Growth Performance Of Growing-finishing Pigs Research Articles

PSIII-20 Impact of EnduraPig on Performance of PRRSV-Negative growing-finishing pigs

Abstract A total of 479 weaned pigs [PIC Camborough × PIC 337; initial body weight (BW) = 26.8 kg; Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus, PRRSV-negative] were used to evaluate the effects of EnduraPig (PMI Additives), a patent-pending feed additive that has been designed to support health, performance, and immune function of pigs, on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs. Pigs were blocked by initial BW and gender and assigned to 48 pens, which were allotted to one of 4 dietary treatments (12 pens/treatment, 9-10 pigs/pen), including T1) Control, T2) EnduraPig 0.1% (EP low), T3) EnduraPig 0.2% (EP medium), and T4) EnduraPig 0.3% (EP high). The EnduraPig inclusion levels were reduced by one-half when pigs reached approximately 70 kg BW (d 42). A five-phase feeding program was used with all diets formulated on a corn-DDGS-soybean meal basis to meet the nutrient requirements of growing-finishing pigs. Analysis of variance for growth measures was performed using the MIXED Procedure of SAS (SAS 9.4), and polynomial contrasts were used to evaluate linear, quadratic, and cubic effects of the EP levels. Significant differences were declared at P ≤ 0.05 and trends at P ≤ 0.10. During d 0-72, feeding EnduraPig tended to improve average daily gain (ADG) (0.96, 0.97, 1.00, and 0.97 kg, respectively; cubic, P = 0.06) with the greatest ADG observed in EP medium. During d 72 to market, feeding EnduraPig increased ADG (1.13, 1.14, 1.18, and 1.17 kg, respectively; linear, P = 0.02), average daily feed intake (ADFI; 3.48, 3.42, 3.55, and 3.49, respectively; cubic, P = 0.02) and feed:gain (3.08, 3.00, 3.01, and 2.98, respectively; linear, P = 0.10). Overall (d 0-market), feeding EnduraPig enhanced ADG (1.02, 1.02, 1.05, and 1.03 kg, respectively; linear, quadratic, and cubic, P = 0.04, 0.09, 0.01), with the greatest ADG observed in EP medium resulting in a 4.0 kg greater market BW compared with the control (128.9, 129.2, 132.9, and 130.5, respectively; linear and cubic, P < 0.05). In addition, feeding EnduraPig numerically improved feed:gain (2.51, 2.48, 2.48, and 2.48, respectively; linear, P = 0.14). With respect to BW variation, feeding EnduraPig reduced the standard deviation in market BW (10.65, 8.06, 8.86, and 9.54 kg, respectively; quadratic, P < 0.05), with the greatest reduction from EP low and EP medium (by 24 and 17%, respectively) compared with the control. In summary, data from this study indicate that feeding EnduraPig at 0.2% from 27 kg to 70 kg BW and 0.1% from 70 to market improves growth performance and reduces BW variation of PRRSV-negative growing-finishing pigs.

Low crude protein formulation with supplemental amino acids for its impacts on intestinal health and growth performance of growing-finishing pigs

Background Low crude protein (CP) formulations with supplemental amino acids (AA) are used to enhance intestinal health, reduce costs, minimize environmental impact, and maintain growth performance of pigs. However, extensive reduction of dietary CP can compromise growth performance due to limited synthesis of non-essential AA and limited availability of bioactive compounds from protein supplements even when AA requirements are met. Moreover, implementing a low CP formulation can increase the net energy (NE) content in feeds causing excessive fat deposition. Additional supplementation of functional AA, coupled with low CP formulation could further enhance intestinal health and glucose metabolism, improving nitrogen utilization, and growth performance. Three experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of low CP formulations with supplemental AA on the intestinal health and growth performance of growing-finishing pigs.Methods In Exp. 1, 90 pigs (19.7 ± 1.1 kg, 45 barrows and 45 gilts) were assigned to 3 treatments: CON (18.0% CP, supplementing Lys, Met, and Thr), LCP (16.0% CP, supplementing Lys, Met, Thr, Trp, and Val), and LCPT (16.1% CP, LCP + 0.05% SID Trp). In Exp. 2, 72 pigs (34.2 ± 4.2 kg BW) were assigned to 3 treatments: CON (17.7% CP, meeting the requirements of Lys, Met, Thr, and Trp); LCP (15.0% CP, meeting Lys, Thr, Trp, Met, Val, Ile, and Phe); and VLCP (12.8% CP, meeting Lys, Thr, Trp, Met, Val, Ile, Phe, His, and Leu). In Exp. 3, 72 pigs (54.1 ± 5.9 kg BW) were assigned to 3 treatments and fed experimental diets for 3 phases (grower 2, finishing 1, and finishing 2). Treatments were CON (18.0%, 13.8%, 12.7% CP for 3 phases; meeting Lys, Met, Thr, and Trp); LCP (13.5%, 11.4%, 10.4% CP for 3 phases; meeting Lys, Thr, Trp, Met, Val, Ile, and Phe); and LCPG (14.1%, 12.8%, 11.1% CP for 3 phases; LCP + Glu to match SID Glu with CON). All diets had 2.6 Mcal/kg NE.ResultsIn Exp. 1, overall, the growth performance did not differ among treatments. The LCPT increased (P < 0.05) Claudin-1 expression in the duodenum and jejunum. The LCP and LCPT increased (P < 0.05) CAT-1, 4F2hc, and B0AT expressions in the jejunum. In Exp. 2, overall, the VLCP reduced (P < 0.05) G:F and BUN. The LCP and VLCP increased (P < 0.05) the backfat thickness (BFT). In Exp. 3, overall, growth performance and BFT did not differ among treatments. The LCPG reduced (P < 0.05) BUN, whereas increased the insulin in plasma. The LCP and LCPG reduced (P < 0.05) the abundance of Streptococcaceae, whereas the LCP reduced (P < 0.05) Erysipelotrichaceae, and the alpha diversity.ConclusionsWhen implementing low CP formulation, CP can be reduced by supplementation of Lys, Thr, Met, Trp, Val, and Ile without affecting the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs when NE is adjusted to avoid increased fat deposition. Supplementation of Trp above the requirement or supplementation of Glu in low CP formulation seems to benefit intestinal health as well as improved nitrogen utilization and glucose metabolism.

69. Effect of supplementation with a copper-exchanged clay on the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs restrictedly fed with a liquid feeding system

69. Effect of supplementation with a copper-exchanged clay on the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs restrictedly fed with a liquid feeding system

Nutritional strategies to improve the growth performance of pigs marketed in summer

To improve the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs and maximize economic returns for summer marketing, producers can feed increased dietary energy while pigs are still in their energy dependent growth phase. Removal of high-fiber ingredients such as dried distillers’ grains with solubles can increase dietary energy and improve gain. During the summer when feed intake is low, formulating diets at or slightly above amino acid requirements may be beneficial. Feed additives that increase growth rate should be considered to improve market weight. Market prices and optimal market weights should drive formulation decisions to maximize income over feed costs.

Long-Term Dietary Supplementation with Betaine Improves Growth Performance, Meat Quality and Intramuscular Fat Deposition in Growing-Finishing Pigs.

This study was designed to investigate the effects of dietary betaine supplementation on growth performance, meat quality and muscle lipid metabolism of growing-finishing pigs. Thirty-six crossbred pigs weighing 24.68 ± 0.97 kg were randomly allotted into two treatments consisting of a basal diet supplemented with 0 or 1200 mg/kg betaine. Each treatment included six replications of three pigs per pen. Following 119 days of feeding trial, dietary betaine supplementation significantly enhanced average daily gain (ADG) (p < 0.05) and tended to improve average daily feed intake (ADFI) (p = 0.08) and decreased the feed intake to gain ratio (F/G) (p = 0.09) in pigs during 100~125 kg. Furthermore, a tendency to increase ADG (p = 0.09) and finial body weight (p = 0.09) of pigs over the whole period was observed in the betaine diet group. Betaine supplementation significantly increased a*45 min and marbling and decreased b*24 h and cooking loss in longissimus lumborum (p < 0.05), tended to increase intramuscular fat (IMF) content (p = 0.08), however had no significant influence on carcass characteristics (p > 0.05). Betaine supplementation influenced the lipid metabolism of pigs, evidenced by a lower serum concentration of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p < 0.05), an up-regulation of mRNA abundance of fatty acid synthase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase (p < 0.05), and a down-regulation of mRNA abundance of lipolysis-related genes, including the silent information regulators of transcription 1 (p = 0.08), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptorα (p < 0.05), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1α (p = 0.07) and carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1 (p < 0.05) in longissimus lumborum. Moreover, betaine markedly improved the expression of microRNA-181a (miR-181a) (p < 0.05) and tended to enhance miR-370 (p = 0.08). Overall, betaine supplementation at 1200 mg/kg could increase the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs. Furthermore, betaine had a trend to improve meat quality and IMF content via increasing lipogenesis and down-regulating the abundance of genes associated with lipolysis, respectively, which was associated with the regulation of miR-181a and miR-370 expression by betaine.

A Multi-Trial Analysis Evaluating the Effects of Pharmacological Levels of IntelliBond Copper on Growing-Finishing Pig Growth Performance and Carcass Characteristics

A Multi-Trial Analysis Evaluating the Effects of Pharmacological Levels of IntelliBond Copper on Growing-Finishing Pig Growth Performance and Carcass Characteristics

Effects of 25(OH)VD3 on Growth Performance, Pork Quality and Calcium Deposit in Growing-Finishing Pigs.

The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of 25(OH)VD3 with different inclusion levels of 0, 25, 50 and 75 μg/kg in the diet on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, bone properties and pork quality in growing-finishing pigs. The results showed that the average daily gain (p < 0.05) and body weight (p < 0.10) of pigs showed a trend of increasing quadratically as inclusion levels of 25(OH)VD3 increased. Dietary supplementation of 50 μg/kg 25(OH)VD3 increased calcium digestibility compared with the 0 μg/kg group (p < 0.05), and calcium and phosphorus digestibility increased quadratically as inclusion levels of 25(OH)VD3 increased (p < 0.05). Dietary supplementation of 50 μg/kg 25(OH)VD3 increased concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids, and decreased contents of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids in the longissimus dorsi of pigs (p < 0.05). The addition of 25, 50 and 75 μg/kg 25(OH)VD3 to the diet increased breaking strength and bone stiffness in the tibia compared with the 0 μg/kg group (p < 0.05). Dietary supplementation of 50 μg/kg 25(OH)VD3 improved the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), and increased the messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of Cu/Zn SOD in the longissimus dorsi compared with the 0 μg/kg group (p < 0.05). Supplementing 50 μg/kg 25(OH)VD3 improved the mRNA expression of calcium-binding protein D9k (CaBP-D9k) and D28k (CaBP-D28K) in the liver compared with the 0 μg/kg 25(OH)D3 group (p < 0.05). In conclusion, a diet with an added dose of 50 μg/kg 25(OH)VD3 showed a greatest growth performance of growing-finishing pigs, and 25(OH)VD3 enhanced calcium deposition and antioxidant capacity in the longissimus dorsi, which may be associated with improved expression of calcium ion channel proteins.

161 Effect of High- and low-Fiber Diets on Growth Performance in Growing-Finishing Pigs Selected for low or High Feed Efficiency

Abstract Understanding the effects of high- and low-fiber diets on the growth performance of pigs with different feed efficiencies will help the livestock industry develop new strategies to reduce the costs of pig production. In this study, 18 Landrace × Large White sows with high and low estimated breeding value on feed conversion ratio (EBV-FCR) were inseminated with semen from Large White with known EBV-FCR to produce 9 litters of low feed efficiency pigs and 9 litters of high feed efficiency pigs. A total of 94 growing pigs with low or high feed efficiency were fed a low-fiber (3% crude fiber) or high-fiber (6% crude fiber) content diet in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement for 70 days. Pigs fed a high-fiber diet presented higher body weight (BW) on day 70 (P &amp;lt; 0.05). High feed efficiency pigs presented lower average daily feed intake (ADFI) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) than low feed efficiency pigs from day 0 to 70 (P&amp;lt; 0.05). There was an interaction between fiber and feed efficiency group on average daily gain (ADG;P &amp;lt; 0.05) and FCR (P &amp;lt; 0.05) from day 0 to 35. High feed efficiency pigs fed a high-fiber diet presented lower FCR than low feed efficiency pigs fed a low-fiber diet (P&amp;lt; 0.05). Low feed efficiency pigs fed a low-fiber diet showed the lowest ADG (P&amp;lt; 0.05). Regardless of efficiency groups, pigs fed a high-fiber diet presented higher ADG and lower FCR than pigs fed a low-fiber diet from day 42 to 70 (P&amp;lt; 0.05). These results suggest that high feed efficiency pigs can present lower FCR and ADFI without reducing final BW and ADG. Feeding a high-fiber diet can increase ADG and reduce FCR in the later stages of the experiment.

Provision of lucerne in the diet or as a manipulable enrichment material enhances feed efficiency and welfare status for growing-finishing pigs

This research investigated the effects of including lucerne in a diet and as manipulable enrichment material on growing-finishing pig growth performance and behaviour. Forty-eight intact male Duroc × (Large White × Landrace) pigs with an initial live weight (LW) of 26.4 ± 2.32 kg (mean ± SD) were blocked by LW and randomly assigned to two dietary treatments (control vs lucerne), and two manipulable material treatments (without and with lucerne chaff for manipulable material). The barley and soybean meal-based control diet was formulated according to a commercial standard, while the lucerne diet replaced 100 g/kg of the barley and soybean oil in the control diet with lucerne chaff. The diets were formulated to have the same amount of digestible energy and apparent ileal digestible lysine. Manipulable material (lucerne chaff) was provided daily at 100 g/pig. Pigs had ad libitum access to diets via electronic feeders until they reached approximately 90 kg LW, at which time they were slaughtered. There were no interactions between dietary treatment and provision of manipulable material on pig production and behaviour. Feeding the lucerne diet reduced average daily feed intake, LW gain, feed intake per feeder visit, and feeding rate, but increased feed efficiency (P < 0.05). Access to manipulable material did not affect any growth traits, but the number of feeder visits per day was greater and the duration of visits to the feeder was lower in pigs that had access to lucerne chaff (P < 0.001). Compared to the other groups, pigs that consumed the lucerne diet or had access to manipulable material rested for a shorter duration but engaged in more social interactions and exploration behaviour. In conclusion, including 10% lucerne in growing-finishing diets improved feed efficiency and lucerne chaff appears to be an attractive enrichment source to pigs.

Influence of high cyclic ambient temperature and water drinker design on growth performance and water disappearance of growing-finishing pigs.

The objective of this study was to determine effects of room temperature and drinker design on growth and water disappearance of growing-finishing pigs (26.9 ± 3.67 to 130.9 ± 5.10 kg live body weight). A split-plot design was used with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments: Room Temperature (RT) [Thermoneutral (TN) vs. High (HI); main plot], Drinker Design (DD; Nipple vs. Cup; sub-plot). A total of 316 pigs were used, housed in 32 pens in 4 rooms (8 pens/room; 7 pens of 10 pigs and 1 pen of 9 pigs). Two rooms were on each RT treatment. Room temperature for the TN treatment was constant throughout each day but decreased from 24°C at the start to 20°C and 18°C on d 14 and 45 of the study period, respectively. For the HI treatment, a single, cyclic RT protocol was used throughout the study (30°C from 08:00 to 19:00 h and 20°C from 20:00 to 07:00 h, with 1-h transition periods). Pens had fully-slatted concrete floors and 1 feeder and drinker (either nipple or cup); floor space was 0.67 m2/pig. Pigs had ad libitum access to standard corn-soybean diets, formulated to meet or exceed NRC (2012) nutrient requirements. Water disappearance was measured using a meter fitted to the water line supplying each drinker. There were no interactions (P > 0.05) between RT and DD treatments. Drinker Design did not affect (P > 0.05) growth performance; water disappearance was 7.3% greater (P ≤ 0.05) for Nipple than Cup drinkers. Compared to the TN treatment, the HI treatment had no effect (P > 0.05) on gain:feed ratio, but resulted in lower (P ≤ 0.05) average daily gain (6.5%) and average daily feed intake (5.5%) and greater (P ≤ 0.05) average daily water disappearance (16.8%). These results suggest that both drinker design and RT can affect water disappearance, and that the high, cyclic RT regime used reduced growth performance of growing-finishing pigs. Further research is needed to determine the contribution of water intake and wastage to treatment differences in water disappearance.

Predicting the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs based on net energy and digestible lysine intake using multiple regression and artificial neural networks models

BackgroundsEvaluating the growth performance of pigs in real-time is laborious and expensive, thus mathematical models based on easily accessible variables are developed. Multiple regression (MR) is the most widely used tool to build prediction models in swine nutrition, while the artificial neural networks (ANN) model is reported to be more accurate than MR model in prediction performance. Therefore, the potential of ANN models in predicting the growth performance of pigs was evaluated and compared with MR models in this study.ResultsBody weight (BW), net energy (NE) intake, standardized ileal digestible lysine (SID Lys) intake, and their quadratic terms were selected as input variables to predict ADG and F/G among 10 candidate variables. In the training phase, MR models showed high accuracy in both ADG and F/G prediction (R2ADG = 0.929, R2F/G = 0.886) while ANN models with 4, 6 neurons and radial basis activation function yielded the best performance in ADG and F/G prediction (R2ADG = 0.964, R2F/G = 0.932). In the testing phase, these ANN models showed better accuracy in ADG prediction (CCC: 0.976 vs. 0.861, R2: 0.951 vs. 0.584), and F/G prediction (CCC: 0.952 vs. 0.900, R2: 0.905 vs. 0.821) compared with the MR models. Meanwhile, the “over-fitting” occurred in MR models but not in ANN models. On validation data from the animal trial, ANN models exhibited superiority over MR models in both ADG and F/G prediction (P < 0.01). Moreover, the growth stages have a significant effect on the prediction accuracy of the models.ConclusionBody weight, NE intake and SID Lys intake can be used as input variables to predict the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs, with trained ANN models are more flexible and accurate than MR models. Therefore, it is promising to use ANN models in related swine nutrition studies in the future.

PSVI-2 Effect of Increasing the SID Tryptophan:Lysine Ratio and Dietary Energy Level on Growth Performance of Growing-Finishing Pigs

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of increasing the SID Tryptophan:Lysine ratio in growing-finishing and dietary energy level in finishing on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs (43.6 ± 0.85 kg to 131.7 ± 2.09 kg BW). A RCBD was used with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments: A) Dietary Energy Level: Low Energy (3,294 kcal/kg ME) vs. High Energy (3,527 kcal/kg ME) and B) SID Tryptophan:Lysine Ratio: Low Try:Lys [16%] vs. High Try:Lys [21%]. Dietary Energy Level treatment was applied from 96 kg BW to end of study and SID Tryptophan:Lysine Ratio treatment was applied throughout the study period. Diets were based on corn-soybean meal and corn coproducts and formulated to meet or exceed the nutrient requirements (NRC, 2012) for each of 4 dietary phases. A total of 1,356 pigs were housed in single-sex groups of 34 pigs (10 replicates) at a floor space of 0.63 m2/pig. Pigs had ad libitum access to feed and water. Pen was the experimental unit and data were analyzed using R version 4.0.2, with the model accounting for the fixed effects of treatment, the interaction, and the random effect of replicate. There were no treatment interactions (P &amp;gt; 0.05). High Try:Lys compared with Low Try:Lys increased (P &amp;lt; 0.05) overall ADG but had no effect (P &amp;gt; 0.05) on ADFI or G:F (Table 1). The High Energy treatment reduced (P &amp;lt; 0.05) overall ADFI and increased (P &amp;lt; 0.05) overall G:F compared with the Low Energy treatment. In summary, pigs fed the elevated SID Tryptophan:Lysine level had increased ADG and feeding a diet with a higher dietary energy level improved feed efficiency.

166 The Impact of Dietary Crude Protein Level on Growth Performance of Growing-Finishing Pigs

Abstract Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the impact of dietary crude protein (CP) levels on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs. In experiment 1, a total of 1,035 pigs (47.53 kg ± 1.12 kg) were allotted to a randomized complete block design with 5 dietary treatments (9 pens/treatment; 23 split sex pigs/pen) and fed experimental diets for 5 wk. The concentration of CP in each diet was 13.35, 14.10, 14.85, 15.60, and 16.35%, respectively, and CP was manipulated by soybean meal and crystalline amino acid inclusion. Diets were formulated to be isocaloric and contained equal provisions of standardized ileal digestible Lys, Met+Cys, Thr, and Trp. Diets met or exceeded NRC (2012) estimated nutrient requirements. In experiment 2, the same pigs as used in experiment 1 were randomly reallotted (initial body weight = 107.56 ± 1.77 kg) by pen following a washout period to 5 dietary treatments containing 10.70, 11.45, 12.20, 12.95, or 13.70% CP, respectively. Experimental diets were fed for 3 wk. Results of both experiments were analyzed using the lme4 package of R 4.0.2, and the statistical models included the fixed effect of CP and the random effect of body weight block. Orthogonal contrasts were used to test linear and quadratic effects of increasing dietary CP. Results of experiment 1 indicated final body weight, average daily gain (ADG), and gain:feed (G:F) linearly increased (P &amp;lt; 0.05) as CP in the diet increased (Table 1). Average daily feed intake (ADFI) did not differ among treatments. In experiment 2, dietary CP did not affect body weight, ADG, nor ADFI. As dietary CP increased, however, G:F tended (P &amp;lt; 0.10) to increase. In summary, greater dietary CP improved the performance of growing-finishing pigs by increasing ADG and G:F in the grower phase and tended to increase G:F in the finishing phase.

PSVI-20 Effects of Adding Potassium Bicarbonate to Diets with High or and Low Crystalline Lysine as a Way to Influence DCAD on Finishing Pig Growth Performance

Abstract This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of balancing dietary cation-anion difference (DCAD), via added potassium bicarbonate (KHCO3), in diets containing low or high levels of L-Lys HCl on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs. A total of 1,944 pigs (PIC L337 × 1050, initially 35.2±0.85 kg) were used in a 120-d study. Pens of pigs were blocked by BW and randomly allotted to 1 of 4 dietary treatments in a randomized complete block design arranged in a 2×2 factorial with main effects of KHCO3 (0 vs 0.4%), and L-Lys HCl level (low vs. high), with 27 pigs/pen and 18 replicates/treatment. Diets were corn-soybean meal-based and formulated in 4 dietary phases (d 0-20, 30-58, 58-86, and 86-120). Diets were formulated in each phase such that the diet containing a low level of L-Lys HCl (0.14-0.21% depending on phase) without KHCO3, had similar calculated DCAD as the diet containing a high level of L-Lys HCl (0.36 to 0.43% depending on phase) with KHCO3. The DCAD for these 2 treatments were approximately 230, 200, 184, and 169 mEq/kg (phase 1, 2, 3, 4, respectively). The diets with low levels of L-Lys HCl with KHCO3 had the greatest DCAD in each phase (approximately 50 mEq/kg above the low L-Lys HCl without KHCO3 diet), while the diet with a high level of L-Lys HCl without KHCO3 had the least DCAD (approximately 50 mEq/kg below the high L-Lys HCl with KHCO3 diet). Overall, there was no evidence (P &amp;gt; 0.10) for a KHCO3 × L-Lys HCl interaction or main effect for any observed growth responses or carcass characteristics. The results of this study suggest that supplementing KHCO3 to finishing pig diets with either high or low levels of L-Lys HCl and the corresponding changes in DCAD values did not impact growth performance or carcass characteristics.

Evaluation of increasing digestible threonine to lysine ratio in corn-soybean meal diets without and with distillers dried grains with solubles on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs.

Corn distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) is commonly available and often can lower diet cost for swine diets. This corn co-product is recognized to be a source of dietary insoluble fiber, which can not only increase the villous length of the gut mucosa but also increase intestinal production of mucin. Mucin structure, functions, and synthesis are correlated to Thr intake; consequently, the dietary Thr level may need to be increased when feeding an insoluble fiber source such as corn-DDGS. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate if feeding standardized ileal digestible (SID) Thr:Lys ratio at or above the estimated requirement in diets without and with DDGS would influence growth performance in finishing pigs. A total of 2,160 pigs (PIC 337 × 1,050; initially 35.1 ± 0.5 kg) were used in a 112-d growth trial. Pigs were randomly assigned to pens (27 pigs per pen) in a randomized complete block design by body weight (BW) with 20 replications per treatment. Pens of pigs were allotted to one of four dietary treatments that were arranged in a 2 × 2 factorial with main effects of dietary Thr level (normal vs. high) and DDGS (without or with). Treatment diets were formulated in four phases from 34 to 57, 57 to 79, 79 to 104, and 104 to 130 kg BW. Diets with high DDGS were formulated to include 40% DDGS in phases 1 and 2, 30% in phase 3, and 15% in phase 4. The normal Thr diets were formulated to contain 61%, 62%, 63%, and 65% SID Thr:Lys ratios for the four dietary phases, respectively. High Thr diets had SID Thr:Lys ratios of 67%, 68%, 69%, and 72%, respectively. There were no interactions (P > 0.10) observed in any phase or overall between Thr level and added DDGS. For the overall period (day 0 to 112), pigs fed diets without DDGS had increased (P < 0.001) average daily gain (ADG) but reduced (P < 0.001) average daily feed intake (ADFI), leading to increased (P < 0.001) feed efficiency (gain-to-feed ratio [G:F]). There was no evidence for difference (P > 0.10) between pigs fed diets formulated at normal or high SID Thr:Lys ratio. In summary, feeding high levels of DDGS decreased ADG and increased ADFI, which resulted in decreased G:F and lower final BW, regardless of the dietary SID Thr:Lys ratio level. In the current study, increasing the level of digestible Thr in a diet that contained a highly insoluble fiber source did not increase the growth performance of grow-finish pigs.

Gama-aminobutyric acid (GABA) alleviates hepatic inflammation via GABA receptors/TLR4/NF-κB pathways in growing-finishing pigs generated by super-multiparous sows.

The offspring of super-multiparous sows face problems such as decreased growth performance, poor meat quality and even diseases in animal husbandry. Gama-aminobutyric acid (GABA) has long been known to promote growth and suppress inflammation, but little is known about the mechanisms. A total of 72 growing-finishing pigs from the 8th generation were randomly allotted to 2 groups with 6 replicates per treatment to receive a corn–soybean basal diet or the basal diet supplemented 20 mg/kg GABA for 60 d. After the animal-trial period, samples of serum and liver were collected for further analysis. Additionally, a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammatory model using HepG2 cells was established to explore the role of GABA on regulating hepatic inflammation. The results indicated that inflammatory cell infiltration occurs in the liver of progeny of super-multiparous sows, and dietary supplementation with GABA influenced liver morphology, increased activities of antioxidant enzymes and decreased the expression abundance of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα) and interleukin (IL)-1β, in the liver of growing-finishing pigs (P < 0.05). In addition, GABA supplementation increased mRNA expressions of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) and GABA receptors (GABARs), and reduced the expression of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)/nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling (P < 0.05). Additionally, an in vitro experiment demonstrated that GABA decreased the expressions of hepatic TLR4/NF-κB signaling via activating GABARs under LPS-stress (P < 0.05). In summary, liver injury may affect the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs by changing hepatic mitochondrial metabolism, the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and TLR4/NF-κB pathway and that GABA supplementation has a restorative effect by acting on GABARs.

Effects of Added Potassium to Diets with High or and Low Crystalline Lysine on Finishing Pig Growth Performance

This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of balancing dietary cation-anion difference (DCAD) levels, via added potassium bicarbonate (KHCO3), to diets containing low or high levels of L-Lys HCL on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs. A total of 1,944 pigs (PIC L337 × 1050; initially 77.6 ± 1.88 lb BW) were used in a 120-d study to determine the effect of added potassium bicarbonate to diets containing low or high levels of crystalline lysine on growth performance and carcass characteristics of finishing pigs. Pens of pigs were blocked by BW and randomly allotted to 1 of 4 dietary treatments in a randomized complete block design arranged in a 2 × 2 factorial with main effects of KHCO3 (0 vs. 0.4%), and L-Lys HCl level (low vs. high). There were 27 pigs per pen and 18 replicates per treatment and a similar number of barrows and gilts placed in each pen. Treatment diets were corn-soybean meal-based and formulated in four dietary phases (approximately 80 to 130 lb, 130 to 185 lb, 185 to 230 lb, and 230 to 285 lb). Dietary treatments were formulated such that in each phase the diet containing a low level of L-Lys HCl without KHCO3 and the diet containing a high level of L-Lys HCl with KHCO3, had similar calculated DCAD values. Additionally, the diet with a low level of L-Lys HCl with KHCO3 was formulated to have the highest DCAD in each phase, while the diet with a high level of L-Lys HCl without KHCO3 was formulated to have the lowest DCAD. Overall, there was no evidence (P > 0.10) for a KHCO3 × L-Lys HCl interaction or main effect for final BW or any observed growth response or carcass characteristics. The results of this study suggest that supplementing KHCO3 to finishing pig diets with either high or low levels of L-Lys HCl and the corresponding changes in DCAD values did not impact growth performance or carcass characteristics.

Effects of Increased Vitamin Premix Inclusion Rate on Growth Performance of Finishing Pigs

A total of 1,080 mixed sex pigs (337 × 1050, PIC; initially 63.1 ± 0.87 lb) were used in a 123-d growth trial to determine the effects of vitamin premix inclusion rate on growing-finishing pig growth performance and carcass characteristics. Pens of pigs were assigned to 1 of 2 treatments in a completely randomized design. There were 20 replicate pens/treatment and 27 pigs/pen. The experimental diets were corn-soybean meal-based and were fed in 4 phases from 63 to 110, 110 to 160, 160 to 220, and 220 to 293 lb. Pigs were fed 1 of 2 levels of a vitamin premix (control and double) that contained: 750,000 IU vitamin A acetate; 300,000 IU vitamin D; 8,000 mg vitamin E (dl-α-tocopheryl acetate); 600 mg vitamin K (menadione); 6 mg vitamin B₁₂; 9,000 mg niacin; 5,000 mg pantothenic acid; and 1,500 mg riboflavin per lb. The inclusion rate per phase was 3, 2.5, 2, and 1.5 lb/ton, respectively, for the control, or the same premix added at double rate in each phase for the high vitamin fortification. Overall (d 0 to 123), there was no evidence for difference (P > 0.10) in ADG, ADFI, and F/G. Also, no statistical difference was observed (P > 0.10) for final BW, HCW, or any carcass characteristic. In conclusion, doubling the inclusion rate of a common vitamin premix did not influence growth and carcass traits in growing-finishing pigs.

Effects of supplementing low-protein diets with sodium dichloroacetate and glucose on growth performance, carcass traits, and meat quality of growing-finishing pigs.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of supplementing low-protein diets with sodium dichloroacetate (DCA) and glucose on growth performance, carcass traits, and meat quality of growing-finishing pigs. A total of 80 crossbred (Duroc × Landrace × Large White) growing barrows (27 ± 0.4 kg body weight) were allocated randomly to one of the five treatments during three successive 4-wk periods. There were five diets in each phase. Diet 1 was the control diet with normal protein levels (CON) where protein levels in the three phases were 18%, 16.5%, and 15.5%, respectively. The dietary protein levels of Diets 2, 3, 4, and 5 (the low-protein diets, LP) were decreased by 4.5% compared to Diet 1. Additionally, Diets 3 and 4 were supplemented with an extra 120 mg/kg DCA (LP + DCA) or 1.8% glucose (LP + GLUC), respectively. Diet 5 was further supplemented with an extra 120 mg/kg DCA and 1.8% glucose (LP + DCA + GLUC). The LP + DCA diet increased the average daily weight gain of pigs compared to the CON and LP diet in phase 3 and the overall experimental period (P < 0.001). The LP diet reduced the gain:feed ratios of the pigs compared to the CON, LP + DCA, and LP + DCA + GLUC diets in phase 1 and the overall experimental period (P < 0.001). Furthermore, gain:feed ratios in LP + DCA and LP + DCA + GLUC groups did not differ from that of the CON group (P > 0.10). Pigs fed the LP + DCA diet had higher pH values of meat at 24 h post-mortem than the CON group (P < 0.05). The LP + DCA + GLUC diet increased the total protein content in the longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle of pigs, compared to the other dietary treatments (P < 0.05), and increased the Arg and Leu contents in the LD muscle compared to the LP + DCA diet (P < 0.05). Moreover, the LP + DCA diet induced a higher C18:1n9t percentage in the LD muscle of pigs compared to other groups (P < 0.05). In conclusion, an LP diet reduced the feed efficiency in pigs and barely affected meat quality, whereas 120 mg/kg DCA supplementation in an LP diet improved the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs, showed modest effects on carcass traits, and improved the muscle protein content with the addition of glucose.

Effects of β-glucan and vitamin products supplementation into diets on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs in Ben Tre province

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of vitamin and β-glucan supplementations on growth performance of growing-finishing pigs in Ben Tre province. A total of 36 post-weaned piglets (Duroc x Yorkshire-Landrace) with the initial live weight of 17.42 kg±0.26, was allotted into 3 treatments and 4 replications in a completely randomized design. There were three diets, including basal diet (BD) without any addition of β-glucan or vitamin (diet CT), the BD supplemented with vitamin (diet Vit) and the BD supplemented with β-glucan (diet Glu). The results on growth parameters indicated that final live weight (kg), weight gain (kg), and average daily gain (g/head/day) of pigs in the experimental diets were significantly higher (P&lt;0.01) than those in the control treatment. FCR was lowest in Glu and highest in the control (P&lt;0.01). Financial benefit based on feed and veterinary expenses was higher in the vitamin and β-glucan supplement diets than that of the control from 15.74% to 18.98%, respectively.