The management of weaned piglets, especially during the first week after weaning, is the “most important thing†in piglet management, because weaning is the biggest stress factor for piglets since birth. The feeding and management techniques of piglets after weaning are directly related to the piglets growth retardation, diarrhea of ​​piglets, edema, and even death. This article will discuss the problems that occur after weaning piglets, the mechanisms that occur, and the solutions. 1. Problems with weaned piglets Weaning means that piglets no longer get their food through breast milk. Piglets need an adaptation process (usually 1 week), which is commonly referred to as "weaning off." During this period, piglets will have a series of problems if they are not properly managed. 1.1 Growth Upside Down Due to weaning stress, weaned piglets have poor appetite within a few days after weaning, and the feed intake is not enough, resulting in no increase in piglet weight, but rather decrease. It usually takes 1 week for the piglets to regain weight. The growth and development of piglets in the first week after weaning have an important influence on their growth performance. It has been reported that for every 0.5 kg increase in weaning piglet weight, the number of days required to reach the marketed weight standard will be reduced by 2-3 days. 1.2 Diarrhea in Piglets Weaned piglets usually have diarrhea, which manifests as loss of appetite, increased drinking desire, and yellowish-green diarrhea. The diarrhea started with tremors, but the temperature in the rectum was normal, and the ears were cyanotic. After the death, the body was dehydrated and the small intestine was full. 1.3 The death of edema The edema disease of piglets occurs in the second week after weaning. The incidence rate is generally 5%-20%, and the mortality rate can reach 100%. It manifested as tremor, dyspnea, dyskinesia, and death in hours or days. At autopsy, the contents of the stomach were abundant, the mucosal edema of the greater curvature and cardia, the superficial inguinal lymph nodes, mesenteric lymph nodes, enlargement, orbital and mesenteric edema, vascular congestion, and cerebral effusion. 2, the mechanism of occurrence 2.1 physiological characteristics of piglets The fastest growing stage of piglets throughout the digestive tract is from 20 to 70 days of age, indicating that the digestive tract grows rapidly after 3 weeks of age, and the acid environment of piglets and the concentration of various digestive enzymes in the small intestine have changed significantly. In the first few weeks after birth, the acid secretion in the stomach is very limited, and it is generally not until 8 weeks later that there will be more complete secretion. This situation severely affected the adequate digestion of protein in the diets of weaned pigs before 8 weeks of age. Suckling piglets contain lactic acid in breastmilk, which results in greater acidity in the stomach, ie, a lower pH value. Once weaned piglets, gastric pH increased significantly. The secretion of enzymes in the digestive tract of piglets is generally low, but there are major changes with the development of the digestive tract and food stimulation. Among them, carbohydrate enzymes, proteases, and lipases will gradually increase. 2.2 The immune status of piglets Newborn piglets obtained maternal antibodies from colostrum. The maternal antibody peaked at 1 day of age, and then the antibody titer decreased gradually. The 2-4 weeks old maternal antibody titers are low, and the active immunity is not perfect. If weaning during this period, piglets are susceptible to disease. 2.3 Microbiological changes The micro-organisms in the digestive tract of suckling piglets are lactic acid bacteria, which can reduce the destruction of nutrients in the gastrointestinal tract, reduce the production of toxins, increase the protective effect of the gastrointestinal mucosa, and effectively prevent digestive disorders and diarrhea caused by pathogenic bacteria. Lactic acid bacteria are best grown in the acidic environment. After weaning, the pH in the stomach rises, lactic acid bacteria gradually decrease, E. coli gradually increases (growth in the environment when the pH is 6-8), and the original microbial flora is damaged, resulting in disease. 2.4 Stress Response After weaning piglets, because of leaving the sow, there will be a mental and physiological stress, coupled with leaving the original living environment, inadequate to the new environment, such as low temperature, humidity, wind, and disinfection of premises Thoroughly, which leads to conditional diarrhea in piglets. 3, piglet feeding and management measures 3.1 Feeding The growth of piglets is very rapid. At 2-4 weeks of age, the nutrients provided by breast milk can no longer meet their growth needs, and supplementation can reduce feed conversion stress after weaning. According to the study, supplementation began at 12 days of age. At the age of 21 days, the secretion of hydrochloric acid and pepsin in the stomach were higher than those of piglets that had not been fed before weaning. Supplementation can also prevent the deepening of intestinal hair and crypts. Dietary raw material selection Choosing feed ingredients suitable for the digestive physiology of warts is a condition for the preparation of high-quality weaned pig diets, increased feed intake after weaning, increased growth rates, and reduced weight for diarrhea. These raw materials include skimmed milk powder, whey powder, lactose, spray-dried plasma powder, high-quality fish meal, puffed soybeans, and peeled high-protein soybean meal. According to the research, whey powder can significantly improve the performance of the weanling piglets at the age of 3-4 weeks of age in the first 2 weeks. Since it is a dairy product containing natural milk flavor, it can promote the appetite of the piglets, increase the feed intake, and enter the stomach. The production of lactic acid reduces the pH of the stomach of the weaned piglets and is beneficial to the digestion of food proteins. Spray-dried plasma powder contains 68% protein and contains disease-fighting agents. It has excellent taste and is ideal for weaning piglets. Use of acidifiers Piglet digestive acidity (pH) is very important for dietary protein digestion. Numerous studies have shown that the addition of organic acids to the corn-soybean meal diets of 3-4 weeks old weaned piglets can significantly increase the daily weight gain and feed conversion rate of warty pigs. Among the known organic acids, citric acid, fumaric acid (fumaric acid) and propionic acid are known to be effective, depending on the age of weaning. Use of enzyme preparations The purpose of adding enzyme preparations to the diets of piglets is to compensate for the decrease in the activity of digestive enzymes in the body after weaning, to increase the digestion and utilization of feed, and to improve the growth rate of piglets. Currently, the most successful enzyme preparation is phytase. High copper applications The addition of high-dose copper to piglet diets has a significant effect on growth and can increase feed conversion. The addition amount is generally 0.02%--0.05%. High zinc application The addition of high zinc to piglets diets has a similar effect to that of high copper, which, in addition to improving the growth performance of piglets, also prevents the piglets from squatting. 3.2 Management measures Mother to stay Weanling piglets have poor ability to respond to changes in the environment, especially temperature changes. After weaning the piglets, the sows are driven off and the piglets remain in the original circle, reducing stress levels. The appropriate Sherwin Just weaned piglets are very sensitive to low temperatures. The smaller the general piglet weight, the higher the required temperature of the weaning environment and the more stable it is. It is reported that if the temperature difference exceeds 2C on the first week after weaning, the piglets will develop diarrhea and poor growth. Dry ground Cows with insufficient calories are more likely to catch cold and lower body temperature. Avoid thieves Piglets exposed to thieves' winds slowed growth by 6% and feed consumption increased by 6%. Organic pumpkin seed protein powder is made from organic pumpkin seeds through a concentrated process. During the processing, we use a low-temperature environment throughout, so that the flavor and nutrients of pumpkin seed protein are maintained to the maximum. Our organic pumpkin seed protein has a good powder texture and maintains a unique fragrance. Pumpkin Protein,Organic Pumpkin Seed Protein Powder,Organic Pumpkin Seeds,Light Yellow Fine Powder Organicway (xi'an) Food Ingredients Inc. , https://www.organicwayince.com