EFFECT OF VARIOUS FORMS OF SELENIUM ON THE PRODUCTIVITY AND METABOLISM OF FATTENED YOUNG PIGS IN PRODUCTION CONDITIONS
Selenium plays an important role for maintaining complex and adequate nutrition of fattened young pigs. It also has a big biological importance to maintain growth and health, as well as for biochemical and physiological processes This study presents the results of a production experiment to determine the effect of organic and inorganic forms of selenium on growth indicators, immunohematological blood parameters and slaughter qualities of fattened pigs in period I and II. Test feeding with various forms of selenium has been implemented with two groups of analogs (N = 60; n = 30), taking into account age and live weight. The experiment was conducted on castrates of large white breed, which were divided into two groups of 30 heads each following the principle of analogues (taking into account their age, live weight). The studied fattened pigs received standard complete feeds of the SK-5 and SK-6 types for a period of 105 days. Growing pigs were fed with organic selenium for 20 mg/kg as part of the feed 64 mixture per head in the first and second period of fattening, while the animals of the control group were fed with 0.3 mg/kg of the inorganic form of selenium. Including a chelated form of selenium in the complete feed of castrates at the rate established in the course of scientific and economic studies has led to 757 g of average daily gain, which is 8.1% more as compared to the control group. The concentration of red blood cells in the blood of growing pigs fed with 20 mg/kg of selenium chelate increased by 6.3%, hemoglobin – by 2.4%, and white blood cells – by 7.1% as compared to the control. Feeding organic selenium to fattened young pigs contributed to a significant increase in specific units of protein activity by 38.65% (p < 0.01), BASC – by 7.63%, as well as lysis – by 40.06% (p < 0.05), and phagocytic activity by 3.33% in blood serum as compared to the control. The half-carcasses of hogs who had received fed rations including selenium chelate fetured slaughter weight and slaughter yield, respectively, higher – by 6.4 and 0.6% as compared with the control analogues. The use of the established norm of organic selenium in the diets of fattened young pigs according to the results of production testing is economically profitable and contributes to a per-head profit of 420 rubles.