Inclusion of non-protein nitrogen in grower pig diets on lysine requirement for maximum nitrogen retention
Low protein diets have improved nutrient utilization while maintaining animal performance. However, these diets may be limiting in nitrogen (N) content to meet non-essential amino acid (NEAA) requirements, potentially altering essential amino acid (EAA) utilization and requirements. Inclusion of a source of non-protein nitrogen (NPN)...
Non-essential amino acids affect nitrogen retention in pigs
Low-protein diets supplemented with essential amino acids (EAA) can improve growth and performance. However, the dietary amount of non-essential amino acids (NEAA) may be a limiting factor in these diets. This may ultimately affect the efficient utilization of the dietary EAA for maximum nitrogen (N)...
Application of nanotechnology for mitigation of DON in wheat grains
A series of laboratory-scale experiments were conducted to determine the most promising nanomaterials and to optimize its operational requirements for appropriate application in mitigating mycotoxin contamination in feed grains and formulated swine diets. Three candidate nanomaterials were selected for testing based on a comprehensive literature...
Can slat-compatible enrichment influence the behaviour and response of pigs to a disease challenge?
Rearing pigs in highly enriched environments with a greater space allowance and provision of substrates (straw, mushroom compost, sawdust, wood branches) for rooting and chewing has been found to reduce the disease susceptibility of pigs to co-infection with PRRSv and Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, increasing the speed...
Road and disease-challenge tests with a modified prototype livestock trailer
The overall goal of the work conducted was to assess the performance of an improved prototype livestock trailer with ventilation, heating, misting and air filtration systems in maintaining a welfare-friendly and pathogen-free environment during transport. The testing and evaluation comprised of road tests and disease-challenge...
Weaned piglet mortality during long transport events is affected by season
Limited information is available on factors associated with piglet mortality during weaner transport events. This study aimed to identify transport characteristics associated with the occurrence of in-transit mortality or increased rates of mortality (≥1 piglet found dead on arrival) using records of weaned piglet transport...
Response of growing pigs to the inclusion of hybrid rye in low or high energy diets
This experiment was designed to determine if increased dietary energy content will compensate for the reduced feed intake previously shown in pigs fed diets with hybrid rye substituting for wheat. We hypothesized that pigs fed 40% hybrid rye would perform better on the high than...
Testing of a rapid detection kit for Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv)
Significant economic losses can result from outbreaks of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea (PED), a serious disease currently circulating in North American swine herds. Accurate and rapid detection of PEDv is essential to expedite implementation of control measures for the disease. A rapid PEDv test kit is...
Weaned piglet transport practices in Canada
The objective of this study was to describe characteristics of weaned piglet transport events that occurred between 2014 and 2018 using records provided by five Canadian swine companies. The dataset included records from 6203 transport events involving the transport of approximately 6.9 million piglets (4.1–7.9...
Effect of feeding time on the proportion of sows farrowing during work hours
It is sometimes necessary to provide assistance to sows and piglets during farrowing in order to improve piglet survival, resulting in increased labour costs. There is evidence in cattle and ewes that feeding at night results in an increase in the incidence of calvings during...