Animal welfare implications of surgical castration and its alternatives in pigs Universiteit Gent Instituut voor Landbouw-, Visserij- en Voedingsonderzoek
This paper constitutes a review on the welfare aspects of piglet castration Mat considers the scientific literature published after 2004. Castrating during the neonatal period (1 to 3 days of age) is clearly painful In addition, inflammatory processes may take place at the sites of incision, thus adding further pain to the procedure. Surgical castration with general and local anaesthesia, in combination with long-term analgesia, has been shown ...