Swine Grist
Dear Swine Producing Friends,
As the official start to summer nears, and seasonable temperatures arrive, we are pleased to provide you with a copy of our Swine Grist – Summer Edition. As discussed in Nicole Gregory’s article herein, although all of us humans appreciate and enjoy the summer heat after a fairly long, snowy winter, our herds often suffer the effects of heat stress during our Canadian summers, especially in times of high humidity. Nicole’s article provides some great tips and strategies to mitigate the effect of heat stress on your herd. Many Ontario producers appreciated Dr. Chantal Farmer’s presentation on feeding and managing transition sows at the Ontario Swine Conference (London, ON) in March. We are pleased to include an article from Dr. Farmer in this edition of the Western & Prairie Swine Grist which summarizes well much of the information that she presented there. We are looking forward to our time together in Red Deer at the Alberta Pork
Expectations around Farrowing: Improving Piglet Birth Weights (Part 2)
by: Samuel Waititu, Ph.D. Senior Monogastric Nutritionist
The freshness of spring weather is a sweet relief and blissful reminder that the Lord has made everything beautiful in his time. Even the bright spring sunrise echoes the words of prophet Isaiah, “arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.” In the preceding Swine Grist edition, we put emphasis on the fact that placenta with poor growth and development are closely associated with low birth weight because placenta insufficiency exacerbates fetal growth restriction. This proposition necessitates a magnified focus on the nutrition-linked variables that interplay with each other at molecular and cellular levels to influence placenta growth, development and function. For
Congress on June 11th and 12th. Please take the time to visit with us at our Fortified Nutrition Limited and Farmers Depot/MS Schippers booths. There you will be able to meet members of our newly expanded team such as Ryan Stack our Prairies & Western General Manager, Sophie Larabie, Business Manager of MS Schippers, and Joel Vanderheyden, Schippers HyCare Specialist. We are also pleased to introduce Samuel Ariyibi, our newest addition to the Fortified Nutrition Limited Monogastric Nutritionist team who resides in Winnipeg.
We trust that our customers have enjoyed a successful seeding season and that the Lord will bless with timely rains and a bountiful fall harvest.
Wishing you a wonderful and productive farming summer!
Sincerely,
Ian Ross CEO, GVF group of companies
a foretaste and an eye opener to the enthusiasts of this subject, we will discuss the role of functional amino acids and antioxidants in placenta nutrition and how they influence birth weights.
Functional Amino Acids
Functional amino acids are amino acids that are not only used to build proteins, but also participate in regulating essential metabolic pathways to improve health, survival, growth, development, lactation, and reproduction of organisms (Wu, 2013). In both human and animal studies, there is growing evidence that functional amino acids can be used to prevent and treat fetal growth restriction and infertility (Wu, 2013).
During gestation, the supply of these 5 amino acids, alanine, arginine, glutamate, glycine, and leucine, is regarded critically important for optimal placental growth and development (Wu et al., 2017).
Generally, the availability of amino acids to the porcine placenta is compromised by 4 factors:
01. the small intestine of gestating sows will breakdown approximately 97% of glutamate, 95% of asparagine, 70% of glutamine, 40% of arginine, 40% of proline, 35% of branched-chain amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, and valine), and 10–30% of other amino acids that are released during protein digestion (Wu et al., 2017).
02. the placenta cannot synthesize the following amino acids: cysteine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, or tyrosine; and cannot convert arginine from its precursors (Wu et al., 2017).
03. the low protein content of the gestation ration (10-14%) 04. the restricted feed allowance to gestating sows.
For example, let’s consider the fate of fetuses when glycine supply is compromised. Glycine is needed in the synthesis of other proteins and glutathione (most abundant cellular antioxidant) in the placenta. Since fetuses cannot synthesize sufficient glycine to meet their metabolic demands, a chronic shortage in supply of glycine would impair their growth, immune system and nutrient metabolism (Tan et al., 2022). Wan et al. (2020) showed the functional importance of glycine by supplementing 800 mg/kg of glycine in the diet (from day 85 of gestation to farrowing) and reported a significant increase in serum levels of glycine and proline in sows, and an increased number born alive per litter and litter weight.
Gao et al. (2012) reported that arginine supplementation from day 22 of gestation to farrowing significantly increased placental weight by 16.2%, total number of piglets by 1.31 per litter, the number of liveborn piglets by 1.10 per litter, and the litter birth weight for liveborn piglets by 1.70 kg. Recently, Wen et al. (2024) demonstrated that as the dietary standardized ileal digestible (SID) Arg: Lys ratio increased, there was a statistically significant increase in the number of piglets born alive (Figure 1) and litter weight (Figure 2), and a statistically significant decrease in the number of stillborn and mummified piglets.
Oxidative stress
Oxidative stress is an imbalance where the body has too many free radicals (unstable molecules) than antioxidants (molecules that neutralize free radicals hence protecting cells). Oxidative stress causes many complications during pregnancy because it leads to cell and tissue damage that can impair the female reproductive physiology.
There is growing evidence associating elevated oxidative stress levels during gestation to lower birth weights and stillbirths. For instance, Wang et al. (2019) reported that sows with lower stillbirth rate had higher concentration of serum total antioxidant capacity compared to sows with higher stillbirth rate. Moreover, Hu et al. (2020) observed that the placenta of piglets with birth weights less than 500g had higher oxidative stress levels, reduced mitochondrial function (measured as lower cell energy levels), lower vascular density (measured as lower count of blood vessels per unit area), and downregulated expression of glucose transporter proteins compared to those from the groups with birth weights greater than 500g.
Meng et al. (2018) mitigated oxidative stress in gestating and lactating sows, and piglets by supplementing sow diets with 300 mg/kg resveratrol (a natural polyphenol with antioxidant activity found in grapes and berries) from day 20 of gestation to the end of lactation. Supplementing resveratrol increased the litter and piglet weaning weights, and improved the antioxidant status in the milk, placenta and plasma of sows and piglets compared to the controls.
In another study, Wang et al. (2023) provided sows a daily dose of 2 mg/ kg melatonin (a naturally occurring antioxidant) from day 90 of gestation to farrowing. Melatonin supplementation significantly increased the expression levels of antioxidant genes in placental tissue, which they associated with improved oxidative status of sows and piglets, and increased birth weight, weaning weight and survival rate of weaned piglets compared to the controls. Furthermore, Peng et al. (2024) supplemented 0.25% allicin (a natural antioxidant obtained from garlic) throughout gestation. Allicin supplementation reduced peripartum oxidative stress, alleviated dysregulation of glucose-lipid metabolism in sows and increased the levels of antioxidant markers in the placenta. They associated these responses with an increased number of born alive and piglets with a birthweight of >900 g compared to the controls.
Conclusion: nutritional strategies to improve birth weights
Enhancing placental nutrition is the key to improving piglet birth weights because it is the most potent strategy to mitigate the natural selection process of fetal growth restriction. I will summarize this approach with two recommendations:
01. Increasing nutrient density: Remember that energy is not a nutrient. This strategy isn’t about ad lib feeding but rather providing the placenta with the right quantity and best quality of minerals, vitamins and amino acids at the right time. The porcine placenta nutrient requirements change
throughout gestation, hence, we must be conscious of how the rations and feed allowances meet its nutrient requirements. Special focus should be directed to the provision of functional amino acids.
02. Antioxidant supplementation: Oxidative stress makes a dysfunctional placenta, and that reduces litter size and birth weights. Since some minerals, vitamins, and amino acids have antioxidant activity, this recommendation complements the first. Focus must be directed to the selection of the most appropriate, yet affordable antioxidants to curtail raising the cost of feed.
At FNL, we endeavor to offer feeding programs founded on sound research and proven to promote on-farm profitability. For any inquiries, please feel free to contact our swine nutrition team at: fnlmonogastricnutrition@fortifiednutritionltd.com
References:
Gao, Kaiguo, et al. "Dietary L-arginine supplementation enhances placental growth and reproductive performance in sows." Amino acids 42 (2012): 2207-2214.
• Hu, Chengjun, et al. "Placentae for low birth weight piglets are vulnerable to oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and impaired angiogenesis." Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity 2020.1 (2020): 8715412.
Meng, Qingwei, et al. "Dietary resveratrol improves antioxidant status of sows and piglets and regulates antioxidant gene expression in placenta by Keap1-Nrf2 pathway and Sirt1." Journal of animal science and biotechnology 9 (2018): 1-13. Additional references available upon request.
Feeding Gilts and Sows During the Transition Period
by:
Chantal Farmer, Ph.D. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada,Sherbrooke Research and Development Centre, QC, Canada
Swine producers are currently using sow genetic lines with very high litter sizes and, even though beneficial, this creates new dilemmas in the farrowing house. The problems of longer farrowings, greater stillbirth rate, and inadequate colostrum and milk intakes by individual piglets are often encountered. More attention needs to be given to the crucial period of transition between late gestation and early lactation to develop the best feeding and management strategies to assist sows and their progeny.
Feed Intake
The transition period covers approximately the last week of gestation until a few days after farrowing. This is a crucial period when sows undergo major metabolic changes and must use their body reserves because of an imbalance between intake and use of nutrients. The energy status of sows is important for successful farrowings, with both inadequate and excess energy intakes having negative effects. Farrowing duration was shorter with minimal required assistance and lower stillbirth rate when sows were fed 3.7 to 4.1 kg/day of a lactation diet during the last week of gestation (Feyera et al., 2021). Time of farrowing relative to the last meal is important as farrowing duration was constant and shorter (3.8 ± 1.5 hours) when farrowings started within 3.1 ± 0.3 hours of the last
meal, but farrowing duration increased to 9.3 hours with more stillbirths when farrowings started 8 hours after the last meal (Feyera et al., 2018). On the other hand, providing ad libitum feeding or four daily meals of a lactation diet from day 113 of gestation until farrowing did not alter farrowing duration or incidence of stillbirths when farrowing duration in the herd averaged 3.5 hours (Gourley et al., 2020). It is apparent that beneficial effects of energy status at farrowing may depend on the duration of farrowing and litter size normally seen in the herd. An adequate supply of nutrients during transition is also important to sustain the highly accelerated mammary development and the synthesis of colostrum. Decaluwé et al. (2014) reported that a very low feed supply (1.5 vs. 4.5 kg/day) from day 108 of gestation until farrowing tended to decrease colostrum yield and caused excessive mobilization of body reserves. Garrison et al. (2017) fed sows 1.5, 3.0 or 4.5 kg/day from day 104 of gestation until farrowing and reported a 9 g increase in colostrum yield with each 1 kg increase in daily feed intake. According to Feyera et al. (2021), who fed first- and second-parity sows 1.8 to 5.0 kg/day from day 108 of gestation until farrowing, colostrum yield was maximal at 3.0 kg/day. Interestingly, recent findings showed that feed intake during the last week of gestation could impact subsequent sow milk yield. Bruun et al. (2023) compared feed intakes ranging from 1.8 to 5.0 kg/day from day 108 of gestation until farrowing in first- and second-parity sows, and a feed supply of 4.0 to 4.1 kg/day maximized average milk yield in the subsequent lactation.
Protein Intake
Taking into account the increased nutrient requirements of sows during late gestation, the gestation diet may not meet these needs. Lactation diets contain more protein than gestation diets and feeding a lactation diet instead of a gestation diet from day 107 of gestation until farrowing increased colostrum intake by piglets (127 versus 96 g) as well as piglet weaning weights (Garrison et al., 2017). Recent results indicate that dietary protein in the last week of gestation can also have a carry-over effects on subsequent milk production. Multiparous sows fed increasing levels of lysine (15.2 to 32.6 g/day of SID lysine) with a feed allowance of 3.8 kg/day from day 108 of gestation until 24 hours after the onset of farrowing, had optimal milk yield with a daily lysine intake of 22.0 g (Johannsen et al., 2024). On the other hand, Pedersen et al. (2020) found no carry-over effect of dietary protein supply (19.2 to 28.8 g SID lysine/day) during transition on milk yield, which may have been due to a below optimal feed intake. Taking into account the increased cost of feeding a lactation diet in transition, the option of providing a daily blend of gestation and lactation diets that is adapted to meet the sow requirements could be an option. When sows were fed 2 kg of either a lactation diet or a daily blend of gestation and lactation diets (to best meet lysine and energy requirements) as of day 104 of gestation, the blend of diets increased body weight and backfat thickness of sows after farrowing, while piglet weaning weight was unaltered (Gregory and Huber, 2024). Transition feeding programs using such a blend therefore reduces energy mobilization by the sow during late gestation and has no detrimental effect on subsequent lactation performance. The major drawback, however, is the cost of the feeding system needed to make such a blend.
Fibre Intake
Constipation is commonly seen in late-pregnant sows and it can lead to prolonged farrowings. Dietary fibres have been used to reduce the incidence of constipation. Supplementing the diet of sows in the transition period (7 days before to 3 days after farrowing) with 75 g per day of lignocellulose decreased the rate of constipation from 46.3% to 17.6% without altering farrowing duration (Dumniem et al., 2024). When treated sows had 16 or more piglets, the increased fibre intake also tended to reduce farrowing duration (202.0 versus 287.5 minutes). Dietary fibre supplementation during the transition period may therefore be beneficial, mostly in sows with large litters. Take home messages:
03. Special care must be provided when feeding sows during the transition period between gestation and lactation because they may be lacking energy and protein at this critical time.
04. A feed intake between 3.7 and 4.1 kg/day during the last week of gestation
can decrease farrowing duration and stillbirth rate.
05. Farrowing duration was shorter and stillbirth rate lower when sows were provided feed in the 3.1 h preceding the onset of farrowing.
06. Colostrum yield was maximal with a daily feed intake of 3.0 kg from day 108 of gestation until farrowing.
07. Feeding a lactation diet from day 107 of gestation until farrowing increased colostrum intake and piglet weaning weights.
08. Dietary supplementation with fibre can decrease constipation and farrowing length, and this mainly in litters of 16 or more piglets.
References:
• Bruun, T.S., M. Eskildsen, C.K. Hojgaard, N.P. Nørskov, K.E.B. Knudsen, P.K. Theil and T. Feyera, T. 2023. Feeding level during the last week of gestation can influence performance of sows and their litters in the subsequent lactation. J. Anim. Sci. 101:1-11. doi:10.1093/jas/skad349.
Decaluwé, R., D. Maes, A. Cools, B. Wuyts, S. De Smet, B. Marescau, D. Paul and G. Janssens. 2014. Effect of peripartal feeding strategy on colostrum yield and composition in sows. J. Anim. Sci. 92:3557-3567. doi: 10.2527/jas.2014-7612
Dumniem, N., R. Boonprakob, C. Panvichitra, S. Thongmark, N. Laohanarathip, T. Parnitvoraphoom, S. Changduangjit, T. Boonmakaew, N. Teshanukroh and P. Tummaruk. 2024. Impacts of fibre supplementation in sows during the transition period on constipation, farrowing duration, colostrum production, and pre-weaning piglet mortality in the free-farrowing system.
Animals 14 doi: 10.3390/ani14060854.
• Feyera, T., T.F. Pedersen, U. Krogh, L. Foldager and P.K. Theil. 2018. Impact of sow energy status during farrowing on farrowing kinetics, frequency of stillborn piglets, and farrowing assistance. J. Anim. Sci. 96 2320-2331.
Additional references available upon request.
Embracing a New Role as Nursery Feed Specialist in Monogastric Nutrition
by: Kayla Silva, M.Sc Monogastric Nutritionist and Nursery Feed Specialist
Kayla is excited to step into her new role at Grand Valley Fortifiers in monogastric nutrition, particularly as a nursery feed specialist. Although Kayla is based in Ontario under the Grand Valley Fortifiers division, she will also support the Fortified Nutrition team. This position presents a unique opportunity for her to drive innovation and excellence in nursery feed products, ensuring optimal nutrition and growth for young animals.
Strengthening Partnerships
A key aspect of Kayla's role is maintaining and improving the relationship with AB Neo. We have been working with AB Neo for over 10 years, a company specializing in young animal nutrition, based in the UK. This partnership is crucial for leveraging cutting-edge research and technology to enhance nursery feeds. By fostering strong collaboration, Kayla aims to keep the nursery products competitive within the industry.
Continuous Improvement Through Trial Work
To continually improve the line of nursery feeds, Kayla will be leading the internal trial work. This will allow for testing new formulations and feeding strategies, ensuring that the feeds meet the highest standards of quality and efficacy. Through these trials, Kayla can make data-driven decisions that benefit customers and their animals.
Innovating for the Future
Innovation is at the heart of what the GVF Group of Companies does. In her role, Kayla will be tasked with coming up with innovative ideas to further enhance nursery feeds. One key initiative is working with AB Neo to implement the reduction in zinc levels to 300 ppm by July 2027. Whether it's through new ingredients, formulations, and/or feeding strategies, Kayla is eager to explore new ideas for the future of nursery feed nutrition.
Providing Technical Support
Technical support is a critical aspect of Kayla's role, and she will continue to provide support on-farm across the country to provide on-site assistance to clients. These visits allow her to directly address any challenges they may face and offer tailored solutions that improve the performance of piglets receiving our nursery feeds. By being present and responsive, Kayla can build stronger relationships and ensure the success of the products in the field. In conclusion, Kayla's new role at Grand Valley Fortifiers (and supporting Fortified Nutrition) as a nursery feed specialist in is an exciting opportunity to drive innovation, optimize processes, and support clients. Through strong partnerships, continuous improvement, cross-functional collaboration, education, and technical support, Kayla looks forward to contributing to the growth and success of nursery feed products and the overall mission of Grand Valley Fortifiers.
