The Effect of Drenching (Very) Low Birth Weight Piglets with a Dense, Concentrated Milk Replacer at Farms with Differing Farrowing Management

Abstract

Introducing hyperprolific sows has led to proportionally more (very) low birth weight ((V)LBW) piglets, accompanied by higher mortality. To improve the survival of (V)LBW piglets, drenching a dense milk replacer (DMR) could be applied. A first experiment evaluated the effect of drenching DMR (1 or 3 doses within 24 h after birth) to LBW ((mean litter birth weight−1*SD) and weighing between 1 kg and 750 g) and VLBW piglets ((mean litter birth weight−1.5*SD) and weighing less than 750 g). On days 1, 2, 3, 9, and two days post-weaning, body weight, growth, skin lesions, and mortality were monitored. No effect of DMR was observed on any of the parameters. In a second experiment, LBW piglets were supplemented with DMR (similarly to experiment 1) at two farms differing in the level of perinatal care. The same parameters were evaluated, and again none were affected by drenching DMR. Overall survival of the LBW piglets was significantly higher at the farm with high perinatal care. It can be concluded that good perinatal management is more effective in enhancing the survival of LBW piglets than drenching.

Chemical Composition of Newborn Piglets with Different Weights at Birth in Sows with a High Reproductive Performance

“…The proportion of LBW piglets (<1.1 kg) in litters with more than 15 piglets is above 15-20% [8][9][10]. However, the lack of a consistent across-studies criterion to identify the targeted LBW piglets limits the comparison of results between studies and obscures drawing a conclusion on the effect of these compounds [11][12][13]. While some authors apply birth weight cut-offs up to 1.00-1.35 kg to define LBW piglets [14][15][16], others use lower birth weights [17][18][19].…”