Effects of Fumonisin-Contaminated Corn on Growth Performance of 9 to 28 kg Nursery Pigs

Fumonisin contamination in corn is an emerging issue in animal feed production. Fumonisin disrupts the metabolism of sphingolipids and reduces growth performance. This experiment was conducted to determine the effect of feeding fumonisin-contaminated corn on growth performance and sphinganine (SA) to sphingosine (SO) ratios of 9 to 28 kg pigs. A total of 350 pigs, were used with 5 pigs/pen and 14 pens/treatment. Dietary treatments contained fumonisin-contaminated corn (50 mg/kg of fumonisin B1 + B2) blended with low fumonisin corn (10 mg/kg of fumonisin B1 + B2) to provide dietary fumonisin concentrations of 7.2, 14.7, 21.9, 32.7, and 35.1 mg/kg. From day 0 to 28, increasing fumonisin concentration decreased (linear, p < 0.001) average daily gain, average daily feed intake (linear, p = 0.055), and gain:feed ratio (linear, p = 0.016). Although these response criteria tested linear, the greatest reduction in performance was in pigs fed with 32.7 and 35.1 mg/kg of fumonisin (B1 + B2). Increasing fumonisin concentration increased the serum SA:SO ratio (linear, p < 0.001) on day 14 and 28. In summary, for 9 to 28 kg nursery pigs, increasing fumonisin linearly decreased average daily gain and gain:feed ratio. However, despite the linear response, diets containing up to 21.9 mg/kg of fumonisin did not have as dramatic a decrease in growth performance as those fed more than 32.7 mg/kg. Further research is warranted to determine the effect of fumonisin concentrations between 21.9 and 32.7 mg/kg.

Download Full-text

PSVI-14 Blend of Additives in Nursery Pig Diets as an Antibiotics Substitute Increases the Growth Performance and Intestinal Health

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skab054.328 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 99 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 201-201

Author(s):

Sudario Roberto Silva Junior ◽

Rhuan F Chaves ◽

Maíra Resende ◽

Ygor Henrique De Paula ◽

Kenio De Gouvêa Cabral ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Animal Feed ◽

Block Design ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Intestinal Health ◽

Total Period ◽

Nursery Pigs ◽

Randomized Block Design ◽

Diarrhea Incidence

Abstract Antibiotics growth promoting (AGP) in animal feed has been restricted. With this, several additives have been tested in order to replace AGP and ensure intestinal health. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of a blend of additives on growth performance, diarrhea incidence and cecal content microbiota of nursery pigs. A total of 576 weaned pigs (6.21 ± 1.16 kg) were assigned into 4 treatments (12 replicates) in randomized block design: basal diet without additives (NC); basal diet with 120 ppm of halquinol (PC); NC + 0,05% blend of lactic acid (3,5%), benzoic acid (2,5%), flavonoids (3,5%) (B5); NC+ 0,1% of same blend (B10). The pigs were weighed 0 and 42 days into the experiment. On day 10, one animal per pen (10 replicates) was euthanized for microbiota analyses. The diarrhea incidence was calculated by the percentage of visual pens with diarrhea, by day, in the period. The growth performance was analyzed by GLIMMIX procedure and the means were compared with Tukey test (P < 0.050) (SAS, 2009). Diarrhea incidence was analyzed by GENMOD procedure (SAS, 2009). The Kruskal Wallis test was used to compare microbial biodiversity (P < 0.050) by statistical program STAMP. The final weight (P = 0.010) and average daily gain (P = 0.001) of B10 and PC were higher than NC. Regarding diarrhea, it was observed that the B5 and B10 had lower incidence when compared to other groups in the total period. In the microbiome analyses, it was observed that the B5, B10, and PC groups had lower (P = 0.021) biodiversity when compared to the NC piglets. However, the B5 and B10 group had higher biodiversity when compared to the PC group. In conclusion, the supplementation with 0,1% blend of additives can be a substitute for AGP.

Download Full-text

The Effect of Feeding Liquid or Dry Creep Feed on Growth Performance, Feed Disappearance, Enzyme Activity and Number of Eaters in Suckling Piglets

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani11113144 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (11) ◽

pp. 3144

Author(s):

Nanna Byrgesen ◽

Johannes Gulmann Madsen ◽

Christina Larsen ◽

Niels Jørgen Kjeldsen ◽

Malene Skovsted Cilieborg ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Dry Matter ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Proximal Part ◽

Suckling Period ◽

Creep Feed ◽

Suckling Piglets ◽

Dietary Treatments ◽

On Farm ◽

Daily Gain ◽

Effect Of Feeding

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of two dietary treatments (liquid creep feed (LCF) and dry creep feed (DCF)) offered during the suckling period on feed disappearance, number of eaters, and intestinal enzymatic development at weaning in an on-farm study with 347 piglets. Piglets were allocated to either the DCF or LCF treatment from day 10 to day 24 postpartum for 9 h a day. Red ferric oxide (1%) was added to the diet to categorize piglets into eating categories (good eaters, moderate eaters, or non-eaters) via faecal swabs. At weaning, 40 piglets were sampled for intestinal enzymatic development. The LCF treatment increased the dry matter disappearance from day 10–18 (p < 0.001). The percentage of good eaters, moderate eaters and non-eaters did not differ between treatments (p > 0.05). The DCF pigs displayed greater average daily gain (ADG) pre-weaning (p = 0.024), and a greater body weight (BW) at day 61 (p < 0.001). The activity of lactase, maltase and sucrase in the proximal part of the small intestine were greatest (p < 0.001) in the DCF pigs.

Download Full-text

Impact of Fermented Liquid Potato Hash Diets on Growth Performance of Grower Pigs

Journal of Agricultural Science ◽

10.5539/jas.v10n6p1 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

Sylvester Thomas ◽

Arnold Tapera Kanengoni ◽

Michael Chimonyo

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Growing Pigs ◽

Feed Conversion ◽

Exogenous Enzyme ◽

Randomized Design ◽

Inclusion Rate ◽

Feed Source ◽

Dietary Treatments ◽

Daily Gain

The study aimed to evaluate growth performance of grower pigs fed fermented liquid potato hash with or without exogenous enzyme. Diets containing either 200 (LFLPH) g/kg potato hash (enzyme treated or not); 400 (HFLPH) g/kg potato hash (enzyme treated or not) or no fermented potato hash (control) were formulated to provide 14 MJ/kg digestible energy (DE), 180 g/kg crude protein (CP) and 11.6 g/kg lysine. Dietary treatments were control (no FLPH), enzyme treated LFPHE and HFLPHE, and untreated LFLPH and HFLPH. The exogenous enzyme was added in treated diets to provide minimum of 560-840 TXU/TDU xylanase per kg feed, at an inclusion rate of 100 g/tonne. Diets were mixed with water at 1:2 ration and fermented for 8 hours at 25 °C room temperature before being fed to pigs. Back-slopping fermentation approach was followed to prepare diets. Twelve pigs (25±2.3 kg) per diet that were individually housed were fed ad-lib for eight weeks. Pigs were allocated to diets in complete randomized design. Average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake (ADFI) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were measured. The enzyme treated FLPH diets had higher (P < 0.05) CP, lower (P > 0.05) NDF and ADF concentrations compared to untreated FLPH diets. The LFPHE diet had higher (P < 0.001) final weight, ADG and lower (P < 0.001) ADFI and FCR compared to LFPH, HLFPH and HLFPHE. It was concluded that LFPHE diet may be an alternative feed source for growing pigs as indicated by higher gain and lower intake compared to LFLPH, HFLPH and HFLPHE.

Download Full-text

Nutritional evaluation of different varieties of sorghum and the effects on nursery pig growth performance

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skaa120 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (5) ◽

Author(s):

Lori L Thomas ◽

Charmaine D Espinosa ◽

Robert D Goodband ◽

Hans H Stein ◽

Mike D Tokach ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Metabolizable Energy ◽

Final Body Weight ◽

Ileal Digestibility ◽

High Lysine ◽

Microbial Phytase ◽

Nursery Pig ◽

Dietary Treatments ◽

Daily Gain

Abstract Five experiments were conducted to determine the standardized total tract digestibility (STTD) of P, digestible energy (DE), metabolizable energy (ME), and standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of amino acids (AA) in three sorghum varieties compared with corn and to determine the effects of sorghum varieties on nursery pig growth. In exp. 1, 48 barrows (initially 18.6 kg) were housed individually in metabolism crates. Treatments were arranged in a 2 × 4 factorial evaluating two levels of microbial phytase (0 or 500 units/kg) and four grain sources (corn, high-lysine, red, or white sorghum). Added phytase improved (P < 0.05) STTD of P in all ingredients, but was not different among the grains. In exp. 2, the DE and ME in the three sorghum varieties were not different from corn. In exp. 3, 10 growing barrows (initially 25.9 kg) with a T-cannula in the terminal ileum were used. Standardized ileal digestible Lys, Met, Thr, and Val were greater (P < 0.05) in corn than in the sorghum-based diets with no differences among the sorghum varieties. In exp. 4, 160 pigs (initially 6.3 kg) were randomly allotted to one of four dietary treatments with five pigs per pen and eight replicate pens per treatment in a 20-d experiment. Dietary treatments included corn or the three sorghum varieties, where the varieties of sorghum replaced corn on an SID Lys basis. No differences among treatments were observed in any growth performance parameters. In exp. 5, treatments consisted of a corn-based diet, a diet based on conventional sorghum (a mixture of red and white sorghum), and four diets with high-lysine sorghum containing increasing amounts of feed-grade AA, replacing soybean meal. Overall, pigs fed the high-lysine sorghum diet with the greatest amount of added feed-grade AA had the poorest gain:feed ratio (G:F; P < 0.05) compared with pigs fed all the other experimental diets. Within those fed the high-lysine sorghum and feed-grade AA, average daily gain, final body weight (linear, P < 0.10), and G:F (linear, P < 0.01) decreased as feed-grade AA increased. In summary, no differences in STTD of P or in DE and ME were observed among the grain sources. The SID AA values for the three sorghum varieties were not different; however, they were all lower than for corn. These results indicate that these varieties of sorghum can successfully replace corn in nursery pig diets if diets are formulated to account for differences in AA digestibility.

Download Full-text

Effect of Physical Form and Level of Wheat Straw Inclusion on Growth Performance and Blood Metabolites of Fattening Goat

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani10101861 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 1861

Author(s):

Muhammad I. Malik ◽

Muhammad A. Rashid ◽

Muhammad S. Yousaf ◽

Saima Naveed ◽

Khalid Javed ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Wheat Straw ◽

Hematological Parameters ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Neutral Detergent Fiber ◽

Blood Metabolites ◽

Ruminal Acidosis ◽

Physical Form ◽

Dietary Treatments ◽

Daily Gain

The inclusion of straw in high concentrate total mixed rations (TMRs) of male fattening goats can provide the necessary fiber to prevent ruminal acidosis and maintain growth. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of the physical form (PF) of the diet (pelleted vs. conventional) and the straw level (SL) of wheat straw (WS) (15% versus 25%) in total mixed rations on feed intake, growth, total tract digestibility, and blood metabolites of fattening goats. Thirty-two male Beetal goats (27.4 ± 0.28 kg body weight (BW)) were divided randomly into the following four dietary treatments with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement (n = 8/treatment): (1) CTMR15 (conventional TMR containing 15% WS), (2) CTMR25 (conventional TMR containing 25% WS), (3) PTMR15 (pelleted TMR containing 15% WS), and (4) PTMR25 (pelleted TMR containing 25% WS). Both conventional and pelleted 15% WS TMR had 33.7% neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and 19.3% acid detergent fiber (ADF), whereas in 25% WS TMR the NDF and ADF contents were 38.7% and 22.9%, respectively. The experimental diets were formulated to be iso-nitrogenous (crude protein (CP) = 15%). The dry matter intake (DMI) (1.265 vs. 1.044 kg/day) and average daily gain (ADG) (0.176 vs. 0.143 kg/day) were higher (p < 0.05) in pelleted vs. conventional TMR-fed goats. Irrespective of the PF of the TMR, the 15% WS-fed animals had greater (p < 0.05) DMI (1.206 vs. 1.102 kg/day) and ADG (0.172 vs. 0.144 kg) when compared to those fed on 25% WS diets. Furthermore, feed-to-gain ratio (F:G) was higher (p < 0.05) in the 25% WS-fed goats when compared with the 15% WS-fed animals. Digestibility coefficients, nitrogen balancing, hepatic enzymes, blood metabolites, and hematological parameters were similar (p > 0.05) across all treatments. In conclusion, feeding pelleted TMR with WS improved DMI and growth performance as compared to those fed conventional TMR, and 15% WS performed better than 25% WS without exerting any adverse effects on blood metabolites, liver enzymes, or hematological parameters.

Download Full-text

PSII-20 Evaluation of Different Vitamin Concentrations in a Commercial Wean-to-Finish Program

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skaa054.302 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (Supplement_3) ◽

pp. 170-171

Author(s):

Robyn Thompson ◽

Brandon Knopf ◽

Carine Vier ◽

Ning Lu ◽

Wayne Cast ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Vitamin E ◽

Growth Performance ◽

Feed Intake ◽

Block Design ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Serum Vitamin ◽

Experimental Unit ◽

Final Body Weight ◽

Dietary Treatments ◽

Daily Gain

Abstract Our objective was to evaluate the effects of different vitamin concentrations on growth performance of wean-to-finish pigs under commercial conditions. A total of 900 barrows and gilts (PIC337×Camborough; initially 5.34±0.13 kg) were used in a 136-d growth trial with 25 pigs per pen and 12 pens per treatment in a randomized complete block design. Experimental diets were fed in 3 phases during nursery (5-6, 6-13, and 13-26 kg) and 5 phases during grow-finish (26-44, 44-65, 65-87, 87-108, and 108-128 kg). Dietary treatments consisted of: 1) NRC: vitamin concentrations following NRC (2012) recommendations; 2) PIC: vitamin concentrations following PIC (2016) recommendations; 3) Low-PIC: vitamin concentrations that ranged from 0 to 91% of PIC recommendations. Data were analyzed using the GLIMMIX procedure of SAS with pen as the experimental unit. During the nursery period, pigs fed PIC and Low-PIC diets had greater (P< 0.05) average daily feed intake (ADFI) compared to pigs fed NRC diets. There was no evidence (P >0.10) for differences in average daily gain (ADG) and feed efficiency (G:F). During the grow-finish period, there was no evidence (P >0.10) for differences in growth performance. During the overall wean-to-finish period, pigs fed PIC diets had lower (P< 0.05) ADG and final body weight compared to pigs fed NRC and Low-PIC diets. There was no evidence (P >0.10) for differences in ADFI or G:F. Pigs fed PIC diets had the greatest serum vitamin D3 at the end of nursery and finish periods (P< 0.05) and the greatest serum Vitamin E at the end of nursery period (P< 0.05). In summary, pigs fed PIC and Low-PIC diets had greater nursery feed intake and serum vitamin E and D3 concentrations compared to pigs fed NRC diets. Data from this study have demonstrated that pigs fed diets with reduced vitamin concentrations compared to PIC (2016) recommendations had improved wean-to-finish growth rate.

Download Full-text

Astragalus membranaceus root supplementation improves average daily gain, rumen TVFA production and immunity and antioxidant factors of Tibetan sheep

10.21203/rs.3.rs-18656/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Xianju Wang ◽

Luming Ding ◽

Haiyan Wei ◽

Cuixia Jiang ◽

Qi Yan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Dry Matter ◽

Animal Feed ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Rumen Fermentation ◽

Astragalus Membranaceus ◽

Feed Additive ◽

Control Group ◽

Tibetan Sheep ◽

Daily Gain

Abstract Background: The use of antibiotics as supplements in animal feed is restricted due to possible health hazards associated with them. Consequently, there is increasing interest in exploiting natural products as antibiotics with no detrimental side effects. In this study, we examined the effect of Astragalus membranaceus root (AMT) supplementation on dry matter intake, growth performance, rumen fermentation and immunity of Tibetan sheep. Materials and methods: Twenty-four male Tibetan sheep (31 ± 1.4 kg; 9 months old) were assigned randomly to one of four dietary treatments with different levels of AMT: 0 g/kg, 20 g/kg, 50 g/kg and 80 g/kg dry matter (A 0 , A 2 , A 5 and A 8 , respectively) in addition to their basal diets. A 0 acted as a control group and measurements were recorded over a 56-d feeding period. Results: Sheep fed with AMT had a higher average daily gain (ADG) and a lower feed:gain ratio (F:G) than controls ( P < 0.001). Rumen concentrations of NH 3 -N ( P < 0.001), total volatile fatty acids (TVFA) ( P = 0.028), acetate ( P = 0.017) and propionate ( P = 0.031) in A 5 and A 8 were higher than in A 0 . The addition of AMT in the feed significantly increased serum antioxidant and immunity factors of the sheep and increased the concentrations of serum interleukin, immunoglobulin and tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) ( P = 0.010). Conclusions: We concluded that AMT can be used as a feed additive to improve growth performance and rumen fermentation and enhance the immunity of Tibetan sheep. Some responses exhibited a dose-dependent response, whereas other did not exhibit a pattern, with an increase in AMT. The addition of 50 g/kg and 80 g/kg AMT of total DMI showed the most promising results.

Download Full-text

73 Effects of dietary neutral detergent fiber and standardized ileal digestible lysine levels on growth performance and carcass characteristics of growing-finishing pigs

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skaa054.103 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (Supplement_3) ◽

pp. 57-58

Author(s):

Uislei Orlando ◽

Ning Lu ◽

Carine Vier ◽

Wayne Cast ◽

Xun Zhou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Block Design ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Neutral Detergent Fiber ◽

Feed Ratio ◽

Experimental Unit ◽

Finishing Pigs ◽

Dietary Treatments ◽

Daily Gain ◽

Standardized Ileal Digestible Lysine

Abstract Our objective was to determine the effects of feeding different neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and standardized ileal digestible (SID) lysine (Lys) levels on performance of growing-finishing pigs from 30- to 130-kg. A total of 2,016 barrows and gilts (PIC 280×Camborough, initial BW of 29.6±0.53 kg) were allotted to a randomized complete block design with a 2×2 factorial arrangement. Dietary treatments (Table 1) consisted with two NDF levels (13% or 20%) and two SID Lys curves (PIC2008 or PIC2016). There were 21 mixed-sex pigs per pen, and 24 pens per treatment. The experiment diets were fed in 3 phases. Wheat, wheat by-products, peas, and canola oil were used with NRC (2012) loading values to achieve treatments, and all diets were formulated to be iso-caloric (2,420 kcal NE/kg). Experimental data were analyzed using generalized linear mixed models with pen as the experimental unit. Increasing NDF level resulted in a reduction (P< 0.05) in average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake, hot carcass weight, carcass yield, carcass ADG, and backfat depth (Table 2), and tended to decrease percentage of removals and mortality (P=0.10). Pigs fed PIC2016 Lys curve had greater ADG and carcass ADG as compared to those fed PIC2008 Lys curve (P< 0.05). There were NDF×Lys interactions (P< 0.10) for ADG, gain to feed ratio (G:F), carcass ADG, and carcass G:F. These response criteria were improved for pigs fed PIC2016 Lys curve compared to those fed PIC2008 Lys curve when NDF level was 13%; while no evidence of differences was observed at 20% NDF. Results indicate that increasing NDF level from 13 to 20% deteriorate performance of 30- to 130- kg pigs; and the improved growth performance of pigs fed PIC2016 Lys curve as compared to those fed PIC2008 Lys curve was only observed when lower NDF level was presented.

Download Full-text

Efficacy of commercial products on nursery pig growth performance fed diets with fumonisin contaminated corn

Translational Animal Science ◽

10.1093/tas/txaa217 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

Author(s):

Zhong-Xing Rao ◽

Mike D Tokach ◽

Steve S Dritz ◽

Jason C Woodworth ◽

Joel M DeRouchey ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Wide Spectrum ◽

Control Diet ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Fumonisin B1 ◽

Positive Control ◽

Negative Control ◽

Negative Effects ◽

Commercial Products ◽

Dietary Treatments

Abstract Two experiments were conducted to determine the efficacy of various commercial products on growth performance of nursery pigs fed diets high in fumonisin. In experiment 1, 350 pigs (241 × 600; DNA, Columbus, NE; initially 9.9 kg) were used with five pigs per pen and 14 replicates per treatment. After weaning, pigs were fed common diets for 21 d before the experiment started. The five dietary treatments consisted of a positive control (low fumonisin), a negative control (60 mg/kg of fumonisin B1 + B2 in complete diet), and the negative control with one of three products (0.3% of Kallsil Dry, Kemin Industries Inc., Des Moines, IA; 0.3% of Feed Aid Wide Spectrum, NutriQuest, Mason City, IA; 0.17% of Biofix Select Pro, Biomin America Inc., Overland Park, KS). Diets were fed in mash form for 14 d and followed with a low fumonisin diet for 13 d. For the 14-d treatment period, pigs fed the positive control diet and Biofix Select Pro had greater (P < 0.05) average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake (ADFI), and gain:feed (G:F) compared to those fed the high fumonisin negative control, or high fumonisin diets with Kallsil Dry or Feed Aid Wide Spectrum. Serum sphinganine to sphingosine ratios (SA:SO) were greater (P < 0.05) in all pigs fed high fumonisin diets compared to the positive control. In experiment 2, 300 pigs (241 × 600; DNA; initially 10.4 kg) were used. Procedures were similar to experiment 1 except there were 12 replicate pens per treatment, high fumonisin diets contained 30 mg/kg fumonisin, and experimental diets were fed for 28 d. Similar to experiment 1, pigs fed the positive control diet and treatment with Biofix Select Pro had greater (P < 0.05) ADG and G:F, and lower (P < 0.05) serum SA:SO compared to pigs fed the high fumonisin negative control, or high fumonisin diets with Kallsil Dry or Feed Aid Wide Spectrum. In summary, pigs fed diets containing 60 mg/kg of fumonisin for 14 d or 30 mg/kg of fumonisin for 28 d had poorer ADG and G:F and greater serum SA:SO compared to pigs fed a diet with less than 5 mg/kg of fumonisin. Adding Biofix Select Pro to diets appeared to mitigate the negative effects of high fumonisin concentrations, while Kallsil Dry and Feed Aid Wide Spectrum did not.

Download Full-text

88 Dietary supplementation of branched-chain amino acids higher than recommended levels in nursery pigs fed with moderately low protein diet: effects on growth performance

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skz258.169 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 97 (Supplement_3) ◽

pp. 82-82

Author(s):

Mohammad Habibi ◽

Cedrick N Shili ◽

Julia Sutton ◽

Adel Pezeshki

Keyword(s):

Amino Acids ◽

Body Weight ◽

Growth Performance ◽

Feed Intake ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Branched Chain Amino Acids ◽

Nursery Pigs ◽

Low Protein ◽

Branched Chain ◽

Daily Gain

Abstract Feed cost and excess nutrients excretion are threatening the swine industry. Moderately low protein (MLP) diets are less expensive and reduce the nitrogen excretion, but they may have negative influence on growth performance of pigs. The aim of current study was to investigate the effect of MLP diets supplemented with branched-chain amino acids (BCAA; leucine, isoleucine and valine) higher than Nutrients Requirements of Swine (NRC) recommendation on the growth performance of nursery pigs. Forty-eight weaned barrows at 3 weeks of age were weighed, individually housed and randomly assigned to 6 dietary treatments including: 1) PCON: 20% crude protein (CP), 2) NCON: 14% CP; 3) C25: NCON+ limiting amino acids (LAA, i.e. lysine, methionine, threonine, and tryptophan) 25% more than NRC levels, 4) C50: NCON+LAA 50% higher than NRC recommendations; 5) CB25: NCON + (LAA+BCAA) 25% more than NRC; 6) CB50: NCON + (LAA+BCAA) 50% higher than NRC. The data were analyzed with univariate GLM with Tukey’s post-hoc test (SPSS®). The CB50 had higher final body weight, average daily gain, average daily water intake and average daily feed intake than C50 with the latter tended to be higher than NCON. Average daily feed intake, average daily gain and gain to feed ratio tended to be greater for CB25 and CB50 relative to C25 and C50, respectively. Compared to C50, CB50 improved the mean and cumulative feed intake in all the weeks. CB50 also tended to improve the body weight gain and gain: feed in week 2 relative to C50. In conclusion, supplementing MLP diets with limiting amino acid at 25% or 50% higher than NRC recommendations was failed to recover the negative effects of these diets on growth performance. Adding BCAA more than NRC levels to MLP diets improved the growth performance with the effects of added BCAA level being negligible.

Download Full-text