Table 1.
Parameter values used in the model to simulate the economic consequences of tail biting in a pen.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Typical duration of treatment per bitten piga | 5 days |
| Estimated duration of illness in a bitten piga | 7 days |
| Share of bitten pigs moved to a hospital pen and kept there until slaughtera | 15% |
| Reduction in the daily weight gain after being bitten (19, 22) | 11% |
| Percentage of bitten pigs dead or disposed (15) | 2.1% |
| Percentage of a bitten pig's meat mass lost due to carcass condemnations (7) | 0.7% |
| Annual discount rate β | 0.94 |
| Materials, medicine and veterinary fees, € per bitten pig updated from Ref. (16) | 6.00 |
| Extra labor and other cost due to a hospital pen, € per bitten pig updated from Ref. (16) | 7.61 |
| Average cost related to premature disposal or death, € per pigb | 15.00 |
| Cost of labor, € per hour (23) | 16.00 |
| Price of pigmeat, € per kgc | 1.63 |
| Price of a piglet, € per animal (23) | 55.00 |
| Average price of feed, € per kg (23)d | 0.25 |
a
Based on consultation with veterinarians and on health care data from pig farms.
b
Raatonetti www.raatonetti.fi.
c
Historical annual market prices for pig carcass grade S in the E.U. in euro/100 kg carcass. https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/food-farming-fisheries/farming/documents/historical-pig-prices-eu_en.pdf.
d
Feed composition in the growth model was based on Finnish feeding recommendations (https://portal.mtt.fi/portal/page/portal/Rehutaulukot/feed_tables_english).