Early colonization of intestinal microbiota during the neonatal stage plays an important role on the development of intestinal immune system and nutrients absorption of the host. Compared to the normal birth weight (NBW)piglets, intrauterine growth restricted (IUGR) piglets have a different intestinal microbiota during their early life, which is related to matal imprinting on intestinal microbial succession during gestation, at birth and via suckling. Imbalanced allocation of limited nutrients among fetuses during gestation could be one of the main causes for impaired intestinal development and microbiota colonization in neonatal IUGR piglets. In this review, we summarized the potential impact of matal imprinting on the colonization of the intestinal microbiota in IUGR piglets, including matal undutrition, imbalanced allocation of nutrients among fetuses, as well as vertical microbial transmission from mother to offspring during gestation and lactation. At the same time, we give information about the current matal nutritional strategies (mainly breastfeeding, probiotics and prebiotics) to help colonization of the advantageous intestinal microbiota for IUGR piglets.