Study of reproductive traits in 5 French local breeds of pigs

Data of 6031 litters from five French local breeds of pigs (Basque, Bayeux, Gascon, Limousin et Blanc de l’ouest) were analysed in order to study litter size through two criteria (number of born alive or weaned piglets per litter). The results underlined the need for a minimal selection on litter size, as this criterion is decreasing (-0,036 born alive piglet per year and -0,029 weaned piglet per year). In addition, the improvement of litter size could also come from the breeding management, and especially from a more precocious culling of sows (around the seventh parity). In the same way, a first approch of physiological reproductive characteristics was carried out on 12 sows (6 primiparous and 6 multiparous) and 19 gilts of the Basque breed : the puberty occurred around 260 days of age, the mean oestrus duration was 64 hours and the ovulation occured 53 hours after the onset of oestrus. These values are different from those obtained for the most common used genotypes and lead to propose some adaptations of the AI program. The same physiological study could be carried out for the other local breeds, in order to adapt the modern reproductive technics to these particular genotypes.