How to Choose a Farrowing Crate for Your Sow Barn

A farrowing crate should be selected as part of a complete pen arrangement. The sow section, piglet area, floor supports, trough and drinkers must fit both the animals and the building. A catalogue photograph can help you identify a design, but it cannot show whether a gate will clear your service aisle or whether the floor will match your existing supports.

For a new barn, start with a dimensioned pen layout. For a replacement project, start with measurements of the installed equipment. The following checks help turn those measurements into a useful supplier enquiry.

Separate the pen footprint from the sow space

Overall length and width describe the space occupied by the assembly. They do not necessarily describe the usable space inside the sow rails. A quoted dimension may also include a feeder, mounting brackets or parts of the surrounding enclosure. Ask for a drawing that identifies each measurement instead of treating one dimension as the answer to every clearance question.

• Overall footprint, including projecting brackets and the trough.
• Clear internal sow space and the available adjustment positions.
• Piglet areas on either side and the position of any warming cover.
• Gate swing, operator access and the route for moving the sow.
• Floor level, support locations and the connection to neighbouring pens.

Compare the proposed sow space with the animals on your farm, including the larger animals the barn will accommodate. The equipment supplier should explain how the adjustable parts change that space. Housing requirements also depend on the production system and destination, so the final arrangement should be checked for the particular farm rather than copied from a generic drawing.

Sow farrowing crate: review the full pen assembly as well as the central sow section.

Check the floor as an installed assembly

The Famou Machinery sow farrowing crate describes metal flooring in the sow section and plastic flooring in the piglet area. That material combination is only one part of the specification. Before ordering, identify which floor panels, beams and fixing parts are included and which will be provided on site.

For an existing building, photograph the supporting structure and record its spacing. Send those details with the enquiry. Ask the supplier to confirm the support arrangement and loading basis for the proposed floor. Also inspect how panel edges meet the frame, how panels are retained, and how the floor can be accessed for cleaning or replacement.

A material name alone does not confirm compatibility. Two floor systems can use similar-looking plastic panels while requiring different supports or attachment details.

Walk through daily work before approving the layout

Imagine entering the room with cleaning equipment, checking a drinker, opening a gate and reaching the piglet area. The working arrangement should be clear on the drawing. A compact footprint is less useful if it leaves an awkward approach to the trough or obstructs a part that needs regular inspection.

Confirm where the feed and water connections terminate. Identify valves and joints that need to remain accessible. If a warming cover or other piglet-area equipment is included, check its mounting and service access separately; a picture of an equipped pen does not establish the contents of the delivery.

Make the quotation easy to compare

Request an itemised list covering the crate frame, surrounding panels, floor components, feeder, drinking equipment and fixings. Ask the supplier to mark optional items. This avoids comparing a bare frame price with the price of a complete pen.

For metal components, request the stated material and finish, with clarification of which parts receive that finish. For movable components, ask about hinge, latch and adjustment details. Record the drawing revision alongside the quotation so that a later change in dimensions does not go unnoticed.

A useful enquiry package

1. Number of pens and whether the project is new construction or replacement.
2. A room sketch with aisles, doors, columns and available floor space.
3. Animal size information and the intended pen arrangement.
4. Photographs and measurements of existing floor supports, if retained.
5. Available feed and water connections and the required delivery scope.

Keep this article focused on the farrowing area. A gestation crate serves a different stage and should not be substituted merely because its external dimensions appear similar.

To discuss a pen layout, send your room dimensions and equipment list through the Famou Machinery contact page. Refer to the proposed drawing when requesting changes, so the frame, floor and service connections can be reviewed together.