When raising pigs, breeders special attention are given to growing young animals, because the future productivity of the herd directly depends on the quality of care for this category of animals and their health. In addition, growing babies are also extremely sensitive to various diseases. And one of the most dangerous among them is nutritional anemia of piglets, which without timely detection and treatment leads to death in 80% of cases of the disease in young animals.

What is a disease?

Nutritional or iron deficiency anemia in piglets is a disease of young animals, as a result of which the composition and properties of the blood significantly change. During this disease, hematopoietic processes are disrupted. Because of this, the level of hemoglobin and red blood cells in the blood drops sharply.

Against the background of the disease, the rate of metabolism in the body of a growing baby quickly decreases. As a result, its growth and development are greatly slowed down, and sensitivity to other diseases increases.

For the first time, the features of the course of anemia and the supposed causes of its development were described in 1890. Today, anemia has been studied in more detail. Scientists have found that cases of the disease can be traced in all climatic zones. In this case, young animals that are raised in industrial livestock farms most often suffer.

Reasons

The main reason for the development of anemia in young pigs is a lack of iron in the body. This element is extremely important for the development of the baby in the first months of life and should increased quantities enter the body, being spent on body growth and ensuring certain life processes.

The average daily iron requirement of a piglet is from 8 to 10 mg. To gain 1 kg of weight, animals require at least 27 mg of this substance. In the baby’s body, the element accumulates in two ways:

1. Entering the body through the mother's colostrum or as part of other feeds.
2. Released during the breakdown of red blood cells.

But they both fail to provide required quantity substances. Thus, with mother’s milk, only 15-20% of daily norm gland. And taking into account the fact that the weight of a newborn doubles by the 6th day of life, this is clearly not enough.

From endogenous sources (decomposition of red blood cells), about 1% of the required norm of the element enters the body. In addition, the tissues of a newborn baby contain only 50-55 mg of iron. Such a small amount is explained by the fact that of the total volume of the substance entering the uterus, only 2% is transferred to the fetus. Everything else is blocked by the placenta.

Attention! Already on the 7-10th day of a pig’s life, a deficiency of this metal can be traced. If measures are not taken at this time, then by the beginning of the 3rd week anemia appears.

It is worth noting that anemia can develop at a faster pace. The following factors contribute to this:

1. Failure to comply with basic rules for keeping animals. This includes unsanitary conditions in the premises, constant dampness, poor ventilation, and lack of space for growing piglets.
2. Lack of microelements, vitamins and nutrients in the diet of a pregnant sow. The problem is especially aggravated by a deficiency of zinc, vitamins A, B and certain proteins.
3. Feeding young livestock with spoiled feed and alkaloids.
4. Decreased hemoglobin levels in the sow.

With a lack of iron, the process of hemoglobin formation is disrupted. This affects the decrease in the amount of oxygen in the blood and, as a result, the oxidation of substances ingested with food is much worse. Develops in tissues oxygen starvation. To replenish it, the heart begins to pump blood faster, which leads to a change in its composition.

At increased load fat accumulates faster in the heart muscle and liver parenchyma. It is also formed in the tissues of other internal organs. As a result, the pressure on the vessels increases, their diameter decreases and blood stagnation occurs. Because of this, the amount of nutrients entering the cells decreases. As a result, extensive lesions develop in the intestinal mucosa inflammatory processes, and in bone marrow red blood cell production decreases.

Symptoms

Anemia in piglets is accompanied by pronounced clinical manifestations. These include:

• severe weakness and general depression of the baby;
• decreased motor activity;
• refusal to suckle the sow;
• rapid breathing and heart rate;
• excessive pallor of the mucous membranes and the entire surface of the ear (they can be completely white);
• the tips of the tail and ears may take on a bluish tint.

Disturbance in the supply of nutrients also affects the skin epithelium. It gathers in folds, feels completely dry to the touch, and may peel. The bristles on the animals' bodies are brittle and stick out in different directions.

With further development of the disease, the following can also be observed:

• noticeable growth retardation, up to the appearance of rickets;
• blood pressure in the muscles decreases sharply;
• deterioration of the digestive system;
• weakness is constantly progressing;
• blood clotting disorder.

Anemia is complicated by the fact that during its course the body's defense mechanisms sharply decrease. In this regard, secondary diseases are often observed in piglets, which quickly progress in a weakened body.

Important! Anemia can develop in completely healthy-looking piglets. And in this case, the disease must be identified in as soon as possible, since within 10-14 days from the appearance of the first symptoms the death of the young occurs.

Diagnostics

To detect anemia in piglets, a comprehensive analysis of animals is carried out, which includes:

• fixing the main clinical signs;
• studying the diet of a lactating sow and offspring to determine whether it contains sufficient amounts of iron, minerals and protein;
• blood test for red blood cell and hemoglobin levels.

If hemoglobin in the blood drops to a level of 7% or less, the diagnosis is considered positive. When animals die, an additional pathological examination is carried out.

Attention! A differential analysis is required to exclude other forms of anemia that develop against the background of certain infectious diseases.

Treatment

Before main drug treatment Anemia is first treated by eliminating the cause of the disease. To do this, the conditions for keeping animals are brought back to normal. The diet is normalized in accordance with the needs of the sow and growing young animals. For this purpose, various premixes can also be used.

After eliminating the causes of anemia, replenishment of iron reserves in the body is carried out. For this purpose, animals are prescribed iron glycerophosphate. The drug gives quick effect and is suitable for group use. The dosage is 1.5 g for each piglet. The course of treatment is 6 days. The medication is taken once a day during feeding. This product is commercially available in powder form or as one of the components of special feed.

Ferroglucin, ferrodex and other iron-dextrin compounds will also help compensate for the lack of such metal. They are produced in liquid form, packaged in glass bottles. The medicine is administered by intramuscular injection. They are prescribed to babies no earlier than 5 days after birth. Dosage – 200 mg per injection. The course of treatment is 7 days.

In parallel with iron supplements, young animals are also given:

• vitamins B and A;
• cobalt chloride;
• copper sulfate;
• compositions based on manganese and zinc;
• hematogen to restore hemoglobin levels in the blood.

Prevention

Preventive measures in this case are aimed at eliminating the deficiency of elements in the body. For this purpose, in addition to improving living conditions pigs and normalizing the nutrition of the pregnant uterus also use various drugs.

On the 3rd day of life, piglets are also injected intramuscularly with ferrodex or ferroglucin. The dosage in this case, as in the case of treatment, is 1.5 ml per individual. From 5-6 days of life, you can also add ferrous galactan to your intake.

Nutritional anemia The disease is common in young pigs. But at the same time, not all breeders care about the prevention of such a disease. Meanwhile, anemia can lead to the death of even a completely healthy offspring. Therefore, in such farms, newborn young animals should be given special attention in order to promptly identify initial signs diseases.

TO common features include:

• pale skin;
• hematomas;
• pale mucous membrane of the eyes;
• lethargy, apathy.

To make this diagnosis, you need to undergo a blood test for specific red blood cells. Depending on their type, there are 3 forms of the disease.

Nutritional anemia of piglets

Appears before 3 weeks of life and is observed in suckling animals. Special symptoms:

• pallor;
• lethargy;
• refusal to suck;
• increased heart rate and breathing.

The cause of nutritional anemia is an incorrectly composed diet. It includes fertilizing and mother's milk. If the sow herself suffers from anemia, she will not be able to provide necessary microelements and young animals.

Iron deficiency anemia of piglets

Affects pigs of any age. More often these are mature, early-maturing and highly productive breeds. Symptoms include a hunched back, dry skin, and paleness. It is formed in piglets if the mother has iron deficiency. The mortality rate from the disease is 38%.

During the analysis, the level of red blood cells and hemoglobin will be indicative. A common type of anemia in pig farms. The disease occurs less frequently in industrial housing and feeding.

Hemolytic anemia of piglets

Dangerous condition of newborn animals. Occurs due to incompatibility of antibodies between the mother and the piglet. They penetrate the animal's body through colostrum and reduce normal iron levels. Symptoms of hemolytic anemia in piglets:

• yellowness of mucous membranes;
• pallor;
• low red blood cell count.

Treatment and prevention of anemia in piglets

The alimentary type is treated by introducing supplements of iron, manganese, cobalt, and zinc into the diet. Vitamins of groups A and B are prescribed. Iron-containing premixes can be given. Injections of iron dextran preparations are also common. They are replaced with nitrated blood of the sow, injecting it into the piglets 5-7 ml at a time.

Iron deficiency anemia is treated in 2 ways:

1. A single injection of ferroglucin, ferrodex or imposil up to 3 days of age.
2. Addition of copper and iron salts to daily meals. The concentration of the solution of iron sulfate is 2.5 g and copper 1 g per 10 l. One pig needs 10 ml per day.

The hemolytic type is not treated with drugs. It is necessary to transfer the piglets to another sow for 2-5 days, then return them to the same one if necessary. When breeding animals, always ensure that they are healthy.

Preventative measures on the farm:

• balanced complementary feeding for piglets and diet for adult pigs, add premixes or separate vitamins;
• monitor newborn animals and the mother in order to recognize anemia in time;
• cull individuals that have produced offspring with hemolytic deviation.

When administering drugs, the dose is calculated for a specific age and weight. It is better to make a diagnosis directly after a blood test. Because hemolytic anemia Clinically, it is easily confused with leptospirosis. Normal level- 9-15 g per 100 ml of blood.

Diseases often affect young animals because they are born with limited supplies of Fe, a vital component in blood cells. If newborn pigs do not have access to iron in the first 2-3 weeks, the ability of red blood cells to absorb oxygen is reduced and piglet anemia develops.

Iron deficiency anemia in piglets is a blood condition in which oxygen starvation develops. Hemoglobin in red blood cells has the function of carrying oxygen from the lungs to body tissues to support cellular metabolism and transporting carbon dioxide resulting from cellular metabolism back to the lungs. Iron is vital an important component in the formation of hemoglobin, a protein that makes up approximately one-third of the weight of red blood cells.

Deficiency, which is often observed in pigs, leads to a decrease in the body's resistance.

Characteristic manifestations of anemia are the following:

1. Changes in the mucous membrane. Gums, tongue or inner part pale eyelids ( normal color mucous membranes - pink).
2. Loss of appetite.
3. Piglet is weak and inactive.
4. Shiver.

If the disease is not treated, the condition worsens and the amount of iron in the body decreases. The resistance of young animals to infections weakens, and enteritis is more common in chronically anemic pigs.

Pork milk is low in Fe (1 mg per 1 liter). With a daily requirement of 10 mg, the situation when the sow is the only source of the microelement leads to a decrease in hemoglobin levels during the first week of life in young animals.

Veterinary drugs are more suitable for prevention and treatment. There are 2 ways to administer microelements to pigs:

1. Orally.
2. Parenterally (injection).

Most oral iron is not absorbed and is excreted in the feces.

Intramuscularly administered drugs used in treatment iron deficiency anemia piglets - a common way to quickly cope with the disease.

For injections to be effective, the correct form of medication, amount of iron, and method of administration must be used.

Ferrous sulfate is the most commonly used form because it is fairly accessible and economical.

The appropriate amount of Fe to inject depends on the age at which the pigs are weaned. Up to 200 mg of the drug is injected into the muscles of the neck or shoulder blades of piglets. When weaning age is around 21 days, this is enough to cover the animal's daily needs.

Nutritional anemia can occur at any time in a pig's life. However, anemia caused by micronutrient deficiency occurs in premature piglets kept in pens without access to soil. Therefore, in such farms, newborn piglets should be given special attention in order to identify the first signs of the disease in time.

Autumn, winter and spring farrowed piglets aged 5 to 28 days sometimes develop anemia.

Etiology. Most researchers believe that the main cause of the disease is iron deficiency in the piglet's body. Iron is essential for the synthesis of the hemoglobin molecule. Undoubtedly, other factors also play a certain role in the development of the disease, in particular, inadequate feeding of animals, conditions of their keeping, lack of protein, copper, cobalt, vitamins in the diet (most often cyanocobalamin, folic acid, riboflavin, ascorbic acid).

Under summer conditions, both queens and young animals have the opportunity to obtain a certain amount of iron by eating green plants, soil particles, and clay, which is excluded during the stall period.

Pathogenesis. The piglet's iron reserve at birth is close to 50 mg, and at rapid growth will soon be exhausted. Daily requirement in iron in the first 4 weeks is 7 mg, and its consumption is covered by the intake of this microelement with mother's milk only in the amount of 1 mg. Thus, by the 5-7th day, an iron deficiency develops in the piglet’s body, which disrupts the formation of the hemoglobin molecule. It should be noted that the endogenous metabolism of iron in a piglet at this age is still imperfect.

Newly formed red blood cells are hypochromic. Nutritional deficiency disrupts not only the synthesis of the hemoglobin molecule and the formation of red blood cells, but also the synthesis of plasma proteins. With anemia in piglets, redox processes are disrupted. Iron deficiency eliminates the stimulating effect of this microelement on the bone marrow, which also disrupts erythropoiesis. The number of red blood cells in the blood subsequently decreases. As a rule, anemic piglets have reduced resistance to secondary diseases.

Pathological changes. In addition to the pallor of the color of the skin and visible mucous membranes, at the autopsy, changes in the color of the liver to a light clayey color, an increase in its size and sometimes small hemorrhages in its parenchyma are noted. The muscles are pale, which is especially noticeable on the heart and on the muscles of the pelvic girdle. Constant expansion of the heart and muscle flabbiness are noted. The spleen is slightly enlarged. In the renal parenchyma there are degenerative changes. The lungs are swollen. Histological studies reveal changes in the bone marrow characteristic of increased erythropoiesis, extramedullary foci of hematopoiesis in the spleen, liver and lymph nodes.

Symptoms In normally developed and healthy piglets at the age of 5-7 days, the color of the skin and visible mucous membranes becomes pale; then they acquire a slightly yellowish color. The mobility of piglets decreases sharply. In some cases, the piglet does not approach the udder or stops sucking it at the time when the sphincters of the nipples open, and milk is thus released onto the floor. Such impaired nutrition also affects the growth and development of the piglet. The piglets become weaker, stunted, the stubble becomes rough and brittle, and the skin becomes wrinkled. Digestion processes are disrupted, diarrhea or constipation periodically appears. The stomach is tightened. Such piglets turn into runts after 10-12 days.

When examining blood in piglets aged 8-10 days, sharp decline hemoglobin content (up to 7-5 g% and lower) with a constant number of red blood cells. At the age of about 20 days, the hemoglobin concentration decreases to 3-4 g%, and the content of erythrocytes also decreases (sometimes up to 3 million per 1 mm3).

Piglets die either from anemia or from secondary diseases.

Flow. Anemia in piglets develops relatively quickly. If left untreated, piglets die 10-14 days after the disease.

Diagnosis. To make a diagnosis, in addition to clinical signs, it is necessary to take into account the data of a blood test for the content of hemoglobin and red blood cells, as well as take into account pathological changes.

Treatment. For treatment, it is necessary first of all to use special iron-dextran preparations (impferon, imposil-200, myofer, armidextran, ferrobalt, ferrodex, ferrodextran, ferroglucin). They are administered intramuscularly once in doses of 1-2 ml based on their iron content of 150-200 mg.

Good results are obtained by subcutaneous injection of fresh citrated blood of a sow (mother) or foreign blood (usually horse) in doses of 5-7 ml per 1 kg of piglet 2-3 times at daily intervals, as well as by injection of canned blood (but not blood plasma).

The best results in the treatment of anemia are obtained from the use of iron glycerophosphate (the iron oxide salt of glycerophosphoric acid contains 18% iron and 14.9% phosphorus). The drug is used in the form of a powder, highly dispersed suspension, paste or as part of a special granulated feed. To prevent anemia, the drug is given 0.5-1 g every other day for 5-10 days and for treatment 1-1.5 g daily for 6-10 days. Daily allowance or single dose The drug is mixed for all piglets of the same litter with water, skim milk or milk and fed in a common feeder. It is most convenient to feed iron glycerophosphate as part of granulated feed, proposed by D. P. Ivanov and V. A. Alikaev. The recipe for this feed includes: barley flour - 50%, oatmeal - 20%, wheat bran - 10%, flax meal - 5%, soybean meal - 5%, fish meal - 6%, feed yeast - 3%, ground chalk - 1%. To 100 kg of this mixture add 1.5 kg of iron glycerophosphate, mix thoroughly and granulate. Compound feed granules have the form of cylinders, cubes or grains with a diameter of up to 0.5 cm and are easy to bite. Compound feed is given to piglets from the 5th-7th day, 30-50 g per day for 20-25 days in special troughs with low edges. There must be a bowl of water nearby, which needs to be changed 3-4 times a day.

Prevention. To prevent anemia in piglets, it is necessary to eliminate the causes that cause it and take measures to organize timely feeding of young animals with high-value feed, rich in proteins, vitamins and minerals, including microelements (iron, copper, cobalt). It is also advisable for prevention to give iron supplements to piglets from 5-6 days of age, to inject horse blood subcutaneously, and iron dextran preparations intramuscularly.

Anemia or anemia is a condition characterized by a decrease in the amount of hemoglobin and red blood cells per unit volume of blood compared to the norm. Widely distributed in all natural and climatic zones, more often in conditions of industrial technology. Mostly piglets are affected. The disease develops quickly, without treatment, piglets die on days 10-14, usually suddenly, the best litters, often without visible signs and most likely due to acute hypoxia. Mortality can reach 60-80% of cases.

Etiology. The main cause of the disease is a lack of iron in the body. Due to the high growth rate of piglets, their need for iron is much greater than that of young animals of other animal species. The daily requirement of a piglet up to one month of age is on average 8-10 mg. The iron reserve in the body of a newborn piglet is approximately 50 mg; it receives 1 mg per day from mother's milk. Such a small reserve of iron is quickly consumed and by the 7-8th day of life the piglets become iron deficient, and by 3-4 weeks of age their anemia reaches its climax.

Numerous factors that reduce the resistance of newborn piglets contribute to the disease: lack of protein, cobalt, zinc, manganese, vitamins A, B12, E in the diets of sows and piglets; low level of hemoglobin in the blood of sows, etc. It is also possible that the lifespan of red blood cells in pigs is 60 days, while in other animals it is 120 days. The course of anemia worsens, and the mortality rate of piglets increases due to violations of housing technology and sanitation rules.

Symptoms . In the first 10-15 days of life, young animals of all animal species experience a decrease in hemoglobin and the number of red blood cells. In foals, calves and lambs it is usually temporary, but in piglets it often turns into severe form diseases.

Iron deficiency anemia occurs in healthy piglets, usually well developed at the age of 3-6 weeks. Pallor of the skin and visible mucous membranes appears, which later acquire a yellow color, swelling of the eyelids, and lethargy. The mobility of piglets noticeably decreases, they become inactive, bury themselves in the litter, suckle poorly from their mother, quickly lag behind in growth, the stubble becomes rough, brittle, and the skin becomes wrinkled. There may be a perversion of appetite. Digestion is disrupted. The abdomen is often swollen or pulled up, and there is diarrhea, alternating with constipation. There may be some mucus in the stool. Hemoglobin in the blood sharply decreases from 100 to 30-35 g/l. The number of erythrocytes usually does not change, but sometimes it can decrease to 2 million per 1 mm3, and their qualitative composition can also transform, accompanied by anisocytosis, poikilocytosis, and polychromatophilia.

Diagnosis and differential diagnosis. Early diagnosis consists of determining the amount of hemoglobin in the blood, liver, spleen, and kidneys. In other cases, an analysis of piglet feeding is carried out based on clinical symptoms and the results of hematological studies. Piglets with hemoglobin levels below 40 g/l are considered sick. Determining the color indicator of blood is of great diagnostic importance. Normally, this indicator is close to one; with anemia it drops to 0.6-0.5.

When differentiating the disease, anemia that occurs due to the influence of other factors on the body of young animals, and in particular infectious and invasive ones, is excluded.

Treatment. Use medications containing iron. The most effective are iron dextran preparations (ferrodextran, ferrodex, ferroglucin, dextrafer, impoferon, impozil-200, myofer, armidextran, ferrobal, DIF-3). They are administered intramuscularly in the thigh area or in the neck area behind the auricle, with therapeutic purpose in a dose of 1-2 ml based on their content of 150-200 mg of iron. Piglets are treated on the 3-4th day of their life, and again after 7-10 days.

Iron glycerophosphate is used in a dose of 1-1.5 g per day for 6-10 days in the form of powder, paste or as part of a special granulated feed containing 1-1.5% of the drug.

It is recommended to use iron sulfate in the form of a 1% solution, which is used to irrigate the nipples of sows or give it orally in the form of a 0.5% solution in combination with a 0.5% solution of copper sulfate, 5 ml (1 teaspoon) 1 once a day.

Positive results are obtained by using the drug microanemin, consisting of iron sulfate, copper sulfate and cobalt chloride, for piglets. It is used in the form of a solution and administered intramuscularly. It is believed to be more effective than ferroglucin.

You can feed piglets from 10-14 days of age with microelements in the form of briquettes or mixtures in next lineup: iron sulfate – 2 mg, copper sulfate – 0.25 mg, zinc sulfate – 0.15 mg, cobalt chloride – 0.3 mg, manganese chloride – 0.15 mg per 1 kg. Or in the form of solutions for piglets 30-40 days of age, as well as adults suffering from anemia according to the prescription: 2.5 g of iron sulfate, 1.5 g of copper sulfate and 1 g of cobalt chloride per 1 liter of water.

Prevention carried out with the same drugs that are used to treat anemic piglets.

It is necessary to accustom piglets to feeding early. They grow faster, develop better, and are more resistant to disease.