瘦肉型猪营养需要的研究——长白×北京黑F1代商品瘦肉猪饲粮粗蛋白质与赖氨酸适宜水平的探讨

为了探讨长白×北京黑F_1代商品瘦肉猪20—60千克(前期)和60—90千克(后期)的饲粮粗蛋白质和赖氨酸的适宜水平,找出采食不同粗蛋白水平的饲粮时,20—90千克的氮沉积规律,在前期和后期各配制了8种具有不同粗蛋白和赖氨酸水平的饲粮(2个粗蛋白水平和4个赖氨酸水平)。饲养试验和消化代谢试验表明:在高蛋白水平下(16.0—14.0％),前期赖氨酸水平为0.86％、后期为0.75％那组猪的生长速率、饲料转化效率、氮沉积率与沉积量及胴体瘦肉率都达到较高水平。在低蛋白水平下(14.5—12.0％),前期赖氨酸水平为0.75％,后期为0.62％那组猪的上述诸指标,亦表现较好。说明这两个饲粮的粗蛋白与赖氨酸水平的组合,对长×北F_1代商品瘦肉猪生长肥育阶段是比较适宜的。同时试验还表明:在赖氨酸水平适宜的情况下,适当降低饲粮粗蛋白水平,对肉猪增重和饲料转化效率没有不良影响,而且有利于提高氮沉积效率。     

生长期限制蛋白质、补充赖氨酸对肉猪胴体重的影响

使用36头平均体重17公斤的猪评价生长期(17～54公斤体重)日粮中的蛋白质水平和添加赖氨酸对54公斤体重之后的增重速度和效率的影响,以及对95公斤体重时的胴体性能的影响。在生长期喂给含14％粗蛋白并添加赖氨酸的日粮的猪,与喂给含16％粗蛋白日粮的猪表现出相同的生长速度。而喂给含14％粗蛋白日粮的猪的生长性能则比上述两组差。在肥育期,喂给不用试验日粮的所有猪的增重均相似。所有各组圈养猪平均体重达54公斤左右时,日粮粗蛋白水平一律转为13％。在生长期喂给含14％粗蛋白而在54公斤体重后改喂含13％粗蛋白(14→13％)的猪,比喂给     

不同粗蛋白和粗纤维水平对肥育猪生产性能及氮排泄的影响

为探讨氨基酸平衡日粮中粗蛋白和粗纤维水平对肥育猪生产性能及氮排泄的影响,试验选取36头体重接近[(65.77±1.08)kg]的三元杂交(杜×长×大)阉公猪,采用2(CF:4%、6%)×3(CP:15.5%、14%、12.5%)两因子完全交叉试验设计。试验共设6个处理,每个处理2个重复,每个重复3头猪。试验结果表明:不同粗蛋白和粗纤维水平对肥育猪平均日增重(ADG)、平均日采食量(ADFI)和料肉比(F/G)均无显著影响(P>0.05);饲喂6号日粮(CP:12.5%、CF:6%)的F组经济效益最佳,每千克增重成本为5.59元;降低日粮粗蛋白水平减少了尿氮(P<0.05)、粪氮(P>0.05)和总氮(P<0.05)的排泄量;日粮粗蛋白水平平均每降低一个百分点,尿氮、粪氮和总氮排泄量分别减少3.58%、1.56%和2.53%;增加日粮粗纤维水平也减少了尿氮(P<0.05)、粪氮(P<0.01)和总氮(P<0.01)排泄量。     

Ractopamine-HCl和添加脂肪对肥育猪生产性能和胴体成分的影响

Ractopamine是一种苯乙醇胺类化合物。本研究目的在于评定 Ractopamine-HCl(R)与添加脂肪对肥育猪生产性能和胴体成分可能出现的相互影响。按体重将240头杂种猪分成5头猪一栏,平均始重为65公斤,喂养到107公斤体重时结束试验。试验分为6个处理组,分别在3种玉米大豆饲粮(16％粗蛋白质、3300千卡代谢能/公斤的基础饲粮;16％粗蛋白、添加5％脂肪食3525千卡代谢能/公斤的饲粮,或者按能量/营养物质比与基础饲粮相等而配合的17％粗蛋白质、添加5％脂肪含3522千卡代谢能/公斤的饲粮)中添加O或20ppmR。在屠宰     

三种营养需要模式对生长肥育猪生产性能、胴体品质和瘦肉生长的影响

试验选用体重约20.4kg的三元杂交[杜×(大×长)]猪96头 ,分为3个处理 ,每个处理4个重复 ,分别饲喂3种营养需要模式的饲粮 ,生长期猪体重为20～50kg,肥育期为50～92kg,研究3种营养需要模式对生长肥育猪生产性能、胴体品质和胴体瘦肉生长的影响。结果表明 ,采用建议的营养需要模式配制的饲粮饲养生长肥育猪 ,获得的生产性能、胴体品质、胴体瘦肉增重和无脂瘦肉增重以及胴体瘦肉成分与采用NRC(1998)营养需要模式配制的饲粮相近 ,而且20～90kg 期间无脂瘦肉增重已达到NRC(1998)认为的具有中-高瘦肉生长速度。采用中国(1987)营养需要模式配制的饲粮饲养生长肥育猪 ,其生产性能、胴体瘦肉增重和无脂瘦肉增重都极显著低于上述两种营养需要模式的饲粮 ,综合胴体品质也较差。从本试验结果看来 ,建议的营养需要模式可满足杜×(大×长)生长肥育猪的需要     

瘦肉型生长肥育猪饲粮能量蛋白水平及需要量的探讨

<正> 为了探索有利于提高肉猪胴体瘦肉率的饲粮能量蛋白水平,同时测定其能量、蛋白需要量,1983年在本所消化代谢试验猪舍,分肥育前、后期,分别设计了四种能量、蛋白水平不同的饲粮,用36头杜洛克×(长白×成华)三元杂交肉猪(以下简称杜长成)进行了饲养、消化和氮平衡试验。 设计、材料与方法 采用完全随机化试验设计,将平均体重20公斤的杜长成三元杂交去势猪分为四组,     

不同日粮蛋白水平条件下长北F_1肉猪氮代谢规律的研究

本试验选用8头阉公猪,随机分为两组,分别饲喂赖蛋比(赖氨酸/粗蛋白)相同,蛋白水平不同的两组日粮,探讨了不同日粮蛋白水平对猪氮代谢规律的影响。结果表明:长北F_1肉猪最大氮沉积量约在体重60kg时出现,氮沉积率、蛋白质表观生物学价值随体重的增加而下降。不同蛋白日粮之间比较,高蛋白日粮下猪的日氮沉积量较高,但氮沉积率二者近为一致。     

不同基因型生长肥育猪可消化赖、蛋+胱、苏、色氨酸平衡模式研究

试验比较研究了平均体重(33.64±1.2)kg 的大白×长白生长猪与平均体重(32.5±0.8)kg 的雅南猪可消化赖、蛋 +胱、苏、色氨酸平衡模式。按照氨基酸(AA)部分扣除氮沉积比较法 ,分别用18头大长猪和18头雅南猪进行N平衡试验。每个N平衡试验均设6个处理组 ,即高蛋白基础饲粮组(BD)、低蛋白加合成氨基酸对照组(PC)、在PC基础上轮流将所研究的4种AA扣除25 %的其它4个试验组。每个处理设3个重复 ,每个重复1头猪。饲粮为玉米—豆粕—玉米蛋白粉型。所有饲粮等能(3.40McalDE/kg) ,基础饲粮CP与可消化Lys水平相应为161g/kg、5.28g/kg。试验期大长猪日喂料120g/kgW 0.75,雅南猪日喂料100g/kgW 0.75。试验结果表明 ,按单位代谢体重的N沉积与可消化AA摄入量计算 ,大长猪AA平衡比例为 :Lys100、Met +Cys49、Thr72、Trp19 ;雅南猪为 :Lys100、Met+Cys78、Thr76、Trp21。结果显示 ,饲粮可消化氨基酸平衡模式因猪的基因型不同而异。与外种猪比较 ,雅南猪需要比较高比例的蛋 +胱、苏氨酸和色氨酸。     

科学养猪竞赛报告

1990年9-12月,我市参加了"广东省二届科学养猪竞赛",参试猪为16头杜×长组合断奶的瘦肉型猪,每头平均活重20公斤,饲养80天,试验末秤重,平均日增重940克,平均增重1公斤,耗料2.98公斤,屠宰后胴体瘦肉率为61.89%,经省第二届科学养猪领导小组专家组计算评定,我市以总分109.98分荣获本届科学养猪竞赛专业组饲     

花生衣不宜用于喂生长肥育猪

花生衣约含16％粗蛋白、21％粗脂肪、12％粗纤维和40％无氮浸出物。本试验探讨了花生衣用于生长肥育猪日粮中的营养价值。试验用36头校正体重为21.6公斤的生长肥育猪,分别喂给含0％、10％和20％花生衣的日粮。试验结果表明,含花生衣越多,则猪摄入饲料量越大,料肉比越差,而增重却越少。凡喂给含20％花生衣日粮的猪,其平均日增重比对照组低15％(P<0.05),饲料摄入量高23％(P<0.01),单位增重消耗饲料量多31％(P<0.01)。另用9头平均体重为17.7公斤的阉猪采用3×3拉丁方设计进行消化试验和氮平衡试验。试验     

Interactive effects of thermal environment and dietary lysine and fat levels on rate, efficiency, and composition of growth of weanling pigs.

Two trials involving 96 weanling pigs were conducted in which pigs were maintained in constant thermal environments of 20 degrees (cool) or 32 degrees C (hot) and self-fed fortified corn-soybean meal-whey diets that contained three amino acid regimens (.7, 1.0, or 1.3% lysine; approximately 13.6, 17.8, and 22.0% CP) without and with 5% added fat (choice white grease) for 42 d. The pigs were weaned between 28 and 32 d of age (8.07 +/- .58 kg) and penned in groups of two. Pigs in the cool environment consumed more (P < .01) feed and ME, gained more (P < .01) weight, and retained more (P < .01) body protein, fat, and water than those housed in the hot environment. As dietary lysine level increased, daily BW gain and body protein and water accretion increased linearly (P < .01) from d 0 to 21 and quadratically (P < .01) from d 21 to 42 in both environments. However, the magnitude of these responses was less (P < .05) in the cool than in the hot environment. Dietary fat addition decreased (P < .05) gain:ME ratios and body protein and water accretion from d 0 to 21 in both environments, but the magnitude of the reduction was greatest in pigs fed the low lysine diets in the hot environment. Based on these data, the growth response of weanling pigs to dietary lysine and fat levels is dependent on the thermal environment in which the animals are housed.     

Interactive effects of thermal environment and dietary amino acid and fat levels on rate and efficiency of growth of pigs housed in a conventional nursery.

In four trials, 480 weanling pigs were housed in a conventional nursery maintained at 20 or 30 degrees C, which represented a cool and hot thermal environment, respectively. They were allowed ad libitum access to corn-soybean meal-dried whey diets containing .7, 1.0, or 1.3% lysine and 0 or 5% added fat (choice white grease). The pigs were weaned between 27 and 33 d of age (7.27 +/- .90 kg) and penned in groups of five for the duration of the 42-d trials. Pigs housed in the cool environment consumed more feed (P < .01), gained more weight (P < .01), and utilized feed more efficiently (P < .01) than those in the hot environment. As dietary lysine levels were increased in the 20 and 30 degrees C environments, daily weight gains and gain:feed ratios increased linearly (P < .01) from d 0 to 21 and quadratically (P < .01) from d 21 to 42. However, the magnitudes of the increases were less in the cool environment, resulting in temperature x lysine interactions (P < .05). As the pig's feed intake, body weight, and heat production increased over time, the 20 and 30 degrees C environments became progressively warmer relative to the animal's zone of thermoneutrality. The associated reductions over time in energy and lysine intakes relative to the pigs' maintenance needs resulted in an increase in the concentration of dietary lysine needed to maximize rate and efficiency of gain in the 30 degrees C environment but not in the 20 degrees C environment (temperature x lysine x period interaction, P < .10).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Utilization by growing and finishing pigs of raw soybeans of low Kunitz trypsin inhibitor content

Three trials were conducted to compare acceptance and utilization by growing and finishing pigs of diets containing supplemental protein from either heated, solvent-extracted soybean meal (SBM), raw low-Kunitz trypsin inhibitor soybean (LT) or raw commercially grown Williams cultivar soybean with high Kunitz trypsin inhibitor content (HT). In Trial 1, 36 crossbred pigs, averaging 7 kg in weight, were fed 1) corn-SBM, 2)corn-LT or 3) corn-HT diets for 28 d. Diets were formulated to be isolysinic and to have similar calorie:lysine ratios. Average daily gain and gain/feed were higher (P less than .01) for pigs fed the corn-SBM diet than for pigs fed the corn-LT diet; average daily gain and gain/feed were higher (P less than .01) for the corn-LT diet than for the corn-HT. Average daily feed intake did not differ (P greater than .05) among diets. In Trial 2, 48 crossbred pigs averaging 67 kg were fed diets similar to those in Trial 1 but with lower lysine values. The daily gain (.95 kg) of pigs fed the corn-SBM diet was greater (P less than .05) than for pigs fed the corn-LT diet (.87 kg), which in turn was greater (P less than .05) than for the pigs fed the corn-HT diet (.83 kg). Daily feed intake (kg) and gain/feed were 3.27 and .291, 2.97 and .293, and 3.07 and .270, respectively, for pigs fed the corn-SBM, corn-LT and corn-HT diets. In Trial 3, 18 castrate male pigs averaging 12.4 kg were fed cornstarch-based diets with either SBM, LT or HT as the source of protein.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

The effect of copper and fat addition to the diets of weanling swine on growth performance and serum fatty acids.

A 2 x 3 factorial experiment, encompassing three 28-d trials involving a total of 420 weanling pigs, was conducted to determine the effect of dietary Cu (5 or 250 ppm) and animal fat (0, 2.5, or 5%) on the performance and serum fatty acid profiles of weanling pigs. Pigs had ad libitum access to corn-soybean meal-based diets containing 10% whey and 5% fish meal and similar lysine:calorie ratios. Pigs were weighed and pen feed intakes were recorded weekly. Weekly blood samples were collected during the first two trials (n = 270) for serum fatty acid analysis. There was a Cu x fat interaction for ADG from d 1 to 14 (P less than .07) and over the 28-d experiment (P less than .05). The ADG of pigs fed 250 ppm of Cu increased, whereas the ADG of pigs fed 5 ppm of Cu was not affected as dietary fat increased. The addition of 250 ppm of CU increased (P less than .01) ADFI throughout the 28-d experiment. The addition of fat quadratically increased ADG (P less than .05) during d 14 to 28 and gain:feed ratios (P less than .01) during d 14 to 28 and over the 28-d experiment. The addition of fat decreased (P less than .05) the weight percentage of serum saturated fatty acids and increased (P less than .01) the weight percentage of serum monounsaturated fatty acids on d 28. The addition of 250 ppm of Cu decreased (P less than .01) the weight percentage of monounsaturated fatty acids on d 14 and 28.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Effect of dietary lysine level and environmental temperature during the finishing phase on the intramuscular fat content of pork

This study was designed to investigate the effects of dietary lysine level on the intramuscular fat content of the longissimus in finishing pigs reared at two environmental temperatures. Seventy-two hybrid gilts were individually penned and given ad libitum access to either a diet formulated to meet their lysine requirement (6.4 g/kg lysine) or a lysine-deficient diet (4.8 g/kg). Pigs were held at one of two environmental temperatures (thermoneutral [18 degrees C] or hot [32 degrees C]). The study was carried out between approximately 90 and 126 kg live weight; pigs in the thermoneutral and hot environments were on test for 5 and 7 wk, respectively. There were no interactions between dietary lysine level and environmental temperature. Dietary lysine content did not influence feed intake or average daily gain; however, pigs on the lysine-deficient diet had a poorer gain:feed ratio than those fed to requirement (P < .01). High environmental temperature decreased feed intake (P < .001) and average daily gain (P < .01) but improved gain:feed ratio (P < .01). Backfat at the 10th rib was increased and loin eye area and estimated percentage lean in the carcass were decreased for pigs on the lysine-deficient diet. The higher environmental temperature resulted in an increase in carcass length but had no effect on other carcass measurements or intramuscular fat. Feeding the lysine-deficient diet resulted in an increase of .55 percentage unit in longissimus intramuscular fat content (P < .01); however, there was no difference in subjective marbling scores between the diets. Warner-Bratzler shear force values were not affected by dietary lysine level or environmental temperature. Results from this study suggest that feeding of lysine-deficient diets at the end of the finishing period can increase intramuscular fat deposition under thermoneutral and hot conditions.     

Lactational and subsequent reproductive responses of lactating sows to dietary lysine (protein) concentration

Gilts (n = 208) were used to evaluate the effect of lysine (protein) intake over three parities on lactation and subsequent reproductive performance. Sows were assigned randomly to one of five experimental diets at each farrowing. The five corn-soybean mealbased lactation diets contained increasing concentrations of total lysine (.60, .85, 1.10, 1.35, and 1.60%) and CP (14.67, 18.15, 21.60, 25.26, and 28.82%). Other amino acids were provided at a minimum of 105% of the NRC (1988) ratio to the lysine requirement. Sows had ad libitum access to their assigned diets from parturition until weaning (19.5+/-.2 d postpartum). All sows were fed a common gestation diet (14% CP and .68% lysine) from weaning to next farrowing. Litter size was standardized by d 3 postpartum to 10 pigs in parity 1 and 11 pigs in parity 2 and 3. Increasing dietary lysine (protein) linearly decreased (P<.05) voluntary feed intake of parity 1 (from 5.4 to 4.6 kg/d), 2 (from 6.5 to 5.8 kg/d), and 3 sows (from 6.8 to 6.2 kg/d). With the increase of dietary lysine (protein) concentration during lactation, litter weight gain responded quadratically (P<.05) in all three parities. Maximal litter ADG was 2.06, 2.36, and 2.49 kg/d in parities 1, 2, and 3, respectively, which occurred at about 44, 55, and 56 g/d of lysine intake for parity 1, 2, and 3 sows, respectively. Increasing dietary lysine (protein) had no effect (P>.1) on sow weight change, weaning-to-estrus interval, and farrowing rate in all three parities and no effect on backfat change in parity 2 and 3, but tended to increase backfat loss linearly (P<.1) in parity 1. A linear decrease of second litter size (total born, from 11.7 to 10.1, P<.1; born alive, from 11.0 to 8.9, P<.01) was observed when dietary lysine (protein) increased during the first lactation. Lysine (protein) intake during the second lactation had a quadratic effect on third litter size (P<.05; total born: 13.3, 11.2, 11.6, 11.9, and 13.6; born alive: 11.8, 10.1, 10.3, 11.2, and 12.4). However, fourth litter size was not influenced by lysine (protein) intake during the third lactation. These results suggest that the lysine (protein) requirement for subsequent reproduction is not higher than that for milk production. Parity influences the lysine (protein) requirement for lactating sows and the response of subsequent litter size to previous lactation lysine (protein) intake.     

Fumaric and citric acids as feed additives in starter pig diets: effect on performance and nutrient balance

The effect of dietary citric acid (CA) and fumaric acid (FA) on pig weight gain (ADG) and gain/feed (G/F) was studied in two trials using 192 crossbred, 4-wk-old weaning pigs. Three dietary levels (0, 1.5 or 3.0%) of either FA (Trial 1) or CA (Trial 2) with or without an antibiotic supplement (110 mg chlortetracycline, 110 mg sulfamethazine and 55 mg penicillin/kg diet) formed six treatment combinations in each trial. These six diets were fed to two replicate pens of eight pigs each for a 4-wk period. In Trial 1, ADG was improved (P less than .01) during wk 1, and G/F was improved during wk 1 (P less than .01) as well as during wk 1 to 2 (P less than .05) for pigs consuming FA-supplemented diets. In Trial 2, CA had no beneficial influence on ADG during the 4-wk trial. However, feed intake during wk 1 was depressed (P less than .05) by adding CA, as was G/F during wk 1 to 2 (P less than .05). Based on these results, FA was selected to be used in a nutrient balance study. Twelve 4-wk-old weanling pigs were fed one of three diets: control (C), C + 1.5% FA, or C + antibiotic supplement (A). Diet digestible energy (DE), ME and N-corrected ME (MEN) were not different among treatments. Nitrogen balance, percentage N retained and apparent N digestibility were not affected by dietary treatment. Calcium balance and percentage of Ca retained were unaffected by diet.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

The effect of excess protein on growth performance and protein metabolism of finishing barrows and gilts

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of excess protein on growth performance, carcass characteristics, organ weights, plasma urea concentration, and liver arginase activity of finishing barrows and gilts. In Exp. 1, 35 barrows and 35 gilts with an initial BW of 51 kg were used. Five pigs of each sex were slaughtered at the start of the study to determine initial body composition. The remaining 60 pigs were allotted to a randomized complete block (RCB) experiment with a 2x5 factorial arrangement of treatments (two sexes x five protein levels: 13, 16, 19, 22, and 25% CP). The experiment continued until the average BW was 115 kg, at which time three blocks of pigs (30 total) were selected randomly and slaughtered. Feed intake decreased with increasing protein concentration (linear, P<.05), and the reduction was greater in gilts than in barrows (P<.05). There was a trend toward a linear negative effect of dietary protein on ADG (P<.10) and also a quadratic effect of protein on protein accretion (P<.10). Fat accretion decreased linearly as protein level increased (P<.05). Increased protein concentrations increased liver, kidney, and pancreas weights (linear, P<.05). Plasma urea concentration increased with each protein concentration, with the exception of the 25 vs. 22% CP treatment in gilts. In Exp. 2, 18 barrows and 18 gilts (BW 63 kg) were allotted to an RCB design consisting of a 2x2 factorial arrangement of treatments with two sexes and two dietary protein concentrations (16 and 25% CP). The experiment was terminated when the average BW of pigs reached 105 kg. Average daily feed intake was greater (P<.10) in barrows than in gilts. Average daily gain was reduced by 18% in gilts when dietary protein was increased from 16 to 25% but was only reduced 3% in barrows (sex x protein, P<.10). Barrows had lighter livers (P<.005), greater arginase activities (P<.05), and greater plasma urea concentrations (P<.005) than did gilts. Increasing dietary protein concentration from 16 to 25% increased liver weight, arginase activity, and plasma urea concentration (P<.005). These data suggest that gilts are more sensitive than barrows to excessive intakes of protein. The more negative effects in gilts may be related to liver metabolic capacity and activity of urea cycle enzymes.     

Influence of an experimental infection of Strongyloides ransomi on performance of pigs

Sixty-four pigs (average 21.8 kg live weight) were divided into 16 comparable groups of four, each based on sex and body weight, to study the effects of a single infection of Strongyloides ransomi (either 0, 5,000, 10,000 or 20,000 S. ransomi larvae/kg body weight) on performance during a 91-d trial. Final weight, weight gain and average daily gain of pigs not infected were greater (P less than .01) than those of pigs given either 5,000 or 10,000 S. ransomi larvae/kg body weight, which in turn were greater (P less than .01) than those of pigs given 20,000 S. ransomi larvae/kg body weight. Average daily gain for pigs not infected was 40% greater (P less than .01) than that of pigs given 20,000 S. ransomi larvae/kg body weight. Feed required per unit of weight gain was 44% greater for pigs given 20,000 S. ransomi larvae/kg body weight than for pigs not infected, but this difference was not significantly greater due to extreme variation within the group of infected pigs. In each of two trials, eight crossbred barrows (average 20.0 kg in trial 1 and 22.7 kg body weight in trial 2) were examined for the effects of two levels of S. ransomi infections (0 and 10,000 larvae/kg body weight) on digestion and absorption of nutrients and on N balance. Digestion coefficients for dry matter, crude protein and gross energy for pigs not infected were greater (P less than .05) than for those experimentally infected.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Effects of lysine:calorie ratio on growth performance of 10- to 25-kilogram pigs

Crossbred barrows (n = 336 Newsham Hybrids) initially 9.9 kg and 31+/-2 d of age were used to evaluate the effects of energy density and lysine:calorie ratio on growth performance. Pigs were allotted by initial weight in a 3 x 4 factorial arrangement of treatments in a randomized complete block design with six replicate pens per treatment. Each pen had four or five pigs with an equal number of pigs per pen within replicate. Pigs were fed increasing dietary energy densities (3.25, 3.38, and 3.51 Mcal ME/kg) and lysine:calorie ratios (3.00, 3.45, 3.90, and 4.35 g lysine/Mcal ME). Energy density was changed by levels of choice white grease (0, 3, and 6%), and lysine:calorie ratio was changed by altering the corn:soybean meal ratio. Over the 21-d trial, an energy density x lysine:calorie ratio interaction was observed for ADG (P < .05). Pigs fed diets containing 3.25 or 3.51 Mcal ME/kg had increasing ADG with increasing lysine:calorie ratio, whereas ADG of pigs fed 3.38 Mcal ME/kg was not affected by lysine:calorie ratio. Feed efficiency (gain:feed ratio) increased and ADFI decreased as lysine:calorie ratio increased (linear, P < .01) and as energy density increased (quadratic, P < .01 and .10, respectively). On d 21, two pigs per pen were scanned ultrasonically for backfat depth. An energy density x lysine:calorie ratio interaction (P < .06) was observed. Pigs fed diets containing 3.25 and 3.38 Mcal ME/kg had decreasing fat depth as lysine:calorie ratio increased; however, backfat depth was not affected by lysine:calorie ratio and was greatest for pigs fed 3.51 Mcal ME/kg. These results suggest that 10- to 25-kg pigs fed diets containing 3.38 Mcal ME/kg had maximum feed efficiency and that they required at least 4.35 g lysine/Mcal ME. However, pigs fed 3.51 Mcal ME/kg had increased fat depth regardless of calorie:lysine ratio.