Effect of carnichrome® on growth performance of weanling pigs in a commercial environment

A 43-day growth study with a total of 384 weanling pigs (14 Â± 2 d of age) was conducted to evaluate the effects of CarnichromeÂ®, a combination of L-carnitine and chromium picolinate, on growth performance of weanling pigs. Secondary objectives were to compare pigs fed diets with or without a feed-grade medication, evaluate any interactive effects between Carnichrome and medication, and identify any carryover effect once medication was withdrawn from the diet. Experimental diets were arranged in a 2 Ã— 3 factorial to compare the main effects of medication (none or Denagard/CTC, 35/400 g/ton) and Carnichrome (none, 25, and 100, or 50 and 100 ppm, respectively, of L-carnitine and chromium picolinate). No interactions between Carnichrome and Denagard/CTC were detected (P>0.17). Pigs fed Denagard/ CTC had improved ADG (P<0.01), and F/G (P<0.02) from d 0 to 10, 10 to 29, 0 to 29, and overall (d 0 to 43) compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC. In addition, pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC tended to have increased ADFI (P<0.08) from d 0 to 10, and significantly increased ADFI (P<0.01) from d 10 to 29, 0 to 29, and overall (d 0 to 43). No differences in ADG, ADFI, and F/G were seen for pigs fed diets containing either rate of Carnichrome, compared with those of pigs fed the negative control diet. For the period d 29 to 43, when pigs were fed a common phase 3 diet, there were no differences in ADG, ADFI, or F/G between treatments (P>0.14), and no carryover effect of medication resulted. Pigs fed nursery diets containing Carnichrome did not have enhanced growth performance, but pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC had improved ADG, ADFI, and F/G compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.; Swine Day, 2004, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 2004


Summary
A 43-day growth study with a total of 384 weanling pigs (14 ± 2 d of age) was conducted to evaluate the effects of Car-nichrome®, a combination of L-carnitine and chromium picolinate, on growth performance of weanling pigs.Secondary objectives were to compare pigs fed diets with or without a feed-grade medication, evaluate any interactive effects between Carnichrome and medication, and identify any carryover effect once medication was withdrawn from the diet.Experimental diets were arranged in a 2 × 3 factorial to compare the main effects of medication (none or Denagard/CTC, 35/400 g/ton) and Carnichrome (none, 25, and 100, or 50 and 100 ppm, respectively, of L-carnitine and chromium picolinate).No interactions between Carnichrome and Denagard/CTC were detected (P>0.17).Pigs fed Denagard/CTC had improved ADG (P<0.01), and F/G (P<0.02) from d 0 to 10, 10 to 29, 0 to 29, and overall (d 0 to 43) compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.In addition, pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC tended to have increased ADFI (P<0.08) from d 0 to 10, and significantly increased ADFI (P<0.01) from d 10 to 29, 0 to 29, and overall (d 0 to 43).No differences in ADG, ADFI, and F/G were seen for pigs fed diets containing either rate of Carnichrome, compared with those of pigs fed the negative control diet.For the period d 29 to 43, when pigs were fed a common phase 3 diet, there were no differences in ADG, ADFI, or F/G between treatments (P>0.14), and no carryover effect of medication resulted.Pigs fed nursery diets containing Carnichrome did not have enhanced growth performance, but pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC had improved ADG, ADFI, and F/G compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.

Introduction
L-carnitine is a vitamin-like compound that aids in the movement of fatty acids across the mitochondrial membrane to be broken down for energy, and may be required to aid in the utilization of fat sources, along with having other functions.Chromium, a trace mineral that is a component of glucose-tolerance factor, is important in carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism through its potentiating action on insulin, and may reduce backfat by limiting the response to insulin from a meal.
Research involving L-carnitine and chromium has suggested reduction in body weight loss in sows and reduced backfat in finishing pigs.Previous research from Kansas State University and Oklahoma State University has shown that supplementing nursery pig diets with L-carnitine can improve ADG and feed efficiency.But the combination of L-carnitine and chromium has not been evaluated in nursery pigs.Carnichrome® is a combination product of L-carnitine and chromium picolinate.Therefore, the objectives were to determine whether a combination of Lcarnitine and chromium picolinate, as Carnichrome, can influence weanling pig performance and to determine if interactive effects of Carnichrome and medication exist.

Procedures
A total of 384 weaned pigs (initially 12.1 lb and 14 ± 2 d of age) were blocked by weight in a 43-day growth study.They were randomly allotted to one of six dietary treatments in a randomized completeblock design.Each pen contained eight pigs per pen, with eight replicates (pens) per treatment.Pigs were housed at a commercial farm in northeastern Kansas in an environmentally controlled nursery.All pens (4 × 6 ft) contained one stainless steel self-feeder and two nipple waterers to allow ad libitum access to feed and water.
Experimental diets were based on corn-soybean meal and were fed in meal form for 29 days after weaning; a common diet was fed from d 29 to 43.The SEW diets (1.7% lysine) were fed on a feed budget of one pound per pig, transition diets (1.6% lysine) were fed after the SEW diet until d 10, and phase 2 diets (1.51% lysine) were fed from d 10 to 29 after weaning (Table 1).
Diets contained growth-promoting amounts of zinc oxide.A common phase 3 diet was fed from d 29 to 43 to evaluate potential carryover effects.Pigs were weighed, and feed disappearance was measured, on d 0, 10, 17, 24, 29, and 43 to determine ADG, ADFI, and F/G.Data were analyzed as a randomized complete-block design, with pen as the experimental unit, by using the Mixed procedure of SAS.

Results and Discussion
No Denagard/CTC by Carnichrome interactions were detected for ADG, ADFI, or F/G (P>0.17);therefore, the treatment main effects are presented in Table 2.The individual treatment means are also shown in Table 3.
From d 0 to 10, pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC had improved ADG and F/G (P<0.01),compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.In addition, pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC tended to have increased ADFI (P<0.08),compared with that of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.Pigs fed diets with either rate of Carnichrome had ADG, ADFI, and F/G (P>0.47)similar to those of pigs fed diets without Carnichrome.
From d 10 to 29, pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC had improved ADG, ADFI, and F/G (P<0.01),compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.Adding Carnichrome to the diet had no effect on ADG, ADFI, and F/G (P>0.41).
For the overall treatment period (d 0 to 29), pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC had greater ADG, ADFI, and improved F/G (P<0.01),compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.Pigs fed diets containing either rate of Carnichrome had ADG, ADFI, and F/G (P>0.36)similar to those of pigs fed diets without Carnichrome.
From d 29 to 43, when pigs were fed a common diet, ADG, ADFI, and F/G were similar for all treatment groups (P>0.14).
For the overall trial period (d 0 to 43), pigs fed diets containing Denagard/CTC had greater ADG (P<0.01),ADFI (P<0.01), and F/G (P<0.02),compared with those of pigs fed diets without Denagard/CTC.Pigs fed diets containing either rate of Carnichrome had ADG, ADFI, and F/G (P>0.31)similar to those of pigs fed diets without Carnichrome.
In agreement with many previous trials, results showed that feeding diets containing an antibiotic such as Denagard/CTC to nursery pigs improved growth performance, but supplementation with either rate of Carnichrome did not improve ADG, ADFI, or F/G in this study.There also were no interactive effects of combining Carnichrome with Denagard/CTC.

Table 3 . Effects of Carnichrome and Denagard/CTC on Growth Performance of Weanling Pigs in a Commercial Environment a
A total of 384 pigs approxiatmetly 12.1 lbs and 14 ± 2 d of age in a commercial unit in Northeast Kansas.b Contains L-carnitine ( 50 ppm) and Chromium ( 200 ppb).c Inclusion rate of Denagard (35 g/ton) CTC (400 g/ton).d,e,f,g Values with different superscripts differ (P< 0.05). a