The effect of an 18-hour delay in solid feed provisioning on the feed intake and performance of piglets in the first weeks after weaning

It is generally accepted that early post-weaning feed intake affects post-weaning health and performance. Especially piglets that have not consumed creep feed before weaning have to learn to recognize solid feed. Weaning is a stressful event with an important impact on the animals. The associated stress level may affect their learning capabilities. Consequently, the question arises whether the first day after weaning is the best day to discover their new type of feed. An experiment was therefore designed to study the effect of delayed provisioning of solid feed on feed intake and performance of piglets. In total, 144 piglets (8.1 +/- 1.1 kg, mean +/- SD), weaned at 4 weeks of age, were tested. They were assigned to 24 pens, blocked per sex (i.e. castrated male or female) and weight group. Prior to weaning, piglets received a commercial creep feed. Per body weight class and per sex, each pen was randomly assigned to one of the 2 treatments: control (C) and delay in feed provisioning (DF). For the control treatment, the pelleted feed (6 mm) was already present in the feeders when the piglets arrived in their pens (13:00-14:00 h). In the DF pens, the feed was provided the next morning (08:00). Feed and water were provided ad libitum. In the first week after weaning, it was not possible to observe differences. However, the DF pigs showed a higher feed intake during the first three weeks of the experiment (455 +/- 25 vs 430 +/- 37 g/day, P = 0.003), which was apparent throughout the entire experiment (4-9 weeks: 594 +/- 30 vs 569 +/- 48 g/day, P = 0.046). This resulted in higher body weights 3 weeks after weaning (7 weeks of age) in the DF vs C pigs (16.1 +/- 1.5 vs 15.6 +/- 1.6 kg, P = 0.005). However, at the end of the experiment at 9 weeks, differences were no longer significant (23.9 +/- 2.1 vs 23.4 +/- 2.0 kg, P = 0.285). Feed efficiency did not differ between the groups (P = 0.456 for the entire experiment). Further research into the underlying mechanisms of the observed differences are mandatory for developing improved management practices of weaned piglets

Mimicking indoor climate dynamics and ammonia emissions in a pig housing compartment using artificial pigs and an automatic urea spraying installation

A

Reliability of intrasubject absolute quantification of kidney function measured with 99mTc DMSA in piglets

C

Dietary fibre enrichment of supplemental feed modulates the development of the intestinal tract in suckling piglets

Background: Commercial pre-weaning diets are formulated to be highly digestible and nutrient-dense and contain low levels of dietary fibre. In contrast, pigs in a natural setting are manipulating fibre-rich plant material from a young age. Moreover, dietary fibre affects gastrointestinal tract (GIT) development and health in older pigs. We hypothesised that supplemental diets that contain vegetal fibres are accelerating GIT development in suckling piglets in terms of size and functionality. From d 2 of life, sow-suckled piglets had access to a low fibre diet (CON), a diet with a fermentable long-chain arabinoxylan (lc-AXOS), a diet with a largely non-fermentable purified cellulose (CELL), or a diet containing both fibres. During the initial 2 weeks, the control diet was a high-density milk replacer, followed by a dry and highly digestible creep meal. Upon weaning at 25 d, 15 piglets from each treatment group, identified as eaters and originating from six or seven litters, were sacrificed for post-mortem examination of GIT morphology, small intestinal permeability and metabolic profile of the digesta. The microbiota composition of the mid-colon was evaluated in a sub-set of ten piglets. Results: No major statistical interactions between the fibre sources were observed. Piglets consumed the fibre-containing milk supplements and creep diets well. Stomach size and small intestinal permeability was not affected. Large intestinal fill was increased with lc-AXOS only, while relative large intestinal weight was increased with both fibre sources (P < 0.050). Also, CELL decreased ileal pH and tended to increase ileal DM content compared to CON (P < 0.050). Moreover, the concentration of volatile fatty acids was increased in the caecum (P < 0.100) and mid-colon (P < 0.050) by addition of CELL. lc-AXOS only stimulated caecal propionate (P < 0.050). The microbiota composition showed a high individual variation and limited dietary impact. Nonetheless, CELL induced minor shifts in specific genera, with notable reductions of Escherichia-Shigella. Conclusions: Adding dietary fibres to the supplemental diet of suckling piglets altered large intestinal morphology but not small intestinal permeability. Moreover, dietary fibre showed effects on fermentation and modest changes of microbial populations in the hindgut, with more prominent effects from the low-fermentable cellulose