OAHN swine small-scale herd postmortem project is underway

Josepha DeLay, Tim Pasma

Animal Health Laboratory, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON (DeLay); Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (Pasma)

AHL Newsletter 2020;24(3):10.

The Ontario Animal Health Network (OAHN) is funding a new study at the Animal Health Laboratory (AHL) to identify disease issues in small-scale swine herds in Ontario.  The project will also facilitate connection and communication between veterinarians and small-scale producers.

The project funds postmortems (PM) on pigs that die or are euthanized due to disease, and for which the herd meets the qualifying criteria for the project (see below).  PM samples will be tested for a variety of diseases depending on the presenting complaint and the age of the animals.  All animals will be tested for PRRSV and influenza A virus.  Test results will be reported to the herd veterinarian who will communicate these findings to the producer.

The costs of PM at the AHL and all diagnostic tests will be covered by the project, at no charge to the client.  For cases with on-farm PM, veterinarians will receive a subsidy for conducting the PM, and all diagnostic test costs will similarly be covered by the project.  Importantly, on-farm PMs must follow the project sampling protocol specific for each age group and disease syndrome (see links to submission forms and sampling guides at https://www.uoguelph.ca/ahl/oahn-swine-small-scale-herd-postmortem-project-may-2020).

Summary of herd requirements for participation in the project:

  • The swine herd is located in Ontario and has ≤50 sows, or markets ≤1000 hogs per year.
  • The herd has a Premises Identification Number (PID).
  • The producer completes and submits a herd management survey (included with submission form).
  • The herd veterinarian has enrolled the herd / case in the project.

For more information, to enroll a small herd in the project, and to receive a sampling kit for field PMs, veterinarians may contact Dr. Josepha DeLay at the AHL (jdelay@uoguelph.ca) or 519-824-4120 ext. 54576).  AHL

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