Amino Acid Case Study - (Growth In Pigs)SUMMARY A regional evaluation of chromium tripicolinate supplementation in sows. Lindemann, M. D., S. D. Carter, L. I. Chiba, C. R. Dove, L. L. Southern, and S-288 Regional Research Committee on Nutrition and Management of Swine for Increased Reproduction Efficiency. Supplementation of sows with chromium tripicolinate has shown some promising increases in litter size. However, the effect of various levels of picolinate supplementation has not been examined. This study was conducted to evaluate multiple levels of Cr supplementation across a variety of conditions at five universities. A common corn-soy diet was formulated to meet or exceed the NRC (1988) requirement estimates for sows. Supplemental levels of 0, 200, 600, and 1,000 ppb Cr from chromium tripicolinate were used. The 600 ppb provides the mature animal with a similar Cr supply per kg of BW as a growing pig fed 200 ppb Cr. The 1,000 ppb is 5 times the standard supplementation level of 200 ppb Cr. Participants were required to use at least three of the four levels, including 0 and 200 ppb Cr. A total of 285 gilts and sows were allotted to treatments on the day of breeding. Only those sows completing at least two parities were considered in the data analysis. A total of 439 litters (the experimental unit) were included in the statistical analysis. The model included terms for station, treatment, study parity, and all possible interactions. There were significant station effects for all measured responses, but no "meaningful" station x treatment interactions were observed. With regard to litter size, which was the primary interest of response, a tendency for an increase in total pigs born/litter with increasing Cr supplementation was observed (10.17 , 10.86, 11.09, and 10.53, respectively; P = 0.14). The litter size responses in live born (9.27, 9.59, 10.12, and 9.71) and weaned (8.30, 8.47, 9.00, and 8.83) followed the same pattern, but were not statistically significant. In summary, supplementation of 200 ppb Cr from chromium tripicolinate resulted in the increase in mean litter size similar to published literature. Numerical increases in litter size beyond that observed at 200 ppb may suggest the need for a continued research to evaluate the effect of higher supplementation rates. The level of five times the current supplementation rate was not detrimental to sows, even though 1,000 Cr from chromium tripicolinate was fed up to three parities. Lysine requirement of sows nursing large litters. A cooperative study. Knabe, D. A., L. I. Chiba, E. T. Kornegay, and J. C. McConnell, S-145 Committee on Nutritional Systems for Swine to Increase Reproductive Efficiency. A cooperative experiment was conducted at four stations (AL, SC, TX, and VA) to evaluate the lysine requirement of sows nursing large litters. Stations could begin with gilts or sows but all females remained on their treatments for three parities unless culled for failure to breed or structural unsoundness, or inadequate litter size. Pigs were transferred among litters to achieve minimum litter sizes of 9 or 10 pigs on day-3 of lactation for gilts and sows, respectively. During lactation, females had ad libitum access to diets formulated to contain 0.60, 0.75 or 0.90% lysine by altering the proportions of corn and soybean meal. All sows were fed 1.8 kg of the 0.60% lysine diet during gestation. Pigs were weaned at about 28 days of age. Data from 479 litters were collected. Dietary treatments did not affect litter size after transfer (10.8), litter size at 21 days (9.6), sow feed intake to day 21 (5.4 kg/day), or days to postweaning estrus (5.9 day). Increasing dietary lysine resulted in a linear decrease (P < 0.01) in sow weight loss from farrowing to day 21 of lactation (-6.3, -4.6, and -2.2 kg), but most of this response was due to gilts (-10.8, -9.8, and -4.9 kg; P < 0.01), not sows (-3.2, -3.0, -1.4 kg; P > 0.10). Average pig weights at 21 days were increased linearly (5.2, 5.4, and 5.5 kg/pig; P < 0.01) by increasing dietary lysine, but a treatment x station interaction (P < 0.05) occurred. At one station (n = 254) a linear increase was found, whereas there was no response to 0.90 % lysine at two stations (n = 186). At one station (n = 39), there was a response to 0.90% lysine but not to 0.75% lysine. Increasing dietary lysine in the first farrowing tended (linear, P = 0.07) to increase total (10.5, 10.8, and 11.2) and live (9.7, 9.9, and 10.2) pigs born/litter in subsequent farrowings. Overall, these data indicate that sows and gilts nursing large litters need at least 0.90% lysine for maximum reproductive performance. |
