Sow Fertility and Metabolism

The fertility research over the years has focused on a variety of factors (e.g. stress, genetic background, sow metabolic state, group housing) and covering multiple reproductive processes and measures (e.g. reproductive hormone profiles, follicle size and -physiology, oestrus behaviour, ovulation rate, development of corpora lutea, embryo- and placental development, litter size, piglet birth weight). Currently, a major focus is on the consequences of the lactation period for metabolic state and subsequent fertility measures.