Department of Nutrition and Animal Production, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of São Paulo (USP), Campus Pirassununga, SP, Brazil.
University of São Paulo, Brazil.
Animal. 2024 Mar;18(3):101104. doi: 10.1016/j.animal.2024.101104. Epub 2024 Feb 8.
Delivering piglets is one of the most energy-demanding activities sows undergo in their lifetime. Sows can have myometrial contractions from 2 to 12 h before the first piglet is expelled as well as a nest-building behavior. Thus, when the first piglet is delivered, the female has already used part of her energy supply. When the sow gets exhausted due to lack of energy, the farrowing process can be interrupted, causing damage to the viability and vitality of the piglets. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of feeding sows an energy supplement at the onset of farrowing on farrowing kinetics and piglet vitality. The energy supplement consisted of a blend of carbohydrates and glycerol which provides 439 kJ of metabolizable energy per kg of metabolic weight. A total of 180 sows were used. At the onset of farrowing, sows were assigned to one of the following treatments: sows that were not supplied energy at the onset of farrowing, serving as controls (CON, n = 85); sows fed the energy supplement at the onset of farrowing (ESP, n = 95). Farrowing kinetics, blood glucose concentration, and piglet vitality were recorded for each sow. Blood glucose concentration was assessed by puncturing the auricular vein and using a portable glucometer at four different time points: after the birth of the 1st piglet (T0), and at 20 (T20), 40 (T40), 80 (T80), and 180 (T180) min after the birth of the 1st piglet. The vitality of the 1st, 6th, 12th, 17th, and 20th piglet born was evaluated using the Apgar score. Piglet birth weight and average colostrum intake were measured. The farrowing duration was 20 min shorter (P < 0.05) for ESP sows in comparison with CON sows. Sows from ESP treatment had higher (P ≤ 0.05) blood glucose concentration at T20 and T40 compared to the CON sows. The inter-piglet birth interval was shortened (P < 0.05) by 14 min between the 1st and 2nd piglet for the ESP treatment. The 17th and 20th piglets born from ESP sows had higher (P < 0.05) Apgar score compared to piglets of the same birth order from CON sows. Colostrum intake was higher (P < 0.01) for piglets born from ESP sows. Litter growth performance did not differ (P > 0.05). In conclusion, feeding a blend of carbohydrates and glycerol as an energy supplement for farrowing sows improved farrowing kinetics and piglet vitality score.
分娩仔猪是母猪一生中最耗能的活动之一。母猪在第一头仔猪排出前 2 至 12 小时可能会出现子宫收缩和筑巢行为。因此，当第一头仔猪出生时，母猪已经消耗了部分能量供应。当母猪因缺乏能量而筋疲力尽时，分娩过程可能会中断，导致仔猪的存活率和活力受损。在本研究中，我们评估了在分娩开始时给母猪喂食能量补充剂对分娩动力学和仔猪活力的影响。能量补充剂由碳水化合物和甘油的混合物组成，每公斤代谢体重可提供 439 kJ 可代谢能量。共有 180 头母猪参与了研究。在分娩开始时，将母猪分为以下处理组之一：未在分娩开始时提供能量的母猪作为对照组（CON，n = 85）；在分娩开始时喂食能量补充剂的母猪（ESP，n = 95）。记录每头母猪的分娩动力学、血糖浓度和仔猪活力。血糖浓度通过刺破耳静脉并用便携式血糖仪在四个不同时间点进行评估：在第一头仔猪出生后（T0），以及在第一头仔猪出生后 20（T20）、40（T40）、80（T80）和 180 分钟（T180）。通过阿普加评分评估第一、第六、第十二、第十七和第二十头仔猪的活力。测量仔猪的出生体重和平均初乳摄入量。ESP 母猪的分娩持续时间比 CON 母猪短 20 分钟（P < 0.05）。ESP 处理组母猪在 T20 和 T40 时的血糖浓度更高（P ≤ 0.05），与 CON 母猪相比。ESP 处理组的第一头和第二头仔猪之间的仔猪出生间隔缩短了 14 分钟（P < 0.05）。从 ESP 母猪出生的第十七和第二十头仔猪的阿普加评分高于 CON 母猪同一出生顺序的仔猪（P < 0.05）。ESP 母猪所产仔猪的初乳摄入量更高（P < 0.01）。仔猪窝增重性能无差异（P > 0.05）。总之，给分娩母猪喂食碳水化合物和甘油混合物作为能量补充剂可改善分娩动力学和仔猪活力评分。
