A Modified Reduced Nocturnal Temperature Regimen for Early-Weaned Pigs2

A four-trial experiment utilizing 3- to 4-wk-old newly weaned pigs was conducted to evaluate the effect of a modified reduced nocturnal (MRNT) nursery temperature regimen on weaned pig and subsequent grower-finisher performance. Nursery treatments were 1) a control temperature (CT) regimen of 30°C constant air temperature lowered 2 C°/wk and 2) a regimen beginning 1 wk after weaning in which the temperature from 1900 to 0700 was lowered 6°C from CT. Weaned pigs gained faster (P< .01) in the MRNT treatment than in the CT treatment, with gains in Trials 1, 2, 3 and 4 being .39 vs .37, .28 vs .27, .38 vs .37 and .39 vs .36 kg/d, respectively. This improvement in gain was due to an increase (P< .005) in feed intake for the same periods (.60 vs .58; .48 vs .42; .59 vs .58; .63 vs .58 kg/d). There was no difference in feed conversion (P> .1). There was no effect (P> .1) of MRNT vs CT on subsequent performance to slaughter weight for average daily gain (.69 vs .69 kg/d), average daily feed (2.22 vs 2.23 kg/d) or gain/feed (.31 vs .31). These results support the conclusions that weaned pigs eat more feed and gain faster with a reduced nocturnal temperature scheme and that there are no carry-over effects during the growing-finishing phase.