Modification of foraging behaviour and pasture damage by dietary manipulation in outdoor sows

Food restricted sows under extensive conditions forage for considerable periods of time, and this can give rise to serious pasture damage. The objective of this experiment was to study the effects of feeding a fibrous diet (containing 600 g/kg sugarbeet pulp), either at a restricted or ad libitum level, on foraging behaviour and the consequences of this for pasture damage. Twenty-four multiparous outdoor sows, without nose rings, were selected in two consecutive batches of six pairs of sows. The pairs were allocated to one of three feeding regimes in a replicated 3×3 Latin square design: a control diet (C) fed at a restricted level (2.5 kg) once daily, a fibrous diet fed at a restricted level once daily (RF) to supply the same energy as treatment C, and a regime with ad libitum fibrous diet (AF). RF sows took longer to consume their ration than control sows (RF=42, C=18, SEM 2.7 min, p