Effects of corn processing on piglet performance and intestinal parameters

ABSTRACT The objective of the present study was to compare the effects of corn processing on performance and intestinal parameters of weanling piglets. To accomplish our goal, 42 piglets (21 days-old, 7.18±1.0 kg body weight) were randomly allocated (seven pens/treatment; three pigs/pen) to one of two treatments: ground corn – corn ground through a hammer mill with a 1.0-mm screen after being ground by a hammer mill with a 3.0-mm screen, and extruded corn – corn was wet extruded after being ground by a hammer mill with a 2.0-mm screen and, after extrusion, it was ground by a hammer mill with a 1.0-mm screen. In both methods, corn from the same batch was used. Results were considered statistically significant when P