Health and Care
Pork production can be catastrophically affected if your swine are unhealthy. Knowing how to keep your pigs healthy and recognize the signs of disease is fundamental to the farm profitability and the success of your business. Make good use of Penn State Extension’s resources on swine health, keeping pigs healthy, optimizing feed management and delivery, avoiding mold and mycotoxins in feed. Biosecurity fundamentals are also covered, and help is offered by the Veterinary Extension and Applied Research Team.
Swine Health and Care
There are many factors that can affect the health of your pigs. Successful pork production depends on keeping your animals healthy and free of disease. A good tool for checking productivity is body condition scoring.
As well as understanding different diseases and being able to recognize the various symptoms, it’s important to make sure your swine feed and ingredients are safe. Consider building a Secure Pork Supply plan – it is the first step in risk management for any pork producer.
There is a range of illnesses pigs can suffer from. The risks of contracting some of these illnesses can be increased if there are mycotoxins in the grain being fed to your pigs. The risk increases during years when there has been heavy rainfall.
A common misconception is that it’s OK to feed pigs food waste. There are, however, considerable risks and laws that dictate who can and cannot feed food waste to pigs.
African Swine Fever
Disease prevention is high on the list of priorities for pork producers, and the threat of disease could be domestic or foreign. The introduction of a disease into a herd can threaten the animals’ well-being, ability to grow, and also impact the food supply.
A disease that’s been on the radar of the swine industry for a few years now is African Swine Fever. Also known as ASF, it only affects pigs and has been endemic in African countries for many years. However, outbreaks have occurred in several other parts of the world including China, Central and Eastern Europe, South America, and the Caribbean. To date, there have been no reported cases in the US.
ASF is a severe viral disease of pigs that can spread rapidly through pig herds, which is why biosecurity on your farm is key. The illness can be severe and result in high death rates. Animals can recover but will be carriers of the virus for several months.
Other Common Pig Diseases
African swine fever is not the only disease of which you must be aware. Classical swine fever, for example, is another highly contagious viral disease that affects pigs.
Foot-and-mouth disease, while severe and highly contagious, still remains a worldwide concern. Animals affected with the disease will not die, but they become very weak and unable to produce meat as before.
Keep in mind that If foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), classical swine fever (CSF), or African swine fever (ASF) is found in United States livestock, regulatory officials will limit the movement of animals and animal products to try and control the spread of these very contagious animal diseases.
There are three more bacterial and viral diseases you should understand and protect against. Some of them are PRRS (porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome), pseudorabies, and PEDV (porcine epidemic diarrhea virus). All these diseases are a risk for pork producers in the US.
- Online Courses
$15.00
Pennsylvania Show and Fair Swine Health Monitor Training
Sections 1Length 1 hour, 30 minutesThis training is required to become a PDA swine health monitor. Volunteers learn roles and responsibilities, rules and regulations, and common signs of disease. - Workshops
Free
Composting Principles for Emergency and Every Day Mortality Management
When Multiple Options AvailableLength 5 hoursDiscover essential compost management principles for both disease emergencies and day-to-day operations. Explore challenges, tools, and hands-on demonstrations for effective management. - Webinars
$25.00
Swine Health Short Course
When 01/15/2024Length 4.25Enhance piglet survivability with global experts. Optimize reproductive herd health in this 4-hour session. Ideal for sow farm managers, veterinarians, and owners. - Articles
Keeping Animals Healthy
Here you will find common techniques producers use to keep their animals healthy and avoid having to treat them. - Articles
Mycotoxins and Their Effect on Poultry and Swine Production
Feed grains contaminated by mycotoxins hurt feed quality and are detrimental to production in poultry and swine. Some key mycotoxins can induce differential impacts on poultry and swine production performance. - Videos
Disease Prevention on the Farm
Diseases in your farm animals can have serious consequences for you, your neighbors, and beyond. Learn how you can prevent the spread of animal diseases. - Videos
Principles of Body Condition Scoring in Swine
Length 5:13Body condition scoring is a useful tool for improving herd productivity. In this video, you will learn to conduct body condition scoring on your sows by learning the hallmark indicators of thin, ideal, and fat sows. - Articles
Raising Small Groups of Pigs
Beginners in personal meat production and homesteading may be interested in raising swine. - Articles
Keeping Pigs Cool in the Summer Heat
Practicing some seasonal tips along with good husbandry can reduce the impact of heat stress on swine herd performance. - Articles
Livestock and Poultry Mortality Disposal in Pennsylvania
Properly managing and disposing of dead farm animals is important. Every livestock and poultry operation should have a proper dead stock disposal strategy. - Articles
Mortality Composting Guidelines
Rendering changes and the livestock Industry, basic mortality composting procedures, and the composting process. - Videos
Proper Animal Mortality Disposal
Length 4:16This video provides an overview of the approved methods of animal disposal in Pennsylvania, along with best management practices for each method. - Videos
Fly Control on Swine Farms
Flies are a nuisance on swine facilities and can transmit diseases. Learn how to use integrated pest management (IPM) to control pest flies safely and effectively. - Webinars
Free
Swine Parasite Management: Pigs on Pasture
When Watch NowRecorded Jul 19, 2021Learn about the types and impacts of parasites on swine and your family! - Videos
Preparing for Disease Response on Your Farm
A video series educating producers on the Secure Pork Supply program and important knowledge on animal disease response and containment. - News
Biosecurity Best Practices Distinguish Youth Stockmen
Date Posted 3/16/2021Leaders in livestock production are taking note of youth who do their part to safeguard the food supply through biosecurity practices. - Articles
Swine Production
While the trend in the swine industry continues towards larger farms, opportunities remain to make money by raising hogs in a part-time enterprise.