UTILIZATION OF FAT BY YOUNG PIGS: FATTY ACID COMPOSITION OF INGESTA IN DIFFERENT REGIONS OF THE DIGESTIVE TRACT AND APPARENT AND CORRECTED DIGESTIBILITIES OF CORN OIL, LARD AND TALLOW

Abstract

Young pigs of 13 to 22 days of age, weaned at 7 days, were used to determine the digestibilities of corn oil, lard and tallow; the mean corrected digestibilities were 86, 81 and 56%, respectively. At 22 days of age, the animals were slaughtered and the fatty acid composition of samples from the contents of six different regions of the digestive system were examined by gas-liquid chromatography. The contents of the digestive systems of a conventional and a germfree pig which had been receiving the same diet were also examined. The low digestibility of stearic acid and the high digestibilty of oleic and linoleic acids appeared to be a result of microfloral activity rather than a direct result of the pig’s ability to absorb these fatty acids.