Effects of Chestnut Tannin and in Combination with MGM-P Tannin on Early-Weaned Piglets

The present study evaluated the potential of Ch tannin and chestnut-quebracho tannin as alternatives to antibiotics; it investigated the effects of tannins on the growth performance, diarrhea, fecal moisture content, hematology, and common diarrhea-associated bacteria in weaned piglets. Thirty-six piglets weaned at 21 days of age were randomly assigned to three groups: C (basal diet), 0.75% N (basal diet + 0.75% chestnut tannin), and MN (basal diet + 0.75% chestnut tannin + 0.5% MGM-P). The experiment lasted for four weeks post-weaning. The results that both of tannin addition groups showed inhibiting trend for the growth performance. The average daily gain (ADG) in 0.75N group was significantly lower than in C group. The incidence of diarrhea was 41.7% in C group, 25% in MN group and 0% in 0.75N group. Besides, tannin treatments tended to decrease the fecal moisture content and did not exhibit the antimicrobial effect in the gut. Furthermore, tannin trended to decrease the level of red blood cell, hemoglobin and white blood cell. Together, the results indicated that although 0.75% Ch tannin effectively reduced PWD, this concentration could have a negative impact on the growth performance of piglets and carries a risk of anemia.