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Duration of lactation, endocrine and metabolic state, and fertility of primiparous sows^1,2

H. J. Willis^*, L. J. Zak^* and G. R. Foxcroft^,3

^* Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and and Swine Research & Technology Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

³ Correspondence—phone: 780-492-7661; fax: 780-492-4265; E-mail: george.foxcroft{at}ualberta.ca.

The objectives of this study were to determine factors affecting the reproductive performance of primiparous sows early weaned (EW; n = 35) at d 14 or conventionally weaned (CW; n = 35) at d 24 of lactation. Sow BW and backfat were recorded at farrowing, weekly until weaning, and at standing heat. Feed intake was controlled throughout lactation to standardize nutritional effects on subsequent reproductive performance. Litter size was standardized across treatments within 48 h after farrowing, and litter weight was recorded until weaning. In subsets of sows, blood samples were collected from 10 h before to 10 h after weaning, and then every 6 h until ovulation. Sows were heat checked twice daily and bred at 24-h intervals during standing heat using pooled semen. Ultrasonography every 6 h determined time of ovulation. Sows were either slaughtered within 24 h after ovulation to assess ovulation rate, fertilization rate, and embryonic development in vitro, or at d 28 of gestation to determine ovulation rate and embryonic survival. Compared with CW sows, EW sows had more backfat at weaning (15.9 ± 0.5 vs. 14.7 ± 0.5 mm; P < 0.001). Also, CW sows tended to lose more BW and to have lower IGF-I concentrations, indicating poorer body condition. Duration of lactation did not affect ovulation rate (EW = 17.6 ± 0.7; CW = 18.7 ± 0.6), fertilization rate (EW = 96.0 ± 2.2; CW = 88.2 ± 4.7%), or embryo survival to d 28 (EW = 62.5 ± 4.5; CW = 63.1 ± 5.0%). There was a marginal effect of duration of lactation on weaning-to-estrus interval (EW = 120 ± 3; CW = 112 ± 3 h; P < 0.06) and duration of estrus (EW = 52.4 ± 2.3; CW = 46.3 ± 2.2 h; P < 0.08). Overall, embryonic survival, not ovulation rate, seems to be the limiting factor for potential litter size in the second parity. Although fertility in both EW and CW sows studied was compromised, endocrine and metabolic data indicate that the mechanisms affecting reproductive performance may differ between the two weaning systems. The LH, FSH, and estradiol data from the EW sows are characteristic of animals with limited follicular development and incomplete recovery of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis; consequently, the integrity of the uterine environment may be adversely affected and limit embryonic survival. In CW sows, variability in metabolic state seemed to be the key factor limiting the fertility, again adversely affecting embryonic survival.

Key Words: Endocrinology • Fertility • Lactation • Metabolism • Sows