Novelties about the excretion routes, the transmission routes, the risk factors, etc., and explanation about how the PCV2 becomes a pathogenic virus.

Among the numerous genetically distinct isolates that are identified in high pig density areas every year, only a few are able to be transmitted between herds and even less able to widely spread and dominate the entire region or system.

How to make that the sows start their lactation with the maximum number of viable piglets.

Characteristics of the installations, genetics, medications, feeding, etc. of Spanish feedlots based on data of 452 farms that pertain to nine of the 25 biggest pig integration companies in the country.

A simple method to facilitate the daily calculation of the nurse sows needed for the correct running of the farrowing quarters in a hyperprolific sows system.

In a factory farm located in Mexico an increase in the mortality in the farrowing quarters was seen, and this coincides with temperature and relative humidity increases.

When there are not enough teats, the strongest piglet always occupies the place of the weak one, that is left without milk to suckle.

Normally, when we ask a farmer which is their average number of weaned piglets per sow they normally know this parameter, because its calculation is easy, nevertheless...

The aim of this trick is the improvement of the quality of the environment in the farrowing quarters for the sows as well as for the piglets, saving on energy consumption by means of the manufacturing of nests.

Albeit having similar determinants, the conversion index of the best (25%) and of the least efficient producers (25%) can differ in 0.42 points.

It is a widely documented fact that pig production has seasonal variations mainly focused on a descent in the reproductive efficiency in the gestation phase (difficulty in the coming into oestrus, a higher number of reproductive failures) during the summer and autumn months.

To accurately predict sow body weight by using their flank to flank measurement in order to determine daily feed intake or accurate medication dose.

In the previous piece of advice we saw that in small farms it could be interesting to maintain a certain order when entering the sows in the farrowing quarters depending on their parturition. Nevertheless, in big farms or in farms that group together many farrowings at the same time we will have to think about the order in another way, because if the farrowing quarters are not very big we will have the same batch of sows housed in several rooms.

The nervous system symptomatology is characterized by some cases of meningitis and opistothonus, dizziness and serious deep depression in a great number of animals. The necropsy shows, in all the cases, a serious lung congestion and an enteritis with a variable seriousness with a more or less important involvement of the mesenteric lymph nodes.

Bitterness leaves an unpleasant feeling linked to a decrease in feed consumption. On the other hand, modulating feed intake with bitter compounds might be an interesting tool to limit excessive voracity of pigs and sows at certain stages.

The most effective way of avoiding the production losses associated with the PCV2 consists in avoiding the appearance of the viraemia by inducing a passive or an active immunity that minimizes the circulation of the virus in the farm.

The European Declaration on alternatives to the castration of pigs is a declaration that is a voluntary agreement in which, for the first time, the European swine farmers have manifested a proactive stance with the aim of presenting a solution, from the swine sector, to a social demand.

There are 3 potential options to stabilize BTW herds following an outbreak that have all proven successful over time. They have very different cost and risk profiles and a through economic assessment is needed to determine what the best course of action is for each new outbreak.

Lasso the pig with a metallic cable lasso and hold the end of the cable to a pen door or divider.

This case describes an acute outbreak of gastric ulcers in pigs of 30-40 kg live weight that affected 38 farms throughout a year and that presented mortalities from a 5% up to a 40% depending on the severity of the cases.

The losses due to diarrhoea problems appear concentrated, basically, during the first week in the weaners stage, whilst in the farms that have not suffered diarrhoea problems, the mortality is distibuted more evenly.

Perinatal flavour learning has been shown in a wide variety of species including humans, and often results in a preference in the offspring for a flavour that the mother ate often during late gestation and lactation.

This study, based on some 120,000 sows, quantifies the reduction of the risk of introducing PRRS viruses when using air filtering.

After the banning of antibiotics as growth promoters, there was an increase in their total consumption due to the therapeutics treatments...

If once we have evened out the litters a sow farrows during the late evening, what do we do?

We hold the legs of the piglets together with plastic straps, avoiding that they move apart from each other.

The European Commission is reviewing and consulting how antimicrobials are used in veterinary medicine following the release of their 12 point programme in 2011. Present and future situation of antimicrobial use in the European Community is analysed.

The great impact of the boar on the swine production (up to more than 6,000 piglets produced by boar and year) determines the great interest in the study of any factor that can have an incidence on its production results.

How do we determine clinical significance? One way is to evaluate how many individuals need to be treated in order to obtain one more favorable outcome. This is the concept behind Number Needed to Treat (NNT).

We analyze a real case, and we will check out how a partial analysis of the data can give place to erroneous conclusions.

It was developed in USA as a way to improve communication of what needed to be done to improve the chances of success in stabilizing and managing breeding herds.

We are going to see a practical example of how to even out litters after the farrowings in a quick way and minimizing the swappings of piglets.

We are going to save money in heating during the weaners stage guaranteeing the thermal comfort of the piglets by creating two environments in the weaners stage defining an area for the nest and an outside area.

The pig farm management team in charge of the post-weaned piglet nursery areas on these wean-to-finish sites has found serious problems with diarrhoea in recent batches of piglets arriving from the breeding farms.

Interventions can only reduce but not eradicate Salmonella from the herd. This emphasises the importance of trying to avoid introduction especially Salmonella Typhimurium or Salmonella Derby.

In pigs there is no other phase in which such a high percentage of losses occur such as in motherhood, in particular in the first days of life. At this stage the determining factor for survival is the rapid consumption of colostrum.

In this second article we are going to analyze the causes of these locomotive system disorders and the treatments to avoid them or to minimize their effects.

EFSA estimates that, across the EU, up to 27% of human Salmonellosis cases may be attributed to pig meat.

Apple juice is the favourite kind of juice for the sows during the training sessions.

Locomotor problems are serious, multi-factorial problems that aren’t well registered on farms, but for the most part are correctable.

Can we get to know if the behaviour, from the sanitary point of view, of a certain batch of animals during their growth stage is being correct? How can we achieve this?

These findings provide useful information that will assist swine producers in deciding whether or not to reduce litter size in first-parity sows.

In July 2010 a severe respiratory disease occurred in the farm: coughing in gilts, and coughing and depression in fatteners concomitantly to an increase of the mean stillborn and mummified piglet rate in a batch of sows.

To keep the piglets clean and to ensure their wellbeing during the carrying out of different handling procedures or the relocation of animals.

In this article Salmonella critical contamination points in the abattoir will be analyzed, as well as the measures that can be taken with regard to them.

This could be very shortly summarized by ‘’Start high and increase fast’’.

The risk of contamination by Salmonella increases along the food chain, reaching its maximum in the abattoir. So, the abattoir is one of the points in which the actions carried out can be most effective.

A summary of current knowledge to address frequently asked questions from producers and practitioners on PCV2-associated reproductive disease.

Today sows have a milk production of 8-12 liters/day or more. The challenge of feeding the lactating sow is not new and improvement to the genetic potential of lean and prolific dam lines make this issue of critical importance for any breeding herd.

The “normal” sporadic and unexplained abortion rate in pigs is approximately 1 to 2 % of pigs that are mated and achieve a pregnancy.

When the farrowings are programmed, their supervision has to be one of the main tasks in the farrowing quarters. The rest of the tasks must be organized in such a way that we can exert the maximum control over the programmed sows.

Short weaning to service interval isn’t always a synonym for good management, since we have to take into consideration not only average number of days, but also the effect on the percentage of distribution after returns.

When exposed, the pigs get infected in less time than the length of the transportation and the waiting period (prior to the slaughter) in the abattoir.

The annual pig meat production is 500,000 tons, and the amount assigned to exportation reaches a 40% of the total. The geographical characteristics of Chile provide it with unique conditions that have allowed the eradication of diseases such as PRRS.

The aim of this trick is to identify quickly and practically, the age of piglets and pigs just by looking at the color of their ear tag.

Two species of Brachyspira are well-recognized pathogens of pigs: B pilosicoli and B. hyodysenteriae. Recently, dysentery-like disease has been reported in association with infection by strongly beta-hemolytic spirochetes which are not identified as B. hyodysenteriae.

It is very important to establish a series of preventive measures to prevent a worsening health status with the introduction of new serotypes.

Both "vehicles" for oral medication may be valid and often complementary, but as when making any decision we must consider several factors along with their advantages and disadvantages: cost, speed, flexibility, efectiveness...

Given the high prevalence of the infection due to the PCV2 and its presence in healthy and sick animals, the serological tests against this pathogen have been questioned as a diagnostic test.

The farms can be free from PRRS, enzootic pneumonia, atrophic rhinitis, pleuropneumonia, scabies, swine dysentery, and so on. However, why is it we are still unable to characterize farms as Salmonella-free?