SPECIAL REPORT: Getting pigs from weaning to thriving
From the 2024 Kemin Intestinal Health Symposium
By Ann Hess
An abrupt maternal separation, transportation to another farm and commingling with different litters are just a few of the many stressors that impact the weaned pig – and weaning stress can have a lifelong impact.
“The earlier we exposed pigs to stressors, the more profound the problems that will continue during their lifetime, especially during weaning age,” said David Rosero. “We wean pigs early on, and what I refer to as early weaning age, it will be anywhere from the 16- to 20-days-old pig, …. but if that is considered early, there’s greater plasticity. And then that impact lasts longer, so we’re going to have a compromised GI [gastrointestinal] tract, and we’re going to increase the intestinal permeability, which is undesirable because of the pathogens that can affect the pig. The immune response is suppressed too, and there’s going to be an increased cell activation that is undesired at this stage.”
In addition to those stressors, the assistant professor in the department of animal science at Iowa State University said increased regulatory pressures, such as the 2017 Veterinary Feed Directive and zero zinc in the European Union, are also interfering with interventions at the weaned pig stage. Rosero told the audience at the 2024 Kemin Intestinal Health Symposium those pressures have led to compromised gastrointestinal barrier development and function.
“Weaning age has an impact, and if we expose pigs or animals to a disease, that impact becomes bigger,” Rosero said.
While disease is a constant threat to pig health, not all diseases will be infectious, and many may end up being endemic as well. Most pathogens are waiting for that right opportunity to infect the pig, Rosero said.
“We need a susceptible host, we need the pathogen, and we need a conductive environment, and when we have these right conditions – the three conditions – that’s when disease is expressed. There will be potential pathogens present in the gut of the pig even prior to weaning, but also in the environment after weaning,” Rosero said, but added the pathogens do not cause disease all the time. “They can also be subclinical at times, so the impact will be determined by the severity of the infection and then the duration of that exposure of pigs to pathogens.”
Although enteric health is not always clearly defined, Rosero said it must encompass a number of physiological and functional features. Nutrient digestion and absorption, host defense, energy generation and a stable microbiome all play a role in creating optimal gut health. They can also overlap and be dependent on each other.
To get pigs from weaning to thriving, Rosero noted there are three key interventions producers can take in terms of feeding and nutrition.
1. Early feed intake
“We believe feed intake is a big driver of the postweaning performance but also the gut health of the pig,” Rosero said. “I think the industry needs to focus a lot more that first week, or first three days, on feed intake of the pig. There are things we can do in the diet, especially as we feed pigs, making sure we have the right budgets and align that to what’s happening in the field.”
Feeding methods such as creep feeding, mat feeding and gruel feeding can ease transition and promote intake. Producers should also keep an eye on nutrition formulations, as inadequate diet composition can drive pathogen proliferation. The inclusion of functional amino acids, such as tryptophan, threonine and methionine, is recommended to support the immune system and improve pig growth performance.
2. Immune stimulation
“In terms of immune modulation, spray-dried plasma has been in the market for a long time,” Rosero said. “We understand there’s an inflammatory response driver of the intestinal barrier, and then to the nutrient absorption when given to pigs. I like to think about plasma and beyond antibodies, because there’s also Transferrin. There’s also Lysozyme, which has some impact on bacteria pathogens, especially. There’s also growth factors.”
Rosero encourages colostrum intake for its antibodies and to reduce inflammation as well. 1-3 B-glucan, such as algae and yeast, can also aid in immune cell activation.
3. Enteric health
“Zinc oxide is well known in having an impact on preventing pathogen control. There’s also copper salts too that we can use,” Rosero said. “Something that I want to encourage nutritionists to use too is enzymes, especially phytase acid. These destroy one of the most present anti-nutritional factors in the diet, which is phytate. But we can also explore proteases and carbohydrates. In the U.S. market, we also have botanicals, medium-chain fatty acids, organic acids and pre- and probiotics.”
In addition, producers need to take another look at crude protein.
“We have to understand that high crude protein might mediate some of the scouring but is not the full answer for the scours we see, but it’s a key driver for proper performance of pigs,” Rosero said. “We want to drive E. coli presence lower, not necessarily just diarrhea lower, so there’s no correlation between the two – not all the time. Higher crude protein might drive some of the looseness, but it doesn’t mean it’s going to drive E. coli. Now, if you’re willing to sacrifice some performance too, that has to be considered. If we reduce protein, then it’s going to drive performance lower.”
Watch the full presentation from Dr. Rosero and access all content from the 2024 Kemin Intestinal Health Symposium at kemin.com/symposium.
