This second part deals with the problems caused by not  recording properly the cause of abortions, sows and piglets deaths, nurse sows and hormonal treatments.

How do we get good workers? What must we do to keep them? And, mostly, what do I want on my farm and which workers do I need for that?

This article explains how E. coli breaks the complex intestinal barrier mechanisms in a comprehensible way.

The author analyzes the loss-making situation that is engulfing the US pig industry and links its future development to globalisation, which progress seems to be slowing down...

PED virus has challenged biosecurity programs in North America, the standards of sanitation have risen to a new level to address PEDV. The article deals with the most relevant changes.

The USA and Canada persist in having rock bottom prices: €0.91/kg carcass, this is, 40% lower than the European prices.

The reasons behind the vaccination against influenza virus on a group of fattenig units with recurrent respiratory clinical pictures that belong to an integrated production system are discussed. Impact on production parameters and economic results are also shown.

Achieving good levels of colostral immunity by vaccinating sows is the first step to prevent scours; subsequently, active pre or post-weaning immunization must be added to prevent post-weaning diarrhoea.

This first part deals with backward and impossible data, i.e. the sows that are no longer in the farm but still appear both in the management softwatre and the 100% delivery rates in gilts.

The cost of the staff entails between 6% and 7% of the total production costs of our pigs. Nevertheless, the staff influences this cost by 100%, because almost all the tasks on a farm are manual or controlled by the staff.

PCV2 vaccination is nearly universal. Has viral presence decreased after 6 years of vaccination? Could vaccination policies be changed?

Predicting the functional effect of fibre ingredients when fed to early weaning piglets is advisable in order to control the gut health.

Production of a minimum number of doses to maintain profitability and the increase in post-cervical insemination leads to an increase of the doses produced per boar and, therefore, their share of responsibility in the production process.

In the coming years, the use of antimicrobials will be more closely regulated, following the guidelines set by the WHO in its global report on antimicrobial resistance in 2014.

Exposure during acclimatization can be considered the first dose of a vaccine, and pre-farrowing exposure its booster.

Oedema disease prevention has traditionally been accomplished through the administration of antibiotics or manipulation of gut microbiota through diet. However, in recent years, many vaccines have been developed to prevent clinical manifestation of the disease.

The heat and the decrease in the supply in Germany have supported the Spanish pig price in September. Europe will only be able to go on with its prices if it can absorb its production and the exports to Asia keep on.

The shorter and lower dose regime saves money but there is an increased risk of follicular cyst development, which may occur at doses below 13mg/day.

The farmer, alarmed, calls us describing a clinical picture of abortions in the last third of gestation, weak newborn piglets, stillbirths, mummified piglets, agalactia, sows with fever and small litters.

It appears that the use of non-toxigenic C. difficile as a probiotic can reduce the severity of histologic lesions and the quantity of toxins detected in neonatal piglets.

Don’t be surprised over the next decade if another one or two of the large US pork production/processing chains changes hands or gains significant new partners from another country.

The economic potential lost in a unit positive to PRRS could be around 35 – 37% of net unit margin.

This trick shows how to reduce the cleaning time of the fattening pens with a solid floor.

Open housing allow to increase the actual surface per weaned piglet, thus reducing hierarchy problems, and redefining the dunging, lying and feeding areas.

Understand the role nutrition can play in gut health and animal performance is essential to enjoying good performance as we move away from antibiotic growth promoters and heavy metals.

The Spanish pig price chart in August has been completely flat. We are expecting a bear, but not catastrophic, trend in September.

Milk supplementation shows much higher growth rates in the fattening stage, so its implementation would be interesting to regain body condition in animals with low birth weight.

The recent development of PCR serotyping is a step forward that allows any laboratory to determine the serotype of the isolated H. parasuis strain.

Introduction of post-cervical insemination has a very significant economic impact on the whole of the pork industry, and is a challenge of parallel magnitude to that raised by the transition from natural service to artificial insemination.

Assessment of a study, by Enric de Marco, on the use of anti-inflammatory drugs in sows at farrowing in order to reduce piglet mortality and increase the weight of piglets at weaning.

In the United States, there are 17 genetic clades that have emerged and persisted following spillover events from non-swine (namely human) hosts and subsequent ecological and evolutionary processes

An easy solution to store these feeders is to hang them in the corridor of their room. In this way, they do not stand in the way and they can dry well before being used again.

The handling disadvantages derived from the addition of an extra feed are outweighed by the improvement in production and decrease in the number of farrowing problems.

The Spanish price will still exceed €1.30/kg whilst the supply remains restricted. The battle will be held in September, and it will all depend on the foreign markets.

The success of the Brexit movement to force the exit of UK from the European Union demonstrates the limits of globalism, which for many has become a kind of euphoric synonym for innovation, increased efficiency and low cost

We are talking about PRRSV, M. hyo, PCV2, App and swine influenza virus.

The number of sows that suffer some kind of leg injury is much higher than is apparent, and even more so in second farrowings.

Have you ever cleaned a lorry for the transportation of animals? It is not easy. Therefore, we always have to consider them dirty and we will use loading bays on the outside of the farm.

The article provides an alternative to the current vaccination programs that could be the solution for farms with early onset oedema disease. However, this alternative —consisting of vaccinating the dams at the end of gestation to achieve post-weaning piglets immunization—, also raises questions...

Energy intake based on body condition differs greatly from the energy adult sows require. Moreover, the NRC clearly overestimates the sows' maintenance requirements.

Needle-free injection technology improves the dispersion of vaccines throughout the tissue.

Genetic selection provides a powerful tool to improve and maintain gut health in industrial pig production, and may in the future become a more sustainable alternative to the currently massive need for antibiotics.

The exports to Asia have drained the stocks and have made all the European prices grow.

Meeting batch breeding targets requires availability of enough service-ready weaned sows and gilts.

How to equip our old farm with a very simple but effective changing room.

If we decide to use foster sows to wean the "extra" piglets farrowed by hyper-prolific sows, we must decide which system is best suited to our farm and our management conditions.

Presumed causes of ear necrosis are many and generally speculative; indeed, there are many risk factors associated with ear necrosis including trauma from pen mates or the environment, overcrowding, commingling, high humidity, limited feeder or water space, misformulated rations, mycotoxins, viral diseases, or bacteria.

At autopsy, haemorrhagic enterocolitis with mucosal oedema, enlarged spleen and haemorrhagic mesentery were observed.

Without the participation in the program of all farms present in the area, progress will be minimal or nil.

It has not proved possible to actively eliminate App from chronically affected permanently occupied breeder-feeder herds.

The addition of alternative ingredients to the ration will depend mainly on how their variation in nutritional composition compares to soybeans and on their price, which will determine their inclusion rate and their actual inclusion.

NFID administered swine vaccines can use half to a tenth of the dose required for intramuscular vaccines because of the higher antigen dispersion and contact with the antigen presenting cells found in skin.

All points towards the rise in prices keeping a good pace in the first forthnight of June.

In the long term, Chinese producers will have to gain access to their own processors in order to break the information barrier which prevents precision investment in the production process.

All available vaccines in the European and North-American market are based on PCV2a genotype, while the most prevalent ones are PCV2b and PCV2d ones. Although significant level of cross-protection among these three genotypes has been demonstrated, it would be interesting to assess if vaccine efficiency would be equivalent in front of all these different genotypes.

Apparently, lameness problems amount to just 5% of the causes for sending pigs to slaughter...

Neonatal mineral and vitamin supplementation have a huge impact on bone development and body composition via the regulation of mesenchymal stem cells and satellite cell programing.

This paper describes the acute outbreak of App within a pig population and how control may be achieved.

Inactivated vaccines can be effective if used in conjunction with other practices, such as controlled movement of animals and people and with careful analysis of whether the vaccine antigen is a good antigenic match with the circulating strain.

The isolation and acclimation period is not negotiable, it is an investment.