Effect of reduced crude protein and diet complexity on nursery pig performance

• Grant number: 15/20747-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: November 20, 2015
• End date: March 31, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Animal Husbandry - Animal Nutrition and Feeding
• Principal Investigator: Lúcio Francelino Araújo
• Grantee: Bárbara Volpi de Freitas
• Supervisor: Marcia Carlson Shannon
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Missouri, Columbia (UM), United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 13/08076-6 - EVALUATION OF THE USE OF PLASMA IN FEED SOWS, BP.DR

Abstract

Weaning is characterized as one of the most stressful moments in the life of a pig, resulting in decreased feed intake and consequently imparing growth performance. Thus, to stimulate feed intake, complex diets are commonly formulated to minimize impaired performance in this period. To obtain maximum growth performance in the nursery phase and throughout a pig's life, an effective feeding program with high quality ingredients in diets is required. The purpose of this project is to evaluate the effects of reducing crude protein (CP) by 2.5% and diet complexity (blood cells, plasma, and fish meal) in post-weaning diets of weanling pigs. Ninety-six pigs of commercial line will be alloted; 8 replications of three pigs per pen of commercial line, with a minimum pen average of 6 kg and a weaning age of 17-24 days old. The study involves a randomized complete block (CRB) design, with a 2x2 factorial arrangement of 4 treatments and 2 phases, corresponding to days 14-21 and 21-35, with pigs fed similar diets during the first week post-weaning among treatments: Trt 1: Control diet (high CP diet containing fish meal and blood); Trt 2: Corn - Soybean meal (SBM) based diet with high CP; Trt 3: low CP diet containing fish meal and blood; Trt 4: Corn - SBM based diet with low CP. Pigs will be weighed weekly and feed disappearance will be measured. Blood samples will be collected on days 0, 7, 14, 21, 28 and 35 from one pig per pen. Samples will be analyzed in the laboratory of the University of Missouri, under the supervision of Dr. Marcia Carlson Shannon. Growth performance data and treatment results will be analyzed using Proc Mixed procedure of SAS with repeated measures in time will be used with a significance level of 5%. (AU)