Drenching Bovine Colostrum, Quercetin or Fructo-Oligosaccharides Has No Effect on Health or Survival of Low Birth Weight Piglets
Kevin Van Tichelen,
Sara Prims,
Miriam Ayuso,
Céline Van Kerschaver,
Mario Vandaele,
Jeroen Degroote,
Steven Van Cruchten,
Joris Michiels,
Chris Van Ginneken
Affiliations
Kevin Van Tichelen
Comparative Perinatal Development, Faculty of Biomedical, Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Sciences, Antwerp University, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
Sara Prims
Comparative Perinatal Development, Faculty of Biomedical, Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Sciences, Antwerp University, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
Miriam Ayuso
Comparative Perinatal Development, Faculty of Biomedical, Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Sciences, Antwerp University, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
Céline Van Kerschaver
Laboratory for Animal Production and Animal Product Quality, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Mario Vandaele
Laboratory for Animal Production and Animal Product Quality, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Jeroen Degroote
Laboratory for Animal Production and Animal Product Quality, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Steven Van Cruchten
Comparative Perinatal Development, Faculty of Biomedical, Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Sciences, Antwerp University, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
Joris Michiels
Laboratory for Animal Production and Animal Product Quality, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Chris Van Ginneken
Comparative Perinatal Development, Faculty of Biomedical, Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Sciences, Antwerp University, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
The introduction of hyperprolific sows has resulted in more low birth weight (LBW) piglets, accompanied by higher mortality. A possible strategy to enhance the resilience and survival of LBW piglets is oral supplementation (drenching) of bioactive substances. This study evaluated the supplementation of bovine colostrum, short-chain fructo-oligosaccharides (scFOS) or quercetin that were dissolved separately in a milk replacer. The study was divided into two sub-experiments. First, the milk replacer was compared with a sham drenched group. Secondly, each dissolved compound was compared with the milk replacer. The LBW piglets, defined as weighing between (mean litter birth weight −1*SD) and (mean litter birth weight −2.5*SD), were randomly allocated to the different treatments and drenched once a day for seven days. On day 1, 3, 9, 24 and 38, piglets were weighed and scored for skin lesions. Blood samples were collected on day 9 and 38 and analyzed to determine glucose, non-esterified fatty acids, urea, immunoglobulin G, insulin-like growth factor 1, and a standard blood panel test. There was no difference between sham drenched piglets and piglets that were drenched with milk replacer regarding any of the parameters. No effect was observed between the milk replacer group and any of the bioactive compounds either, except a higher mortality within the scFOS group. In conclusion, this study showed that drenching the evaluated bioactive compounds, in the used dosages, did not improve LBW piglets’ resilience or survival and more research is required to determine the effect of scFOS on small piglets.
