Hostname: page-component-77c89778f8-m42fx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-19T00:49:04.491Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The problem of predicting food intake during the period of adaptation to a new food: a model

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

Emma C. Whittemore ,
Gerry C. Emmans  and
Ilias Kyriazakis
Emma C. Whittemore*
Affiliation:
Animal Nutrition and Health Department, Animal Biology Division, Scottish Agricultural College, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG, UK
Gerry C. Emmans
Affiliation:
Animal Nutrition and Health Department, Animal Biology Division, Scottish Agricultural College, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG, UK
Ilias Kyriazakis
Affiliation:
Animal Nutrition and Health Department, Animal Biology Division, Scottish Agricultural College, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG, UK
*
*Corresponding author: Dr E. C. Whittemore, fax +44 131 333 3296, email ewhittemore@aviagen.com
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

A model is described which aims to predict intake immediately following a change from one food to another that is higher in bulk content; it deals with the transition from one ‘equilibrium’ intake to another. The system considered is an immature pig fed ad libitum on a single homogeneous food, which is balanced for nutrients and contains no toxins so that the first limiting resource is always energy. It is assumed that an animal has a desired rate of food intake (DFI) which is that needed to meet the energy requirements for protein and lipid deposition and for maintenance. DFI may not be achieved if a bulk constraint to intake exists. Where a bulk constraint operates intake is calculated as constrained food intake (CFI) where CFI=Cwhc/WHC k/ (where WHC is the water-holding capacity of the food (kg wate/g dry food) and Cwhc is the animal's capacity for WHC (unit/g live weight per d)). Where intake is not constrained it is assumed that genetic potential will be achieved. Potential growth rate is described by the Gompertz growth function. Where intake is constrained, growth will be less than the potential. Constrained growth rate is predicted as (d/t)con=(EI−Em)/eg k/ where W is pig weight (kg), EI is energy intake (M/), Em is the energy required for maintenance (M/) and eg is the energy required for unit gain (M/g). The value of eg depends on weight and the fattening characteristics of the pig. Actual growth is predicted to be the lesser of potential and constrained growth. To deal with adaptation it is assumed that the time taken to reach equilibrium depends on the difference in WHC values between the previous and current food and that the capacity to consume food bulk is related to the WHC of the current food. It is proposed that the capacity for WHC on the first day on a new food will be equal to the current capacity for WHC on the last day of the previous food. Thus Cwhc=(FI×WHC)/W /g, where FI is food intake (k/). Thereafter Cwhc will gradually increase over time to a maximum of 0·27 /g. The rate of change in Cwhc is made to be the same for all pigs and all foods. The increase in capacity over time is assumed to be linear at the rate of 0·01 unit/. The model was tested using published data. Qualitatively the predictions of the model were in close agreement with the relevant observed data in at least some cases. It is concluded that the underlying theoretical assumptions of the model are reasonable. However, the model fails to predict initial intake when changed to foods high in wheat-bran content and fails to predict the intake of a non-limiting food where compensatory increases in intake and gain occur. The model could be adapted to overcome the first failure by taking into account the time course of digestive efficiency following a change in food. To deal with the second would require a sufficient understanding of the time course of compensatory growth.

Keywords

AdaptationFood intakeFibrePigsWater-holding capacity
Type
Research Article
Information
British Journal of Nutrition , Volume 89 , Issue 3 , March 2003 , pp. 383 - 399
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 2003

References

Agricultural Research Council (1981) The Nutrient Requirements of Pigs, Technical review by an ARC working party. Farnham Royal, UK: Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux.Google Scholar
Black, JL, Campbell, RG, Williams, IH, James, KJ & Davies, GT (1986) Simulation of energy and amino acid utilisation in the pig. Research and Development in Agriculture 3, 121–145.Google Scholar
Cole, DJA, Hardy, B & Lewis, D (1972) Nutrient density of pigs diets. In Pig Production, pp. 61 –70 [Cole, DJA, editor]. London: Butter-worths.Google Scholar
Ehle, FR, Jeraci, JL, Robertson, JB & Van Soest, PJ (1982) The influence of dietary fiber on the digestibility, rate of passage and gastrointestinal fermentation in pigs. Journal of Animal Science 55, 1071–1081.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Emmans, GC (1987) Growth, body composition and feed intake. World Poultry Science Association Journal 43, 208–227.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Emmans, GC (1988) Genetic components of potential and actual growth. In Animal Breeding Opportunities, British Society of Animal Production, Occasional Publication no. 12. pp. 153 –181 [Land, RB, Bullfield, G and Hill, WG, editors].Google Scholar
Emmans, GC (1994) Effective energy: a concept of energy utilisation applied across species. British Journal of Nutrition 71, 801–821.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Emmans, GC (1997) A method to predict the food intake of domestic animals from birth to maturity as a function of time. Journal of Theoretical Biology 186, 189–199.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Emmans, GC & Fisher, C (1986) Problems in nutritional theory. In Nutrient Requirements of Poultry and Nutritional Research, pp. 9 –39 [Fisher, C and Boorman, KN, editors]. London: Butterworths.Google Scholar
Emmans, GC & Kyriazakis, I (1995) A general method for predicting the weight of water in the empty body of pigs. Animal Science 61, 103–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Emmans, GC & Kyriazakis, I (1997) Models of pig growth: problems and proposed solutions. Livestock Production Science 51, 119–129.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Emmans, GC & Kyriazakis, I (1999) Growth and body composition. In A Quantitative Biology of the Pig, pp. 181 –197 [Kyriazakis, I, editor]. Wallingford, Oxon: CABI Publishing.Google Scholar
Emmans, GC & Kyriazakis, I (2001) Consequences of genetic change in farm animals on food intake and feeding behaviour. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 60, 115–125.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ferguson, NS, Gous, RM & Emmans, GC (1994) Preferred components for the construction of a new simulation model of growth, feed intake and nutrient requirements of growing pigs. South African Journal of Animal Science 24, 10–17.Google Scholar
Forbes, JM (2001) Consequences of feeding for future feeding. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 128A, 463–470.Google Scholar
Giles, LR, Lorschy, ML, Bray, HJ & Black, JL (1998) Predicting feed intake in growing pigs. In Progress in Pig Science, pp. 209 –228 [Wiseman, J, Varley, MA and Chadwick, JP, editors]. Nottingham: Nottingham University Press.Google Scholar
Knap, PW (2000) Time trends of Gompertz growth parameters in 'meat-type' pigs. Animal Science 70, 39–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kotarbinska, M (1969) An Investigation into the Transformation of Energy in Growing Pigs. Wydewinctiva Walsne, nr. 238. Wroclaw: Institut Zootechniki, (in Polish).Google Scholar
Kyriazakis, I & Emmans, GC (1992 a) The effects of varying protein and energy intakes on the growth and body composition of pigs 1. The effects of energy intake at constant, high protein intake. British Journal of Nutrition 68, 615–625.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kyriazakis, I & Emmans, GC (1992 b) The effects of varying protein and energy intakes on the growth and body composition of pigs 2. The effects of varying both energy and protein intake. British Journal of Nutrition 68, 603–613.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kyriazakis, I & Emmans, GC (1995) The voluntary feed intake of pigs given feeds based on wheatbran, dried citrus pulp and grass meal in relation to measurements of feed bulk. British Journal of Nutrition 73, 191–207.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kyriazakis, I & Emmans, GC (1999) Voluntary feed intake and diet selection. In A Quantitative Biology of the Pig, pp. 229 –248 [Kyriazakis, I, editor]. Wallingford, Oxon: CABI Publishing.Google Scholar
Kyriazakis, I, Stamataris, C, Emmans, GC & Whittemore, CT (1991) The effects of food protein content on the performance of pigs previously given foods with low or moderate protein contents. Animal Production 52, 165–173.Google Scholar
Low, AG (1985) Role of dietary fibre in pigs diets. In Recent Advances in Animal Nutrition, pp. 87 –112 [Haresign, W and Cole, DJA, editors]. London: Butterworths.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
National Research Council (1987) Predicting Feed Intake of Food-Producing Animals. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.Google Scholar
Noblet, J & Bach Knudsen, KE (1997) Comparative digestibility of wheat, maize and sugar beet pulp non-starch polysaccharides in adult sows and growing pigs. In Proceedings of the 7th International Symposium on Digestive Physiology in Pigs, EAAP publication no. 88. pp. 571 –574 [Laplace, JP, Fevrier, C and Barbeau, A, editors].Google Scholar
Noblet, J, Shi, XS & Dubois, S (1993) Metabolic utilisation of dietary energy and nutrients for maintenance energy requirements in sows - basis for a net energy system. British Journal of Nutrition 70, 407–419.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nyman, M & Nils-Georg, A (1982) Fermentation of dietary fibre components in the rat intestinal tract. British Journal of Nutrition 47, 357–366.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Owen, JB, Ridgeman, WJ & Wyllie, D (1971) The effect of food restriction on subsequent voluntary intake of pigs. Animal Production 13, 537–546.Google Scholar
Poppi, DP, Gill, M & France, J (1994) Integration of theories of feed intake regulation in growing ruminants. Journal of Theoretical Biology 167, 129–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Provenza, FD & Balph, DF (1987) Diet learning by domestic ruminants – theory, evidence and practical implications. Applied Animal Behavioural Science 18, 211–232.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, DW (1964) The plane of nutrition and compensatory growth in pigs. Animal Production 6, 227–236.Google Scholar
Schinkel, AP (1999) Describing the pig. In A Quantitative Biology of the Pig, pp. 9 –38 [Kyriazakis, I, editor]. Wallingford, Oxon: CABI Publishing.Google Scholar
Selvandran, RR (1984) The plant cell wall as a source of dietary fibre: chemistry and structure. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 39, 320–337.Google Scholar
Stamataris, C, Hillyer, GM, Whittemore, CT, Emmans, GC, Taylor, AG & Philips, P (1985) Performance and body composition of young pigs following a period of growth retardation by food restriction. Animal Production 40, 536.Google Scholar
Tsaras, LN, Kyriazakis, I & Emmans, GC (1998) The prediction of voluntary feed intake of pigs on poor quality feeds. Animal Science 66, 713–723.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Varel, (1987) Activity of fiber-degrading microorganisms in the pig large intestine. Journal of Animal Science 65, 488–496.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Whittemore, CT, Green, DM & Knap, PW (2001 a) Technical review of the energy and protein requirements of growing pigs: food intake. Animal Science 73, 3–17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whittemore, CT, Tullis, JB & Emmans, GC (1988) Protein growth in pigs. Animal Production 46, 437–445.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whittemore, EC, Emmans, GC, Tolkamp, BJ & Kyriazakis, I (2001 c) Tests of two theories of food intake using growing pigs 2. The effect of a period of reduced growth rate on the subsequent intake of foods of differing bulk content. Animal Science 72, 361–373.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whittemore, EC, Kyriazakis, I, Emmans, GC &Tolkamp, BJ (2001 b) Tests of two theories of food intake using growing pigs 1. The effect of ambient temperature on the intake of foods of differing bulk content. Animal Science 72, 351–360.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whittemore, EC, Kyriazakis, I, Tolkamp, BJ & Emmans, GC (2002) The short-term feeding behaviour of growing pigs fed foods differing in bulk content. Physiology and Behavior 76, 131–141.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed