Report Title:

Pig Farming

 

Description:

Specifies standards for proper treatment of pigs in pig farming.

 

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

2166

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2002

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to PIG FARMING.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. This Act is based on "The Welfare of Intensively Kept Pigs", a report of the Scientific Veterinarian Committee, September 1997. The Committee was composed of internationally known animal husbandry experts, representing universities and governments in Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden, France, and Greece. The Committee's recommendations were synthesized into criteria for proposed legislation by the Animal Welfare Institute.

The purpose of this Act is to establish standards for the proper treatment of pigs on family farms.

SECTION 2. Chapter 142, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Part   . HUMANE ON-FARM HUSBANDRY STANDARDS FOR PIGS

§145-   Purpose. The purpose of this part is to ensure humane treatment of and a conscientious attitude towards housing and husbandry of pigs that meet the Animal Welfare Institute criteria. The Animal Welfare Institute may allow a farmer to use the Animal Welfare Institute's name in conjunction with the farmer's product.

§145-   Applicability. This part applies to a family farm in which the family owns pigs, depends on the farm for its livelihood, and provides the major part of its daily labor to physically manage the pigs and the farm operation.

Each standard under this part may be used for enforcement of applicable statutes or administrative rules, as appropriate to the individual case.

§145-   Standards for general husbandry. (a) Housing for pigs shall be sufficiently spacious to allow the animals to lie down in full lateral recumbency and to move freely.

(b) Pigs shall not be placed in close confinement in crates, except for brief periods as required for vaccination, feeding, marking, or veterinary procedures, or to calm down a sow if the sow savagely attacks a piglet.

(c) Pigs shall have continuous access to pens bedded with straw or chopped corn stover, to pasture, or to dirt yards in which the pigs can root, explore, play, or build nests; provided that straw or other approved material shall be provided to pigs that do not have continuous access to dirt.

(d) Pigs that are housed outdoors shall have continuous access to shelters to protect them from heat, wind, cold, and rain, with adequate straw to provide comfort in cold weather. In the case of pigs loose-housed in groups in deep-bedded systems where straw is added daily to keep the bed surface clean and maintain a balance between straw and manure for gestation and breeding, there shall be sufficient litter to provide a deep litter bed in which composting can start and be sustained to provide warmth and destroy pathogens.

§145-   Standards for humane treatment. (a) New buildings constructed to house pigs shall have windows or openings to let in daylight.

(b) Equipment and fittings in buildings and other premises that house pigs shall be designed so as not to inflict injury or entail risk to the pigs; provided that the equipment and fittings should not prevent the pigs from behaving naturally, and shall not unwarrantably limit their freedom of movement or otherwise cause them distress.

(c) Pigs being transported shall not be injured or caused to suffer during loading, transport, and unloading.

(d) Hot prods and electrical devices shall not be used on the pigs. The practice of breaking or injuring a boar's snout with a baseball bat, lead pipe, or similar implement to prevent fighting among boars, commonly known as "boar bashing", is prohibited.

(e) Procedures for cleaning the pigs' living quarters shall ensure satisfactory hygiene. The surfaces of deep litter beds shall be kept dry and be of good hygienic quality.

(f) Pigs shall be given sufficient space to keep dunging and lying areas separate from eating areas.

(g) There shall be no routine use of subtherapeutic antibiotics, hormones, or sulfas to control or mask disease or promote growth.

(h) Animal products shall not be fed to pigs.

(i) Pigs shall have a feeding plan that guarantees a sufficient, varied, and well-balanced diet. Pigs shall have access to feed as long as is necessary for them to satisfy their feed requirements, and shall have free access to water.

(j) If a pig is accidentally injured on a farm, the pig shall receive individual treatment designed to minimize pain and suffering. Ill or injured pigs shall not be transported in the same compartment with healthy or uninjured pigs.

(k) If an injury is sufficiently serious to warrant slaughter, the injured pig shall be euthanized on the farm.

§145-   Standards for breeding. (a) A breeding program shall not use a skip-a-day feeding. All pigs shall be fed daily, and housing and distribution of feed shall be designed to minimize competition for food.

(b) If nose rings are used for pastured sows, the sows shall be supplied with straw or similar material to enable sows to easily manipulate to build nests. Only one nose ring shall be used per sow. A nose ring shall be used only if it enables a sow to gain the freedom of living on pasture.

§145-   Standards for weaning. Weaning shall occur at a piglet weight or age that is appropriate for the health and welfare of the piglet and its mother; provided that the age and weight may vary, depending on the breed of sow or gilt and level of milk production, the age and health of the mother, and health of the piglet being weaned. The recommended age is at least six weeks, but earlier weaning may be necessary (for example, if the mother is a gilt of a breed with high milk production and nursing a large litter). The minimum age of pigs at weaning shall be five weeks.

§145-   Standards for growing and finishing pigs. An appropriate behavioral and comfortable environment shall be provided to eliminate the need for routine tail-docking (the cutting off of tails to prevent pigs from biting off each others' tails while fighting). Piglets shall not be tail-docked. If tail-docking problems arise, farmers shall make every effort to identify and eliminate the cause rather than resort to tail-docking.

§145-   Standards for castration. Castration may take place by the age of two weeks by a person proficient in the procedure.

§145-   Standards for space. (a) This section applies to pigs that are not free-ranging on pasture.

(b) Space requirements for pigs may vary according to the design of the indoor or outdoor housing system.

(c) The following specifications are the minimum recommended space requirements:

(1) Boars: sixty-four square feet per boar; seventy-four feet if no separate dunging area is provided;

(2) Sow and litter in pens: fifty-four square feet exclusive of manure gutter per sow and litter; sixty-four square feet per sow and litter without manure gutter;

(3) Sow and litter in boxes: forty-eight square feet per sow and litter;

(4) Sow and litter in group lactation housing: eighty-one square feet per sow and litter;

(5) Gestating sows: twenty-seven square feet per sow in group housed sows, exclusive of feeding area; provided that individual housing in crates shall not occur; and

(6) Weaned, growing, and finishing pigs: space shall be provided to allow all pigs to lie down in full lateral recumbency at the same time, in addition to space to allow movement about and to socialize; provided that the space requirements may be increased as warranted under the circumstances.

§145-   Deviation from standards. Where slight variations exist in the methods used to comply with the standards in this part, these variations are allowable so long as the highest level of husbandry is maintained at all times. Temporary deviations are permitted for unexpected circumstances not in the control of the farmer; provided that extended deviations shall cause a withdrawal of permission to use the Animal Welfare Institute's name in conjunction with the farmer's product."

SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

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