fed the nursery diet ad lib. The pre-weaning treatments were not reinforced after weaning, so all weaner pens were identi- cal and equipped with a conventional feed trough that was unfamiliar to all piglets. The experiment ended when piglets were 39 days of age.


Piglets before weaning Behaviour: The play-feeder increased the time spent explor- ing the feeder by 3.5 to six times and attracted more piglets to visit the feeder, irrespective of the feed intake level of the sow. The treatments did not affect time spent eating creep feed at day 16, however piglets from a restrictedly-fed sow doubled their time spent eating compared to piglets from full-fed sows at day 23. Time spent exploring the feeder corre- lated with time spent eating at all observation days. Creep feed intake: Creep feed intake was low up to day 17. About 50% of the total feed intake was consumed during the last two days prior to weaning. Piglets from restricted- ly-fed sows consumed more feed the last two days before weaning than piglets from full-fed sows. At weaning, litters of restrictedly-fed sows also had double as much eaters than litters of full-fed sows. The play-feeder did not influ- ence creep feed intake, but piglets of restrictedly-fed sows that had access to a play-feeder were more likely to become eaters from an earlier age. Piglet growth and weight: Piglets from sows fed restricted- ly gained less weight between day 10-17, between day 17-24 and overall between day 10-24 than piglets from full-fed sows. Piglets from the first group tended to weigh less at day 17 and weighed less at weaning.


Piglets after weaning Eating: Weaner piglets which, in an earlier stage were fed from a play-feeder in their farrowing pens, spent more time eating at week 2 after weaning. Moreover, piglets familiar with the play-feeder showed more drinking than control pig-


lets at week 1 and week 2 post-weaning. Piglets from restrict- edly-fed sows were more often seen drinking at week 2 post-weaning than piglets from full-fed sows. Exploratory behaviour: Piglets from sows fed restrictedly, had a higher level of exploration towards the feed(er) and drinker compared to piglets from full-fed sows at week 1 post-weaning. Moreover, piglets from sows fed restrictedly spent more time on exploring the environment at week 1 post-weaning compared to the other piglets. Ear biting was performed to a lesser extent by piglets from restrictedly-fed sows than by piglets from full-fed sows at week 2 post-wean- ing. By then, there were less weaner piglets that were fed from a play-feeder before weaning with body lesions (Table 1), ear damage (within the group of piglets from full-fed sows) and tail damage (within the group of piglets from re- strictedly-fed sows). Feed intake and growth: Maternal feed restriction and the play-feeder during lactation increased the average daily feed intake (ADFI) and average daily gain (ADG) after weaning, with the effect of the play-feeder lasting until the end of the experi- ment. Maternal feed restriction improved the intake of feed un- til day 5 post-weaning and improved growth until day 2 post-weaning. Although piglets from restrictedly-fed sows weighed less at weaning compared to piglets from full-fed sows, they did not differ anymore in body weight at the end of the trial. The play-feeder improved ADFI and ADG during the two weeks after weaning, resulting in a higher body weight at the end of the trial. Moreover, post-weaning diarrhoea was less prevalent, less severe and shorter in duration as result of the provision of the play-feeder before weaning (Table 1).


Effects of maternal feed restriction Maternal feed restriction by 50% resulted in a 16% lower ADG of piglets during lactation and a 12% lower weaning weight. Hunger as homeostatic drive was likely the biggest motivator for these piglets to eat creep feed. The results thus support


▶ WEANING | JUNE 2020 7


Stimulating the consumption of solid feed prior to weaning may improve piglet adaptation after weaning.


PHOTO: HENK RISWICK


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