How to boost colostrum and milk production in sows Chantal Farmer Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Sherbrooke R & D Centre, Sherbrooke, QC, Canada Patrocinado por:
OUTLINE: 1. Colostrum yield: Ø why is it important? Ø composition vs time
Ø prolonging the colostral phase
2. Milk yield: Ø why is it important?
Ø how can we increase it? Ø mammary development: § when does it take place? § body condition § teat use in primiparous sows
ROLES: ü Newborn piglets are very vulnerable: Ø low energy reserves (1% body fat… poor thermoregulation)
Ø no immune protection (need immunoglobulins from mother)
ROLES: ü The ingestion of 250 g of colostrum by a piglet of average BW (1.4 kg) (Quesnel et al. 2012): Ø greatly reduces the risk of preweaning mortality Ø provides a source of passive immunity Ø allows for BW gain of piglets so a litter of 13 piglets needs 3.3 kg of colostrum in 1 study using 200 sows… 1/3 of sows did not have enough colostrum to meet the needs of their piglets
YIELD: ü The production variable:
of
colostrum
Ø estimates: § 1.91 to 5.31 kg/24 h § average of 3.57 kg/24 h (Devillers et al. 2005)
§ study with 100 sows 0.11 kg 3.50
(Declerck (Declerck et al. 2015)
is
very
YIELD: Ăź Impact of the sow vs. the piglets
(Devillers 2004):
Ă˜ the amount of colostrum ingested in the 1st 24 h postpartum: > 450 g/kg if piglets are bottle-fed 212-373 g/kg if piglets are suckling the sow hence, the sow limits the amount of colostrum ingested
YIELD: • Affected by management procedures such as farrowing induction: Ø using prostaglandins: ütendency to
colostrum yield
(d 111, Matteo et al. 1984; d 114, Devillers et al. 2005).
üthis negative effect is more important when farrowings are induced earlier in gestation (d 109, Milon et al. 1983):
§
32%
colostrum yield
§
10%
piglet birth weight
COMPOSITION: colostrum Comp (%) Protein
0 h
milk
12 h 24 h 36 h 72 h 17 d
17.7 12.2
8.6
IgG-mg/mL 64.4 34.7 10.3 DM
transition 7.3
6.1
4.7
--
3.1
1.0
27.3 22.4 20.6 21.4 21.2 18.9
Fat
5.1
5.3
6.9
9.1
9.8
8.2
Lactose
3.5
4.0
4.4
4.6
4.8
5.1
E-kJ/100g
260
276
346
435
468
409
(Theil et al. 2014; Hurley 2015)
COMPOSITION: ü Other constituents: Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø
hormones growth factors enzymes minerals vitamins somatic cells
COMPOSITION: ü Colostrum composition is affected by the status of tight junctions between mammary epithelial cells
Ø these junctions become tighter as lactation advances decreasing the transfer of large molecules: alveolar lumen mammary epithelial cells
IgG (sow blood)
§ § § §
proteins IgG fat lactose
(Theil et al. 2014)
COMPOSITION: ü Injecting supraphysiological amounts of oxytocin can alter the permeability of mammary tight junctions, hence the composition of early milk in: Ø goats (Linzell and Peaker, 1974) Ø rodents (Nguyen and Neville, 1998) Ø cows (Jonsson et al. 2013) Ø sows ?
ü This is most important in swine, because the provision of an extra 15 mL of colostrum to small piglets in the first 4 h postpartum (Muns et al. 2014): Ø IgG in piglet blood Ø neonatal mortality
QUESTION‌. Can injections of a high dose of oxytocin in the early postpartal period prolong the colostral phase in sows via alterations in the status of mammary tight junctions?
PROLONGING THE COLOSTRAL PHASE: ü Pregnant Yorkshire x Landrace sows, 2nd parity ü Farrowings induced on day 114 ü Sows farrowing between 12:00h and 20:00h were used in the study day 1 of lactation ü Sows divided en 2 groups: v OXY: i.m. injections of 75 IU oxytocin (n=10) v CTL: i.m. injections with saline (n=10)
ü 4 injections in total: 2 per day (08:00h & 16:30h) starting on day 2 (12 to 20h after birth of the last piglet) v average of 16.0
2.4 h
PROLONGING THE COLOSTRAL PHASE: ü day 80 of gestation: sows were injected i.m. with 2 mg of ovalbumin (OVA) to raise specific antibodies ü day 95 of gestation: booster injection with OVA
PROLONGING THE COLOSTRAL PHASE: ü 4 milk samples: day 2 (AM & PM), day 4, day 5 v dry matter, fat, protein, lactose v immunoglobulins (IgG, IgA), anti-OVA v Na, K, growth factor IGF-1
10
10
9
9
8
8
7
7
*
6
6
Fat, %
Energy, kg/g
RESULTS: MILK
5 4
5
3
3
2
2
1
1
0
0 2 AM
2 PM
4 PM
CTL
4
OXY
2 AM
5 PM
10
10
9
9
**
6
Lactose, %
Protein, %
7
6 5 4
5 3
2
2
1
1
0 4 PM
Day of lactation
5 PM
CTL
4
3
2 PM
5 PM
8
7
2 AM
4 PM
Day of lactation
Day of lactation
8
2 PM
OXY
**
0 2 AM
2 PM
4 PM
Day of lactation
5 PM
50
40
40
30
30
Na/K, %
50
*
20
**
CTL
20
OXY
10
10
0
0 2 AM
2 PM
4 PM
2 AM
5 PM
2 PM
4 PM
Day of lactation
Day of lactation
**
80 70 IGF-1, ng/mL
DM, %
RESULTS: MILK
60 50 40
CTL
30
OXY
20 10 0 2 AM
2 PM
4 PM
Day of lactation
5 PM
5 PM
RESULTS: MILK 25
25
** IgA, mg/mL
20
15 10
15
5
0
0 2 AM
2 PM
4 PM
CTL
10
5
5 PM
OXY
** 2 AM
Day of lactation
Ab anti-OVA, arb. units x 104
IgG, mg/mL
20
2 PM
4 PM
Day of lactation
80 70 60 50
**
40
CTL
30
OXY
20 10 0 2 AM
2 PM
4 PM
Day of lactation
5 PM
5 PM
RESULTS: PIGLET BODY WEIGHT BODY WEIGHT (Kg)
CTL
OXY
SEM
Birth
1.48
1.58
0.07
d 2 AM
1.55
1.67
0.05
1.56 0.007
1.68 0.013
0.06 0.008
d 7
2.69
2.86
0.09
d 14
5.00
5.27
0.16
d 21
7.37
7.63
0.22
d 35
11.31
11.52
0.34
d 2 PM - gain on d 2
(no difference; n = 10 litters)
RESULT: PIGLET MORTALITY ü number of live born piglets: similar Ø 16.4 and 15.9
1.1 for CTL vs OXY
ü tendency (P<0.10) for a greater incidence of pre-weaning mortality in CTL vs OXY sows: Ø CTL: 6.1 Ø OXY: 2.3
5.1% (SD) 3.8% (SD)
SO… ü 1 injection of oxytocin in early lactation can prolong the colostral phase: Ø
Na/K in milk within 8 h of injection
ü beneficial effect on the quality of milk in early lactation: Ø
protein, IgG, IgA and anti-OVA in milk suggests
prolonged passive transfer to piglets
MILK: main energy source for piglets
The sow is not producing enough milk to sustain maximal piglet growth
I would prefer milk!
Milk yield between 1971 and 1998 Milk yield (kg/day) 5.2 7.1 8.3 8.6 9.9 8.7 10.3 11.6
Scientific Reference Elsley (1971) Noblet & Ă&#x2030;tienne (1986) Schoenherr et al. (1989) King et al. (1993) King et al. (1996) Toner et al. (1996) Sauber et al. (1996) King & Eason (1998)
Ă&#x2DC; stable thereafter
PROBLEM â&#x20AC;Ś Ăź
in litter size has the amount of milk ingested per piglet
hyperprolificity is a new problem
How can we increase sow milk yield?
Increasing milk production ü
genetics (selection) § §
ü
milk yield: heritability of 0.20 to 0.27 teat quality: heritability of 0.29 v 13% of gilts have at least 1 non functional teat (inverted, blind)
multiparous (+ 25%) > primiparous §
milk yield… increases from parity 1 to 2 is greatest in parities 2 to 4 decreases thereafter
Milk production (litter size) milk yield with litter size, but amount of milk ingested/piglet Ă&#x2DC; 4 vs 12 piglets: 1.0 vs 0.7 kg/day Ă&#x2DC; 6 vs 14 piglets: 1.6 vs 1.1 kg/day
Milk production (stage of lactation) quadratically, maximum days 15-21 milk composition varies: Ă&#x2DC; protein and fat as lactation advances Ă&#x2DC; lactose as lactation advances
Milk production (suckling interval) Ăź 35, 50, 70 or 100 min: similar amount of
milk produced per suckling
Ă&#x2DC; milk synthesis already maximal after 35 minutes Must attempt to reduce suckling interval to 35 min
Milk production (environment) Ăź continuous high noise (ex: ventilator) Ă&#x2DC; milk intake/piglet/suckling via
perturbation of normal suckling rythm
Milk production (environment) ü continuous high noise (ex: ventilator) Ø milk intake/piglet/suckling via
perturbation of normal suckling rythm
ü photoperiod (16 vs 8 h light/day) Ø suckling intervals Ø
piglet weight gain
ü ambient temperature Ø heat stress
milk yield
Milk production (nutrition) protein:
ü
piglet weight gain
Ø lysine and leucine (2 most limiting aa) and requirements must be met
protein (135 g/kg feed): energy: similar milk yield
ü ü
litter ADG
Ø depends on body condition Ø
if restriction over 3 successive parities
Must maximize sow feed intake in lactation !
Mammary gland development: WHY?
Main factor limiting milk yield # of secretory cells present in mammary tissue at the onset of lactation Head et al. (1991)
Mammary Gland Development ü Correlation between the size of a mammary gland and its milk yield (i.e. weight of piglet nursing it) ü Concluded that replacement gilts should be managed so as to enhance their mammary development… development »
Mammary development: anatomy
Parenchyma
Extraparenchyma
Ontogenesis of mammary development At birth: ü mainly stromal tissue ü poorly developed duct system
3 stages of rapid mammary accretion: ü prepubertal: 90 days onward ü last third of gestation ü lactation possible impact to stimulate it
Ontogenesis of mammary development 300
DNA (mg)
250 200 150 100 50 0 0 Sorensen et al. (2002)
50
100
150
200
Age (days)
250
300
Mammary development (puberty) ü extraparenchyma
ü parenchyma
: 1286 vs 1528 g
: 376 vs 249 g
ü important duct sytem
Essential role of estrogens
Ontogenesis of mammary development 3000
DNA (mg)
2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 0 Sorensen et al. (2002)
20
40
60
80
100 120
Days of gestation
Mammary gland composition Primiparous
Day of lactation 5
10
14
21
Surface area (cm2) Weight (g)
47.2
49.6
55.8
60.5
381
408
487
593
Protein (%)
39.4
35.5
46.1
44.8
Fat (%)
55.1
58.4
47.6
48.9
DNA (%)
0.77
0.77
0.95
1.11
Kim et al. (1999)
Mammary Development Can we stimulate it?
Mammary development (Nutrition) ü Nutrition of prepubertal gilts ü Nutrition in gestation ü Nutrition in lactation
Mammary dev.: Prepubertal nutrition Ăź
Feed restriction Ă&#x2DC; 26% restriction days 28-90 (period 1) or days 90-170 (period 2) v period 1: no effect on mammary development v period 2: ad lib mammary tissue ad lib DNA content ad lib RNA content Sorensen et al. (2006)
Mammary dev.: Prepubertal nutrition Ăź
Protein restriction: Ă&#x2DC; 14.4% vs 18.7% CP (0.7 vs 1.0% lys) from 90-202 days of age: v no effect on mammogenesis
Farmer et al. (2004)
Mammary dev.: Prepubertal nutrition ü
Supplementation with flax Ø 10% flaxseed
(oil & lignans: estrogenic)
Ø 88-212 days of age: v expected effects on fatty acid profile v no effects on mammogenesis at puberty Farmer et al. (2007)
Mammary dev.: Prepubertal nutrition üAddition of a phytoestrogen
FLAX
Ø standard corn-soya diet (CTL)
OR Ø standard corn-soya diet + 2.3 g/d of genistein from 90-183 days: v
phytoestrogens in blood
v 44%
parenchymal DNA (cell #) Farmer et al. (2010)
Mammary dev.: Nutrition in gestation ü
energy intake last third Ø 44 vs 24 MJ ME/d:
ü
(Weldon et al. 1991):
parenchyma DNA
protein intake last third:
Ø 330 vs 216 g CP/d: no effect
Ø 4, 8, 16 g lysine/d: no effect v but milk yield in following lactation with 16 g/d (Weldon et al. 1991; Kusina et al. 1999)
Mammary dev.: Nutrition in lactation Ăź
Energy intake Ă&#x2DC; 14.7 vs 12.6 MJ ME/kg of diet
:
v mammary weight of nursed glands v mammary DNA v mammary protein Kim et al. (1999)
Mammary dev.: Nutrition in lactation Ăź
Protein intake Ă&#x2DC; 16.2 vs 8.0 g lysine/kg of diet
:
v mammary weight of nursed glands v mammary DNA v mammary protein Kim et al. (1999)
Mammary dev.: Body condition ü
Change in body condition: Ø
backfat (36 vs 25 mm): v mammary development at the end of gestation § ¼ of DNA present § ½ of alveolar cells present v
milk yield (7 vs 9 L/d) in next lactation Head & Williams 1991-95
Mammary dev.: Body condition Ăź
Change in body condition: Ă&#x2DC; what about body conditions seen commercially? Project at Sherbrooke: comparing low, medium and high backfats at the end of gestation
Project: Backfat end of gestation HBF
24,0
MBF 22,0
22,0 20,6
BF (mm)
20,0 18,9 18,0
18,0 16,7 16,0
16,2 16,3
17,7
17,6
15,8
15,5
17,2 15,9
19,3 17,8
18,0
14,5 14,0
14,0
12,0 d1
d 30
d 50
d 70
Days of gestation
d 100
d 109
LBF
Project: Backfat end of gestation LBF
MBF
HBF
Extraparenchyma (g)
1075
1360
1578
Parenchyma (g)
1059
1370
1444
- DM (%)
38.4
40.8
42.5
- Fat (%)
62.8
65.9
68.2
- Protein (%)
35.1
31.3
29.4
- DNA (mg/g)
10.9
10.0
9.0
Slaughter d 110
Farmer et al. 2015
Project: Backfat end of gestation • There is a negative impact of a gilt being too thin (< 16 mm BF) on mammary parenchymal tissue weight in late gestation • There is no negative impact of a gilt being fat (21-26 mm BF) on mammary development
Ø body condition (i.e. feeding in gestation) is important
Milk yield & management in lactation Ăź It was noticed that teats which are suckled are larger after post-weaning involution than unused teatsâ&#x20AC;Ś (Ford et al. 2003)
Leading to the questionâ&#x20AC;Ś What is the possible impact of the non-use of a teat in 1st lactation on its milk yield in 2nd lactation?
Project 1: Teat use Blocking the same teats or different teats during the 1st and 2nd lactation
Project 1: Teat use
or
Lactation 1
Lactation 2-SAME Lactation 2-DIFF
average of 14 functional teats
6 piglets per litter
Project 1: Teat use SAME
DIFF
d 2
1.65
1.57
d 4
2.08
1.93
d 7
2.92
2.71
d 14
5.39
4.97
d 21
6.73
6.29
d 35
10.83
10.28
d 56
22.72*
21.60
Piglet weight (kg):
Piglets weigh 1.12 kg more on day 56
Project 1: Teat use SAME
DIFF
d 2 to 4
0.43*
0.35
d 4 to 7
0.84
0.78
d 7 to 14
2.47*
2.26
3.74*
3.40
Weight gain (kg):
Lactation: d 2 to 14
Project 1: Teat use MAMMARY GLAND
SAME DIFF
Extraparenchyma (g)
692.5
714.3
Parenchyma (g/teat)
800.4*
641.6
-fat (%)
37.9
37.6
-protein (%)
52.0
52.9
-DNA (g/teat)
1.8*
1.4
-RNA (g/teat)
4.0*
3.3
Next question: What is the minimum time that a teat must be suckled in 1st lactation to avoid decreasing its milk yield in 2nd lactation?
Project 2: Teat use Ø primiparous sows were divided in 3 groups according to lactation length in 1st parity: v 2 days (2D, n=20) v 7 days (7D, n=20) v 21 days (21D, n=21) Ø 2nd lactation: 21 days Ø litters uniformized to 12 piglets for 12 teats (surplus sealed) in lactations 1 & 2 Ø piglets weighed weekly in lactation 2
Project 2: Teat use 2 D
7 D
21 D
- d 2
1.8
1.8
1.9
- d 7
3.0
2.9
3.0
- d 14
5.0
4.8
4.9
- d 21 (weaning)
6.8
6.6
6.7
- d 31
8.7
8.5
8.7
- d 56
23.2
23.1
23.5
Piglets (kg)
Project 2: Teat use Ă&#x2DC; In parity 2: no difference in weight gain of suckling piglets between the 3 treatment groups Ă&#x2DC; Suckling a teat for 2 days during the first lactation is sufficient to ensure enough mammary development so that the next lactation performance is not hindered
CONCLUSIONS: ü Ingesting 250 g of colostrum is essential for the survival and growth of newborn piglets ü The amount of colostrum produced by sows is very variable ü The sow limits the amount of colostrum ingested by piglets ü Numerous management factors affect colostrum production, some being: Ø timing of farrowing induction (not day 109) Ø prolongation of colostral phase using one high dose of oxytocin
CONCLUSIONS: ü Sow milk yield has over the years but not the amount of milk ingested per piglet ü Milk yield is affected by numerous factors ü Nutrient intake in lactation must be maximized ü Mammary development is important and can be altered by nutrition from 90 days of age to puberty and in the last third of gestation ü Body condition (i.e. gestation feeding) of gilts affects mammary development in late gestation. Need at least 16 mm of backfat.
CONCLUSIONS:
v management of sows in their 1st lactation is important for their performance in 2nd lactation teat use for 2 days
Thank you !
v Editor of a book published in 2015 v Recent update of knowledge on sows v Available on line from Wageningen Academic Press