A note on piglets’ preferences for drinker types at two weaning ages

Piglets weaned younger than 3 weeks of age often exhibit excessive amounts of drinking behaviour compared to pigs weaned at later ages. Piglets of different ages may be attracted to different drinking devices because of the oral motor patterns used for drinking from them or because they provide different amounts of tactile stimulation to the snout. Therefore, this study was designed to examine individual piglet preference for drinker type when piglets were weaned at two different ages. In three separate experiments, newly weaned piglets’ preferences for drinker devices were examined through 10 days after weaning. In all three experiments, individually housed piglets were weaned at either 19 or 26 days of age and given access to two drinker devices (either a nipple drinker and a push-lever bowl drinker or a push-lever bowl drinker and a float bowl drinker). According to both drinking behaviour and water intake, pigs preferred the nipple drinker or the float bowl drinker rather than the push-lever bowl drinker. These results suggest that piglets prefer a drinker that is easy to find or simply provides easier access to water.