Biochemical and hematological features of the blood parameters of young piglets under the influence of the feed additive "Activo"

Abstract

Pig farming has always been and remains a traditional and profitable branch of animal husbandry in Ukraine. It should be noted that the profitability of this industry directly depends on many factors, among which the health of the young should be singled out, because the health of the piglets depends on whether the farm will be successful and profitable or not. The early period of piglet development ‒ from birth to weaning ‒ is considered especially critical, because young animals are born without active immunity and are vulnerable to the effects of various stresses. Accordingly, it is important to take special care of young animals and use pre-starter compound feed with the addition of useful additives that contribute to increasing the general resistance of the animal's body. The aim of the work was to study the effect of the "Activo" feed additive on biochemical and hematological changes in the blood of young piglets. The research was carried out in the conditions of the industrial pig complex of LLC "Barcom" of the Lviv region. Clinically healthy piglets of early age, born from sows of РІС genetics of the Great White breed, which had 2‒3 farrowings, served as the object of the study. For the study, according to the principle of analogues, two groups of piglets were formed: control (n=116) and experimental (n=118). Piglets, starting from the fifth day of life, were given pre-starter compound feed in loose form in plastic feeders. For the experimental group, the feed additive "Active" was additionally introduced into the pre-starter compound feed in the amount of 0.2 kg/t of finished compound feed. The experiment lasted 28 days from birth to weaning. To conduct the study, blood was collected from the cranial vena cava on the 5th, 14th, and 28th days from the animals of the control and experimental groups in young piglets. The results of biochemical studies of the blood of experimental piglets obtained from sows fed with the feed additive "Activo" indicated a probable increase in the albumin content on the 28th day of life by 48.65 % (p<0.01) compared to animals of the control group. A significant decrease in urea in piglets of the experimental group was noted on the 5th and 14th day of life – 21.63 % (р<0.05) and 31.33 % (р<0.05), respectively, compared to the control. On the 28th day of life in the experimental group, urea values were also improbably lower by 29.87 %. ALT indicators in the experimental group were slightly lower on the 5th, 14th and 28th days – 3.27 %, 10.88 %, 13.80 %, respectively, compared to the control group. According to the results of hematological studies, a probable statistical increase of hemoglobin in erythrocytes in the experimental group on the 28th day of life was established by 10.76 % (p<0.01) in relation to the control. On the 14th and 28th days of piglet's life, a probable increase in hematocrit was recorded by 14.78 % (р<0.05) and 21.03 % (р<0.05), respectively.