma was recovered and kept at
208C for further
analysis. Tubes without anticoagulant were left at room
temperature for 3 h, stored overnight at 48C and
centrifuged at 48C for 12 min at 2000 g the following
day. Serum was stored at
208C for subsequent assays.
Milk Composition
Whole milk was used to determine dry matter, protein,
fat and lactose contents. Dry matter was measured
according to a validated method using forced air oven
drying [Association of Official Analytical Chemists
(AOAC) 2005]. Protein content was determined with
a LECO analyzer (LECO FP-428, LECO Corporation,
St-Joseph, MI) and fat was measured using an established ether extraction method (AOAC 2005). Lactose
was measured by a colorimetric method using a
commercial kit (Megazyme International Ireland Ltd.,
Bray Business Park, Bray, Co. Wicklow, Ireland) and
intra- and inter-assay CV were 0.17 and 0.89%,
respectively.

Hormone Assays
Concentrations of prolactin were determined with
a previously described RIA (Robert et al. 1989).
The radioinert prolactin was purchased from A. F.
Parlow (U.S. National Hormone and Peptide Program,
Harbor-UCLA Medical Centre, Torrence, CA).
The first antibody to prolactin was purchased from
Research Products International Corp. (Mt. Prospect,
IL). Parallelism of a pool of serum from lactating sows
was demonstrated in 100 to 200 mL of sample. Average
recovery, calculated by addition of various doses of
radioinert hormone to 50 mL of a pooled sample, was
101.0%. Sensitivity of the prolactin assay was
1.5 ng mL 1. Six samples of a representative pool of
serum were carried in duplicates in all assays in order to
calculate CV. The intra- and inter-assay CV were 3.96
and 4.40%, respectively. Melatonin was measured using
a RIA commercial kit (Rocky Mountain Diagnostic,
Colorado Springs, CO) which was validated with
plasma from lactating sows. Parallelism of a pool of
plasma was demonstrated in 200 to 250 mL. Average
recovery, calculated by addition of 20 mL of standards
(3 and 10 pg mL 1 of melatonin) to 200 mL of a pooled
sample, was 94.5%. Sensitivity of the melatonin assay
was 4 pg mL 1. Three samples of a representative pool
of plasma were carried in duplicates in all assays to
calculate CV. The intra- and inter-assay CV were 2.91
and 4.48%, respectively.
Behavioural Recordings and Observations
Behaviour of 40 sows (20 per treatment selected
at random) and their piglets was video-recorded with
Omnicast 4.3 (Genetec inc., Saint-Laurent, QC), using a
procedure similar to that of Valros et al. (2002).
Recordings were made for a continuous 24 h period
on days 3 and 20 of lactation. Recordings started at
1800 on day 2 of lactation and 5 min-scan samplings
were used to measure the number of active piglets in
the litter and postures of sows. The postures recorded
were: sitting, standing, lying ventrally and lying laterally. Piglets were counted as active when they were
sitting, standing or lying and active at the udder.
Nursing and eating behaviours of sows were determined
using continuous sampling. Nursing was considered as
starting when more than 50% of the piglets were
massaging the udder for 1 min. The end of nursing
was defined as when less than 50% of the piglets were
active at the udder for 30 s or when the sow changed
position to avoid nursing. Nursings were categorized as productive (i.e., with milk ejection) or nonproductive, as observed by the occurrence of rapid
mouth movement by piglets. An eating episode started
when a sow had its head in the feeder for more than 10 s
and it ended when the sow had its head out of the feeder
for at least 1 min.

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314 CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ANIMAL SCIENCE

Statistical Analyses
The MIXED procedure of the SAS Institute, Inc. (2002)
was used for statistical analyses according to a one-way
factorial design with the photoperiod treatment as
a fixed factor. Repeated-in-time analyses were done
for data measured over successive days with the day 
treatment interaction being included in the model.
Analyses for each day were also performed separately
because TRT animals were subjected to different
photoperiods on days 3
4 and 20
21. Statistical analyses
were done on the losses of weight and backfat thickness
of sows during lactation (between days 4 and 21).
Mortality of piglets was analyzed using PROC LOGISTIC of SAS Institute, Inc. (2002). Postures of sows were
analysed using Wilcoxon test. Statistical analyses on
activity of piglets were done using MIXED procedure of
SAS Institute, Inc. (2002), over three different periods of
light, namely: (1) when lights were on for both groups
(0730 to 1530 on both days); (2) when lights were off for
both groups (day 3: 2300 to 0000 and day 20: 2330
to 0730), and; (3) when both groups did not have the
same light schedule (lights on for TRT and lights off
for CTL, day 3: 1530 to 2300 and 0000 to 0730, day 20:
1530 to 2330). A statistical tendency was defined as
0.05 BP B0.1 and P values smaller or equal to 0.05 were
considered significant. Results in tables and text are
presented as least squares means9SEM, except when
mentioned otherwise.
RESULTS
Sow Data
Weights of sows on day 112 of gestation were similar for
both groups (P 0.1). Sow body weights decreased from
197.69 to 187.2391.69 kg and backfat thickness from
19.22 to 15.3190.44 mm between days 4 and 21 of
lactation (P B0.001). These decreases were similar for
sows from both groups (P 0.1). Average daily feed
intakes of sows analyzed over the 3 wk of lactation by
repeated-in-time analysis were not affected by treatment
(P 0.1) and there was a week effect (P B0.001), with
sows eating 2.54, 4.77 and 6.27 kg d1 (SEM 
0.23 kg d1) of feed on weeks 1, 2 and 3 of lactation,
respectively.
The repeated-in-time analysis showed no effect of
treatment on any of the milk components (P 0.1)
but there were day effects (Table 1). Fat, dry matter
and protein contents decreased as lactation progressed
(P B0.001), whereas lactose increased (P B0.001).
Concentrations of melatonin and prolactin in sow blood
are shown in Table 2. The repeated-in-time analysis
indicated no treatment effect on concentrations of
melatonin (P 0.1). However, separate day-by-day
analyses showed that circulating concentrations
of melatonin were lower in TRT than CTL sows on
day 4 of lactation (P B0.05) but were similar across
treatments on day 20 (P 0.1). There was also a day
effect, with values being lower on day 4 than on day 21

Table 1. Milk composition on days 4 and 21 of lactation for sows

subjected to an extended (TRT; 23 h of light from day 112 of gestation to
day 4 of lactation and 16 h of light, thereafter) or standard (CTL; 8 h of
light, from day 112 of gestation to day 23 of lactation) photoperiod
TRT
Day
21

CTL
Day
4

Effects

Trt
Day

21 SEM Trt Day Day

Milk
component

Day
4

Dry matter (%)

Fat (%)
Protein (%)
Lactose (%)

21.77 19.02 21.21 19.02 0.53

9.75 7.13 9.15 7.13 0.49
6.27 5.48 6.17 5.48 0.13
4.19 5.07 4.31 5.07 0.09

NS
NS
NS
NS

*
*
*
*

NS
NS
NS
NS

*P B0.05.

of lactation (P B0.001). Prolactin concentrations were

unaffected by treatment overall (P 0.1) and there was
no day  treatment interaction (P 0.1). Values were
greater on day 4 than on day 21 of lactation (P B0.001).
The interval from weaning to first oestrus was unaffected by the extended photoperiod (TRT 9.69,
CTL 8.53, SEM 1.71 days, P 0.1).
Piglet Data
The incidence of mortality from birth to 56 d of age did
not differ between TRT and CTL piglets (means for
both groups were: days 1
2 2.32%, days 3
4 1.34%,
days 5
231.08%, and days 24
560.90%, P 0.1).
Only three CTL sows, and none of the TRT sows,
showed aggressive behaviour towards their offspring.
Piglet birth weights were similar across treatments
(TRT 1.42, CTL 1.45, SEM 0.01 kg, P 0.1) and
piglet colostrum intake, as estimated by weight gain,
was also unaffected by treatments (TRT 78.92,
CTL 81.39, SEM 12.10 g, P 0.1).
Weights of piglets are shown in Table 3. Weights
of piglets throughout lactation were unaffected by
treatments (P 0.1) but there was a day  treatment
interaction indicating that TRT piglets weighed less than
CTL piglets post-weaning on day 35 of age (P B0.05)
Table 2. Circulating concentrations of prolactin and melatonin on days 4
and 21 of lactation for sows subjected to an extended (TRT; 23 h of light
from day 112 of gestation to day 4 of lactation and 16 h of light,
thereafter) or standard (CTL; 8 h of light, from day 112 of gestation to
day 23 of lactation) photoperiod
Hormone
z

TRT

CTL

SEM

6.76b
19.47

9.52a
22.85

0.88
2.31

20.53
12.11

22.98
12.16

1.42
0.76

1

Plasma melatonin (pg mL )

Day 4
Day 21
Serum prolactinz (ng mL 1)
Day 4
Day 21

z
Day effect (PB0.05).
a, b Means in the same row with different letters differ (PB0.05).

LACHANCE ET AL. * EXTENDED PHOTOPERIOD FOR LACTATING SOWS 315

Table 3. Weights (kg) of piglets subjected to an extended (TRT; 23 h of
light from birth to day 4 of lactation and 16 h of light until weaning on
day 23) or standard (CTL; 8 h of light from birth to weaning)
photoperiod throughout lactation
Day of agez

TRT

CTL

SEM

1.47
1.55
1.85
2.47
4.39
6.40
8.95b
17.76

1.52
1.57
1.89
2.52
4.48
6.57
9.46a
18.11

0.03
0.03
0.04
0.06
0.12
0.15
0.18
0.31

Table 4. Percentage of time spent in various postures on days 3 and 20 of

lactation for sows subjected to an extended (TRT; 23 h of light from day
112 of gestation to day 4 of lactation and 16 h of light, thereafter) or
standard (CTL; 8 h of light, from day 112 of gestation to day 23 of
lactation) photoperiod (mean 9 standard error)
Posture

1
2
4
7
14
21
35
56
z

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Day effect (P B0.05).

a, b Means in the same row with different letters differ (P B0.05).

but that on day 56, weight was again similar for piglets
from both groups (P 0.1). The TRT piglets consumed
less feed than CTL piglets from weaning to day 34
(TRT 231.74, CTL 256.86, SEM 8.20 g d 1
piglet1, P B0.05), yet, from days 35 to 56, feed intake
was similar for piglets from both groups (TRT 683.77,
CTL 695.55, SEM 16.39 g, d1, P 0.1).

Sitting
Day 3
Day 20
Standing
Day 3
Day 20
Lying laterally
Day 3
Day 20
Lying ventrally
Day 3
Day 20

TRT

CTL

1.5390.41
4.0890.59

2.3790.50
4.0890.65

2.0390.45
7.0590.46b

2.5090.42
8.0990.64a

90.2291.48
75.5391.24

87.1791.58
71.0392.06

6.2291.17
13.3491.17

7.9691.36
16.8192.03

a, b Means in the same row with different letters tend to differ

(P B0.1).

Sow Behaviour
The percentage of time that sows spent in various
postures is shown in Table 4. Sows from both groups
spent the same proportion of time sitting, lying laterally
or lying ventrally on both days of lactation (P 0.1).
The CTL sows tended to spend more time standing than
the TRT sows on day 20 of lactation (P B0.1), yet, on
day 3, sows from both groups spent the same proportion
of time standing (P 0.1).
Over all days of lactation, CTL sows tended to have
more eating episodes than TRT sows (TRT 5.65,
CTL 7.08, SEM 0.51, P B0.1) and spent more total
time eating (TRT 35.73, CTL 43.47, SEM 
2.40 min, P B0.05). There was also a day effect, with
number of eating episodes or total time eating increasing
as lactation progressed (PB0.001) but there was
no day  treatment interaction (P 0.1).

whereas TRT piglets had the same period of activity in

the morning, but the second period of activity started in
the afternoon, around 1400 and persisted as long as the
lights were on, namely, until 2330.
During the light period, a day  treatment interaction showed that treatment did not affect activity level
of piglets on day 3 (P0.1), whereas CTL piglets were
more active than TRT piglets on day 20 of lactation
(CTL 54.78, TRT 42.68, SEM 1.63% of piglets
being active, P B0.001). During the daily period when
lights were off for both groups, there was also a day 
treatment interaction; treatments had no effect on
activity level on day 3 (P 0.1), but CTL piglets were
more active than TRT piglets on day 20 (CTL 26.60,
TRT 21.08, SEM 0.60% of piglets being active, P B
0.001). Finally, during the daily period when the light
schedule differed between the two treatments (i.e., lights
were off for CTL and on for TRT piglets), TRT piglets
showed an increased activity on both days 3 (CTL 
30.49, TRT 33.86, SEM 0.93, P B0.5) and 20
(CTL 26.88, TRT 47.26, SEM 1.22, P B0.001) of
lactation.

Activity of Piglets
The repeated-in-time analysis showed that TRT piglets
tended to be more active than CTL piglets (TRT 
35.76, CTL 34.16, SEM 0.56% of piglets being
active, P B0.1). Piglets were also more active on day
20 than on day 3 of lactation (day 3 33.67, day 20 
36.56, SEM 0.54%, P B0.001). There was no day 
treatment interaction. The activity patterns of TRT and
CTL piglets on days 3 and 20 of lactation are shown in
Fig. 1, and CTL and TRT piglets did not have the same
pattern of activity on day 20. Indeed, CTL piglets had
two major periods of activity, one in the morning and
one in the afternoon (before lights were turned off),

Nursing Behaviour
The repeated-in-time analysis showed that TRT piglets
tended to spend more time nursing than CTL piglets
(TRT 248.45, CTL 228.36, SEM 7.45 min 24 1 h,
P B0.1) and there was a day effect, with piglets from
both treatments spending more time nursing on day
3 than on day 20 of lactation (P B0.05). Data
on nursing behaviour of piglets when considering either
all nursings or productive nursings only (with milk
ejection) are shown in Table 5. The total number
of nursings (i.e., productive and non-productive) per
day was unaffected by treatments (P 0.1) and there

Behavioural Data

316 CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ANIMAL SCIENCE

A

B
100
% of piglets being active

% of piglets being active

100
75
50
25

75
50
25

0
0

12

18

24

12

18

24

100
% of piglets being active

% of piglets being active

24

D
100

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18

Time of day (h)

Time of day (h)

75
50
25

75
50
25

0
0

12

18

24

12

Time of day (h)

Time of day (h)

Fig. 1. Percentages of piglets being active on days 3 and 20 of age, when subjected to a standard (CTL; 8 h of light from birth to
weaning) or an extended (TRT; 23 h of light, from birth to day 4 of lactation and 16 h of light until weaning, on day 23) photoperiod
for: (A) CTL piglets on day 3, (B) CTL piglets on day 20, (C) TRT piglets on day 3 and (D) TRT piglets on day 20. Black and white
horizontal bars represent photoperiod duration.

was no day effect (P0.1) or day treatment interaction (P 0.1). Mean duration of all nursings was
longer on day 3 than on day 20 of lactation (P B0.05)
and mean intervals between all nursings tended to
be greater for CTL than TRT litters (P B0.1) on both
days of lactation. The percentage of total nursings
ended by piglets was unaffected by treatment (P 0.1),
but piglets ended more nursings on day 3 than on
day 20 of lactation (90.9792.09 vs. 59.4392.83%,
mean9standard error, for days 3 and 20, respectively,
P B0.05).

The number of productive nursings per day was

unaffected by the photoperiod (P 0.1), but there
were more productive nursings on day 20 than on day
3 of lactation (P B0.05). The mean duration of productive nursings was not affected by treatment (P 0.1),
but was longer on day 3 than on day 20 (P B0.05).
The intervals between productive nursings tended to
be shorter on day 20 than on day 3 (P B0.1) and the
separate analyses for each day showed that, on day
3 only, the intervals were shorter for TRT than for CTL
litters (P B0.05).

Table 5. Nursing behaviour of piglets on days 3 and 20 of age, when subjected to an extended (TRT; 23 h of light, from birth to day 4 of lactation and 16 h
of light until weaning on day 23) or standard (CTL; 8 h of light from birth to weaning) photoperiod throughout lactation
TRT

CTL

Effects

Nursing behaviour

Day 3

Day 20

Day 3

Day 20

SEM

Trt

Day

Trt  Day

Total number of nursings

Mean duration of all nursings (min)
Mean interval between all nursings (min)

41.25
6.46
28.98

42.45
5.54
28.79

39.23
6.05
31.77

39.50
5.75
31.77

1.31
0.24
1.16

NS
NS
$

NS
*
NS

NS
NS
NS

Number of productive nursings

Mean duration of productive nursings (min)
Mean interval between productive nursings (min)

33.00
6.76
37.25b

34.25
5.88
36.54

31.01
6.20
41.40a

33.25
5.90
38.29

0.92
0.27
1.33

NS
NS
*

*
*
$

NS
NS
NS

$P B0.1 and *P B0.05.

a, b Means in the same row with different letters differ, based on separate analyses done for each day (PB0.05).

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LACHANCE ET AL. * EXTENDED PHOTOPERIOD FOR LACTATING SOWS 317

DISCUSSION
The current lack of effect of an extended photoperiod
in the farrowing house on piglet growth contradicts
earlier findings of Mabry et al. (1982), but corroborates
findings of Greenberg and Mahone (1982) and
Gooneratne and Thacker (1990), comparing 16 with
8 h of daily light. Light intensity could be a factor
involved in this discrepancy, since sows in the study of
Mabry et al. (1982) were subjected to 400
500 lx and
even though it is not stated where light intensity was
measured, it is likely that it was greater than that in the
present study, since the maximal average intensity was
238 lx in the centre aisle. Average light intensity at sow
eye level in Gooneratne and Thackers study (1990) was
approximately 180 lx and it was not measured by
Greenberg and Mahone (1982). Stevenson et al. (1983)
also showed that suckling piglets subjected to 16 instead
of 8 h of daily light were heavier at weaning, but there
was a confounding effect with light intensity. Indeed,
light intensity 0.3 m above the floor varied between 20
and 54 lx for control sows and between 32 and 366 lx for
treated sows. On the other hand, Mutton et al. (1987)
reported no effect of an increase from 50 to 700 lx on
piglet weaning weights. Parity is a factor that could be
thought of as having an impact on the response of sows
and piglets to photoperiod. Yet, this does not appear
to be the case, because Mabry et al. (1982, 1983) and
Stevenson et al. (1983) used both primiparous and
multiparous sows in their studies and did not see a
difference in piglet growth rate in response to photoperiod depending on the parity.
The lack of treatment effect on milk composition
largely corroborates results of Mabry et al. (1983), who
noted that the only milk component affected by photoperiod in sows was total solids, which increased from
15.9 to 16.8% with 16 instead of 8 h of daily light.
It is likely that any effects of photoperiod during
lactation could be exerted via endocrine or behavioural
components. Indeed, Mabry et al. (1982) suggested that
the increase in piglet weights subjected to 16 h of daily
light could be explained by an increase in the number
of nursings and in concentrations of prolactin in the
sow; however, these were not measured. The essential
role of prolactin for sow milk production is known
(Farmer et al. 1998) and the lack of treatment effect
on circulating concentrations of prolactin therefore
corroborates the similar piglet growth rates for the
two groups. The fact that circulating concentrations of
prolactin were unaffected by the increase in daily light
period corroborates findings from Kraeling et al. (1983)
and Niekamp et al. (2006) in sows, and from Diekman
and Hoagland (1983) in gilts. However, piglet growth
rate was not measured in these sow studies, so it does
not preclude the fact that prolactin concentrations could
have been altered in studies where photoperiod did have
a positive effect on sow milk yield. It is not known
whether other metabolic hormones important for
galactopoiesis, such as IGF-I, were altered by treatment;

yet, if that were the case, one would have expected to see
differences in body weight or body condition of sows
reflecting changes in energy status.
Melatonin is another hormone that could likely
be affected by photoperiod since it is secreted during
darkness (McConnell and Ellendorff 1987; Green et al.
1996). However, there is some contradiction as to
whether there is a circadian rhythm of melatonin
secretion in swine. Some authors did not find a clear
diurnal rhythm (McConnell and Ellendorff 1987;
Minton et al. 1989; Diekman et al. 1992; Bollinger
et al. 1997), whereas recent studies did report such a
cycle (Green et al. 1996; Andersson et al. 2000; Tast
et al. 2001). The lower circulating concentrations of
melatonin in TRT sows on day 4 of lactation could
likely be explained by the fact that they were exposed to
only 1 h of darkness from day 112 of gestation until day
4 of lactation. Yet, no difference in melatonin was seen
at the end of lactation, when sows were subjected to
either 16 or 8 h of daily light. This suggests that duration
of the period of darkness is an important effector of
melatonin secretion, but it could also be that the time
elapsed between the end of darkness and blood sampling
could be important. To the best of our knowledge, the
present findings are the first report on the effect of
lactation day on melatonin concentrations in sows, and
the drastic increase between days 4 and 21 of lactation
suggests that daylight is not the sole factor affecting
concentrations of melatonin in lactating sows. The high
concentrations of progesterone and oestrogen around
farrowing could have an impact on melatonin secretion.
Indeed, San Martin and Touitou (2000) demonstrated
that, in rats, perfusion of the pineal gland with
progesterone decreased the release of melatonin during
the light phase. It was suggested that progesterone plays
a role in keeping concentrations of melatonin low during
the light phase. In contrast, San Martin et al. (1996)
demonstrated that 17b-oestradiol and testosterone
markedly increased the release of melatonin, and these
effects were more pronounced in the dark than in
the light phase. It is evident that the mechanism of
action by which gonadal hormones affect melatonin
release needs further investigation.
Only three sows were aggressive towards their
offspring at farrowing, and they were all in the CTL
group, representing 10% of the CTL sows. This would
support findings of Harris and Gonyou (2003), where
sows under a 24 h light regimen were less aggressive
towards their piglets than sows subjected to 8 h of daily
light (2.7% vs. 3.6%). However, there was no decrease
in pre-weaning mortality with an extended photoperiod
in the present study, thereby confirming the results of
Stevenson et al. (1983), where an increase from 8 to 16 h
of daily light did not affect survival rate of piglets
to weaning. It is important to mention that mortality
rates in the controlled environment of the present study
were very low, varying from 0.9 to 2.3%, and therefore
not representative of what is seen in commercial herds.

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318 CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ANIMAL SCIENCE

The fact that litters were standardized may have

contributed to this lower mortality rate. Weary et al.
(1998) indeed reported that 10.2% of piglets die before
weaning. It is not known whether the effect of treatment
would have been more prominent should mortality rates
have been greater.
To the best of our knowledge the current study is the
first to provide information on the impact of an
extended photoperiod on the behaviour of sows and
piglets. As previously demonstrated (Blackshaw et al.
1994; Farmer et al. 2001; Van der Brand et al. 2004),
sows spent less time lying as lactation advanced. Sow
postures were also unaffected by treatment so that
increasing daily light did not have a negative impact
on sow behaviour. In fact, TRT sows tended to spend
more time lying than CTL sows on day 20 of lactation.
The lack of effect on sow posture is important since the
main cause of pre-weaning mortality is crushing, which
is largely due to sow posture changes (Weary et al.
1998), yet posture changes per se were not measured in
the present trial.
Even though CTL sows tended to spend more time
with their head in the feeder and to have more eating
episodes than TRT sows on day 3 of lactation, the lack
of effect on daily feed intake indicated that sows only
put their head in the feeder more often without actually
eating more feed. This contradicts findings of Prunier
et al. (1994), who reported that sows subjected to 16 h of
daily light lost less weight than sows subjected to 8 h of
light. These authors suggested a direct effect of light
duration on sow feed intake, yet, this was not measured.
It is apparent that increasing the photoperiod does not
have negative effects on sow eating behaviour, but
current results suggest that it could not be used as a
tool to increase sow feed intake during lactation.
In terms of nursing behaviour, it is of interest to note
that even though the interval between productive
nursings was lower for TRT than CTL sows on day 3
of lactation, the number of productive nursings was
similar for both groups. The decrease in the intervals
between productive nursings was therefore not large
enough to lead to a significant increase in number of
productive nursings, which ties in with the unaltered
growth of piglets throughout lactation.
On day 3 of lactation, TRT piglets were more active
than CTL piglets. Lay et al. (1999) also showed that
weaned piglets subjected to 24 h of daily light were more
active between 1830 and 0630 than piglets subjected to
12 h of daily light, and tended to be more active during
the entire day. One could postulate that the increased
activity level of TRT piglets, leading to greater energy
expenditure, may have masked any beneficial effect that
the long photoperiod may have had on sow milk yield.
The pattern of activity of suckling piglets also differed
between groups. Indeed, on day 20 of lactation, CTL
piglets were more active in the afternoon whereas TRT
piglets were more active in the evening. It was previously
demonstrated that when lights are on between 0730 and

1700, piglets in farrowing crates are more active in the

afternoon (Blackshaw et al. 1994). Increasing the daily
light in the current study therefore both increased the
percentage of piglets being active, and modified their
daily pattern of activity.
The early adaptation to weaning was more difficult
for TRT than CTL piglets, as demonstrated by a lower
feed intake from day 23 to day 34 and a lower body
weight on day 35. This was likely due to the decrease in
daily light between the farrowing room and the nursery
from 16 to 12 h in the TRT group compared with the
CTL group, where there was an increase in daily light
from 8 to 12 h. Furthermore, TRT piglets likely had to
alter their feeding behaviour at weaning because there
was no light during most of the period from 1600 to
2330 at which time they had a high level of activity
during lactation. Nevertheless, the lack of treatment
effect on daily feed intakes and weights of piglets on day
56 suggests that they had adapted to the new photoperiod by that time.
In conclusion, increasing the duration of daily light
at farrowing and throughout lactation did not have
beneficial impacts on the performances of first-parity
sows and their litters. The observed effects on nursing
behaviour, activity and feeding behaviour of sows and
piglets were not major enough to bring about any
changes in zootechnical parameters. It is not known
whether the decrease from 23 to 16 h of daily light in the
TRT litters somewhat hindered a possible positive effect
of photoperiod, or whether a greater light intensity
could have led to a beneficial response. Nevertheless
the current lighting regime could not be recommended
in farrowing houses. The best combination of light
intensity and light duration to optimize sow and litter
performances still needs to be determined.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors sincerely thank L. Thibault and A. Bernier,

for technical assistance, C. Corriveau, J. Deom and
M. C. Triolet, for video analyses, and S. Methot for
statistical analyses, as well as the staff of the Sherbrooke
AAFC Swine Complex, especially M. Turcotte and
E. Berube, for care and handling of the animals. Thanks
to the Quebec Federation of Swine Producers and to
Hydro-Quebec for their nancial assistance, as well as to
the Centre dInsemination Porcine du Quebec (CIPQ)
for providing the Duroc semen.
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