How many pigs must you lose before you’ll revisit your biosecurity plans? Cooler weather means tighter barns, more stressors, and a greater risk of viral outbreaks, especially in sow units where the loss is two-fold: an infected sow can mean an affected litter.
Incidents of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) ramp up in the winter. Known for its fast transmission and the plethora of secondary bacterial infections that it can cause, PRRS costs the swine industry in the United States alone an estimated $1.2 billion annually.
With “PRRS season” fast approaching, now is the time to ensure the farm has a comprehensive biosecurity plan with instructions that the on-site crew and any visitor can abide by and tools that support sow health.
Biosecurity at the farm
First, as the seasons change, the crews in the barn may be swapping their fashions. The separation of “inside the barn” clothes and “outside the barn” clothes cannot be overstated. No one wants to be the cause of a pathogen outbreak at a different site because they tracked something in on their clothes.
There is often a lot of movement inside a sow operation, and not just by the pigs. Whether you’re moving through one barn or multiple barns throughout the day, those tasked with caring for pigs should have their visits begin with the youngest pigs and end with the oldest. Older pigs are more likely to pick up pathogens, and you don’t want to transfer something from those pigs to the neonates as you move through the herd or the barns.
Now is the time to inspect the barn’s air filtration system, if you have one installed. Winter is coming; we’re starting to close the barns. You want to check the filter boxes for interruptions, leaks, and any other changes that may require maintenance to ensure the barns are as protected as you planned.
Visits from outsiders are probably more frequent than most production managers would like. And their familiarity with a barn can range from someone very familiar with biosecurity or someone who doesn’t have much experience with swine operations at all. Regardless of the visitor, it’s important to ensure they follow biosecurity rules. Make sure the visit includes some time talking about the rules that are designed to keep both people and pigs healthy.
Biosecurity at the feed mill
Admittedly, on-farm biosecurity gets lots of attention, whereas feed mill biosecurity can be overlooked. As part of the same chain, biosecurity strategies in the mill are a key part of the plan especially since the mill sends people/trucks/feed from multiple locations and to multiple locations.
The top tip is to store feed correctly. Make sure feed ingredients and finished feed are stored in covered, sealed bins to prevent environmental contamination.
Just like on the pig farm, maintain people and visitor logs. This can help track potential biosecurity breaches.
While this tip may only apply to smaller operations, it’s still important to remember: Because viruses can survive in feed, it’s necessary to minimize shared equipment between mill and farm. Transferring pathogens from one location to another over and over again can have catastrophic results.
Lastly, be sure to establish “clean/dirty” zones for load-out and ingredient receiving – just like you do in your barns. Again, cross-contamination can happen. Establishing these zones is easier than managing an outbreak across multiple areas.
Biosecurity in the feed
When creating biosecurity plans, feed is one area that can be overlooked. Research from Pipestone shows that viruses like PRRS, porcine epidemic diarrhea (PEDv), and African Swine Fever can survive in feed, which means every feed delivery is a potential entry point for pathogens to get into your herd and impact both pig health and farm profits.
There are additives that claim to reduce/eliminate pathogens, but it’s important to read the fine print. Some additives only provide a certain level of security – you may still find intact virus particles in the feed. At a low level of virus pressure, this may give some protection. But as the virus load increases, these products may be overwhelmed and the pigs may be infected even with the additive in place. This is why controlling feed-based transmission is emerging as a frontline defense, especially during seasonal pressure.
One strategy to support your feed biosecurity plan is through acidification of the feed. Using a powerful acidifier (ACTIVATE® DA Nutritional Feed Acid – a blend of organic acids including methionine source HMTBa, benzoic acid, and fumaric acid) has been shown to help reduce PRRS presence in feed and support sow gut health.
A live-pig production trial tested the organic acid blend against a PRRS challenge where pigs across three diet groups ate contaminated feed: control and the blend at 0.15% or at 0.5%.
By day 6, only the control group’s feed and oral fluid samples tested positive for the PRRS challenge strain. Neither of the groups fed the organic acid blend (0.15% or 0.5%) showed the virus in feed samples or pig saliva.
Necropsy results on day 14 of pigs that ate the blend showed no clinical signs of PRRS, while pigs from the control group showed clinical and diagnostic signs of PRRS infection. This means ACTIVATE® DA helped to reduce viral presence in the feed, and the pigs that ate the blend also didn’t become infected by contaminated feed – a two-fold result that demonstrates protection in the feed and in the animals.
Biosecurity in every part of your operation
These suggestions are just a sample of things to consider. Your trusted partners on-farm may have more ideas for your unique operation. But now is the time to have those conversations. An overwhelming number of pigs in the U.S. industry die annually from PRRS infection and secondary challenges. A comprehensive biosecurity plan is vital to improving sow survivability.
