Piglets face many challenges, especially in the first week of life as they are born with a relatively undeveloped intestine which has the potential to grow tremendously right after birth. Tonisity Px is a highly-palatable isotonic protein solution that supplies essential nutrients to the piglet’s gut from day two of life. By nourishing the gut and supporting its rapid development in early life, Tonisity Px results in better absorption of nutrients from the sow’s milk, higher survival, and optimal lifetime performance. It is important to note that optimal handling of piglets around farrowing, and in the first week of life of the piglets is a prerequisite for a good financial result.

Tonisity Px Trial in Denmark

A recent trial was conducted on a 1,700-sow farm in Denmark, to evaluate administering Tonisity Px in the farrowing house on PWM. A total of 92 litters were included, spread across three successive weekly batches. Litters were randomly assigned to the Control or Tonisity Px (TPX) group, so that both treatments were equally represented in each of the batches. The litters included in the study each week were a subset of that week’s farrowing batch and were housed in the middle of a larger farrowing room that housed a total of 64 farrowing stalls. Allocation to treatment group was by row within the larger room. Parity was balanced between treatments.

Study Feed Plan

• TPX piglets received 600 ml of a 3% Tonisity Px solution in an open creep-feed pan from day two to eight of life. This was administered in the afternoon. 600 ml/litter/day was used in accordance with Tonisity recommendations for litters of >14 piglets
• Control piglets did not receive any supplementation

Results

• Feeding Tonisity Px from days two to eight of life resulted in a 57% reduction in PWM
• On this farm, using Tonisity Px would result in an extra 2,304 pigs weaned per year
• For a 10,000-sow system, this would translate to an extra ~13,600 pigs weaned per year