With the objective to evaluate the effects of digestible energy (DE) on the performance and carcass composition rate, 50 barrows, from 30 to 60 kg PV, maintained in a high temperature environment (32.00 ± .88°C) were used. A completely randomized block design with five treatments (3100, 3250, 3400, 3550, and 3700 kcal of DE/kg of diet), five replicates and two animals per experimental unit was used. The dietary DE level influenced, in a quadratic way, the daily weight gain and the feed, energy and protein intakes of the animals. Feed:gain ratio linearly improved with increasing dietary DE levels. The DE level did not influence the protein deposition rate, but the fat deposition increased linearly. The best results of weight gain were obtained with the estimate level of 3486 kcal DE, while the level of 3700 kcal DE provided the best results of feed:gain ratio.
growth; heat stress; requirement; performance; carcass composition
