Gabriel Rocha

Weaning is considered a critical period in the piglet’s life because it is related to several stressors, such as loss of contact with the mother and litter of origin, environmental and dietary changes, and the establishment of a new social hierarchy. In recent decades, due to the search for improving the zootechnical performance of weaned piglets, a range of molecules (e.g. antibiotics, copp ...

1. IntroductionThe swine industry faces numerous sanitary and environmental challenges that can significantly affect pig health and productivity (Le Floc’h et al., 2021; Gomes et al., 2023). These challenges include infectious diseases, environmental stressors, and management practices that can result in the overactivation of the immune system and oxidative stress in pigs (Pluske et al., 201 ...

INTRODUCTIONHighly digestible feed ingredients and feed additives are used to help young pigs transition from sow’s milk to solid diets (Skinner et al., 2014; Valini et al., 2021). Thus, the cost of swine diets is greatest during the nursery phase of production due to the complexity of ingredients, e.g., whey, blood plasma and industrial amino acids. As compensatory growth has been associate ...