Supplemental Lysine in Feed and Water for Growing-Finishing Swine

The effects of lysine in feed and water at comparable levels were studied when the level of crude protein was slightly lower than normally recommended for the respective weight of the pigs

A Study on Baby Pig Survival

Nearly everyone raising pigs is aware of the high mortality rate of baby pigs during the first few days of life. It is estimated that 25 to 30 percent of all live pigs die before reaching market weight. Most of these die in early life. Approximately 75 percent of all baby pig deaths were due to three general causes: (1) small and weak pigs, (2) chilling, and (3) overlaying by the sow. The economic loss due to the death of these pigs is overwhelming. If each good pig is worth five dollars and roughly 20 to 30 million newborn pigs are lost each year in the United States, the loss is probably greater than 100 million dollars a year. New farrowing barns with modern farrowing stalls and slotted floors have been the trend in recent years, but the national average number of pigs marketed has been slightly over seven pigs per litter consistently for a period of years. This does not mean that some equipment has not helped reduce baby pig losses, but it does point out that the over-all effect on the number of pigs raised per litter has been generally less than anticipated. Therefore, the problem of losing good pigs shortly after birth is far from solved. Two years ago a program was initiated to study the effects of temperature and milk injection into the stomach of the newborn pig on the survival of pigs. The early results of this program are reported herein

Effect of Restricted Feeding in Gravid Sows

Restricted-feeding of sows has been widely accepted as a method of feeding during pregnancy. However, the best level of feeding during specific phases of the pregnancy period has not been well established. This study was initiated to compare two schemes of feeding the same ration, but the total quantity of feed consumed during pregnancy was the same between the two treatment groups

A Comparsion of Three Methods of Iron Administration in Preventing Baby Pig Anemia

Baby pig anemia is a serious nutritional disease. It is primarily due to a lack of iron in the diet of the young pig. Pigs are born with very little stores of iron in their bodies. Also, sow\u27 s milk does not contain enough iron to meet the pig\u27 s requirements. Therefore young pigs which subsist on milk alone commonly become anemic at about three weeks of age. The fastest growing pigs are the first to show symptoms because they require more of this essential nutrient. Symptoms of anemia are: (1) respiratory difficulties shown by thumping of sides1 (2) paleness of skin, (3) emaciation, and (4) roughness of the hair. There are many methods available to prevent anemia in young pigs. The most common methods that have been used are: (1) iron injection given intramuscularly, (2) providing clean soil in the corner of the pen, (3) painting sows\u27 udders with cupric sulfate paste, (4) giving iron orally, by mouth in the form of pills, (5) licking devices. and (6) compounds mixed into the drinking water. The objectives of the trials reported here were to measure the relative effectiveness of an intramuscular iron dextrin compound, a ferrous choline citrate compound added at four different levels in the drinking water and a ferrous fumarate pellet implanted intramuscularly for the prevention of iron deficiency anemia

Supplemental Lysine in Drinking Water of Growing-Finishing Swine Fed Rations of Two Different Protein Levels

Cereal grains do not contain an adequate amount of the amino acids (protein building blocks) to support optimum growth of growing-finishing pigs. The protein present in cereal grains is of relatively poor quality since it does not contain the proper balance of amino acids to support optimum growth of growing-finishing swine. The most limiting amino acid in cereal grains is lysine. Protein supplements such as soybean meal, contain larger amounts of the essential amino acids and thus are used to balance a cereal grain ration. Previous research at this station, however, has shown that a corn-soybean meal ration can often be improved with lysine supplementation to the drinking water of growing pigs. These trials were conducted to obtain further information on the effect of adding 4 gm of L-lysine monohydrochloride per gallon of drinking water to pigs fed com-soybean meal rations of two protein levels