Utilizing NUtrack to Access the Activity Levels in Pigs with Varying Degrees of Genetic Potential for Growth and Feed Intake

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Precision livestock farming has been shown to not only be beneficial to producer profitability and production efficiency, but also in improving social acceptance and sustainability in livestock production. The research illustrated here utilizes an advanced computer vision system (NUtrack) that allows for the individual identification and tracking of pigs in a standard commercial setting. Traits that would otherwise be impractical to measure and therefore absent from selection criteria, such as the activity level, are easily obtained with this system. The data here suggest that progeny activity levels are impacted by sire EBVs for production traits. In the current study, pigs from boars with superior growth and feed intake EBVs were less active and faster growing compared to all other groups. Further work may lead to genetic selection for activity traits to decrease RFI levels and ultimately improve production rates through reduced calorie expenditure. Activity differences observed across sexes may contribute to managerial improvements in feeding barrows vs. gilts. Ultimately, furthering the objective tracking of activity patterns with NUtrack may help producers overcome difficulties that prevent them from maximizing feed efficiency; with potential for additional benefits to both the producer and the animal. ABSTRACT: Feed cost accounts for over two-thirds of the variable cost of production. In order to reduce feed costs without sacrificing production numbers, feed efficiency must be improved. Calorie expenditure has been difficult to quantify in the past but is understood to impact residual feed intake (RFI) greatly. The objective of this work was to utilize an advanced computer vision system to evaluate activity levels across sex and sire groups with different expected breeding value combinations for growth and feed intake. A total of 199 pigs from four different sire groups (DNA Genetics Line 600) High Feed Intake/High Growth (HIHG), Low Feed Intake/High Growth (LIHG), High Feed Intake/Low Growth (HILG), and Low Feed Intake/Low Growth (LILG) were utilized at the UNL ENREC farm over 127 days. The NUtrack system allowed for individual monitoring of pigs in group housing to track daily activity traits. In total, HIHG pigs travelled less (p < 0.05; 139 vs. 150 km), spent more time lying (p < 0.05; 2421 vs. 2391 h), and less time eating (p < 0.05; 235 vs. 243 h) when compared to LILG pigs across time. The results suggest variation in activity occurs across the progeny of the sire groups selected to differentiate in growth and feed intake.