Pigs can be picky eaters.

There are a couple of key factors that work against pigs getting a quick start on solid feed at weaning time. The first is that a newly weaned pig’s stomach is very small and holds very little food. The second is that young pigs are very discriminating eaters. With tongues that have almost 20,000 taste buds, compared to a human’s 7,000, they have a very sophisticated sense of taste and are very selective. That’s where LEANMetrics™ Technology comes in.

Highly palatable Purina Mills® Pig Starters with LEANMetrics™ Technology get pigs off to a fast start, enticing them to eat with frequency. Great taste is synonymous with Purina Mills® pig starters, and without it, pigs simply wouldn’t consume as much as they should for good health and to condition them to achieve a high average daily gain – as much as an additional five percent through the nursery.

LeanMetrics™ Technology (Purina Starters Mean Enhanced Intake) 

Enticing aroma
Extra-flavor ingredients
Lactose
Sugar
Oatmeal
Plasma
Fish
Small, soft, easily consumed pellets
Products and processes that enhance palatability to encourage consumption
Exclusive to Purina Mills® Starter Feeds

Power the Immune System for More Profit Potential

Just as pork production involves management systems, pigs’ bodies are managed by systems such as the respiratory tract, gastrointestinal tract (stomach and gut), circulatory system, and immune system. All systems are made up of cells, and all cells need nutrition to function. 

Immunity Is Critical
The protection that the immune system ((link to immunocompetence info)) provides is critical to baby pigs, which are highly susceptible to viruses and bacteria. Those pathogens can cause any number of diseases, which leads to scours in baby pigs. Scours can have long-term effects on a pig’s growth and productivity because the pathogens actually damage the structures (known as villi) in the intestines that are responsible for absorption of fluids and nutrients.

Preserve the Integrity of the Gut
When villi are damaged, pigs experience decreased absorption and decreased digestive enzyme function. In other words, no matter how much a pig might eat or drink, it couldn’t get the most benefit from it. Damaged villi also secrete less mucin, which is a sticky substance that traps viruses and bacteria. And the damaged villi are less able to prevent those pathogens from crossing out of the gut and into the bloodstream.

So, keeping the immune system powered with nutrition is crucial to maintain what veterinarians call “immunocompetence,” the ability to be profitable through high health.