Weekly frequency of ear biting behaviour in suckling piglets from 20 litters (postpartum weeks 1-4)
Description
This dataset contains behavioural observation data on ear-directed oral manipulative behaviour (i.e. "ear biting" — suckling, nibbling, and chewing performed on a littermate's ear) recorded in suckling piglets prior to weaning. For each litter (identified by farrowing pen number ["Pen" variable]) and each observation week (Week 1–4 postpartum), the dataset records the total number of ear biting events observed (NoEarBiting), the number of piglets present in the litter during that observation day (NoPigs), and the resulting frequency of the behaviour expressed per pig (Freq = NoEarBiting / NoPigs). The unit of Freq is number of instances of ear biting per piglet per 15-min. The dataset comprises 80 rows, representing 20 litters observed across 4 consecutive weeks. Ear biting in young piglets typically causes minimal visible skin damage, but it has been hypothesised to predispose the ear pinna to more serious conditions such as ear necrosis, which develops several weeks after weaning. These data were collected to confirm that piglets perform ear biting from early life and to characterise how the frequency of this behaviour changes over the first four weeks postpartum, providing behavioural context for a companion histopathological analysis of ear "bite mark" lesions in the same population (see related dataset: Histology parameter data). A subset of 10 piglets from 9 of these litters was later used for the paired histopathological comparison of ear bite marks and scratches reported in the associated manuscript using the companion histology dataset. Study design: Twenty sows and their litters (mean litter size 14.7 ± 1.01 piglets) were housed in conventional farrowing crates at the Teagasc Pig Research Facility, Moorepark, Fermoy, Ireland. Each litter was observed once per week from approximately day 6 of age for four weeks. On each observation day, live behavioural sampling was conducted during five 3-minute sessions (15 min/litter/week total), spaced across the day (08:00–15:00 h) with the observation order rotated between litters. All occurrences of ear biting behaviour (defined as an ear being placed in a piglet's mouth [nibbling, suckling, or chewing]) were recorded by two trained observers (inter-observer reliability confirmed via Spearman rank correlation, rs > 0.70).
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Institutions
- Teagasc - The Irish Agriculture and Food Development AuthorityLeinster, Carlow