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Effect of L ‐carnitine supplementation on performance parameters in gilts and sows
Author(s) -
Eder K.,
Ramanau A.,
Kluge H.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of animal physiology and animal nutrition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.651
H-Index - 56
eISSN - 1439-0396
pISSN - 0931-2439
DOI - 10.1046/j.1439-0396.2001.00303.x
Subject(s) - lactation , carnitine , litter , zoology , biology , pregnancy , gestation , endocrinology , medicine , agronomy , genetics
The effect of L‐carnitine supplementation during pregnancy and lactation on performance parameters of sows was studied. The trial comprised a total of 127 sows (40 gilts, 87 mature sows) which were divided into a control and a treatment group. All animals were fed individually and received basic feed mixtures for pregnancy and lactation with low carnitine concentrations (gestation diet: 4.7 mg/kg feed, lactation diet: 12.5 mg/kg feed). The rations of the sows in the treated group were supplemented with 125 mg L ‐carnitine per head and day during pregnancy and 250 mg L ‐carnitine per head and day during lactation. The animals of the control group received identical feed mixtures in identical amounts, but without the L ‐carnitine supplement. L ‐carnitine supplementation resulted in higher sow liveweight gains between day 1 and day 85 of pregnancy. The number of piglets per litter and the number born alive did not differ between the control sows and those treated with L ‐carnitine. However, the L ‐carnitine‐supplemented sows produced only half as many non‐viable piglets as the control animals. Moreover, litter weight and mean birth weight of piglets from L ‐carnitine‐treated sows were higher than in the control sows. This effect was more marked in gilts (+8% higher litter weight, +9% higher piglet weight) than in sows (+7% and +6%, respectively). Piglets from sows whose ration was supplemented with L ‐carnitine showed higher liveweight gains during the suckling period (+12% for gilts, +4% for sows), which is why litter weights post weaning were also higher among the sows treated with L ‐carnitine than in the control sows (+14% for gilts, +10% for sows). Overall, the study shows that dietary supplementation with L ‐carnitine during pregnancy and lactation improves the reproductive performance of sows.