Postpartum prostaglandin F2α administration affects colostrum yield, immunoglobulin G, and piglet performance

Current study was conducted to determine the effect of postpartum prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α) administration on colostrum and milk yield, colostrum immunoglobulin G (IgG) and piglet growth performance.

In total, 36 sows were included in the experiment. The sows were classified into two groups: i) control (n = 11) and ii) PGF2α (n = 25). Sows in the PGF2α group received 10 mg of PGF2α within an hour after farrowing. The body weight of piglets was measured at 0 and 24 h after birth to estimate colostrum consumption. Colostrum was collected at 1 and 24 h after farrowing to determine IgG concentrations. For milk yield study, the remaining sows in the PGF2α group (n = 23) were divided into two subgroups: i) single PGF2α (n = 12) and ii) multiple PGF2α (n = 11). In the multiple PGF2α, the sows received repeated doses of PGF2α at seven and 14 days postpartum. The piglets' body weight was measured at 0, 1, 5, and 20 days of age. The milk yield of the sows was calculated.

Colostrum yield of sows averaged 5.62±2.25 kg. Sows treated with PGF2α postpartum had a higher colostrum yield than control (7.01 and 5.12 kg, p<0.05). The concentration of IgG in colostrum at 24 h in the PGF2α group was higher than the control (31.6 and 17.4 g/L, p<0.05). For primiparous sows, milk yield was highest in the sows treated with multiple doses of PGF2α during lactation and lowest in control sows (10.25 and 7.61 kg, p<0.05). Colostrum intake was higher in the treatment than the control groups (+56.7 g, p<0.05). Primiparous sows treated with multiple doses of PGF2α had a higher litter weight than controls (p<0.01).

Postpartum treatment with PGF2α improved colostrum yield and IgG in multiparous sows and increased colostrum intake of piglets. Multiple administration of PGF2α improved the milk yield and increased litter weight of piglets in primiparous sows.