Energy Expenditure and Maintenance Requirements in Non-Pregnant First-Parity Sows
Five sows, non-pregnant after the first parity (body weight: 174 ± 11 kg), were used to determine energy expenditure (EE) measured as heat production (HP). Sows were fed first 1.0, then 2.0, times the recommended maintenance energy requirement (ME<sub>m</sub>) for one week each. Sows rec...
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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2024-11-01
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| Series: | Animals |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/14/22/3276 |
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| Summary: | Five sows, non-pregnant after the first parity (body weight: 174 ± 11 kg), were used to determine energy expenditure (EE) measured as heat production (HP). Sows were fed first 1.0, then 2.0, times the recommended maintenance energy requirement (ME<sub>m</sub>) for one week each. Sows received half their daily ration in 16 half-hourly meals, then the remaining half in a large meal followed by an overnight fast in respiration chambers. Sows fed 1.0 ME<sub>m</sub> consumed 473 kJ ME/kg<sup>0.75</sup> (22.8 MJ/d) and lost weight (−198 g/d) because HP (24.0 MJ/d) was greater than intake. Sows fed 2.0 ME<sub>m</sub> consumed 925 kJ ME/kg<sup>0.75</sup> (44.9 MJ/d) and gained 1292 g/d and HP was 32.3 MJ/d. The respiratory quotient (RQ) of sows fed 2.0 ME<sub>m</sub> was greater than one, indicating body fat deposition. The HP when sows were eating repeated small meals (33.6 MJ/d) or a single large meal (29.8 MJ/d) was greater (<i>p</i> < 0.05) than the HP in the following 2 h (25.2 MJ/d). Based upon the recalculation of ME<sub>m</sub> using the present data, 506 kJ ME/kg<sup>0.75</sup> is proposed as the ME<sub>m</sub> for non-pregnant modern sows. |
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| ISSN: | 2076-2615 |