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Pigs in Nepal are mostly fed with rice bran, brewery residues and a very small supplementation of green weeds and grasses. Calculation of the nutrients provided by typical feeding practice suggests that under - nutrition is a major contributory factor to the reproductive problems in pigs in Nepal, especially causing extended weaning to conception interval.

When pigs suffer a climatic penalty, some of their food has to be used to produce more heat in order to maintain normal body temperature. Thus less food is available for productive purposes. Therefore it is most important to try to maintain the pigs in a climatic environment above their lower critical temperature (LCT).

The effects of three levels of nutrition on the growth rate of PAC gilts under two types of housing conditions were investigated. A total of 36 sows were allocated between two types of housing (Improved and Traditional) conditions an. three levels of nutrition (growth rate of 275 g/day, 370 g/day and 500 g/day between 33.5 kg at the start and 68 kg until service).

There was a significantly higher growth rate, level of P2 backfat thickness and level of eye muscle depth with higher level of nutrition, but no significant differences in body condition score. Similarly, there was a significantly higher growth rate, eye muscle depth and body condition score with improved housing, but no significant difference in P2 backfat thickness.

Following standard nutrition during pregnancy, there were no significant differences at farrowing in the live weight, P2 backfat thickness, body condition score, and eye muscle depth between the levels of nutrition and housing treatments. Age at farrowing did not differ. There was a difference of one piglet born per litter between the higher level of rearing nutrition and low rearing nutrition.

The weaning to remating interval was 12.3, 7.3 and 7.3 days for the treatment A, B and C. Significantly higher proportion of sows remated at day 10 after weaning in both improved plane of rearing nutrition. (Download PDF)    (Export to EndNotes)