Zinc in late-gestation diets for sows improved piglet survival

By Lee Johnston and Julia Holen, University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center; Jae Cheol Jang, Pedro Urriola and Jerry Shurson, University of Minnesota, St. Paul; and Mark Schwartz, Schwartz Farms, Sleepy Eye, Minn.

Originally appeared in National Hog Farmer

Genetic improvement in the swine industry has resulted in a steady increase in litter size at birth over the last 10 to 15 years. Often, an undesirable consequence of such large litter sizes is an increase in variability of piglet birth weight and increased incidence of low birth weight pigs.

So, the obvious question is: Can we manipulate the sow's diet during gestation to improve nutrition of the small pigs in the uterus, which would increase birth weight, reduce the proportion of these small pigs at birth, and improve their performance after birth?

Read the full Zinc in Late-gestation diets article.