Nutritive value and performance of piglets fed rations containing high moisture corn silage

A digestibility assay was carried out to determine the dry matter apparent digestibility coefficients (DMDC), crude protein (CPDC), starch (SDC), gross energy (GEDC) and gross energy metabolization coefficient (GEMC) of high moisture corn silage (HMCS). Twelve crossbred (Landrace x Large-White x Duroc) castrated males were allotted to metabolism cages, in a completely randomized design. The total feces and urine collection method was used. The values of digestible dry matter (DDM), digestible protein (DP), digestible starch (DS), digestible energy (DE), and metabolizable energy (ME) of HMCS were 48.70, 3.77, 42.35%, and 2,389 and 3.327 kcal/kg, respectively, based on natural matter (60.18% DM). The experiment 2 was carried out to evaluate piglet performance and economic viability of diets with different substitution levels of dry yellow corn by HMCS. Forty-eight cross-breed (Landrace x Large-White x Duroc) piglets were used. The piglets were divided into four treatments in a completely randomized design, with six experimental units and two piglets per experimental unit. The treatments consisted of a basal corn-soybean meal diet and three diets with increasing dry yellow corn substitution by HMCS levels (33,66 and 100%), based on the digestible energy content of dry yellow corn and HMCS. There was no effect of increasing levels of HMCS on daily weight gain and daily feed intake. Linear reduction on feed conversion and diet cost per kilogram of weight gain was observed. Data indicate that dry corn can be completely replaced by HMCS on piglets diets, with improvement on performance and economic index.