Nutrient Requirements and Feed Formulations for Baby, Growing and Finishing Pigs | Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science Optional for UPSC PDF Download

Introduction

• Pigs are known for their rapid growth, typically reaching slaughter weight at around six months.
• In India, pigs are often slaughtered at 70 kg weight, achieved at this age.
• Pigs have a simple digestive system and struggle with rough fodders like straw.
• Fermentation products can meet a significant portion of a pig's maintenance needs.
• Pigs can consume succulent leafy green fodder and prefer coarsely ground materials.
• Coarsely ground maize, oats, and barley are valued feeds for pigs.
• Groundnut cake is a popular and nutritious feed for pigs.
• Animal protein supplements like fish and meat meals are essential for providing necessary amino acids.
• Milk products are also highly regarded feeds for pigs.
• Molasses can increase meal consumption when added to feeds.

Nutritional Complexity:

• Feeding pigs is a complex process, with nutritional deficiencies leading to significant piglet mortality.
• The amino acid requirements of growing pigs increase with higher dietary protein levels.
• Essential fatty acids and various mineral elements are crucial for pig nutrition.
• The type of fat fed to pigs can impact the quality of their carcass.

Feeding Practices:

• In developed countries, pigs are primarily fed high-energy cereals like maize.
• In India, a mix of maize, groundnut cake, and other by-products is commonly used instead of liberal maize feeding.
• Excessive protein should be avoided as it can harm the pig's organs and cause digestive issues.
• Water consumption is significant for pigs, especially in hot weather.
• Antibiotics are often added to pig feed to improve health and growth rates.

Ration Types:

• Three main rations are fed to pigs before reaching market weight: creep/starter, grower, and finisher rations.
• Creep and starter rations are crucial for the early growth of baby pigs.
• Creep feeding is essential for piglets to ensure faster growth when weaned early.
• Starter diets support piglets weaned from sows and reared separately.

Rations for Growing Pigs (15-20 kg Body Weight)

• When pigs reach 12-15 kg at 56 days old, they transition to grower's ration.
• During this phase, they significantly increase their food intake, leading to higher feed costs.
• The period until the pigs reach 20 kg is crucial for nutrition balance.
• Following this, simpler rations are sufficient for their growth.
• Young pigs are given grower rations until they attain 50 kg, at which point finisher rations are introduced.
• There are two main types of rations: cereal-based growth rations and non-cereal growth rations.
• Both types contain around 16% protein.

Explanation: Growing pigs between 15-20 kg body weight require specific attention to their diet to support their development properly. Here's a breakdown of the key points regarding the rations for pigs during this growth phase:

• Transition to Grower's Ration: When pigs weigh between 12-15 kg around 56 days old, they are switched to grower's ration. This change is necessary as the pigs begin consuming more food during this period, leading to increased feed costs.
• Nutritional Balance: The period until the pigs reach 20 kg is nutritionally critical. It is essential to ensure that their rations are well-balanced during this stage to support their growth effectively.
• Simpler Rations After 20 kg: Once the pigs reach 20 kg, they can thrive on simpler rations, indicating a shift in their dietary needs as they grow.
• Transition to Finisher Rations: When the piglets reach 50 kg, they are transitioned from grower rations to finisher rations to meet their evolving nutritional requirements.
• Types of Rations: There are two primary types of rations provided to growing pigs: cereal-based growth rations and non-cereal growth rations, both containing around 16% protein to support their development adequately.By ensuring that pigs receive appropriate rations tailored to their growth stages, farmers can effectively promote healthy development and overall well-being in their livestock.

Non-cereal Growth Rations for Livestock Feeding

Availability of Cereal Grains:

• Availability of cereal grains for livestock feed in India is minimal, at just 0.2% of total cereal production.
• Most cereal grains are utilized for poultry feeding, leaving very little for pigs.

Feeding Economics for Pigs:

• Feeding pigs with cereal grains is not economically viable due to the low meat cost of pigs.
• Even mixed animal feeds with high cereal content are expensive for pig feeding.

Use of By-product Concentrates:

• Cereal grains are replaced by by-product concentrates either partially or entirely in the diets of growing and finishing swine.

Feed Efficiency and Weight Gain:

• Pigs fed with non-cereal growth rations can achieve daily weight gains ranging between 350 to 450 grams.
• However, the feed utilization efficiency is relatively low, resulting in 5-7 kg of live weight gain per unit of feed consumed.

Finisher Rations:

• When piglets reach around 50 kg, they are transitioned to a finisher ration until they reach a market weight of 70 kg.
• In India, the preferred slaughter weight is 70 kg, which is more cost-effective than the 90 kg weight common in Western countries.
• The protein content in this feed is relatively low at 14%.

Feeding of Pregnant and Lactating Sows:

• The rations designed for finisher pigs can also be given to breeding sows and gilts, but with increased vitamin levels.
• For pregnant sows or gilts, it is recommended to double the vitamin supplements for optimal health.

Feeding Guidelines for Pigs

• Optimum meal quantity for pregnant sows is 2 to 2.5 kg, while gilts may require 3 kg of mixture.
• Quality succulent feeds like Berseem or lucerne, around 5-6 kg per animal, are recommended for the rest of the feeding.
• Excessive meal amounts can lead to embryonic mortality.
• For lactating animals, a diet of 3.5 kg of meal along with 0.2 kg per piglet in the litter is advised to meet their nutritional needs.
• Breeding boars should be fed with 2.5 kg of pig meal per head per day.

Examples

• For instance, if a pregnant sow weighing 200 kg is fed 2 kg of meal daily, it meets the optimal feeding requirement.
• In another scenario, a gilt weighing 150 kg would require a slightly higher meal quantity of 3 kg to support its needs.
• When lactating, a sow weighing 250 kg and nursing 10 piglets should be given 3.5 kg of meal along with an additional 0.2 kg per piglet.
• A breeding boar weighing 300 kg needs 2.5 kg of pig meal daily to ensure good health and reproductive performance.

Feeding for Lean Meat Production in Pigs

• The process of limiting energy intake in the later phase of the finishing period impacts fat deposition, leading to the production of lean meat in pigs.
• Energy restriction can be achieved by either regulating the amount of feed given or by incorporating relatively indigestible components in the diet.
• Energy restriction typically commences when the pig reaches 50 kg in weight (usually around 4 months of age) and continues until it reaches market weight at 90 kg.
• An average energy intake restriction of 15.8% causes a decrease of 0.78% in daily weight gains.
• For every 1% restriction in energy intake, back fat thickness decreases by 0.53%.
• Initially, feed conversion rates increase with energy restriction but start to decrease when the restriction reaches around 25% or more.
• Indigestible components like corncobs, cellulose, sand, polythene, etc., are added to the diet to regulate feed quantity and enhance lean meat production.