How to nurture underweight piglets with special feed.

How to nurture underweight piglets with special feed.Feeding these special pigs requires much more than just using the most expensive feed available.Small-weight piglets require special treatment if they are to catch up with normal litter mates. Post weaning, this is achieved by using the right feed. Not only must the feed match the special needs of underweight pigs, but also its management must meet the reduced appetite for dry feed. Some producers take the approach that using the most expensive feed or feed ingredients will solve the problem.Unfortunately, this does not work as often as one might hope. Instead, a careful study of the pig production system is needed before a small-weight piglet feed is designed or selected. This, together with “special” management techniques should ultimately produce healthy, economically viable pigs. The challenges with these pigs are threefold. First, their feed intake is extremely low and as such, their diets must be very dense in nutrients and other functional components. Second, their digestive systems are even more immature compared to the rest of the piglets and so, very digestible ingredients are needed to make up their feeds. Third, their health, and especially their gut health, is very fragile and it needs protection and support. Traditionally, feed intake was enhanced by the addition of "tasty" ingredients and additives,CERELAC works perfectly.. These included dairy products, such as sweet whey, and of course, artificial flavors and aromas. Although such approaches are still valid, more effort is needed to entice smaller pigs to the feed trough. One such approach is through the feed form. A mash (meal) type of diet appears to be working best, especially if it is rather granular in form. This can be achieved by using crumbled pellets, a mix of meal and crumbles, or even a blend of meal and small pellets. When it comes to pellets, durability is not as important as hardness. Small piglets have trouble chewing hard pellets, so a softer pellet is very important in stimulating feed intake. Digestibility It has been known for a long time now that nutrient digestibility positively affects feed intake. In young, immature pigs, especially those with low feed intake, every mouthful of feed must count. Thus, ingredients with the highest digestibility are needed in such “special” formulas. These ingredients include the best quality sweet whey, low-temperature fish meal, cooked cereals (especially rice), coconut oil (in preference to other vegetable oils), and refined dairy and vegetable proteins with very low levels of anti-nutritional factors (such as pea protein, wheat gluten, soy protein isolate, whey protein concentrate, casein, etc.) How to nurture underweight piglets with special feed.