What type of floor for fattening pens ? Comparison of partial and full slatted flooring for various animal welfare criteria

The aim of this work was to compare, in two trials, the impact of partial and full slatted flooring on various welfare criteria. Full slatted flooring is associated with poorer growth performance, a higher score for integument injuries, and cleaner pens and pigs. At the same floor area per pig ITP found no difference ininjuries between the two floor types. The pigs raised on partial slatted flooring systematically preferred the slatted area for lying and moving about, leading to fractionation of feed intake. However, the lying area seems to be special because this part of the pen is most often occupied when the floor is not slatted.