On Your Mark...System Research Compares Pig-Marking Products
January 14, 2010
You take the time to mark pigs as you sort but what’s the point if your symbols aren’t there the next time you look? That’s frustrating, says Dr. Joel Nerem. So Pipestone System and Pipestone Vet Clinic used its new dedicated research facility PVC Research I to find out which marking product offers the most staying power.
This summer a pair of willing college students made their mark with a study designed to answer the question. “We tasked a couple of interns with running our swine marker trial,” Dr. Nerem explains. “They evaluated four different marking tools on different pig age groups. Then they scored how much of the mark remained.”
He says the study “proved to be a neat learning system for the students as they compared the cost of the various products’ effectiveness along with cost per day.”
By now you’re probably wondering which product won. “Prima Spray On by Prima Tech proved to be the least expensive and most effective,” says Dr. Nerem.
Sylvia Wolters of the Pipestone Vet Clinic instigated the study, according to Dr. Nerem, because she wanted to be sure she was stocking the product the would give producers the best value.
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