Water palatability, a matter of taste

Qualitative risk assessment of homogeneity, stability, and residual concentrations of antimicrobials in medicated feed and drinking water in pig rearing

BACKGROUND

Despite the common use of oral group treatment in pig rearing, the magnitude of the factors influencing the homogeneity and stability of antimicrobial drugs in medicated feed and medicated drinking water are largely unknown, as well as the residual concentrations of the drugs after the end of the treatment.

RESULTS

This study presents a qualitative risk assessment to estimate the magnitude of the risks for reduced homogeneity and stability, and increased residual concentrations of antimicrobial drugs in medicated feed and drinking water on the farm. Risk assessment was done using a questionnaire and farm visits (n = 52), combined with a second questionnaire, and concentrations of amoxicillin and doxycycline measured in medicated feed and water samples, each collected on 10 farms. For medicated feed, the duration of storage in the silo did not show to influence the concentration levels in a consistent trend, while the treatment duration had a low to negligible effect. A moderate to high risk was found caused by human error when preparing the medicated feed on the farm. Purchased medicated feed greatly reduces the risk of human error and drugs remain stable during the duration of treatment, while the risk of residual concentrations after the end of the treatment was estimated to be low to moderate. The feed intake variability was identified as a moderate to high risk factor. For medicated drinking water, the type of dosing pump, age of pre-solution, and human errors during the preparation of the pre-solution present a moderate to high risk on homogeneity and stability. Precipitation of the active substance in the absence of a stirrer in a drinking water tank was shown to be a low to moderate risk factor for residues after treatment. Waterline length had a weak correlation with the concentrations of the antimicrobials, while a moderate to high influence was detected for the water intake by the pigs.

CONCLUSIONS

A considerable variation in drug concentration in both medicated feed and medicated drinking water was detected depending on their preparation. Therefore, it is important to know which factors influence the homogeneity and stability, and the residual concentrations after treatment.

Review: Drinking water for liquid-fed pigs

Liquid feeding has the potential to provide pigs with sufficient water to remain hydrated and prevent prolonged thirst. However, lack of permanent access to fresh water prevents animals from drinking when they are thirsty. Moreover, individual differences between pigs in a pen may result in uneven distribution of the water provided by the liquid feed, leading to some pigs being unable to meet their water requirements. In this review, we look at the need for and provision of water for liquid-fed pigs in terms of their production performance, behaviour, health and welfare. We highlight factors which may lead to water ingestion above or below requirements. Increases in the need for water may be caused by numerous factors such as morbidity, ambient temperature or competition within the social group, emphasising the necessity of permanent access to water as also prescribed in EU legislation. The drinkers can be the target of redirected behaviour in response to feed restriction or in the absence of rooting materials, thereby generating water losses. The method of water provision and drinker design is critical to ensure easy access to water regardless of the pig's physiological state, and to limit the amount of water used, which does not benefit the pig.

Implementing drinking water feed additive strategies in post-weaning piglets, antibiotic reduction and performance impacts: case study

BACKGROUND

Piglets at weaning suffer many stressors such as sudden change of feed, change in group composition and the end of lactogenic immunity. These stressors may cause poor growth performance. There is a need for alternatives to support piglets during the weaning period. Organic acids are known to have a positive effect on performance through reducing the pH and their antimicrobial action.

CONTEXT & PURPOSE

The purpose was to study the effect of the inclusion of a free and buffered organic acid blend in drinking water on performance of weaned pigs. Four-hundred and twenty pigs in a conventional herd were allocated after weaning to one of three treatments and monitored during 4 weeks: group (1) Full medication, group (2) organic acid blend + full medication, group (3) organic acid blend + reduced medication. Average daily gain, feed intake and water consumption was recorded at group level.

RESULTS

During the overall study period live weight and average daily gain of the piglets was significantly higher (P <0.001) for treatment (3) compared to (1) and (2) (Table 1). Live weight was significantly higher for treatment (3) compared to (1) from week 2 of the study (Fig. 1). No significant differences were found for average daily feed intake. FCR for treatment (3) improved by 1.0 compared to treatment (1) in week 1 (P <0.05), while in week 2 and 3 no significant differences were found (Table 2). Overall, FCR was with 0.3 difference significantly lower (P = 0.001) for treatment (3) than for (1) and (2) (Table 1). Pigs receiving organic acids in drinking water had significantly (P <0.05) higher water consumption than group (1) in weeks 3 and 4 (Table 2).

CONCLUSION & POTENTIAL IMPLICATIONS

The use of a blend of free and buffered organic acids together with a reduced medication program improves growth performance during the first month after weaning compared to a control with full medication and a combination between organic acids and full medication. This implies that organic acids could be used as a valid alternative for antibiotic reduction in post-weaning pigs. The treatment also increased the drinking water intake.