PARTNER FEATURE ▶▶▶
An outside-in approach for replacing ZnO in piglets
For swine producers all around Europe, 2022 marks the end of medicinal zinc oxide (ZnO) use and the deadline to find alternative strategies for weaning. The best option is probably to take one step back and look at the whole production cycle, from the sow to the piglet, and implement a multifactorial approach to piglet management.
BY AMANDINE CABOT AND DAVID SAORNIL, DVM, LALLEMAND ANIMAL NUTRITION, FRANCE
A
t three to four weeks of age, when piglets are re- moved from the sow, they have not yet developed optimal digestive functions. Their digestive capaci- ty and natural defences are still immature. The sud-
den diet transition and the social and environmental changes they encounter at weaning lead to significant digestive hurdles. Transient loss of appetite and subsequent microbial dysbiosis and gut inflammatory status are common. Farm management should help piglets cope with these issues and also needs to meet the requirement to reduce antibiot- ics and ZnO use. Management objectives should consider limiting the exposure to pathogens from the environment,
strengthening gut function and optimising nutrient retention. To address that multifactorial challenge, the latest devel- opments in swine production suggest a holistic approach combining environmental, nutritional, piglet quality and gut health strategies (see Figure 1).
1
Controlling microbial pressure First, biosecurity measures should be taken to pre- vent the entrance of pathogens to the farm. That includes paying particular attention to people, vehi-
cles, rodents, birds, domestic animals, routes of transmission, piglet origin, feed and water hygiene. In addition, piglet health must be secured with a compre- hensive life cycle vaccination programme prescribed by the farm’s veterinarian. Thirdly, it is essential to pay attention to ambient tempera- tures and feeding space. Those actions help reduce social and environmental stresses. Other measures should be taken inside the farm to avoid the spread of any disease or potential pathogenic agent. It should include procedures of cleaning and disinfection but also the establishment of a microbial positive biofilm on barn surfaces as an innovative internal biosecurity solution. The positive biofilm solution Lalfilm Pro combines selected bacteria to install a positive biofilm on farm building surfaces.
Figure 1 – A holistic approach to piglet management, combining environmental, nutritional, piglet quality and gut health strategies.
Piglet quality and sow nutrition Hygiene
Cleaning, disinfection, positive biofilm
Social and environment stress Gut health management
Probiotics, prebiotics and other functional feed ingredients
Nutrition Health
Biosecurity Vaccination
Feed formulation, ingredients selection, early feed intake, pellets quality
Animal farm
building
Vitality at birth, neonatal diarrhea, weaning age, immune development
22
▶ PIG PROGRESS | Volume 38, No. 3, 2022
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