EN
The effectiveness of different means of iron administration (injected or applied per os either in paste form or in the form of mineral-organic composition) to piglets with the aim of anemia prevention was investigated. The influence of the investigated iron preparations on piglets’ performance and blood indices was also determined. The experiment was carried out with 158 piglets, Polish Landrace (deriving from 16 litters) divided into 4 treatments. All piglets were fed with the full feed mixture prestarter type. For animals in group I an iron supplement in chelate with hydrated glycine form was added to the mixture. The piglets of groups II and III, on day 5 after birth, were administered a single dose of iron (100 mg) via two routes: either intramuscularly (as a commercial preparation Ferrovet in group II) or per os (as a commercial paste Suiferrin for group III). The piglets of group IV (control) received no extra iron sources. Additional iron administered per os as a paste or as a diet-incorporated chelate protected piglets until day 28 of life against physiological anemia and their mortality was similarly good as the intramuscularly injected iron preparation. Daily gains and blood indices of the piglets from these treatments were better in comparison with control animals.