Effects of L-Arginine Supplementation during Late Gestation on Reproductive Performance Piglet Uniformity Blood Profiles and Milk Composition in High Prolific Sows

摘要

Arginine is one of the functional amino acids that enhances the growth of fetus and placenta development. Since the fetal growth and the nutrient requirement for fetuses are increased hugely during the late gestation period in high-prolific sows, supplementation of L-arginine could have a positive influence on the reproductive performance of sows and piglet uniformity. In the present study, increasing inclusion level of L-arginine linearly increased alive litter weight at birth and litter weight gain during lactation. However, the piglet uniformity at birth decreased linearly, as dietary arginine level increased in the late gestation period. We concluded that the inclusion level of arginine in the diet for late gestating sows, by up to 1.5%, could improve the alive litter weight and weight gain of their progeny. The piglet uniformity at birth was decreased due to the increase of survival for piglets with light birth weight.