The hormonal and metabolic profile of conditionally healthy Yorkshire pigs of different age and sex groups was studied in an industrial pig farm. A statistically significant effect of age on the level of serum cortisol, triiodothyronine, and thyroxine in the studied pig groups was established. Increased cortisol levels compared to the literature data in almost all pig groups may indicate chronic stress, while increased secretion of thyroid hormones is an adaptive response associated with stress compensation. Biochemical parameters of blood serum in animals of different groups reflect age-related metabolic features. It was shown that the average parameter values for the groups as a whole are within the limits obtained by other authors. It was revealed that with age, there is a decrease in the content of glucose, triglycerides, and urea. At the same time, the level of total protein, albumins, and globulins in the blood serum of the studied pigs gradually increases with age. In some cases, reliable intersexual differences in the level of biochemical parameters were found, in particular, sows exceeded boars in cholesterol content, while the opposite pattern was noted for total protein. In general, the hormonal and metabolic profiles of the herd correspond to the “industrial” status of the complex. The ability to adapt, intensive protein, carbohydrate and fat metabolism are obviously fixed by targeted breed selection. The established reference values of the hormonal status and metabolic profile parameters can be used to characterize pigs of high-intensity meat breeds under industrial technology conditions.
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