'American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD)'
Abstract
Mestrado em Engenharia Zootécnica - Produção Animal - Instituto Superior de Agronomia / Faculdade de Medicina VeterináriaIn order to study the effect of two blends of microencapsulated essential oils and
organic acids on piglet´s growth and digestive function, 24 piglets with about 3 weeks of age
were used in a trial. The piglets were assigned into 3 diets: RB (control), SW01 (control diet +
0.1% of the SW01 blend) and SW02 (control diet + 0.1% of the SW02 blend).
There was a tendency to increase final body weight (in kg, RB: 19.87; SW01: 23;
SW02: 24), feed intake (in g/day, RB: 617; SW01: 725; SW02: 755) and weight gain (in
g/day, RB: 388; SW01: 473; SW02: 503) when the blend SW02 was supplied (P<0.10).
There was a tendency for higher crude protein digestibility in the group SW01 (P=0.0607).
The digestibility of NDF and ADF as well as the villi width in the duodenum increased with
the inclusion of SW01 blend (P<0.05). The length of the large intestine decreased with the
SW02 blend (P<0.0413). The inclusion of both blends in the diet decreased the cellulase
activity in the cecum and the VFA production in the ileum and colon and increased the VFA
production in the cecum (P<0.05).
Concluding, it was not possible to prove the effectiveness of the additives studied
