Effects of dietary soya bean and cowpea on gut morphology and faecal composition in creep and noncreep-fed pigs

The effect of creep feeding and different levels of soya bean meal (SBM) an d cowpea meal on intestinal morphology and faecal characteristics were inve stigated in weaner pigs. Prior to the feeding trial, one group of piglets w as creep-fed and the other noncreep-fed. The two groups of piglets were wea ned at 28 days and randomly assigned to four diets whose main sources of pr otein were, 300 g/kg skimmed milk powder (T-1), 310 g/kg soya bean meal (T- 2). 150 g/kg soya bean with 120 g/kg skimmed milk powder (T-3) and 310 g/kg raw cowpea meal (T-4) Live weight gain was highest in T-1 group, and least in the T-4 group. At weaning only the noncreep fed weaners showed villus atrophy and crypt hy perplasia, but at 7 days postweaning these changes were evident in all grou ps except the control and were more severe in the noncreep (T-2, T-3) and c owpea-fed groups. At 21 days postweaning, only noncreep cowpea-fed piglets showed reduced villus height compared with the T-1 group. There was general mild diarrhoea in all the noncreep-fed weaners but its on set was more rapid (P < 0.01), and duration longer (P < 0.05), in the T-2 a nd T-4 piglets than in those in the T-1 and T-3 groups. A lower faecal pH w as observed in weaners that had diarrhoea compared with a pH of 7.1 in pigs with normal moisture. The glucose content of faeces was significantly high er (P <0.05) in the T-2 and T-4 groups. The presence of enteropathology and low growth in the T-4 group suggests that feeding raw cowpea to weaner pig s can induce considerable antigenicity in the intestinal mucosa, causing da mage and decreasing productivity. However, the use of creep feeding before weaning appears to have some ameliorative effects.