Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Treatment of live animal
Reexamination Certificate
2001-09-13
2004-08-31
Sayala, C. (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Treatment of live animal
C426S053000, C426S062000, C426S623000, C426S630000, C426S635000, C426S807000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06783777
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)
None.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention generally relates to a method of enhancing feed consumption. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for enhancing feed consumption by swine, especially by young, post-weaned piglets and lactating sows.
The economic viability of a pork producer is directly related to the number of litters the producer's sows have and the number of piglets in each litter of each sow. Other important factors in the economic viability of pork production include how quickly and efficiently young pigs reach a marketable weight.
Lactating sows typically do not consume enough feed during lactation to maintain body weight. There is a strong correlation between body weight loss by sows during lactation and the interval between weaning and return to estrus for the sows. Additionally, weight loss by sows during lactation and subsequent litter sizes produced by the sows are negatively correlated. These two correlations have a significant economic impact on pork producers. First, sows that lose a substantial amount of weight during lactation are typically not able to have as many litters during the reproductively viable period of the sows. Besides reducing the number of litters a sow is able to have, substantial weight loss by the sows during lactation will typically reduce the number of piglets in subsequent litters that the sows produce. Therefore, feeds with enhanced palatability that increase feed intake and maintain sow body weight during lactation are extremely valuable to pork producers.
Another factor in the economics of producing pork is the time required to raise pigs following weaning to a marketable weight. The process of weaning, especially “early weaning” which is defined herein to be “between 10 and 18 days of age,” produces challenges that the young pigs have not previously experienced. These challenges include, among other things, an abrupt change in diet, usually from sow's milk to grain-based feeds. During the post-weaning period, pigs typically have a limited opportunity to digest anything but sow's milk before being abruptly introduced to feed other than sow's milk, such as grain-based feeds. Besides being unfamiliar with the new feed, the young pigs must also adapt to a new social structure where the pigs are not solely reliant on their sows for nourishment. When these two circumstances occur simultaneously, nutritional intake by the young pigs is typically disrupted, which may reduce the growth rate of the young pigs and also may increase the mortality rate of the young, post-weaned pigs.
A number of feed additives have been employed as feed supplements for young pigs. For example, one type of feed additive for young pigs includes a protein hydrolysate that is derived from processing of porcine mucosa and intestinal portions. Nonetheless, despite the advances in the art of feeding animals represented by these approaches, a need still remains for a feeding approach and composition that minimizes the deleterious effects that may be exhibited when weaning young pigs from sow's milk to a feed other than sow's milk, such as grain-based feeds. Furthermore, a need remains for a feeding approach and composition that will encourage post-weaned pigs to maximize their daily feed intake and that will increase growth and weight gain of post-weaned pigs beyond that previously exhibited upon weaning young pigs from sow's milk to a different diet, such as a diet that includes grain-based feeds. The feeding approach and composition of the present invention provides a solution to this outstanding need that will enhance the economic viability of pork producers.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention includes a method of feeding young, weaned swine. The method includes applying a liquid digest onto a feed substance to form a feed material, where the liquid digest includes an enzymatically-processed material, and providing the feed material to the young, weaned swine. The present invention further includes a method of increasing the palatability of a swine feed, a method of making a swine feed, method of increasing the feed efficiency of a young post-weaned pig, a method of increasing the feed intake of a lactating sow, and a method of maintaining the body weight of a lactating sow.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The present invention includes both a method for enhancing the amount of average daily intake of feed by post-weaned piglets and also a method of minimizing weight loss by lactating sows. The method of the present invention generally entails coating a swine feed with a liquid digest produced by an enzymatic reaction that digests and liquefies a nutritional component, such as a protein substrate and/or a carbohydrate substrate.
It has been discovered that applying a liquid digest in an effective amount to a swine feed increases the average daily feed intake and average daily weight gain of young, post-weaned pigs, as compared to the average daily feed intake and average daily weight gain of young post-weaned pigs fed only the swine feed that is free of the liquid digest application. Thus, the liquid digest, when applied to the swine feed in accordance with the present invention, acts as a palatability enhancer of the swine feed. Furthermore, application of the liquid digest in an effective amount to the swine feed surprisingly has been discovered to increase the feed efficiency, and consequently decrease the ratio of feed consumption to weight gain, of the young, post-weaned pigs, as compared to the feed efficiency, and consequently the ratio of feed consumption to weight gain, of young post-weaned pigs fed only the swine feed that is free of the liquid digest application.
The liquid digest may be applied to the swine feed at any rate that is effective to realize advantages of the present invention. For example, the liquid digest maybe generally applied to the swine feed at a rate ranging from above about 0 pounds to about 3 pounds of the liquid digest per one hundred (100) pounds of the swine feed, and preferably at a rate ranging from about 1 pounds to about 3 pounds of the liquid digest per one hundred (100) pounds of the swine feed, such as at the rate of about 2 pounds of the liquid digest per one hundred (100) pounds of swine feed. Nonetheless, in accordance with the present invention, the liquid digest may generally be applied to the swine feed at any effective rate that may generally range from above about 0 pounds to above about 3 pounds, such as to at least about 20 pounds or more, of the liquid digest per one hundred (100) pounds of swine feed.
In the context of the average daily feed intake of young, post-weaned pigs, the effective amount of the liquid digest is the amount of the liquid digest that, when applied to the swine feed, brings about an increase of the average daily feed intake of the young, post-weaned pigs, as compared to the average daily feed intake of the young post-weaned pigs fed only the swine feed that is free of the liquid digest application. In the context of the average daily weight gain of young, post-weaned pigs, the effective amount of the liquid digest is the amount of the liquid digest that, when applied to the swine feed, brings about an increase of the average daily weight gain of the young, post-weaned pigs, as compared to the average daily weight gain of the young post-weaned pigs fed only the swine feed that is free of the liquid digest application. In the context of the feed consumption to weight gain ratio, the effective amount of the liquid digest is the amount of the liquid digest that, when applied to the swine feed, brings about a decrease of the feed consumption to weight gain ratio of the young, post-weaned pigs, as compared to the feed consumption to weight gain ratio of the young post-weaned pigs fed only the swine feed that is free of the liquid digest application.
Preferably, the liquid digest is applied to the swine feed in an amount that is effective to increase the average daily fee
de Rodas Brenda
Miller Bill L.
Land O'Lakes, Inc.
Sayala C.
Westman Champlin & Kelly P.A.
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