Health status of boars used in reproduction

Breeding and exploitation of boars at commercial farms aim at producing semen doses for internal use. The lifetime of boars and hence the length of their operation on farm, to a large extent depend on their health. Control of boars’ health status; quality control of semen intended for artificial insemination by supervision of the entire process: sperm collection, quality assessment and making of insemination doses; monitoring of boars’ living conditions: housing, microclimate, feed, the attitude of employees. Our experiment included 40 boars from one farm of commercial type in Serbia. All boars had been imported from the European Union at age of 6 months and represents genetically superior animals. Health status was observed daily, during one year; in the same time period, semen quality assessment was done once per week (at each collection). After one year, from the total of 40 boars used in reproduction, seven of them showed signs of lameness. Three of them were excluded from further exploitation because of inability to jump on phantom. Initial problems often occur after first jump, as a result of poor femur cartilage ossification. In some cases, lameness appeared as a result of a severe infection which involved pads and hooves on hind legs. None of affected boars have decrease in semen quality. In conclusion, health check-up of breeding boars is required to be a complex process within the implementation of health care on commercial farms. Problems of the locomotor system occupy particular attention. Accordingly, implementation of specific, defined procedures within the boars’ medical supervision need to exist, with the aim to reduce boar exclusion from the exploitation process and thus decrease economic losses at farms.