Techna is pleased to announce the arrival of ROBUS ZEN, an in-feed botanical based additive, with carefully chosen ingredients known for their mode of action in inhibiting various stress activated pathways in the central nervous system and promoting the production of serotonin. In addition, ROBUS ZEN contains digestive enhancers to support performance.
Director Swine Key Accounts
Techna
With a desire from many high welfare producers to be able to successfully produce pigs with long tails in a consistent and predictable production system, the control of tail biting is of importance. The cause of this vice can be multifactorial, including overcrowding, ventilation, poor health and nutrition, genetic factors, boredom, and social hierarchy, to name but a few. It is often difficult to pinpoint why an episode of tail biting occurs.
Control strategies vary, depending on the cause, such as providing enrichment and adequate space, altering the nutritional balance, early detection of the problem and the removal of the aggressor(s). Tail docking has also traditionally been commonplace, although there needs to be a good reason related to piglet welfare to employ it and this practice continues to come under scrutiny.
ROBUS ZEN: A NATURAL SOLUTION TO REDUCE AGGRESSION IN PIGS
Techna is pleased to announce the arrival of ROBUS ZEN, an in-feed botanical based additive, with carefully chosen ingredients known for their mode of action in inhibiting various stress activated pathways in the central nervous system and promoting the production of serotonin. In addition, ROBUS ZEN contains digestive enhancers to support performance.
Results under real conditions: Going head-to-head with a competing additive, ROBUS ZEN was recently trialled against an alternative feed additive marketed for decreasing aggression (Product B) in an indoor slatted all-in-all-out finishing unit (40kg to 120kg) in Northern England. The pigs were from an extremely aggressive source known for tail biting. The pigs were separated into two trial groups of 1,800 each, within identical conditions and fed the same diets. ROBUS ZEN was incorporated at a rate of 1kg/T, with Product B added at 4kg/T. In every parameter measured, ROBUS ZEN outperformed Product B. The majority of mortality was due to aggression or euthanasia, with Product B at 6.4% and ROBUS ZEN at 2.8%. ROBUS ZEN pigs were nine days faster to slaughter gaining an extra 1.5kg liveweight, with a feed saving of £3.33/pig compared to Product B. In addition, there was a saving of £1.20/pig in the ROBUS ZEN group due to less condemnation, grading and probe when compared to Product B.
In another recent trial carried out at an indoor slatted all-in-all-out finisher facility (35kg to 130kg) in Ireland, ROBUS ZEN was trialled against a control. The source of pigs was not known for aggression, so the objective was to assess performance under normal conditions. The trial consisted of 2 groups of pigs (32 pens x 27 pigs in each group), side by side, with the only difference being the addition of 1kg/T ROBUS ZEN to one of the groups. Whilst the control group performed very well with an ADG of 1124g/day, the ROBUS ZEN group gained an additional 21g/day but with an FCR saving of 0.14 compared to the control (2.25 control, 2.14 ROBUS ZEN).
USING ROBUS ZEN FOR ETHICAL AND HIGH-PERFORMANCE PIG PRODUCTION
Producers are using ROBUS ZEN in different ways, according to when the expected stress insult is. This can vary from including it in the grower and finisher diets, or around time of movement of pigs to different buildings or at mixing. Of course, it is far better to prevent an outbreak of aggression rather than having to react to it once it starts.
ROBUS ZEN is widely available across the UK and Ireland and is being used to control aggression in all categories of pigs, including sows, aggressive gilts, nursery and grow-finish pigs.
About Dr. Ian Hands
Dr. Ian Hands is a veterinarian who has spent his entire career in the global swine industry. His work at Techna focuses on bringing innovative solutions, such as feed additives, to enhance the nutrition, health, performance and welfare of the pig. Driven by a passion to support the industry, Dr. Hands combines scientific research with practical applications to ensure a return on investment for producers and stakeholders
