Technical Department – Grupo Andrés Pintaluba, 2021.
Introduction
Currently, one of the main concerns in the pig industry is the loss of body condition of sows during lactation. The introduction of hyperprolific breeds is a challenge. In addition to supporting the piglets with milk replacer and creep feed so that they can be weaned in greater numbers and with better weights, work is also done on the dam’s feed intake to reduce the loss of body condition as much as possible and to improve reproductive performance in the next cycle.
Contributing to an improvement in the sensory quality of the dam’s feed will improve feeding practices, optimise feed intake and help animal performance
Objective
To evaluate the effect of Apsabor 320 and Apsabor Liquid on the zootechnical parameters of lactating sows.
Material and methods
Animals and facilities
The study was carried out under commercial conditions in a high production pig farm, including an average of 29 piglets weaned/sow/year. A batch of 22 sows of different parities and initial body conditions was used, divided into two equal groups of 11 sows each.
During lactation, feed was administered in 3 feedings per day. Water was available at libitum. Apsabor 320 was given in the lactation feed and simultaneously Apsabor Liquid was given in the drinking water. The trial started one week before farrowing and ended when the piglets were weaned.
Experimental design
The test was carried out using the following experimental design:
Feed | Drinking water | |
T1: Control | Palatant-free feed | Palatant-free water |
T2: APSABOR | T1 + APSABOR 320 | T1 + APSABOR LIQUID |
Data
The following production parameters were measured:
- Feed consumption.
- Water consumption.
- Body weight of dams at calving and weaning.
- Fertility of the sows at the next reproductive cycle, by ultrasound monitoring.
Results
Pre-farrowing | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Total period | |
APSABOR | 13,18 | 20,74 | 26,87 | 26,38 | 35,94 | 28,5 |
CONTROL | 10,06 | 17,53 | 24,3 | 25,48 | 33,76 | 26,29 |
Difference | 3,12 | 3,21 | 2,57 | 0,9 | 2,18 | 2,21 |
Pre-farrowing | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Total period | |
APSABOR | 2.44 | 4.3 | 6.88 | 6.63 | 8.2 | 5.68 |
CONTROL | 2.42 | 4.06 | 6.40 | 6.90 | 7.4 | 5.48 |
Difference | 0 | 0.24 | 0.48 | -0.27 | 0.8 | 0.2 |
Average initial weight/sow, kg | Average final weight/sow, kg | Weight gain/sow, kg | Average daily gain/sow, kg | |
APSABOR | 241.09 | 243.27 | 2.18 | 0.10 |
CONTROL | 248.27 | 236.18 | -12.09 | -0.58 |
Difference | -7.18 | 7.09 | 14.27 | 0.68 |
Fertility, % | |
APSABOR | 91% |
CONTROL | 81% |
Difference | 10% |
- During the lactation period, the daily intake of the sow in the APSABOR group increased by 4%, and water intake increased by 7.5%. Body condition improved by 5% and fertility at the next reproductive cycle by 9%.
- It resulted in an impact on the weight of the dam at the end of lactation, preventing them from losing weight (as the sows in the Control group, which lost an average of 580 g live weight/day). The sows in the APSABOR group gained an average of 100 g per day throughout the lactation period. As a result, the fertility of the sows in APSABOR improved by 10% (ultrasonography follow-up).
Conclusions:
- The results of the present trial confirm that APSABOR added to feed and water stimulates sows to consume both feed and water during the lactation phase.
- It results in improved productivity of the sows during lactation, an improvement in their body condition at weaning of the piglets and a positive effect on the fertility of the sows at the next reproductive cycle.
- The addition of APSABOR 320 to the feed and APSABOR LIQUID to the drinking water of lactating sows is recommended to increase feed and water consumption and to improve the zootechnical performance.