Effects of sweeteners on individual feed intake characteristics and performance in group-housed weanling pigs.

To assess the effects of 2 high intensity sodium saccharine-based sweeteners on individual feed intake characteristics and performance of group-housed weaned pigs, one hundred ninety-eight 26-d-old weanling pigs were given ad libitum access to 3 dietary treatments containing: no additional sweetener (control), 150 mg of sweetener (Sucram C-150)/kg, or 150 mg of sweetener (Sucram 3D)/kg. At weaning, piglets were allocated to 18 pens (11 pigs/pen) based on BW, sex, and ancestry, and pens were randomly assigned to 3 treatments with 6 pens per treatment. The pens were equipped with computerized feeding stations. During the first 12 d, pigs were offered pelleted prestarter diets that were replaced at once by pelleted starter diets for the last 7 d of the 19-d experimental period. The individual feed intake characteristics consisting of latency time (interval between weaning and first feed intake), initial feed intake (intake during the first 24 h following the first feed intake), the number of total visits per day, and the number of visits in which feed was consumed, together with the time and the feed intake per visit, were determined for all piglets. Performance traits and fecal consistency were determined per pen for d 0 to 5, d 5 to 12, and d 12 to 19, as well as for the total period (d 0 to 19). The initiation of feed intake was not affected by the addition of high intensity sweeteners to the diet. From 12 d postweaning, dietary sweeteners caused the piglets to focus more on feed intake and less on exploratory behavior, as shown by the increased percentage of visits with feed intake in pigs fed the Sucram 3D diet compared with those fed the control diet (P = 0.002). The overall daily feed intake increased with time but was not affected by the addition of sweeteners. Nevertheless, dietary sweeteners prevented the depression of feed intake on d 8 and 10 postweaning (d 8, P = 0.013; d 10, P = 0.014), which seemed to coincide with an improved fecal consistency score (d 5 to 12, P = 0.11; d 12 to 19, P < 0.001). However, the changes in feed intake characteristics and fecal consistency only resulted in numerical effects on postweaning pig performance (ADFI, P = 0.126; ADG, P = 0.140). The results of the present study indicate that weanling pigs need a certain period of time before clear effects of dietary sweeteners on individual feed intake characteristics and pig performance can be observed.

Small intestinal morphology and disaccharidase activities in early-weaned piglets fed a diet containing spray-dried porcine plasma.

The purpose of this study was to test whether dietary spray-dried porcine plasma (SDPP) in early-weaned piglets prevents small intestinal villus atrophy by trophic or protective activity. Fifty-four weaned, 18-day-old piglets were used to determine the effect of dietary SDPP on small intestinal villus length, crypt depth, enterocyt mitotic activity and brush border enzyme activities during the first week after weaning. The piglets were offered a diet containing either 8% SDPP or 8% casein. At 2 and 7 days after weaning, piglets were anaesthetized to provide samples of the small intestinal wall and killed immediately afterwards. There were no differences in daily gain and daily feed intake between the two dietary treatments. At day 2 after weaning, all piglets showed a marked reduction in villus height when compared with baseline values. In all piglets, small intestinal enterocyte mitotic activity had decreased by day 2 and was increased again on day 7. There were no significant effects of dietary SDPP on small intestinal villus length, crypt depth and enterocyt mitotic activity. This indicates that SDPP has no trophic effect on the small intestinal mucosa and that it does not protect against the damaging effect on the small intestinal villi that is associated with the process of weaning. There was no effect of SDPP on lactase-, sucrase- or maltase-specific activities that are a measure of the digestive function of the small intestine. It can be concluded that SDPP versus casein has no effect on small intestinal morphology and disaccharidase activities in early weaned piglets kept under low infection pressure.