2008 Univ of NE Swine Report- Effects of Nutrition During Gilt Development

An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of energy restriction during the gilt development period on lifetime sow reproductive performance of two maternal lines. There were essentially no interactions among line, dietary treatment, and parity. The Large White x Landrace gilts were heavier before and after dietary treatments, matured later, and had greater longissimus muscle area compared to Nebraska Line gilts. Restricting energy intake during the developmental period increased litter weaning weight but had no affect on litter size. Nutritional management of prolific sow lines during the gilt development period does affect sow and litter performance. However, these results do not suggest that the sow populations studied should be fed differently during the gilt development period.