Effects of Dietary Phosphorus and Calcium Level on Performance, Bone Mineralization and Carcass Characteristics of Swine

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Abstract
Three experiments involving 344 SPF Yorkshire pigs were conducted to determine the effects of dietary phosphorus and calcium level in corn-soybean meal diets on rate and efficiency of gain, carcass characteristics, and bone mineralization of growing-finishing swine from 18 to 96 kg body weight. In experiment 1, increasing the dietary phosphorus in two equal increments from 0.34 to 0.56% to a mean pig weight of 46 kg and from 0.29 to 0.44% thereafter resulted in a significant linear improvement in gain, feed/ gain and bone ash values. Serum phosphorus increased linearly and serum calcium decreased linearly with increasing levels of dietary phosphorus. Carcasses of pigs fed the lower phosphorus levels tended to have smaller l. dorsi areas than those of pigs fed the two higher phosphorus levels. In experiment 2, pigs fed 0.38% phosphorus to a mean weight of 46 kg and 0.30% phosphorus thereafter gained significantly slower, required more feed per unit of gain, and had a lower ash content in the metacarpal and turbinate bones than pigs fed 0.50, 0.63 or 0.75% phosphorus followed by 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6% phosphorus, respectively. Carcasses of barrows fed the low phosphorus level had significantly more backfat, smaller l. dorsi areas and lower yield of ham and loin than those of pigs fed the three higher phosphorus levels. Gain and feed/gain responses, skeletal ash and carcass traits were similar for pigs fed the three higher phosphorus levels in both experiments 2 and 3. All response criteria were similar for pigs fed either 0.65–0.50% or 0.75–0.60% dietary calcium sequences during the growing-finishing period. No visual symptoms of turbinate atrophy were observed in any of the pigs slaughtered. Copyright © 1970. American Society of Animal Science . Copyright 1970 by American Society of Animal Science

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