Abstract

RONDON R, Yudeisy M; ARAQUE M, Humberto E; FARFAN L, Charly J  and  MORA, Franklin. Characterization of two Types of Bed Material and their Impact on The Parasitic Burden of Growing and Fattening Pigs Housed in Deep Litter. Rev. Fac. Cienc. Vet. [online]. 2014, vol.55, n.1, pp.42-52. ISSN 0258-6576.

To determine the effect of two types of bedding material on parasitic burden in growing and fattening pigs housed in deep litter, an assay was conducted using 92 immune castrated males, with an average initial weight of 30.00 kg and 70 days old until finalization weight. A completely randomized design was used, with two treatments based on bedding material, as follows: grass hay (GH) and rice husk (RH), with six replicates/treatment and 46 animals/treatment, according to a density of 1.37 pigs/m². A commercial feed was given ad libitum. During the course of 90 days was evaluated: amount of bedding material required per animal (ABA), bedding moisture (BM) ammonia emission (AE), chemical composition of the bed, areas of use (% of clean and dirty area), presence of ectoparasites (PE), parasite burden in bed (PBB) and feces of pigs (PBF). The data obtained were analyzed using the PROC GENMOD methodology, of the Statistical Analysis System (SAS). Statistically significant (P<0.05) differences were found between GH and RH for the variables ABA (107.32 and 84.157 kg/animal/cycle), AE (9.462 and 3.3274 ppm), PE (14.04, and 4.34 flies/animal/day), areas of use and chemical composition of the bed in their nitrogen, protein, fiber, crude fat, ash and phosphorus fractions:. No significant differences between treatments were found for PBB. In contrast, significant differences were shown for PBF. The presence of ectoparasites in pigs housed in deep litter with HG was greater. Additionally, a less amount of bed material was required per animal with RH, in comparison with HG.

Keywords : Swine; ectoparasites; growth; fattening; unrestricted feeding; ammonium; rice husks; humidity.

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