Articles - Pig health

By far, the most common and most obvious health hazard to producers and workers is accidental needle sticks. This article will focus on accidental needle sticks, what risks they present, and how to prevent them.

Specific humoral immunity is mediated by glycoproteins called antibodies or immunoglobulins.

Once the first symptoms of the infection emerged in pigs the facility was locked and the possibility to get in from outside was the only used.

We must come up with new strategies. The objective would be to prevent the animals going for slaughter from shedding Salmonella when they arrive at the abattoir, since they are the biggest responsible for carcass contamination.

The main mechanism of defense against intracellular infections, particularly virus.

In most fattening herds, the biggest risk for the finisher pigs to become infected with Salmonella is the within-farm contamination cycle of Salmonella. The biggest risk for introduction of Salmonella is buying infected piglets.

This article shows the different measures taken and the strategy followed to eradicate PEDv in a commercial farm: stabilization, creation of a disinfection bubble, monitoring and verification.

Community legislation on veterinary medicinal products and medicated feed is currently being reviewed with the aim of contributing to the reduction of antimicrobial resistance. The points of debate of these regulations are...

The role of each player in the innate immunity response: Type 1 Interferons and pro-inflammatory cytokines, complement, acute phase proteins, antimicrobial proteins, phagocytes, NK cells, γ/δ T lymphocytes,...

This article helps us to define the minimum biosecurity measures that should be internally established to prevent indirect PEDv transmission.

Liquid manure in deep anaerobic storage, contains sulfur (from amino acids in feed, manure or in water) which certain bacteria (anaerobes) use as a substitute for oxygen. They produce H₂S as an end product, which is toxic to living tissue, by stopping the energy supplying reactions in the tissue cells.

As pork producers, the only way forward is to rationalize and reduce the use of antibiotics which, in addition, could be a clear business opportunity.

Analysis of the intestinal situation of piglets is an essential action in health management programs. A piglet population with good intestinal health has excellent feed conversion efficiency.

Recognition of the pathogen is the first step of defensive immune response; both innate and specific immunity have mechanism to recognize the pathogen.

These days, the sale of breeding sows or boars with mange is considered unacceptable.

The current diagnostic tests are very powerful, allowing us to detect even small changes in the genome of a virus, but what do they tell us?

We were called for clinical problems on weaners that appeared a few days after a feed transition in a farrow-to-finish farm: swelling of the eyelids and forehead, incoordination, dyspnea and sudden death.

What the cytokines are, what they do and how they work on the immune system.

Why has antimicrobial resistance become more important over the last few years? Which is the responsibility of animal production? Is it possible to transfer antimicrobial resistance from animals to humans and vice versa? Can meat contain resistance even without having antimicrobial residues?

A study was performed including 69 PRRS-positive sow herds with the aim of comparing the use of PRRSV MLV and quarantine facilities with the PRRSV status of replacement gilts at first insemination.

The owner contacted us because he has seen a reduction in performance in recent months, although no decline has been identified in any particular parameter. He says that, overall, “the sows are doing worse".

This article reviews major immune cells: Neutrophils, macrophages, natural killer, lymphocytes, dendritic cells, mast cells...

Does the land altitude, slope or coverage matter?

As the risk of HEV exposure appears to rise in the human population an opportunity for production and certification of HEV free meat products, especially pork, is emerging.