• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.64 no.3
• /
• pp.574-587
• /
• 2022

This study was performed to development the alternative farrowing pen (AFP) and to investigate performance and behavior of lactating sows and their litter. A total of 64 multiparous sows were randomly divided into two groups and were allocated to farrowing crates (FCs) and AFPs. The AFPs contained a crate and support bars that could be folded to provide the sows with extra space on day 5 postpartum. Behavior was recorded by charge-coupled device cameras and digital video recorders, and the data were scanned every 2 min to obtain an instantaneous behavioral sample. Farrowing systems did not affect feed intake, back-fat thickness, litter size and piglet weight at birth and weaning (p > 0.05). In addition, there were no differences in the number of crushed piglets between the two farrowing systems (p > 0.05). However, the weaning-to-estrus interval was shorter in the sows of the AFPs than in thous of the FCs (p < 0.05). The sows spent most of their time lying down during the lactating period, at about 80% lateral recumbency and 10%-15% ventral recumbency. The only significant differences were in the feeding and drinking behavior between sows in the two farrowing systems (p < 0.05). The FC sows displayed more feeding and drinking behavior than the AFP sows, especially in the late lactating period (p < 0.05). Piglets in the FCs tended to spend more time walking than piglets in the AFPs (p < 0.05), whereas there were no differences in suckling and lying behavior between piglets in the two farrowing systems (p > 0.05). It is concluded that the AFPs with temporary crating until day 4 postpartum did not negatively affect performance and crushed piglet compared with the FCs. It also may improve animal welfare by allowing sows to move and turn around during the lactating period. Further research is needed to find suitable housing designs to enhance productivity and animal welfare.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.14 no.1
• /
• pp.77-81
• /
• 2001

The effects of dietary protein and lysine levels on lactating multiparous sows and litter performance were studied. Sixty-two crossbred multiparous sows ($Landrace{\times}Yorkshire$) were used. Thirty-three and twenty-nine sows were studied in their second parity and third parity respectively. The three dietary treatments were: (1) the control diet containing 15% CP and 0.75% lysine, (2) a diet containing 13% CP and 0.75% lysine (0.60% natural+0.15% synthetic), and (3) a diet containing 13% CP and 0.60% lysine. They were fed twice daily and allowed ad libitum access to food and water throughout a 28 day lactation from parturition until weaning. The results of this experiment showed that body weight and backfat losses of the sows from farrowing to weaning were significantly affected (p<0.01) by reducing dietary protein. Neither average daily feed intake nor weaning to estrus interval of sows were significantly different among treatments. Supplementing lower dietary protein with synthetic lysine could mitigate backfat losses, but could not prevent body weight losses in lactating multiparous sows. A corn-soybean meal diet containing 13% crude protein and 0.60% lysine did not significantly affect litter size and survival rate of weanling piglets compared with the 15% crude protein diet. There was a tendency towards decreased piglet weight at weaning (p<0.10) and reduced daily gain of piglets (p<0.11) when the multiparous sows were fed the 13% protein diet during lactation. We found a severe loss of body weight and backfat when reducing dietary protein for lactating multiparous sows.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.34 no.3
• /
• pp.516-524
• /
• 2024

This study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary spray-dried plasma (SDP) on the gut microbiota of lactating sows and their piglets. A total of 12 sows were randomly assigned to one of two dietary treatment groups in a completely randomized design. The treatments were a sow diet based on corn and soybean meal (CON), and a CON diet with an added 1% SDP. The sows were fed the dietary treatments from d 30 before farrowing to weaning (d 28). The fecal samples of three sows from each treatment and two of their randomly selected piglets were collected to verify their fecal microbiota. There were no differences in the alpha diversity and distinct clustering of the microbial communities in the sows and their piglets when SDP was added to the sow diets from late gestation to weaning. The fecal microbiota of the lactating sows and their piglets showed a higher relative abundance of the phylum Bacteroidota and genus Lactobacillus and Ruminococcus and showed a lower relative abundance of the phylum Bacillota and genus Bacteroides, Escherichia/Shigella, and Clostridium in the sows fed the SDP diet than those fed the CON diet. Overall, these results show that the addition of SDP to the sow diet during lactation altered the gut environment with positive microbial composition changes. These results were similar in the nursing piglets, suggesting that the control of the sow diets during lactation may contribute to the intestinal health and growth in piglets after weaning.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
• /
• v.48 no.1
• /
• pp.1-9
• /
• 2021

A total of twenty-four multiparous sows (Landrace × Yorkshire) and their litters were used in this 21-day experimental trial. Based on their body weight, sows were randomly allocated into one of three treatments with eight replicates. The dietary betaine supplementation contained three levels: (i) CON (Basal diet + 0% Bet), (ii) Bet 0.05% (CON + 0.05% Betaine), and (iii) Bet 0.15% (CON + 0.15% Betaine). The supplementation of betaine had no effect (p > 0.05) on body weight and feed intake of lactating sow. Moreover, no significant response was observed on backfat thickness, body condition score, and weaning of the estrus interval with the dietary supplementation of betaine. In addition, the litter weaning weight, litter weight gain, average litter daily gain, and survivability rate at birth showed no significant difference with the dietary betaine supplementation of the sow diet. Fecal scores of the lactating sows and suckling piglets were not affected (p > 0.05) with the dietary betaine supplementation compared with the control diet during the experimental periods. The findings of this study showed that betaine supplementation does not boost growth performance, feed intake, body conditions, and fecal score in lactating sows and suckling piglets fed a corn-soybean meal-based diet.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.61 no.6
• /
• pp.359-365
• /
• 2019

This study was conducted to evaluate effects of dietary multi-carbohydrases (MCS) in a lactating sow diet on productive performance and immune responses of sows and their piglets. A total of 12 sows (218.37 ± 5.5 kg BW; 2 parity) were randomly assigned to 2 dietary treatments: a diet based on corn-soybean meal (CON) and CON with 0.01% MCS. The MCS contained xylanase (2,700 units/g), β-glucanase (700 units/g), and cellulase (800 units/g). Sows were fed the dietary treatments for 28 days (weaning) after farrowing. Blood samples were collected from sows on d 0, 3, and 7 after farrowing and randomly selected 2 nursing piglets in each sow on d 3, 7, and 14 after birth. Measurements were productive performance of sows, frequency of diarrhea of piglets, and immune responses of sows and their piglets. Sows fed MCS had lower (p < 0.05) their body weight change than those fed CON. Piglets from sows fed MCS had higher (p < 0.05) average weight gain and body weight at weaning day and lower (p < 0.10) frequency of diarrhea than those from sows fed CON. Sows fed MCS had lower number of white blood cells (WBC) on d 3 (p < 0.05) and TGF-β1 on d 7 (p < 0.10) during lactation than those fed CON. Similarly, piglets from sows fed MCS had also lower (p < 0.05) number of WBC on d 3 and d 7 and TGF-β1 and C-reactive protein on d 7 during lactation than those from sows fed CON. In addition, piglets from sows fed MCS had higher (p < 0.10) immunoglobulin G and M on d 7 during lactation those from sows fed CON. In conclusion, addition of dietary MCS in the lactating sow diet based on corn and soybean meal improved productive performance of sows and their litters and modulated their immune responses.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
• /
• v.39 no.4
• /
• pp.555-559
• /
• 2012

Distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) is a by-product from processing corn to produce bio-ethanol, and it contains almost three times higher protein, fat, and fiber than corn. Intake of higher amount of nutrients originated from corn in lactating sows may contribute to changes in milk composition and thus alter the growth of suckling piglets. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate effect of supplementing DDGS in the diet of lactating sows on variation in the body weight of piglets. A total of 50 sows with parities of 3 to 5 were usedand allottedinto one of four treatments which included 0 (CON), 10% (DDGS10), 20% (DDGS20), or 30% (DDGS30) DDGS in the diet. Diets were fed to sows during the whole lactation period. Individual body weights of piglets were measured within 24 h after farrowing and at weaning. No significant differences were observed inthe coefficient of variation (CV) for body weight of piglets within a litter after farrowing and at weaning among the treatments (p>0.05). There was, however, a tendency of decreases in the CV for body weight of piglets within a litter at weaning compared with that after farrowingin the DDGS10 and DDGS20 treatments. At weaning, the percentage of the number of piglets weighing less than 4.5 kg in DDGS20 (4.86%, 7 out of 144; p<0.05) or DDGS30 (5.04%, 6 out of 119; p=0.059) was lower than that in CON (12.41%; 17 out of 137) although this pattern was not observed in DDGS10. In conclusion, addition of DDGS in lactating sow diets improved piglet performance by reducing the number piglets weighing less than 4.5 kg.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• v.34 no.9
• /
• pp.1491-1498
• /
• 2021

Objective: This research was carried out to investigate the effects of corn particle size on the apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of energy and nutrients fed to pigs at four different growth stages and therefore to provide basis for better application of corn in pig feeds. Methods: Eighteen weanling piglets, 18 growing barrows, 24 gestating sows and 24 lactating sows were used in this study. Within each stage, pigs were allotted to 1 of 3 or 4 corn-soybean meal diets which were formulated with different corn particle size in a completely randomized design with 6 replicate pigs per diet. Each stage lasted for 19 days, including 7 days for cages adaptation, 7 days for adaptation to diets and followed by 5 days for total collection of feces and urine. Results: For nursery and growing stages, the results showed that digestible energy content and ATTD of gross energy (GE), dry matter (DM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), and acid detergent fiber (ADF) was increased (p<0.05) as the corn particle size reduced. Meanwhile, the metabolizable energy content and ATTD of crude protein (CP) tended to increase. For gestating sows, no differences were found in the ATTD of nutrients among dietary treatments. As for lactating sows, there were linear and quadratic increases (p<0.05) in the ATTD of DM, GE, NDF as the corn being finer milled. Quadratic response in ATTD of ADF and CP (p<0.05) were observed as sows fed with four different diets. Conclusion: Reducing corn particle size can increase digestibility of nutrients fed to young pigs and lactating sows. No effects were observed in present experiment when gestating sows were fed with different particle sized corn.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• v.36 no.7
• /
• pp.1083-1090
• /
• 2023

Objective: This study was conducted to evaluate the short-term effects of dietary selenium supplementation on lactating sows on the physiological response, litter performance, milk composition, and tissue selenium retention in piglets when selenium was provided by different sources and at different levels in a lactation diet. Methods: A total of 48 multiparous sows (Yorkshire×Landrace) with average body weight, backfat thickness, and parity were assigned to one of the four treatments with 12 sows per treatment using a 2×2 factorial arrangement in a completely randomized design. Inorganic or organic Se sources were added to the diet at 0.30 ppm and 0.50 ppm Se. Treatments were as follows: i) IS30, basal diet + inorganic Se 0.30 ppm; ii) IS50, basal diet + inorganic Se 0.50 ppm; iii) OS30, basal diet + organic Se 0.30 ppm; and iv) OS50: basal diet + organic Se 0.50 ppm. Results: At Day 21 of lactation, a high tendency of litter weight (p = 0.08) and litter weight gain (p = 0.09) were observed when sows were fed an organic Se source. The milk Se concentration in the organic Se treatment was higher than that in the inorganic Se treatment at Day 21 of lactation (p<0.05). The serum Se concentrations of sows and piglets at Day 21 of lactation were significantly higher when lactating sows were fed organic Se instead of inorganic Se (p<0.01). During the suckling period, the kidney and muscle Se concentrations of piglets at Day 21 of lactation were significantly higher when the sow dietary Se source was organic (p<0.05). Liver Se concentrations were affected by Se source and level (p<0.05). This also resulted in an interaction response at 21 days of lactation (p<0.05). Conclusion: The supplementation of dietary organic Se in a lactating diet could improve sow feed consumption, piglet performance, milk Se level, and the Se status of sows and piglets.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
• /
• v.45 no.4
• /
• pp.645-653
• /
• 2018

Twenty-five sows and 265 piglets (Landrace ${\times}$ Yorkshire) were used to evaluate the effects of dietary energy level on the pre-weaning and post-weaning performance of piglets and first parity sows. Sows with an average initial B.W. of $217.54{\pm}25.47kg$ were randomly assigned to 2 treatments. The treatments consisted of a T1 diet containing 3,100 kcal, and the T2 diet contained 3400 kcal of metabolizable energy (ME)/kg, respectively. Data were analyzed using Duncan statements to test the effect of the dietary energy levels on growth performance in lactating sows and piglets. In this study, Dietary T2 sows had a greater number of weaned piglets per litter (p < 0.05). Dietary T2 had a higher (p < 0.05) body weight than that of T1 in the weanlings, meanwhile it had a higher total average daily gain (p < 0.05) than that of T1. Dietary T1 had a higher average feed intake than that of T2 in gestation and lactation. There were no significant differences on the litter size or litter birth weight. No differences (p > 0.05) were noted in the survival of the piglets as well as in the backfat thickness and body weight loss in sows. In conclusion, these results show that high-energy diets had no effect on the body weight and backfat thickness of sows during gestation and lactation but influenced the body weight and average daily gain of weanling pigs during the lactation period.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.61 no.6
• /
• pp.333-339
• /
• 2019

The present study investigated the litter performance of multiparous sows had different feeding frequencies during summer season. A total of 60 crossbred multiparous sows was allotted to one of two treatments based on body weight (BW) according to a completely randomized design. Two different feeding frequencies based on NRC (National Research Council) were applied as conventional feeding (T1; 2 kg per meal at 06:00, 11:00, and 17:00) and night feeding (T2; 1.5 kg per meal at 06:00, 11:00, 17:00, and 2 kg at 22:00). Sows in T2 treatment had lower (p < 0.05) BW changes during lactation. The backfat thickness change of sows was decreased in T2 treatment during lactation (p < 0.05). The daily feed intake differed significantly between T1 and T2 with increased feed intake of the T2 group at 5.47 kg/d to 5.14 kg/d in the T1 group (p < 0.05). There was a significant difference in total weight of weaned piglets between T1 (70.50 kg) and T2 (74.34 kg). A greater total litter weight gain was observed in sows in T2 treatment. Night feeding is suggested for lactating sows with significant beneficial effects on litter growth during summer season.