EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT IRON PREPARATIONS ON HAEMOGLOBIN CONCENTRATION AND GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF PIGLETS
Keywords:
piglets, iron deficiency anaemia, haemoglobin, gleptoferron, iron dextran, growth performance, average daily gain, survivability.Abstract
Iron deficiency in neonatal piglets remains one of the major causes of reduced growth performance and survivability under intensive swine production systems. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of iron preparations of different forms regarding their effects on haemoglobin concentration, growth performance, survivability, and final productivity of piglets. The experiment was conducted at LLC “Kovcheg-A” (Kharkiv region, Ukraine) using 206 piglets allocated to control and experimental groups of 103 animals each. Piglets in the control group received the iron dextran preparation Bioferon, whereas animals in the experimental group were treated with the gleptoferron preparation Gleptosil. It was established that at 17–18 days of age, haemoglobin concentration in piglets of the experimental group was 17.9% higher than in the control group (p < 0.05). During the nursery period, live body weight of experimental piglets exceeded that of the control group by 6.1%, while average daily gain was 9.0% higher (p < 0.05). Before slaughter, pigs treated with gleptoferron had a 3.9% greater live body weight and a 3.0% higher average daily gain compared with the control group (p < 0.05). Mortality rates were lower in the experimental group throughout all stages of rearing. Despite the slightly higher cost of gleptoferron, its use resulted in improved production performance and enhanced economic efficiency of pig production. The obtained results indicate that gleptoferron-based preparations are an effective tool for the prevention of iron deficiency anaemia in piglets under commercial production conditions.
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