Handling Associated with Drenching Does Not Impact Survival and General Health of Low Birth Weight Piglets

Chemical Composition of Newborn Piglets with Different Weights at Birth in Sows with a High Reproductive Performance

The present study aimed to quantify and update the data on the body composition (energy nutrients) of newborn piglets of different body weights at the time of birth, as well as of the placenta mass. Data were collected from newborn piglets (n = 25) from modern genetic lines which were stillborn or died within the first 24 h of life after being crushed to death with various body weights at birth (<0.8 kg (n = 5); 0.8-1.2 kg (n = 5); >1.2-1.6 kg (common birth weight, n = 10) and >1.6 kg (n = 5)). The placenta (n = 20) of sows from a conventional breeding farm were collected, too. The body composition of newborns of "normal" (>1.2-1.6 kg) and even lighter (0.8-1.2) weights still indicated a "normal" composition. In the case of a lower body weight of piglets <0.8 kg at birth, the crude ash (24.1%) and crude protein (8.21%) contents were higher, but the crude fat (16.1%), carbohydrate (57.4%), and gross energy (3.60%) contents were lower. The placental composition in comparison to the piglet body composition was characterized by higher crude protein contents (24.3%) and lower crude ash (31.6%), crude fat (9.08%), and carbohydrate (55.6%) contents. In conclusion, the energy and protein accumulation in the total mass of fetuses and placentas increased by 75% and 64%, respectively, in comparison to times in which the litter size varied around 10-12 piglets, essentially as a result of the larger fetal mass and not of a different body composition.

Preweaning performance in intrauterine growth-restricted piglets: Characteristics and interventions

Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is frequently observed in pig production, especially when using highly prolific sows. IUGR piglets are born with low body weight and shape indicative of differences in organ growth. Insufficient uteroplacental nutrient transfer to the fetuses is the leading cause of growth restriction in the pig. Supplementing the sow's gestation diet with arginine and/or glutamine improves placenta growth and functionality and consequently is able to reduce IUGR incidence. IUGR piglets are at higher risk of dying preweaning and face higher morbidity than their normal-weight littermates. A high level of surveillance during farrowing and individual nutrient supplementation can reduce the mortality rates. Still, these do not reverse the long-term consequences of IUGR, which are induced by persistent structural deficits in different organs. Dietary interventions peri-weaning can optimize performance but these are less effective in combating the metabolic changes that occurred in IUGR, which affect reproductive performance later in life. IUGR piglets share many similarities with IUGR infants, such as a poorer outcome of males. Using the IUGR piglet as an animal model to further explore the structural and molecular basis of the long-term consequences of IUGR and the potential sex bias could aid in fully understanding the impact of prenatal undernutrition and finding solutions for both species and sexes.

A workflow for automatic, high precision livestock diagnostic screening of locomotor kinematics

Locomotor kinematics have been challenging inputs for automated diagnostic screening of livestock. Locomotion is a highly variable behavior, and influenced by subject characteristics (e.g., body mass, size, age, disease). We assemble a set of methods from different scientific disciplines, composing an automatic, high through-put workflow which can disentangle behavioral complexity and generate precise individual indicators of non-normal behavior for application in diagnostics and research. For this study, piglets (Sus domesticus) were filmed from lateral perspective during their first 10 h of life, an age at which maturation is quick and body mass and size have major consequences for survival. We then apply deep learning methods for point digitization, calculate joint angle profiles, and apply information-preserving transformations to retrieve a multivariate kinematic data set. We train probabilistic models to infer subject characteristics from kinematics. Model accuracy was validated for strides from piglets of normal birth weight (i.e., the category it was trained on), but the models infer the body mass and size of low birth weight (LBW) piglets (which were left out of training, out-of-sample inference) to be "normal." The age of some (but not all) low birth weight individuals was underestimated, indicating developmental delay. Such individuals could be identified automatically, inspected, and treated accordingly. This workflow has potential for automatic, precise screening in livestock management.

The Effect of Drenching (Very) Low Birth Weight Piglets with a Dense, Concentrated Milk Replacer at Farms with Differing Farrowing Management

Introducing hyperprolific sows has led to proportionally more (very) low birth weight ((V)LBW) piglets, accompanied by higher mortality. To improve the survival of (V)LBW piglets, drenching a dense milk replacer (DMR) could be applied. A first experiment evaluated the effect of drenching DMR (1 or 3 doses within 24 h after birth) to LBW ((mean litter birth weight - 1*SD) and weighing between 1 kg and 750 g) and VLBW piglets ((mean litter birth weight - 1.5*SD) and weighing less than 750 g). On days 1, 2, 3, 9, and two days post-weaning, body weight, growth, skin lesions, and mortality were monitored. No effect of DMR was observed on any of the parameters. In a second experiment, LBW piglets were supplemented with DMR (similarly to experiment 1) at two farms differing in the level of perinatal care. The same parameters were evaluated, and again none were affected by drenching DMR. Overall survival of the LBW piglets was significantly higher at the farm with high perinatal care. It can be concluded that good perinatal management is more effective in enhancing the survival of LBW piglets than drenching.

Definition of low birth weight in domestic mammals: a scoping review

In people and animals, low birth weight (LBW) is recognized as highly predictive of health trajectory from the neonatal period to elderly ages. Regarding the neonatal period, although LBW is recognized as a major risk factor for neonatal mortality, there does not appear to be a clear definition of 'when a birth weight should be considered low' in all species. The aim of this work was to use the scientific literature available to map the various thresholds proposed to define LBW in domestic mammals. Using a standardized methodology, a scoping review was conducted through a literature search in three different bibliographic databases. After a two-step screening of 1729 abstracts and full-text publications by two independent reviewers, eleven studies met the inclusion criteria. Selected publications represented six mammalian species (rat, mouse, dog, pig, cow, and rabbit). Birth weight thresholds were identified through six different methods. In addition to the scarcity of scientific literature about the definition of LBW, this scoping review revealed the lack of standardization for the description, evaluation or the pertinence these definitions. Because the health consequences of LBW could be preventable, providing early identification of at-risk neonates, a consensus for the standardized definition of LBW is required.

L-leucine supplementation reduces growth performance accompanied by changed profiles of plasma amino acids and expression of jejunal amino acid transporters in breast-fed intra-uterine growth-retarded piglets

Previously, we provided an evidence that L-leucine supplementation facilitates growth performance in suckling piglets with normal birth weight. However, it remains hitherto obscure weather breast-fed piglets displaying intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) show a similar effect in response to L-leucine provision. In this study, seven-day-old sow-reared IUGR piglets were orally administrated with L-leucine (0, 0.7 1.4, 2.1 g/kg BW) twice daily for two weeks. Increasing leucine levels hampered the growth performance of suckling IUGR piglets. The average daily gain of IUGR piglets was significantly reduced in 1.4 g/kg BW and 2.1 g/kg BW L-leucine supplementation groups (P < 0.05). Except for ornithine and glutamine, the plasma concentrations of other amino acids were abated as L-leucine levels increased (P < 0.05). Leucine supplementation led to reduction in the levels of urea, blood ammonia, blood glucose, triglyceride, and total cholesterol, as well as an elevation in the level of low density lipoprotein cholesterol in suckling IUGR piglets (P < 0.05). In addition, 1.4g/kg BW of L-leucine enhanced the mRNA expression of ATB 0,+ , whereas decreased the mRNA abundances of CAT1, y+LAT1, ASCT2 and b 0,+ AT in the jejunum (P < 0.05). Concomitantly, the jejunum of IUGR piglets in L-leucine group contains more ATB0,+ and less SNAT2 protein than in the control (P < 0.05). Collectively, L-leucine supplementation impairs growth performance in breast-fed IUGR piglets, which may be associated with depressed nutritional conditions and alterations in the uptake of amino acids and the expression of amino acid transporters in the small intestine.

Influence of the application methods of iron/anticoccidial products on the behaviour and associated stress factors of suckling piglets

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of different treatment protocols for the control of iron-deficiency anaemia and coccidiosis, one combination injection versus injection of iron and oral application of toltrazuril, on the general behaviour of piglets. Piglets were divided into three experimental treatment groups: 24 piglets were left untreated; (control group, C); 24 piglets received an oral administration of generic anticoccidial agent (20 mg/kg BW) plus intramuscular administration of iron dextran (200 mg/ml; 1 ml/piglet) in the same handling (oral + parenteral group, O+P) and 24 piglets received an intramuscular application of the combination product (parenteral group, P). As expected, the handling time was higher in the oral + parenteral group than in the parenteral group. Regarding the behaviour of piglets, the time spent suckling after treatment was variable in the control and oral + parenteral groups, while piglets from the parenteral group spent more time suckling, and hence, their time spent resting was decreased. A statistical trend of lower concentration of cortisol was observed in P compared to O+P after processing. Regarding productivity indices, the average daily gain of piglets during lactation and, subsequently, their weaning weight were higher in P compared to O+P, and similar to the control. In conclusion, administering a combination product injection decreases the time of administration compared to individual treatments.