INFLUENCE OF MASSAGE DURING SIMULATED NONNUTRITIVE NURSINGS ON PIGLETS MILK INTAKE AND WEIGHT-GAIN

Two experiments were conducted with the aim of investigating whether n on-nutritive nursings (nursings without milk ejection), when included into a regular rhythm of nursings with milli ejection, affect milk int ake and body weight gain during early lactation in pigs. In experiment 1, when the piglets were 9 to 12 days old, 8 sows were forced to nurs e every 70 min three times in succession. Between the nursings, 2 pigl ets had an additional opportunity to massage the sow's teats from whic h they had been suckling. Milk intake was estimated by the weigh-suckl e-weigh method. Additional massage on the two teats had no influence o n milk output from those teats on subsequent nursings. In experiment 2 , on day 7 or 8 post partum 16 sows were forced to nurse at every 70 m in for a period of 24 h. In nine of the sows (group MIN70 + 15), non-n utritive nursing were induced 15 min after each nutritive nursing. In the other group of seven sows (MIN70), there was no opportunity for th is additional massage. The total duration of udder massage was conside rably longer in group MIN70 + 15 (median 271 min vs. 165 min, Mann-Whi tney U-test, p < 0.005) than in the other group that did not have the additional massage. Nevertheless, the weight gain during the whole 24 h period was the same in both groups (157 g vs. 141 g, Mann-Whitney U- test. n.s.). Both groups had nearly the same decrease in weight during the 24 h manipulation of nursing rhythm in comparison with the weight gain during a unmanipulated period 24 h one day before (group MIN70 15 decreased 28% and group MIN70 decreased 31%, Mann-Whitney U-test, n.s.). The results suggest that additional massage provided during non -nutritive nursings does not induce higher milk output during subseque nt milk ejection, either locally or systemically. (C) 1998 Elsevier Sc ience B.V.