Effect of water spinach and fresh cassava leaves on intake, digestibility and N retention in growing pigs

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Effects of estradiol implantation on growth, carcass traits and circulating concentrations of insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and IGF-binding protein-3 in finishing barrowsB

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Only limited information is available as to the effect of each of the androgen and estrogen on growth measures in barrows. It has been reported that estradiol-17h implant (CompudoseR) had varying effects on growth and its efficiency measures in finishing barrows depending on the dose and duration of the implant as well as animal’s body weight at the time of implantation. This study was therefore undertaken primarily to delineate the effect of a low dose of
the Compudose implant on growth and carcass characteristics in finishing barrows. It was found that implantation of Compudose containing 24 mg of estradiol-17h is effective for decreasing backfat thickness without significantly affecting live weight gain, FCE and muscle characteristics including protein and fat contents in finishing barrows. Suppression of backfat deposition thus appears to be a major effect of the implant in the pig. The Compudose
implant also causes a decrease in feed intake and an increase in serum concentration of the insulin-like growth factor. Collectively, these effects of estrogen may be mediated in part by the insulin-like growth factor in finishing barrows.

Liquid Feeding of Pigs: Implications for Pig and Human Health

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Human health is a major concern in agriculture (e.g. – Salmonella). Contamination of human food begins at the crop level from vectors such as bird feces and other vermin. The industry is well aware of risks such as these, so there are quality processes in place to monitor quality control. However, consumers in the UK are suspicious that quality control measures are not enough to prevent the spread of Salmonella from pigs to humans. Surveillance data shows that this is not that case at all and that only 5 to 30% of carcasses may be Salmonella positive. If hygienic food preparation measures and thorough cooking are performed then there is minimal risk. Cross contamination from poor food handling procedures is the biggest concern.

Pelleted feeds have shown to be a vector of Salmonella contamination within pigs. This is due to the fact that non-pelleted feeds require more time in the stomach to digest; therefore the organisms are exposed to more stomach acid, which can be enough to kill the organism. There has been great success in Europe in lowering Salmonella contamination by feeding liquid diets. Liquid diets have been fermented by lactic acid, which increases the acidity of the feed, thereby making it inhabitable by Salmonella species. This fermentation benefits the feed because of the lactic acid content of the feed from the mill will help reduce the risk of contamination after the mill stage of processing. Predictable fermentation can be achieved by inoculating liquid feed with lactic acid bacteria that produce lactic acid rapidly and have a high terminal lactic acid concentration. This does not appear to affect complete diets that contain no synthetic amino acids.

Piglets have poor stomach acid concentrations. Feeding fermented liquid feed (FLF) increases the acidity of the stomach, therefore reducing the amount of bacteria in the stomach. In fact, when piglets are weaned directly onto FLF the amount of lactic acid bacteria is greater than the amount of coliforms in the stomach, which is a similar attribute to piglets that continue to suckle.

Foreign Animal Disease Outbreaks – Are You Prepared?

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The CFIA regulates Canada’s importation of animal and animal products to control diseases regulated by the OIE. The diseases they are most concerned with are foot and mouth disease, swine vesicular disease, African swine fever, and hog cholera. The introduction of any one of these diseases would be detrimental to the industry. The producer’s role in disease prevention is to have very strict biosecurity. Any disease outbreak must be reported to a veterinarian. The CFIA has a prepared plan of action in an event where a foreign animal disease enters Canada. The veterinarians are able to order animal destruction, but disposal methods must be followed by provincial standards. Compensation from such an act is described by the Health of Animals Act (Section 51), and includes amount of compensation, maximum value, and additional compensation. When an FAD is diagnosed, the facility will be quarantined by the CFIA. Then an investigation will be carried out, and all contacts with the barn will be quarantined as well. Investigation will be carried out in facilities of close proximity. Once the disease is confirmed in the initial facility, the NCFAD (National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease) will order the animals destroyed. With readily available information, this process can be completed within 48 hours of disease suspicion.

Moisture Effects on Facility Life: Sources and Corrections

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Moisture, when unmanaged, can be the source of a variety of problems affecting the life of both the interior and exterior of swine facilities. It can cause rot, corrosion, mould, staining, shrinkage and/or swelling, and insect infestations. Moisture balance is based on wetting and drying. Sources of wetting include rain, air, built-in moisture, and soil moisture. Sources of drying include drainage, evaporation, air leakage, and heating. The amount of water vapour depends on the air’s capacity to hold it and is affected by temperature. Condensation occurs when the maximum holding capacity is exceeded (warm air can hold more). Water vapour moves by diffusion (more moisture to less moisture) and convection (high pressure to low pressure). Sources of moisture include livestock (manure, urine, and respiration), equipment (drinkers, pipes, heaters), and structure (water “ponding”, ice damming, air leaks, etc.). Moisture problems specific to swine facilities include corrosion, mould, and decay. Control of moisture is important and can be done by rain and air leakage control, drying, and adequate ventilation. Manure and urine should be removed as quickly as possible. Equipment should be maintained and repaired so it functions efficiently, and structures should be designed properly to minimize problems that may occur.

EFFECTS OF ROOM OZONATION ON AIR QUALITY AND PIG PERFORMANCE

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The DE Content of Western Canadian Swine Feeds Determined With the Mobile Nylon Bag Technique

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The successful incorporation of unfamiliar ingredients into swine diets is often limited by the availability of information on their nutrient content. Since the energy content of swine diets represents the largest and most expensive portion of the diet, knowledge of the digestible energy (DE) content of alternative ingredients can provide feed formulators with insight into the nutritional value of these feeds and promote greater use of these non-traditional ingredients in swine rations. The direct determination of the DE content of swine feeds typically involves either the total collection of feces or the use of a digestibility marker. These techniques are time consuming, expensive and require a large quantity of feed. These problems can largely be overcome by using the mobile nylon bag technique (MNBT). In this method, small samples of finely ground feed are sewn into nylon bags and placed into a small beaker containing hydrochloric acid and pepsin to simulate gastric digestion. After a short incubation period, the nylon bags are removed from the beaker and inserted into the digestive tract of a pig through duodenal cannulae. The amount of material remaining in the nylon bag, after passage through the digestive tract is then used to calculate nutrient digestibility. A modified protocol for the MNBT has recently been developed at the University of Saskatchewan. This new protocol has been used to determine the DE content of 39 ingredients with potential to be used in swine rations. The MNBT has several advantages compared with conventional digestibility methods in that many feeds can be tested in a relatively short duration of time with significantly fewer animals being used, only small amounts of feed are required and the test allows for energy measurements in feedstuffs that would not normally be fed to pigs as a single ingredient. Use of the MNBT to accurately determine the energy content of alternative feed ingredients could allow swine nutritionists to establish a hierarchy between available feeds on an objective basis and to ensure that any rations formulated using those ingredients meet the energy requirements of the animal. The overall results of this study indicate that the MNBT has great potential for use in determining the digestible energy content of swine feeds. For the most part, values obtained in the present experiment compared favourably with previously published values. Where differences were obtained, variation in chemical content provided a reasonable explanation for the discrepancy. This in combination with that fact that we have previously compared our modified MNBT with conventional digestibility methods and obtained similar results leads us to believe that the MNBT is a useful tool in determining DE values for swine.

Effects of fermented liquid feeds on the performance, digestibility, nitrogen retention and plasma urea nitrogen (PUN) of growing-finishing pigs

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Effects of hindgut fermentation of non-starch polysaccharides on the stability of blood glucose and insulin levels and physical activity in empty sows

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The main objective of this study was to find out if fermentation plays an important role in the effects of a fermentable non-starch polysaccharides (fNSP) rich diet on the stability of glucose and insulin levels and physical activity in sows several hours after feeding. Ten empty sows were either fed a low- (L-sows) or a high-fNSP diet (H-sows), twice daily. In three successive periods, sows received first no infusion and then, in different sequences, continuous fNSP infusion in the cecum or glucose infusion in the blood for 8 days each (GLU; energetic control). The fNSP infusion was as effective, or even somewhat more effective than the GLU infusion in stabilising blood glucose levels in L-sows and reducing physical activity in both L- and H-sows. Insulin stability was less affected by the infusions. Both the GLU and the fNSP infusions prevented the 15% interprandial decline of glucose below basal
levels, which was observed in L-sows with NO infusion. Basal levels themselves, however, in L-sows with a fNSP infusion were reduced by 7% in comparison with NO infusion. This lower level did not seem to cause a higher pre-prandial feeding motivation. As no differences were found in physical activity and stability of glucose levels between L-sows receiving a fNSP infusion and H-sows receiving a GLU infusion, it can be concluded that fermentation
(intracecally received fNSP) can achieve the same effect as fermentation plus gut fill (orally ingested fNSP).

Crop Management to Reduce Fusarium Head Blight and Associated Toxins

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The Fusarium head blight (FHB) epidemic in 1993 continues to have negative effects on the entire agriculture sector. The impact on swine is the toxin (called DON) produced by the fungi that is incredibly bad for pigs. Implications put into place to reduce the risk of FHB include genetically disease-resistant cultivars, rotation with non-cereal crops, and doubling the standard seeding rate in order to reduce the amount of tillering.

FHB intervention cannot wait until visual symptoms occur. This can be done with a risk forecast map that takes into account meteorology, pathology, and geographical information systems. Fungicides have a less than satisfying effect. A visual assessment 2-3 weeks after flowering will give an idea of what might be expected in the harvested grain. Leaving the crop standing longer when there are shrunken, lightweight kernels, preferably for straight combining, will lead to more complete deterioration of infected grain.