There’s no doubt we are more aware of biosecurity these days. One area of concern for livestock producers is whether feed and feed ingredients may also be routes of virus transmission and how to manage those risks. A new fact sheet from Iowa Pork Industry Center focuses on three research papers that evaluated compounds to mitigate virus-contaminated feed. Swine specialist … [Read more...]
3 Ways telemedicine improves veterinary care for livestock
Opinion It is no secret livestock owners, farmers and ranchers have challenges accessing qualified veterinary care. The Veterinary Feed Directive put added requirements on available food animal veterinarians. Many equine and livestock veterinarians have used the telephone effectively for years. Now, new digital tools offer potentially more efficiency and effectiveness for … [Read more...]
Anti-mink farming bill should concern poultry, confined animal production industry
OPINION It’s easy to forget about mink production, especially if you live in a region where mink have never been raised, writes Roy Graber. The fact that a provision that would outlaw commercial mink farms in the U.S. made it into a larger legislative bill should be concerning to anyone involved in animal agriculture, he says. Animal agriculture has been under intense … [Read more...]
A coronavirus variant once helped the global pork industry. Could one protect us?
In 1946 veterinary researchers at Purdue University reported that something invading the guts of young pigs was causing diarrhea, vomiting and weight loss, ultimately killing most of them. The culprit was a coronavirus we know as transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV). TGEV has never harmed a human, and its relationship to SARS-CoV-2, the driver of COVID-19, is … [Read more...]
What to do when activists arrive
Anthropomorphic characteristics continue to define how humans see animals. With this comes more activism targeted at current stewardship methods, regardless of how much improvement has been made in pain management, care, housing, handling and euthanasia methods. Animal health professionals need to be prepared for animal activist encounters. If you encounter an activist on … [Read more...]
Worth a Glance – February 10, 2022
Last week’s most read post Catching up or just back to normal? Link. Last week’s AHD Bulletin Animal Health Digest Bulletin, Thursday, February 3, 2022. Link. =========================== It’s coyote mating season, and in my neighborhood that means trouble Source: Los Angeles Times, February 5, 2022. Link. The reign of terror in my Northridge neighborhood … [Read more...]
Wild pigs, a ticking time bomb on U.S. pork industry
Feral hogs pose a serious threat to the health of the U.S. pork industry specifically if African swine fever were to infect and spread in wild herds. There is no vaccine nor cure and the disease has a long track record of crossing international borders and wiping out billions of pigs. Source: PORK, June 29, 2021. Link. Wild pigs have exploded in numbers across the U.S., … [Read more...]
A pig’s role in human health
Xenotransplantation is the term for transplanting living cells, tissues or organs from one species to another, and the practice was first tried in the 1980s. Early in January 2022, as a last-ditch effort to save David Bennett’s life, doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Center transplanted a pig’s heart into him. Bennett, a 57-year-old man, was not eligible for a … [Read more...]
Worth a Glance – January 13, 2022
Last week’s most read posts Workplace bullying, a growing concern for HR departments. Link. To hug or not. Tools to solve the conundrum. Link. Last week’s AHD Bulletin Animal Health Digest Bulletin, January 6, 2022. Link. =========================== So you cried at work Source: Harvard Business Review, January 4, 2022. Link. To minimize the impact of … [Read more...]
Smart farming with free access stalls
Complimentary Commercial Content Food animal producers and the companies that support them continue to research and develop ways to improve animal welfare and optimize each individual animals’ production potential. Laurence Williams shares how free access stalls are deployed in sow units. Source: The Pig Site, January 7, 2022. Link. … [Read more...]
Top 10 animal feed industry stories of 2021
African swine fever was the most popular topic while feed pricing and production and the animal protein market also made the list. Source: Feed Strategy, January 5, 2022. Link. … [Read more...]
Salmonella sp. is ubiquitous and not going away
USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service is mobilizing a strong and comprehensive effort to reduce Salmonella illnesses associated with poultry products. Swine producers took note since Salmonella I 4, [5],12:i:- has emerged as one of the most identified serotypes in pigs, pork and humans worldwide. Salmonella is an opportunistic bacterium that loves to get into something at … [Read more...]
Characterization of overgrown toes in sow breeding herds
Overgrown toes, often called digital overgrowth, can be a challenge for commercial sow breeding herds. The condition can contribute to increased locomotion challenges and reduced sow performance in the herd. Breeding sow herd lameness is a major contributor to mortality challenges, feet and leg conformation and lameness. Feet and leg structure rank right behind … [Read more...]
Pork community focused on environmental stewardship
Opinion While traveling between Kansas City, Missouri, and the Twin Cities recently, heavy smells from poultry and pork production facilities seemed reduced compared to trips over the past two decades. Although prevailing winds might be partly responsible, more facilities are bordered by trees, ventilation systems have been added to existing buildings, green space expansions … [Read more...]
Starlings. Rats with wings!
There are an estimated 160 million European starlings nationwide. In a September post <Link> we raised concerns about nuisance birds, such as starlings, as costly and as potential disease carriers in fecal-oral fomite cycles. These birds cause issues on farms and swarm as scavengers in cities and towns consuming songbird seed, garden waste and garbage. According to … [Read more...]
Keys to systematically minimizing and eliminating diseases in pig production
Joseph F. Connor, DVM, MS, is well known for applying his experiences and knowledge to the management and elimination of diseases in pig production. He shares how diseases were managed in the past and how to use what was learned to better manage current and potential future diseases. When you have multiple pathogens, the strategy should be first to focus on the one that can be … [Read more...]
In protein we trust
Rarely a day goes by without seeing content aimed at animal protein sources. Every animal health pro has a vested interest in animal protein production whether for your table at home or in the dish for pets. NAMI’s newest initiative, the Protein PACT is setting out to provide the necessary proof to secure and sustain consumer trust in the animal protein industry. PACT … [Read more...]
Dead sows are co$tly
Complimentary Commercial Content Sow mortality has nearly doubled in the past 15 years to approximately 13 percent. Ron Ketchum estimates a midpoint cost of $1,125 per dead sow. This amounts to an estimated $2.25 per pig weaned in incremental production cost. Source: The Pig Site, November 11, 2021. Link. Also see: Sow to sales: mortality breakdowns, National Hog … [Read more...]
Time to FOCUS on biosecurity
Opinion The theme for the Kate Dion’s discussion of the biosecurity research currently in progress could be begin with the end in mind. She describes current work at Iowa State University to understand the rate of disease transmission in growing pigs and associate the timing of disease introduction with <location> biosecurity characteristics or events that could cause … [Read more...]
Pigs will upcycle almost anything into nutritious food
There’s no animal superior to the pig at converting surplus nutrients into dense, living flesh. You might call pigs on-the-hoof food storage, writes Shawn and Beth Dougherty. Their context is hobby or subsistence farming, but the list of things hogs will eat should be interesting to anyone who never slopped the hogs. Pigs, like humans, are omnivores; they eat just about … [Read more...]
Stay safe when pumping manure
Sometimes before harvest is completely finished, manure slurries get pumped and put on fields already harvested. It is an important part of the pork industry's sustainability story but handling manure is inherently risky. Ted Funk shares 10 tips to control the risks to employees, manure handling contractors and avoid the potential to transfer diseases to … [Read more...]
Surgeons attached a pig kidney to a human. It worked!
Researchers in New York successfully attached a kidney grown in a genetically altered pig to a human patient. The kidney worked normally representing a scientific breakthrough that may yield a new supply of organs for severely ill patients. Though the procedure won’t be available anytime soon, experts say the surgery is a milestone. Source: New York Times, October 19, 2021. … [Read more...]
Worth a Glance – October 7, 2021
Last week’s. . . . . . most read post Highlights from the 31st Carthage Swine Conference. Link. . . . AHD Bulletin Animal Health Digest Bulletin - Sept 30, 2021. Link. Goodbye Google: 7 privacy-first search engines everyone should try Source: Fast Company, September 29, 2021. Link. Jared Newman offers search engine options that remove the … [Read more...]
USDA vaccine candidate successful in blocking ASF
One of the USDA African swine flu vaccine candidates has been shown to prevent and effectively protect both European and Asian bred swine against the current circulating African strain of the virus. Source: Feedstuffs, September 30, 2021. Link. A major step for science and agriculture, a commercial vaccine for ASF virus will be an important part of controlling ASF in … [Read more...]
Highlights from the 31st Carthage Swine Conference
An emphasis on people, training, culture, retention and advancement are key priorities for today’s swine producers according to Claire LeFevre, DVM. She summarizes priorities from presentations at the swine conference. Source: National Hog Farmer, September 28, 2021. Link. Presenters discussed using the TN Visa Network which allows professionals from Canada and Mexico to … [Read more...]
Batch farrowing progress tracked with big data
Ron Ketchem and Mark Rix share the progression results of batch farrowing and provide views of various data depicting progress, challenges and value. Source: National Hog Farmer, September 1, 2021. Link. With the increasing disease challenges to the swine industry and large sow farms and finisher sites, batch farrowing needs to be explored.” INSIGHTS: The use of … [Read more...]
Worth a Glance – August 19, 2021
Last week’s most read post 40 percent of U.S. wild deer have coronavirus antibodies: study. AHD Link. Cat2VetDay is August 22nd Source: Cat Friendly Homes. Link. In the United States, more than half of our 74 million cats are not visiting the veterinarian regularly. See the resources available for immediate use including, 5 reasons NOT to postpone … [Read more...]
Learning through livestock: Pipestone Discovery Barn brings the farm to fairgoers (video)
The Pipestone Discovery Barn gives kids who don’t grow up on a farm a chance to learn more about where their food comes from. Visitors not only get to see the baby animals, they also witness them being born. Source: KEOLAND.com, August 13, 2021. Link. … [Read more...]
Feed bait contraceptive may help reduce feral hog reproduction
A new hog contraceptive is being used to manage the feral hog population in Texas. The strategy is to provide an all-natural feed bait that is made of ingredients fed to cattle and deer but combined in such a way that it makes feral boars sterile. The non-toxic formula reduces the fertility of feral hogs within five days and maintains fertility interruption for at least 30 … [Read more...]
ASF information for community and media available from OIE
The latest information about African swine fever and tools for communicating about it to the public and the media are now available from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). From a thorough overview of the disease, diagnostics, and prevention and control, the information quality is expectedly high. Additionally, a link to media resources that include posters, … [Read more...]