Efficacy of energy supplementation on growth performance and immune response of suckling pigs

Abstract

Three studies were performed to determine the effects of oral energy sources on the performance, immune status, and intestinal morphology of piglets. In Exp. 1, 50 litters were selected based on genotype and parity order to determine the optimum amount of supplemental energy for neonatal pigs. They were distributed according to a 5 × 5 Latin square design, in which columns were represented by 5 sows and rows were represented by 5 newborn weight categories. Treatments consisted of 2 oral doses of 0, 2, 4, 8, or 16 mL of rice bran oil (RBO). There was a positive response of RBO on BW with a numerical difference (P = 0.12) and a significant linear effect (P = 0.04) at weaning. In Exp. 2, litters (n = 340) were randomly allotted to a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments: RBO supplemented either through oral doses (without supplementation or with 2 mL of RBO) or through prestarter feed (without supplementation or with 2% of RBO replacing 2% of soybean oil). Piglets orally receiving RBO showed a numerical increase in BW at weaning (P = 0.101) compared with the control group. Moreover, piglets supplemented by prestarter feed tended to increase feed intake (P = 0.084). In Exp. 3, litters (n = 245) were selected based on genotype and parity order and they were distributed according to a 7 × 7 Latin square design planed in the same way as in Exp. 1. Each neonatal pig within a litter was randomly assigned to 1 of 7 treatments: 1) control (no supplementation), 2) 2 mL of RBO enriched with omega-3 fatty acids, 3) 2.33 mL of pure glycerin, 4) 1.3 mL of soybean oil, 5) 1.4 mL of linseed oil, 6) 1.68 mL of coconut oil, and 7) 2 mL of RBO. Animal performance was analyzed using 2 data sets: all data (average initial BW of 1.479 kg) and low birth weight (LBW) piglet data (≤1.220 kg initial BW with average of 0.985 kg). Body weight or BW gain (BWG) were not different among treatments (P > 0.10) when all data were analyzed. However, LBW piglets fed coconut oil tended to increase BW (P = 0.099) during the first week. In conclusion, the oral use of RBO may increase BW at weaning and the supplementation by prestarter feed may enhance the feed intake of piglets. In addition, coconut oil may increase BW of LBW piglets in the first week of life without affecting mortality, immune response, or gut morphology. The routine practice of oral supplementation of energy for newborn pigs could be an important tool in swine production.

Handling Associated with Drenching Does Not Impact Survival and General Health of Low Birth Weight Piglets

“…A later study, in which LBW piglets were supplemented with coconut oil on the day of birth and the second day, also did not show a reduced mortality when comparing supplemented and non-supplemented piglets. It must be mentioned, though, that during the latter study, piglets with a higher birth weight (<1.20 kg) were classified as LBW and the total supplemented energy was lower than the previously mentioned studies [ 41 ]. The results of these last two studies support the hypothesis that drenching could nullify a potentially positive effect of the supplemented product.…”

Feeding Crude Glycerin to Finishing Iberian Crossbred Pigs: Effects on Growth Performance, Nutrient Digestibility, and Blood Parameters

“…However, other parameters related to lipid metabolism, such as triglycerides and cholesterol, which were not analyzed in this study, are more frequently affected by glycerin addition [ 10 , 23 , 39 , 41 , 42 ]. In this sense, Narayan and Mcmullen [ 43 ] showed that glycerin metabolism in the livers of mice and birds after chronic intake has a stimulatory effect on the synthesis of free fatty acids, triglycerides, cholesterol, chylomicrons, and plasmatic lipoproteins.…”

Effects of dietary fatty acids on gut health and function of pigs pre- and post-weaning

“…Means with different letters within a line are significantly different (P<0.05) weight gain was obtained when feeding the lactating sows with coconut oil rather than fish oil (Lauridsen and Danielsen, 2004). Furthermore, oral supplementation of coconut oil to low-weight piglets tended to increase body weight during the first week (Manzke et al, 2018), and in another experiment of this study oral supplementation of rice-bran oil to pigs increased the weaning weight (Manzke et al, 2018). Unpublished data (C.L., personal communication) showed that feeding sows with lipid sources at a level of 8% of octanoic acid (4%) in combination with fish oil (4%) increased the sow milk concentration of C8:0, which was present with 0.12%, whereas when other dietary treatments (8% of either coconut oil, fish oil, or sunflower oil) were provided, the relative proportion of C8:0 was 0.04%.…”

“…Inflammation often results in the repartitioning of the host's energy to functions other than digestion. An immediate energy supply in the form of various oils supplemented to newborn piglets had no influence on gut morphology (Manzke et al, 2018). The impact may be more pronounced in post-weaning pigs, as MCFA can be directly utilized by the enterocytes for energy production and thereby maintain the integrity of the intestinal tissue (Guillot et al, 1993).…”