Currently, there are many forms of Zn available
for use in nursery diets. Although Zn oxide is used as a
pharmacological agent, typically, Zn sulfate is used as
an inorganic source. The availability of organic sources
for dietary supplementation has become popular in
the market place in the last 20 yr. However, data on the
comparison of organic and inorganic Zn sources in nursery
diets are limited. Schlegel et al. (2013) used metaanalysis
and reported that the bioavailability of organic
to inorganic Zn forms ranged from 85 to 117% and that
innate Zn in feedstuffs has limited value to the pig. The
genetics in the swine industry today have a much greater
potential for lean growth accretion than those previously
used in the evaluation of Zn needs in nursery pigs.
Therefore, the goal of our research was to determine the
source and concentration of Zn required by the nursery
pig of today’s genetics for adequate growth performance,
Zn status, antioxidant status, and metallothionein (MT).