Effect of Dietary Folic Acid Supplementation on Sow Performance through Two Parities

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Abstract
One hundred fifty-three gilts were maintained in three breeding groups and fed gestation-lactation diets supplemented with either 0 (control), 1.65 or 6.62 mg of supplemental folic acid/kg of diet for two consecutive parities. Serum folate concentrations of sows were linearly (P < .05) increased by dietary additions of folic acid during both gestation and lactation, but serum glucose and urea concentrations were unaffected by treatment Serum folate concentrations decreased from breeding to d 60 and 90 of gestation and then increased through lactation for all treatments. Number of pigs born and live pigs at birth, d 14 and d 21 were quadratically (P < .05) increased by folic acid additions. Average pig weights were similar among treatments (P > .10) on both d 0 and 14 of lactation but were less (P < .01) than the other treatment groups on d 21 for pigs from sows fed the 1.65 mg/kg treatment. Litter weights were quadratically (P < .01) increased on d 0 and d 14 by folic acid supplementation. Sow weight gain and backfat thickness loss were unaffected by treatment during gestation (P > .06); sow weight loss and backfat thickness loss increased quadratically with increasing level of folic acid during lactation (P < .06 and .05, respectively). More control sows exhibited estrus by d 7 postweaning than sows receiving folic acid supplementation in parity I (P < .05); however, no differences (P > .10) were detected among treatments by d 14, nor were any differences observed by d 7 in parity II. Conception rate was unaffected by folic acid additions. Dietary folic acid supplementation improved sow reproductive performance by increasing the number of pigs born alive.