The effects of diet form and feeder design on the growth performance of finishing pigs.

Two studies were conducted to determine the effects of diet form (meal vs. pellet) and feeder design (conventional dry vs. wet/dry) on finisher pig performance. Experiments were arranged as 2 × 2 factorials with 11 replications per treatment and 26 to 29 pigs per pen. In Exp. 1, pigs (n = 1,290; initial BW 46.8 kg) were used in a 91-d study. Pelleted diets averaged approximately 35% fines throughout the study. Overall, pigs fed pelleted diets or via wet/dry feeders had greater (P < 0.07 and 0.001, respectively) ADG than pigs fed meal diets or fed with a dry feeder. Diet form × feeder interactions (P < 0.02) were observed for G:F. Pigs fed either meal or pelleted diets via a wet/dry feeder had similar G:F, but pigs fed pelleted diets in dry feeders had poorer G:F than pigs with meal diets in dry feeders. In Exp. 2, pigs (n = 1,146; initial BW 38.2 kg) were used in a 104-d study. From d 0 to 28, a diet form × feeder design interaction (P < 0.01) was observed for ADG, which was due to decreased ADG in pigs fed pelleted diets from a conventional dry feeder compared with pigs fed meal diets from the same feeder type whereas there was no difference in wet/dry feeders based on diet form. Pigs fed pelleted diets had poorer (P < 0.01) G:F than pigs fed meal diets. This result appeared to be due to poor pellet quality (39.6% fines). From d 42 to 86, pellet quality improved (4.4% fines) and a diet form × feeder interaction was observed for ADG in which pigs fed meal diets in a dry feeder had decreased (P < 0.05) ADG than pigs fed pelleted diets in dry feeders or pigs presented either diet in wet/dry feeders. Pigs fed pelleted diets had improved (P < 0.001) G:F. Pigs fed via wet/dry feeders had increased (P < 0.03) ADFI and G:F compared with pigs fed via dry feeders. Overall, pigs fed with wet/dry feeders had increased (P < 0.02) ADG and ADFI and poorer G:F than pigs with dry feeders whereas pigs given pelleted diets had improved (P = 0.05) G:F compared with pigs presented meal diets. These studies found that pigs fed from wet/dry feeders had increased ADG and ADFI compared with pigs fed via dry feeders regardless of diet form. Additionally, pellet quality appeared to influence responses because pigs fed high-quality pellets via dry feeders had better growth performance than pigs fed meal diets. Conversely, if pellet quality was poor, the feed efficiency benefits associated with pelleting were lost.