Protein and starch concentrates of air-classified field pea and zero-tannin faba bean for weaned pigs

Posted in: Environment, Production by admin on July 26, 2011 | No Comments

Air-classified pulse (non-oilseed legume) protein and starch may replace specialty protein and starch feedstuffs in diets for weaned pigs. In Exp. 1, three specialty protein sources (5% soy protein concentrate, 5% corn gluten meal, and 5% menhaden meal in the control diet) were replaced with 16% zerotannin hulled or dehulled faba bean, or 17.5% field pea protein concentrate. In total, 192 group-housed pigs (2 gilts and 2 barrows per pen; BW = 7.5kg) were fed wheat-based diets (3.60 Mcal/kg of DE and 3.3 g of standardized ileal digestible Lys/Mcal DE) over 28 d for 12 pen observations per each of 4 diets. Overall, protein source did not affect ADFI, ADG, or G:F. Apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of DM, GE, and P was greater for dehulled faba bean and field pea protein concentrate diets than the diet with 3 specialty protein sources. In Exp. 2, faba bean and field pea starch concentrates were compared with corn, wheat, tapioca, and potato starch as dietary energy sources. In total, 36 individually housed barrows (BW = 8.0 kg) were fed 1 of 6 diets for 15 d. Feces and urine were collected from d 8 to 14, and jugular blood was sampled after overnight fast and refeeding on d 15. Starch source did not affect N retention as a percentage of N intake. For d 0 to 14, ADFI of pigs fed field pea starch was greater than pigs fed corn, wheat, potato, and faba bean starch. Pigs fed tapioca, field pea, wheat, or corn starch grew faster than those fed faba bean or potato starch. For d 0 to 14, pigs fed corn or wheat starch had a 0.1 greater G:F than pigs fed faba bean, field pea, or potato starch. The ATTD of DM, GE, CP, and starch and the DE value of potato starch were much less than those of other starch diets. Postprandial plasma glucose was 4.9, 6.3, and 9 mmol/L greater for pigs fed tapioca than for pigs fed faba bean, wheat, and potato starch, respectively. However, postprandial plasma insulin tended to be 844 and 577 pmol/L greater for pigs fed faba bean and corn starch, respectively, than for pigs fed potato starch. The high insulin response of pigs fed faba starch could not be explained. In conclusion, air-classified pulse protein concentrates can replace specialty protein feedstuffs in diets for weaned pigs. Feeding air-classified pulse starch concentrates to starter pigs achieved a similar N retention as a percentage of N intake. The factors responsible for the reduced ADFI associated with feeding faba bean starch remain unclear. 

For more information the full article can be found at http://jas.fass.org/

Characterization of the nutritional value of air-classified protein and starch fractions of field pea and zero-tannin faba bean in grower pigs

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Most pulse (nonoilseed legume) seed flours can be fractionated rapidly and economically by air classification into protein and starch concentrates. The nutritional value of air-classified field pea and faba bean concentrates requires characterization to assess the feeding opportunity for pigs. Thus, the objectives were to characterize the apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of DM, OM, energy, starch, CP, fat, and ash; apparent ileal digestibility of CP and starch; standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of AA; and the SID AA, DE, and NE content of air-classified zero-tannin faba bean and field pea protein and starch concentrates in grower pigs. Pulse protein and starch concentrates were compared with soy protein concentrate and corn starch, respectively, as corresponding standards. The corn starch diet served as an N-free diet to correct for basal endogenous AA losses. In a Youden square design, 8 ileal-cannulated barrows (24.9 kg of BW) were fed 6 diets over 7 periods at 3 times the maintenance DE requirement. Periods encompassed a 5-d diet acclimation, 3-d feces collection, and 3-d ileal digesta collection. The ATTD of GE was 2% greater for faba bean than soy and was intermediate for field pea protein (95.6, 93.7, and 94.9%, respectively). The ATTD of GE was 3.6% greater for corn and field pea than faba bean starch (96.2, 95.1, and 92.3%, respectively). The DE content of faba bean was 5.0% greater than for field pea or soy protein (4.47, 4.23, and 4.26 Mcal/kg, respectively). The DE content of faba bean and field pea was 1.7% greater than for corn starch (3.72, 3.77, and 3.68 Mcal/ kg, respectively). The NE content was 5% greater for faba bean than field pea and soy protein (3.08, 2.94, and 2.92 Mcal/kg, respectively). The NE content for field pea starch was 2.0% greater than for corn starch and faba bean starch (2.68, 2.63, and 2.61 Mcal/kg, respectively). Protein concentrates had a 14 and 11% greater DE and NE content, respectively, than starch concentrates. The SID of Lys was 6.0% greater for faba bean and field pea protein than soy protein (95.5, 92.6, and 88.7%, respectively). The SID of Lys was 6.0% greater for faba bean than field pea starch. Nutrient digestibility and digestible nutrient profiles indicated that air-classified fractions of zero-tannin faba bean and field pea constitute concentrated sources of AA and energy for pigs with high nutritional demands.

For more information the full article can be found at http://jas.fass.org/

Effect of dietary inorganic sulfur level on growth performance, fecal composition, and measures of inflammation and sulfate-reducing bacteria in the intestine of growing pigs

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Two experiments investigated the impact of dietary inorganic S on growth performance, intestinal inflammation, fecal composition, and the presence of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB). In Exp. 1, individually housed pigs (n = 42; 13.8 kg) were fed diets containing 2,300 or 2,100 mg/kg of S for 24 d. Decreasing dietary S had no effect on ADG, ADFI, or G:F. In Exp. 2, pigs (n = 64; 13.3 kg) were fed diets containing 0, 0.625, 1.25, 2.5, or 5.0% CaSO4, thereby increasing dietary S from 2,900 to 12,100 mg/kg. Two additional diets were fed to confirm the lack of an impact due to feeding low dietary S on pig performance and to determine if the increased Ca and P content in the diets containing CaSO4 had an impact on growth performance. Pigs were fed for 35 d. Ileal tissue, ileal mucosa, and colon tissue were harvested from pigs fed the 0 and 5% CaSO4 diets (low-S and high-S, respectively) to determine the impact of dietary S on inflammation-related mRNA, activity of mucosal alkaline phosphatase and sucrase, and pathways of inflammatory activation. Real-time PCR was used to quantify SRB in ileal and colon digesta samples and feces. Fecal pH, sulfide, and ammonia concentrations were also determined. There was no impact on growth performance in pigs fed the diet reduced in dietary S or by the increase of dietary Ca and P. Increasing dietary S from 2,900 to 12,100 mg/kg had a linear effect on ADG and a cubic effect on ADFI and G:F. Real-time reverse-transcription PCR analysis revealed that pigs fed high-S increased the relative abundance of intracellular adhesion molecule-1, tumor necrosis factor-α, and suppressor of cytokine signaling- 3 mRNA, and tended to increase the relative abundance of IL-6 mRNA in ileal tissue. Likewise, pigs fed high-S had reduced abundance of nuclear factor of κ light polypeptide gene enhancer in B-cells inhibitor-α and increased phospho-p44/p42 mitogen-activated protein kinase in ileal tissue, but there was no effect of dietary S on mucosal alkaline phosphatase or sucrase activity. Pigs fed the high-S diet had decreased total bacteria in ileal digesta, but increased prevalence of SRB in colon contents. Fecal sulfide was increased and fecal pH was deceased in pigs fed high-S. The data indicate that growing pigs can tolerate relatively high amounts of dietary inorganic S, but high dietary S content alters inflammatory mediators and intestinal bacteria.

For more information the full article can be found at http://jas.fass.org/

Genetic and environmental effects on piglet survival and maternal behaviour of the farrowing sow

Posted in: Environment, Production, Welfare by admin on July 25, 2011 | No Comments

There is growing external pressure to abolish the farrowing crate, however alternative farrowing systems need to equal or surpass the performance (i.e. piglet survival) of more restrictive systems. In order to achieve consistent improvement in piglet survival genetic selection strategies targeting specific survival traits could be used. One of the key components of survival in alternative, loose-housed farrowing systems is maternal behaviour and understanding the characteristics of sows that influence survival in such environments should be an essential component when developing new breeding indices. In this study 65 gilts and their piglets (757) from two genetic selection lines, High postnatal Survival (HS) or Control (C), were studied in both indoor loose-housed and outdoor farrowing systems. The influence of genetics and environment on piglet survival and maternal characteristics was studied. Genotype affected total mortality at a piglet level in the outdoor system (C: 17.90% (±3.23) vs. HS: 12.21% (±3.46)), but there was no effect in the indoor loose-housed environment (C: 12.29% (±2.69) vs. HS: 14.86% (±3.18)). Genotype influenced maternal characteristics, with C gilts in both environments being significantly more likely to crush their piglets when changing posture during farrowing. High Survival gilts in the indoor environment were aggressive towards their offspring, and were the only genotype to display savaging behaviour. This suggests a genetic effect on environmental sensitivity and thus, in order to make effective improvements it is important to estimate genetic parameters (both behavioural and physiological) under the conditions in which the animals will be kept.

The effect of feed trough position on choice of defecation area in farrowing pens by loose sows

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The primary aim of the present study was to investigate how the feed trough position affects the sow’s choice of defecation area in a loose house farrowing pen. The eliminative behaviour of 24 1st parity sows was studied in a cross-over design. The feed trough and the water were positioned either in the activity area towards the neighbouring pen or in the activity area towards the aisle. On day 15 after farrowing, the feed trough and the water were moved to the opposite position. Videotapes were observed continuously on real time and the time of urination or defecation were recorded along with head and hindquarter positions in the period of days 7–14 and in the period of days 21–28 after farrowing. The feed trough position had a significant effect on sow head position when eliminating. Sows preferred the head to be located as far away from the resting area and the feed trough as possible when eliminating. For the hindquarter position, there was a significant effect of feed trough position on the number of observations that the hindquarter was over the slatted area when eliminating. A confounding effect could be that the sow’s hindquarter position was influenced by a partition wall placed in one end of the pen. No significant difference was found between observations periods on frequency of urination or defecation. The results demonstrate the importance of design of farrowing pens for loose housed sows to ensure that the sow eliminate in the designated areas.

Playing and fighting by piglets around weaning on farms, employing individual or group housing of lactating sows

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In the pig industry, piglets are weaned earlier than in nature. Early weaning has an impact on piglet growth and feeding behaviour, but this may differ, apart from the weaning age, according to the housing environment. Piglets from sow group housing systems (GH), where several litters and sows live together, may be better prepared for weaning than those from individual housing of sows with litters (IH) because increased freedom of movement and social contact as well as co-mingling litters before weaning are known to affect piglet social behaviour positively. However, these issues have rarely been investigated on commercial pig farms. Therefore, we assessed piglets playing, fighting and biting behaviour before and after weaning and how they were affected by the housing system and weaning age as well as how the three behaviours are related to each other and piglet post-weaning weight gain. We recorded playing, fighting and biting behaviour in 5 GH farms (6–11 lactating sows and their litters kept in a large straw-bedded pen), and in 5 IH farms (each sow and litter kept in a pen with less straw) in Sweden. We observed 16 piglets (2 males and 2 females per litter) from 4 litters (in GH farms belonging to the same group) in each farm on the day before weaning (W -1), the weaning day (W) and 5 days after weaning (W+5). Weaning was accomplished (without mixing litters) by removing the sows after on average 39 days of lactation. All statistics were based on farm averages. There was no difference between GH and IH farms in the frequency of playing, fighting or biting behaviour, and weaning age did not affect any of the three behaviours. However, the frequency of playing and fighting differed significantly across the three observation days. Play was higher on day W-1 and on day W than on W+5, fighting was lower on W-1 than on W or W+5. On W-1 and W+5, playing correlated with fighting but biting correlated with neither playing nor fighting. In farms with higher weight gain between W and W+ 5 days, piglets played and fought more on W+ 5 day. We conclude that social piglet behaviour around weaning was not different between GH and IH farms; play and fighting (but not isolated biting) seemed to form one continuum; and playing and fighting in weaned (nonmixed) piglets seemed to indicate good adaptation.

A flooring comparison: The impact of rubber mats on the health, behavior, and welfare of group-housed sows at breeding

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Comfortable flooring may impact many aspects of an animal’s welfare, including lying behavior, an animal’s ability to change postures, and incidence of lameness and lesions. Therefore, we hypothesized that the addition of rubber mats to stalls of group pens would improve sow health, comfort and welfare during breeding. In this study, Landrace X York-Yorkshire sows (128) were mixed post-weaning and housed in pens of four. The pens contained a slatted group area and four feeding stalls. Rubber mats (measuring 1.83m X 0.61m X 1.27 cm) were added to the feeding stalls of half of the pens and rotated to the opposite pens for each replication. The behavioral time budgets of the sows were recorded throughout the experiment; lesion and lameness scores were collected prior to mixing and at the end of the experiment. Data were analyzed as repeated measures mixed models with post hoc Tukey tests. The pattern of behaviors performed in the stall versus group area was different for mat and concrete treatments. Tukey tests revealed that only resting behaviors were affected. We then examined resting behavior in detail. Time spent in different resting postures (sternal versus lateral lying) differed between treatments, where sows on mats spent more time lying laterally and performed more of their lying behavior in the stalls compared to sows on concrete. Additionally, sows stood up and laid down more frequently than sows on concrete. Warm temperatures reduced resting behavior in the stalls. Sows in matted pens had a lower total lesion score at the end of the experiment in comparison to sows in concrete pens. Lameness scores did not differ between treatments. These results imply that the provision of alternative comfort flooring may provide welfare benefits to breeding sows, though environmental temperature needs to be considered when providing rubber mats.

Sow preferences for farrowing under a cover with and without access to straw

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In semi-natural environments sows often select a protected nest site at farrowing. Investigations of nest site selection under indoor conditions are scarce but suggest that sows prefer to nest and farrow under a covered area. Since feed-back from a functional nest may improve maternal behaviour and thus piglet survival we investigated if access to a covered area and ad libitum access to straw would improve maternal behaviour of importance for piglet survival. We used forty-four sows, first time mothers-to-be, housed in large individual pens from approximately 2 weeks prior to expected parturition. The sows were randomly distributed to four treatment groups of +/− ad libitum access to straw combined with +/− access to a covered area in the pen. The sows’ position in the pen (left or right side) was observed from 24 h prior to birth of the first piglet until 24 h after using 10-min interval scan sampling and the temporal pattern of sow position in relation to position of the cover (left or right side of the pen) was studied. Furthermore, postural and nest-building behaviours were observed, as well as situations where the piglets were either at risk of being crushed or were crushed. The results showed no significant influence of cover on sow position. Odds-ratio for choosing the covered farrowing position was 1.4 (95% creditability interval (0.4–5.1)). The temporal pattern of sow position showed that the probability of observing the sows in the part of the pen classified as the farrowing position increased from close to 0.5 to 1 as parturition approached and stayed high during the 24 h observation period after birth of the first piglet, except for a small drop around 12 h after birth of the first piglet. However, the tendency to stay in the nest during farrowing was not increased neither by cover nor by ad libitum access to straw. Access to cover significantly increased prepartum nest-building behaviour whereas there was no significant influence of access to straw. However, it should be taken into account that all sows had access to sawdust on the floor, which may also serve as a nesting material.

The number of crushing and near crushing situations within 24 h after birth of first piglet was significantly decreased in pens with access to straw whereas there was no significant influence of cover on this variable. Neither the number of scan intervals with lateral lying nor the number of postural changes were significantly influenced by cover or straw. In conclusion, the sows did select a specific nest site within the farrowing pen, but neither the choice of nest site nor the temporal consistency of staying in the nest were significantly affected by cover or ad libitum access to straw. Access to a covered area increased the occurrence of nest-building behaviour whereas access to straw reduced the number of near crushing situations.

For more information the full article can be found at http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/applan/issues

Effects of exposing pigs to moving and odors in a simulated slaughter chute

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Pigs in the finishing stage are infrequently handled and can be difficult to handle when experiencing novel situations. This study sought to determine the effects of minimal training and a novel odor/taste reward on the ease of handling finishing pigs in a novel environment. Pigs were assigned to one of four treatments organized in a factorial arrangement: training and odor exposure at the barn or not (trained or non-trained, respectively) and provision or not of maple syrup in the simulated pre-stun area of a slaughter plant (reward or no reward, respectively). 14 pens of trained pigs were let out of their home pens and onto a trailer for 10 min/day for 10 days and could chew on maple syrup soaked flags. 14 pens of non-trained pigs were not handled or exposed to maple syrup. After the 10 days, trained and non-trained pigs were transported, unloaded and then experienced a novel simulated pre-stun area. A maple syrup-soaked flag (reward) was dragged through the simulated pre-stun area and put in a simulated CO₂ stun box. Nonrewarded pigs were not exposed to maple syrup. Trained pigs unloaded the trailer and reached the resting pen faster than non-trained pigs. Trained pigs had fewer blood neutrophils and more lymphocytes than non-trained pigs. Rewarded pigs received fewer taps before reaching the simulated CO₂ stun box than non-rewarded pigs. Cortisol concentration increased when the total time to reach the simulated CO₂ stun box increased. Pigs that were allowed to exercise out of their home pen and were given access to an odor/taste reward moved faster and the neutrophil:lymphocyte ratio was decreased when exposed to a novel environment containing the same odor/taste reward.

For more information the full article can be found at http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/applan/issues

Domestic pigs, Sus scrofa, adjust their foraging behaviour to whom they are foraging with

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Subordinate domestic pigs show behavioural tactics similar to the ones described as tactical deception in primates and corvids (i.e. crows, ravens and jays) when foraging with scrounging dominants for a single monopolizable food source. Here we investigated further whether they can learn deceptive tactics to counter a scrounger by first retrieving the smaller of two hidden food baits, and whether they can discriminate between different types of co-forager. Seven subordinate pigs were tested with co-foragers, and also alone, when foraging for two differently sized food baits hidden in two of 12 buckets in a foraging arena. Unlike their co-foragers, the subordinates already knew where the foods were located; co-foragers differed in whether they were scroungers or not. Subordinates did not respond to scrounging with the predicted deceptive tactic of visiting the small bait first. They did, however, lose their overall preference for retrieving the large bait first and increased their foraging speed compared to when foraging with nonscroungers or on their own. The findings suggest the ability to discriminate between different individual co-foragers in domestic pigs, and increasing foraging speed as a way of responding to exploitation by scrounging dominants in competitive foraging situations with several food patches.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00033472