One experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of reduction of the crude protein (CP) level of ration with amino acid supplementation on performance of castrated males swines maintained in a termoneutral environment (22ºC). A total of sixty crossbred swines (Landrace x Large White), with average initial weight of 15.0 kg and 53.1 days old, was allotted to a completely randomized design with five treatments (18, 17, 16, 15 and 14% CP), six replications and two animals per experimental unit. The experimental diets were fed ad libitum until the end of the experiment, when the animals reached the average weight of 30.2 kg. The average temperature in the room was maintained in 22ºC with relative humidity of 82.3%. The Black Globe-Humidity Index (BGHI) was 69.6. No effect of decreasing dietary CP level on the evaluated performance parameters (feed intake, weight gain and feed:gain ratio) was observed. The deposition rates of protein and fat were not affected by the reduction of CP level and amino acid supplementation. The treatments affected the absolute and relative weight of stomach and absolute weight of intestine, and the highest weights were observed in the animals fed diet with the highest CP level. It was concluded that the dietary crude protein level can be reduced from 18 to 14% to castrated piglets from 15 to 30 kg maintained in a termoneutral environment with no effect on performance, since diets are supplemented with essential amino acids.
amino acids; nutrition; swine; termoneutral environment
