(24) Pigs familiar with duckweed readily accept another unfamiliar green feed, Leucaena leucocephala

Dam Van Tien

Department of Animal Physiology and Behaviour, Faculty of Animal Science,
Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry, Hue City, Vietnam

Abstract

This study was undertaken to determine if Large White and Mong Cai pigs that were familiar with duckweed would readily accept another green feed. The feed chosen for the test was the fresh leaf of Leucaena leucocephala. The experiment showed that all pigs experienced with duckweed started eating the new, unfamiliar feed immediately on the first occasion it was offered to them. The naive control animals totally rejected the new feed to which they were exposed; they did not eat it at all. It is concluded that, at least under specific conditions, familiarity with a certain feedstuff can be generalized to another feedstuff.

Key words: duckweed, Feed acfeptance, Leucaena leucocephala, pigs, pre-conditioning