Japanese Encephalitis (JE) virus.

The Japanese Encephalitis (JE) virus causes serious inflammation of the brain in people and fertility problems in pigs. Mosquitoes were previously the only known transmission route. However, the virus can also be spread from pig to pig by direct contact, and this could enable it to circulate in pigs during the mosquito-free winter season. The JE virus is the main cause of serious encephalitis in people in Asia. The virus is found in large parts of Southeast Asia and is now also widespread in India. It circulates between birds and mosquitoes and between pigs and mosquitoes, and is passed to humans through mosquito bites. In children in particular, infection can lead to acute encephalitis and permanent impairment or even death. In pigs, the main effect of the virus alongside fever and encephalitis is fertility problems. The virus is closely related to the West Nile, Zika and dengue viruses. All are transmitted by mosquitoes and are flaviviruses, which cause serious illness in humans and animals.

Gruel feeding guidelines for underprivileged piglets.

Gruel feeding guidelines for underprivileged piglets. Gruel feeding is a management practice that targets the bottom 10 to 20 percent of small-for-age piglets in any weaning group, regardless of weaning age. A feeding method recommended for underprivileged piglets that requires attention to details but pays dividends in speeding up the growth of small-for-age weaners. Of course, the greater the weaning age, the fewer the pigs that require or rather benefit from gruel feeding. In general, research and commercial experiences have indicated that gruel feeding offers four distinct advantages when done correctly: 1)Enhances ingestion of nutrients, especially during the early days post-weaning. 2) Allows a smoother transition to dry feed, especially when the feed is pelleted. 3)Prevents damage of the gut due to soybeans or prolonged starvation. 4) Promotes hydration, an extra and very significant benefit, particularly in sick piglets. The success of gruel feeding depends on high(er) standards of hygiene. It is usually a labor-intensive task and requires staff dedicated to assisting underprivileged piglets. Below is a 10-step guideline for efficient and practical gruel feeding. 1)Use large, open bowls or lock-down circular feeders. In general, the larger plastic feeders offer the best results as they allow communal feeding. 2)Place the gruel feeder near the feeder with the dry feed, avoiding pen corners, waterers, sleeping mats and heat lamps. 3)Place a small amount of dry feed in the normal feeders from the first day, even though piglets may appear to ignore it. Use the same formula/product as that used in mixing the gruel. 4)A strong flavor with a distinct aroma in the product used in mixing the gruel and in the dry feed is believed to help piglets associate dry feed with nourishment. 5)Offer gruel at least three times per day, starting with a mix of 1/4 dry feed and 3/4 water in a large bucket for all pigs or directly in each feeder. 6)Using warm water or liquid milk replacer may also be used to create a gruel. In fact, the latter is believed to promote even higher intake, but this might not be needed if the dry feed is already high in dairy products. 7) Feed enough gruel for pigs to clean up in a single feeding episode. If gruel is left uneaten, remove it, clean the feeders and reduce allowance in the following feeding. 8) Gradually thicken the gruel to 2/3 pellets or meal and 1/3 water. This will allow piglets to turn to dry feed easier and faster. 9) Gradually reduce the number of feedings per day and discontinue by day four or five after weaning. Again, this is done to convince piglets to convert to dry feed. The exact timing should be determined by the people who actually do the feeding because they can determine when each pen no longer requires gruel to thrive. 10) Make sure pigs have access to fresh water from day one from drinkers. For underprivileged piglets, a bowl-type drinker is believed to give better results, whereas some prefer to use nipple water drinkers that allow to dribble during the first day or so.Gruel feeding guidelines for underprivileged piglets.

Banker quits job to be a millionaire pig farmer.

Banker quits job to be a millionaire pig farmer.Martin was a Manager with Standard Chartered Bank before he quit the job to pursue an entrepreneurial passion in pig farming. Having been raised on the proceeds of pig farming as a young boy, he decided to leave the world of suits and ties to exploit the lucrative potentials of the pig business. And his bet paid off! Banker quits job to be a millionaire pig farmer. #banker Martin sells about 20 pigs every month and has gradually grown his business to a current stock of 200 pigs, which he often raises to 500 when the market demand increases. According to this Business Daily Africa article, his current total wealth – calculated from the worth of his pig stock – stands at nearly 2 million Kenyan Shillings (roughly $23,000). Banker quits job to be a millionaire pig farmer. #pigs. He plans to multiply this wealth eight fold by 2015 and believes this is possible because the demand and market for pigs is grossly undersupplied. more

FERMENTED FEEDING IN PIGS FOR INTESTINAL HEALTH.

Liquid feed is a great way to ferment protein-rich, home-grown fodder such as rape seed oil meal, peas and field beans or recycle liquid co-products from the human food industry into pig feed. Liquid feed for pigs comes into two varieties. Non-fermented and fermented. Non-fermented is mainly used and is simply a matter of mixing the cereals or complete feed with water and minerals. It takes around 2-4 minutes of mixing time (sometimes up to an hour). The fermented version takes much longer to prepare, a few hours to 6-12 hours on average. The latter is of particular interest as it is known for its positive effect on intestinal health and Salmonella control. Especially in line with the pressure on using antibiotics to treat digestive disorders in pigs and the tight margins in the pig industry, fermented liquid feed is gaining interest. Denmark has been a large user of fermented feed, mainly to control Salmonella as part of their strict national control plan for Salmonella reduction in the Danish food chain. However, the use of fermented feed is not the way to go for all pig farms, It really depends on the type of farm and whether critical points can be met to make this type of feeding a successful one. Since the announcement of the ban on the use of antibiotics as antimicrobial growth promoters in the feed of pigs in 2006 the investigation towards alternative feed additives has augmented considerably. Although fermented liquid feed is not an additive, but a feeding strategy, the benefits cannot be undermined.

Crickets as future protein source for poultry and pigs.

Insect farming is considered more sustainable than traditional livestock. They are coldblooded and are efficient at converting food into protein. 

 They require 12 times less feed than cattle, four times less feed than sheep, and half as much feed as pigs and broiler chickens to produce the same amount of protein, according to a 2013 United Nations report examining insects' potential as human food. 

Insects are reported to emit fewer greenhouse gases and less ammonia than cattle or pigs, and they require significantly less land and water than cattle rearing.  

 Crickets require 8 percent of the water it takes for cows to produce a similar amount of protein,and critters emit 1 percent of the greenhouse gases of cows. The protein content the crickets deliver's is 15 percent more ,and has an iron content than spinach and as much vitamin B-12 as salmon. 

Crickets as protein source for pigs and poultry.

Crickets as edible food.

The business is fast gaining popularity because of the low capital startup, rapid and high return of investment and the relative ease of production. Iowa resident begins cricket farming for human consumption,she

Antiviral favipiravir successfully treats Lassa virus in guinea pigs.

Favipiravir, an investigational antiviral drug currently being tested in West Africa as a treatment for Ebola virus disease, effectively treated Lassa virus infection in guinea pigs, according to a new study. Lassa fever is endemic to West Africa and affects about 300,000 people annually, killing roughly 5,000. In some parts of Sierra Leone and Liberia, it is believed nearly 15 percent of people admitted to hospitals have Lassa fever, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No vaccine or licensed treatment exists for Lassa fever, although ribavirin, licensed for hepatitis C treatment, has been used with limited success. In the new study, published Oct. 12, 2015, in Scientific Reports, favipiravir not only effectively treated guinea pigs infected with Lassa virus, it also worked better than ribavirin. Two days after infecting groups of guinea pigs with a lethal dose of Lassa virus, the scientists treated the rodents daily for two weeks with either ribavirin, low doses of favipiravir, or high doses of favipiravir. They also evaluated the effect of high-dose favipiravir in the rodents that began treatment five, seven or nine days after infection. All of the animals that received high-dose favipiravir were completely protected from lethal infection; animals treated seven or nine days after infection had begun showing signs of disease, but their conditions quickly improved when treatment began. Those animals in the low-dose favipiravir group showed mild to moderate signs of disease, but those symptoms resolved after about one week of treatment. The animals treated with ribavirin appeared normal during the treatment phase but developed severe disease shortly after treatment ended. Further testing and human clinical trials are needed to determine if favipiravir, also known as T-705 and Avigan, could effectively treat Lassa virus infection in people. Story source;NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Pig ; an animal model in biomedical research.

A report documented in the Nature Microbiology, shows the many types of bacteria that inhabit the gut of pig and how they are important to health and disease. This knowledge of genes of these bacteria and their function therefore constitutes the first step towards a more comprehensive understanding of how bacteria in the gut affect health and disease. Pig is a main livestock species for food production worldwide and is also widely used as an animal model in biomedical research. The researchers analyzed stool samples from 287 pigs representing different breeds and selected pig lines from 11 different farms in France, China and Denmark. The researchers identified 7.7 million genes and identified a large number of known and unknown bacteria. The results showed clear country dependent differences, reflecting differences in farm systems and antibiotics supplementation. The results further illustrate how age, gender, and pig genetics are associated with differences in the composition of bacteria in the gut. The results show the impact of prohibition of the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in Denmark and France , as it seems to have reduced the load of antibiotics resistance genes in the French and Danish pigs, but some pigs in these countries harbor genes conferring resistance to a large number of antibiotics. The knowledge of the many genes in the gut bacteria will be of importance in order to use pigs as a model to elucidate the role of bacteria in relation to many human diseases, but will also be an important tool in the quest towards more sustainable knowledge-based pig farming with the need to combine feed efficiency with resistance to disease, while reducing the use of antibiotics, a main concern in relation to risks of multi-drug resistance in humans and animals.

PIG# HOUSING.

Starting a pig farm requires detailed planning and management. The success of raising pigs is hinged on the types of breed you select,feeding technique,operations management,housing and disease prevention and control. Bio-security protocols for the pig farm must be well stated and strict compliance is necessary. The pig farm must be on a well drained land,with adequate water supply,electricity and good roads with easy access to major markets. The housing of the pigs plays a vital role to the success of the production process and as such this must be the first consideration. HOUSING; pigs must be housed in solid structures,the house must be raised about 60cm above the ground.The floor should be made of concrete with the surface roughened to prevent slipping.The floor should be slopping to facilitate easy cleaning with water and run- off of urine.The house should be comfortable with good ventilation and shade. The walls of the house must be partially open to allow movement air through the house , must be solid to protect against predators and allows feeding of the pigs from outside without entering the pen. The pig building is divided into different pens for each phase of production cycle.The number and size of pens will depend on the number of piglets to be housed.The recommended floor requirement is as follows; 20 sqft/piglet, 30sqft/grower and 40sqft/finisher.

Pig gene advance could boost sperm stocks from prized animals.

Pig gene advance could boost sperm stocks from prized animals.Gene-editing techniques could help to improve stocks of farmed pigs by boosting supplies of sperm from prized sires. The study is published in the journal Scientific. Scientists have created male pigs that could be used as surrogates capable of producing sperm that contains the genetic blueprint of sought-after pigs. Researchers say the breakthrough will allow farmers to preserve sperm from prized animals in perpetuity. The surrogates have functional testes but do not have specialized stem cells that are required to produce sperm containing their own genetic information, the researchers say. Stem cells from male pigs with desirable characteristics such as greater resilience to disease could be transplanted into the surrogates to produce limitless supplies of their valuable sperm.

Diagnosis of enteric diseases in pigs( 2).

The ban on the indiscriminate use of antibiotics in farm animals has led to development of faster diagnostic techniques to facilitate proper treatment.One of such is the sock analysis;This has led to the development of what is generally known as ‘the sock method’ which consists of taking a standard sock, walking around all pens in the section to be tested, and the sock is then tested with the quantitative PCR test. The number of bacteria can be used to assess the financial impact and whether there are health-related conditions present in the animals tested. The study show considers whether sock samples and laboratory diagnostics could be used routinely as a decision tool for determining when treatment should be started in the individual batch or a pen-site test where farmers will be able to assess the level of pathogens on a daily basis – even in batches without any clinical signs of disease. A complication here is that many of the pigs which might not have clinical diarrhoea still can have a severe intestinal infection. This appears in cases of Lawsonia but also E. coli or Brachyspira species. There will therefore always be a number of pigs which, although not showing signs of diarrhoea, still need antibiotic treatment as it must be assumed that they, first of all, have reduced productivity but also reduced welfare. Several studies have tried to determine if welfare has been compromised in such pigs and there are some indications that this is the case. The best productivity and welfare are achieved by treating at batch level, this is supported by strong professional, scientific arguments for the fact that using batch medication in the water is actually the right thing to do. It has been examined that medication at pen level would be more correct, but as it turns out - all the infections are actually present at the same time in all the pens within the same room. Therefore, all pens within the same batch need treatment at the same time and nothing would be gained by medicating at pen level. Batch medication at section level is therefore the method that provides the best result. This has also been confirmed in another research project which looked at various treatment strategies and dosages. This again showed that herd medication for five days gives the best production result. Source; papers from pig progress.

The most common pig diseases during pre and post weaning stages.

The most common pig diseases during pre and post weaning stages. In order for pig producers to be successful, keeping their animals healthy is key. It is essential to know about diseases that may occur in the herd and all staff working with the pigs should be able to spot the symptoms of common diseases and alert the manager or veterinarian, as appropriate. Treating pigs quickly with suitable medication is the next step as prevention is obviously better than cure. There is a need to have a herd health plan will help to minimize disease incidence. In the pre-weaning period these are the common diseases; 1. Exudative dermatitis (greasy pig). The symptoms of this disease are skin lesions, caused by an infection of the bacteria Staphylococcus hyicus. In severe cases, mortality can occur, as the bacteria damage the liver and kidneys. Lesions first present as dark areas of skin, which spread and become flaky with a greasy feel. Antibiotics are used to treat the infection, along with skin protectants; autogenous vaccines have also been used with success. Improving hygiene in piglet housing is key to preventing this condition, along with teat dipping of sows pre- and post-farrowing. It is also important to reduce the potential for skin abrasions, as this is how the infection enters the body. Abrasions are caused by rough floors, jagged teeth, sharp equipment or even mange mites bites. 2. Coccidiosis. This disease is very common in suckling piglets and is caused by three types of the intracellular parasite coccidia. It causes diarrhea, which can be bloody, often between 10 and 21 days of age and up to 15 weeks of age. Acute cases are treated with fluid therapy and coccidiostats. Secondary infections can result from damage to the intestinal wall. Depending on the level of occurrence on the farm, preventative treatment of sows with coccidiostats may be appropriate. Hygiene should be improved to end the cycle of infection; sow feces are a major source, and flies can spread infection. Providing a warm, dry, clean creep area will help to reduce the parasite load and the likelihood of coccidial infection. In the post-weaning period these are common: 3. Respiratory diseases. Coughing, sneezing, abdominal breathing, reduced growth rates and potentially mortality are all signs of respiratory disease. Depending on the cause, antibiotics may be given in feed, water or as an injectable. Poor ventilation or environmental conditions can exacerbate respiratory conditions. For example, high levels of ammonia can damage the respiratory tract, making pigs more susceptible to infection. Infective agents include Streptococcus suis and Pasteurella. Vaccines are available for some forms of pneumonia, although the strain affecting a farm should be identified to ensure a successful outcome. Pleuropneumonia, caused by Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, can result in significant mortality, and those that do recover have impaired growth rates and lung damage. Overcrowded and dusty housing are predisposing factors for respiratory disease, along with the presence of PRRS virus. 4. Swine dysentery. Animals with this disease suffer from diarrhea, with or without the presence of blood. It is caused by the bacteria Brachyspira hyodsenteriae. Growth rates of post-weaning pigs are reduced, and, in some cases, sudden death can occur. Antibiotics are used to treat the disease, either in feed, water or as an injectable. Reducing stocking density can be an effective way of reducing infection pressure and stress in the herd. As well as improving hygiene levels, rodent control is a high priority; rodents are a vector for this disease. The strategy for buying and introducing replacement stock should be reviewed, as this a major route of disease introduction. The most common pig diseases during pre and post weaning stages.

Domestic pigs are acting as potential sources of sleeping sickness in sub-Saharan Africa.

Domestic pigs are acting as potential sources of sleeping sickness in sub-Saharan Africa.Many of the domestic pigs kept by subsistence farmers across sub-Saharan Africa are carrying the cause of fatal human diesease human African Trypanosomiasis, or sleeping sickness. Across Sub-Saharan Africa, millions of people rely on subsistence farming to survive. Pig keeping is becoming more popular, as they can be maintained in a free-roaming, zero input system requiring little investment of time or money. However the increase in pig farming is also increasing the risk of human infection with a number of pathogens, including the causative agent of acute human African trypanosomiasis (HAT); Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense. T. rhodesiense is a vector borne disease that occurs in discrete foci across East Africa and is transmitted by the tsetse fly. T. b. rhodesiense infection in pigs is usually asymptomatic. As a result they can often tolerate infection for most of their lives, and without clinical signs, the animals will not be treated. In contrast the course of infection in humans is very different; T. b. rhodesiense is a rapidly fatal infection, with death ensuing in as little as six months after becoming infected.

'Green'-feed: Industrial microbes could feed cattle, pigs, chicken.

'Green'-feed: Industrial microbes could feed cattle, pigs, chicken. Deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss and nitrogen pollution . Today's agricultural feed cultivation for cattle, pigs and chicken comes with tremendous impacts for the environment and climate. Cultivating feed in industrial facilities instead of on croplands might help to alleviate the critical implications in the agricultural food supply chain. Protein-rich microbes, produced in large-scale industrial facilities, are likely to increasingly replace traditional crop-based feed. A new study now published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology for the first time estimates the economic and environmental potential of feeding microbial protein to pigs, cattle and chicken on a global scale. The researchers find that by replacing only 2 percent of livestock feed by protein-rich microbes, more than 5 percent of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, global cropland area and global nitrogen losses could each be decreased.

IMPROVED METHODS TO CONTROL PORCINE EPIDEMIC DIARRHEA VIRUS.

A university of Nebraska–Lincoln research by Amy Millmier Schmidt, assistant professor and livestock bioenvironmental engineer in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering., is giving swine producers and veterinarians potential methods to manage and prevent the spread of PEDv. PEDv is spread among pigs through the fecal to oral route. It causes severe diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration, typically less than one day following exposure. While older pigs will experience performance losses once infected with PEDv, the virus carries a nearly 100 percent mortality rate in pre-weaned piglets. The virus is highly virulent, which makes controlling its spread within and among swine operations particularly challenging. The PEDv has a similar effect on older pigs as the stomach flu does on humans; the signs include decrease feed intake, loss of weight and are non productivity. The loss of productivity results in an economic loss for the industry because it takes longer for the animals to reach market weight. The control methods are as follows: 1)Carcass removal One area the group has been investigating is composting carcasses testing positive for PEDv. Burial is common practice with PEDv mortalities, which may be problematic because the virus thrives in cool, moist conditions. To ascertain whether composting could eliminate the infectious virus, the researchers constructed three compost bins in which PEDv-positive pigs were composted in biosecure rooms on UNL’s East Campus. Sensors were placed inside the compost piles to monitor temperature and organic matter, and water was added to the bins, as needed, throughout two composting cycles. Testing of the compost material at the conclusion of the cycles found no evidence of PEDv. Properly handling and disposing of mortalities is a crucial step in reducing the risk of virus transmission. The team believe that composting is an effective method to dispose of on-farm mortalities and this will help limit the spread of PEDv when the piles are constructed and managed properly to achieve internal pile temperatures of 120 to 130 degrees F. 2) Changing pH levels in manure Schmidt and her colleagues also looked at adding lime to manure containing the PED virus to determine if a significant pH change in the manure would eliminate the infectious virus. Results revealed that treating manure with lime to raise the manure pH to 10 for at least one hour will eliminate infectious virus in the manure, though Schmidt suspects that a lower pH may be equally effective. Testing during the past several months has revealed that this virus is extremely sensitive to pH, and researchers suspect that it may not be necessary to raise the manure pH all the way to 10 to inactivate the virus. However, they won’t be able to confirm this until additional experiments are completed. 3) Farm bio security The team's current focus is on demonstrating and promoting disease control and prevention measures on-farm and working with pork producers to create a culture of vigilant preparedness and prevention to minimize impacts of future disease outbreaks. All business decisions come down to economics so the team wants to demonstrate that the cost of investing in on-farm bio security practices is far less than the costs associated with lost productivity, decontamination, and remediation of a farm following a disease outbreak. source wattagnet.

Pigs Against Malaria.

                                Pigs Against Malaria.

Mosquito vector-borne diseases are serious global health threats. Malaria alone claims the lives of about 600,000 people annually. With such high death tolls, controlling vectors and the pathogens that they carry is of critical importance.

 Ivermectin is a broad spectrum antiparasitic medication that can be used both internally and topically for the treatment of myriad parasites, including filarial worms, gastrointestinal parasites, and scabies. And, as it turns out, ivermectin can even kill mosquitoes.

 Scientists have shown that having humans in an entire village take ivermectin can disrupt transmission of malaria and other vector-borne diseases.

Pigs from the quarantine zone in African Swine Fever affected areas can be slaughtered.

In Ukraine,pigs from the quarantine zone in Africa Swine Fever areas are now okay for slaughter and used for processing and further production of sausages. This is contrary to the old rule where all pigs must be burnt, the update law was stated was announced in updated veterinary instructions aimed to combat the virus released by Ukraine’s State Veterinary and Phytosanitary Service (Gosvetphitosluzba), late April. Boris Kobal, the head of the food safety department of Gosvetphitosluzba said that the old version of the instruction was no longer meeting the needs of the time and required updating, according to the service’s website. This updated instruction introduces new definitions of biological safety as it distinguishes between farms with high levels of biological safety versus infected facilities, and also specifies closed pig farm operations. The instruction facilitates veterinary control during African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreaks, as it, not only allows healthy pigs to be sent for slaughter, but it also reduces the required limits of quarantine zones. This is because surveillance zones are also being installed, where enhanced veterinary control is applied, but not as strict as in quarantine zones. continue

Piglets need water as much as they need feed.

Piglets need water as much as they need feed.Providing water to suckling and weaned piglets does not stop at having one water outlet per pen as these animals undergo significant digestive development during this period. Sow’s milk contains about 80 percent water, and therefore it is often assumed that suckling piglets cover their daily water requirements without supplemental water. As a result, on many farms, farrowing crates are not equipped with a water delivery system for piglets, and water is provided for the first time only after weaning. In such cases, it is quite common to observe piglets trying to reach the water devices installed for sows. Nevertheless, most experts agree that supplemental water actually benefits suckling piglets, and these benefits greatly outweigh the cost of providing water for piglets in farrowing crates. Dehydration during the first few days after birth is a common cause of death in newborn pigs, especially among light and weak piglets that fail to consume enough milk. It has been suggested that provision of drinking water may reduce pre-weaning mortality from dehydration, especially when environmental temperature is excessive. It should be noted that water loss (mainly from evaporation) in piglets housed under common heaters is about 155 g/day per kg body weight, and that piglets housed at 28 C (82.4 F) consume four times more water than piglets housed at 20 C (68 F). Therefore, when milk intake is limited or environmental temperature is excessive, a source of fresh drinking water should be provided to reduce dehydration and sustain life. Supplemental water may also be beneficial to suckling piglets suffering from diarrhea, which causes severe water loss from the gut. It is interesting to note that newborn pigs are able to drink water within the first 2 hours after birth, indicating a need for water in addition to that supplied by sow’s colostrum or milk. It is also essential to provide drinking water to suckling piglets that actively consume solid feed. It has been demonstrated that piglets with free access to water eat more creep feed than piglets without supplemental water (3,215 versus 2,166 g/pig, respectively). The importance of drinking water in supporting vigorous intake of dry feed increases with weaning age. In production systems practicing very early weaning, creep intake is rather trivial and, thus, the effect of water on feed intake is minimal. But, in production systems that wean pigs about 3 to 4 weeks of age, creep intake can be substantial, and supplemental drinking water must always be provided. Piglets need water as much as they need feed.

Dogs can be a potential risk for future influenza pandemic.

Dogs can be a potential risk for future influenza pandemic.Dogs are a potential reservoir for a future influenza pandemic, according to a study published in the journal mBio. The study demonstrated that influenza virus can jump from pigs into canines and that influenza is becoming increasingly diverse in canines. Influenza can jump among animal reservoirs where many different strains are located; these reservoirs serve as mixing bowls for the genetic diversity of strains. Pandemic influenza occurs when viruses jump from animal reservoirs to humans; with no prior exposure to the virus, most people do not have immunity to these viruses. The main animal hosts for influenza are wild birds, poultry and other domestic birds in a species pack; swine; and horses. Some of the viral genes from the 2009 pandemic H1N1 virus originated in birds, from an avian virus that jumped to pigs, exchanged some of its genes with previously circulating swine viruses and then jumped from pigs into humans. Birds and swine are major reservoirs of viral genetic diversity, whereas equines and canines have historically been restricted to one or two stable influenza A viruses lineages with no or very limited transmission to humans.

How to establish and maintain a mange-free pig populations.

How to establish and maintain a mange-free pig populations.The establishment and maintenance of mange-free herds is achieved by three important facts:
1) Piglets are born free of mites.

2) Mites are highly host-specific and do not survive long away from their host.

3)Modern treatments are very effective.

 Mange-free herds can also be established with cesarean piglets, by depopulation and repopulation from mange-free stock, by segregated rearing of treated pigs or by eradication using ivermectins and other products.

 Biosecurity measures that focus on careful scrutiny of incoming stock and sourcing stock from a minimal number of herds are usually adequate to prevent re-introduction of the parasite.


 Mange control involves identification of animals with chronic mange so that they can receive systematic and regular treatment to protect the younger animals in the herd.All control programmes must target the breeding herd.

Enzyme for wine could be antibiotic alternative for pigs.

Studies by US Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists have found that a naturally occurring antimicrobial enzyme currently being used in food and beverage applications may also prove useful as an antibiotic alternative for improved feed efficiency and growth in pigs. In a recently published trial they compared the growth rates and weight gains of two groups of 600 piglets placed on one of 3 diet regimens:1)corn/soybean meal and specialty protein. 2)corn/soybean meal and specialty protein with lysozyme added, 3)same diet but containing the antibiotics chlortetracycline and tiamulin hydrogen fumarate rather than the lysozyme. The various pig groups were also kept in weaning pens that had either been disinfected or left uncleaned since the last group of animals had occupied them. The latter was done to stimulate chronic, or long-term, immune activity, including the production of cytokines, which divert nutrients away from growth in swine and result in slower weight gain. The results showed that piglets on lysozyme- or antibiotics-treated feeds grew approximately 12% faster than untreated pigs—even in uncleaned pens, suggesting that the treatments successfully ameliorated the effects of indirect immune challenge in the animals. source;Agricultural research service.