Dam Parity Affects Litter Performance and Passive Immunity
Litter performance and passive immunity may be affected by dam parity, concluded Erin E. Carney and co-authors in their paper published in the 2009 Nebraska Swine Report.

Update on New Piglet Diarrhoea in Europe
Recent reports about a possible new threat of piglet diarrhoea in Denmark and France have sparked concern in the EU pig industry. Jackie Linden, editor of ThePigSite, reviews the information currently available.

Nebraska Study Shows DDGS, Beta-Agonist Do Not Affect Growing-Finishing Pigs
Growth performance of growing-finishing castrates was not affected by increasing dietary distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS; 0 to 40 per cent) or supplementing ractopamine, according to Roman Moreno and co-authors in their paper published in...

UK Pig Disease Quarterly Surveillance Report: April to June 2009
The latest report from the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) highlights the good news the incidence of PMWS was the lowest in England and Wales since 2002, and bad news that the diagnostic rate for PRRS this quarter is the highest rate for any quarter...

Economic Impact of the 'Swine Flu' Misnomer
What was believed to have started in April at a pig farm in Mexico and in the United States has now taken its toll across the globe. Countries around the world are negatively impacted by what is known as 'swine flu', a name misleading enough to affect...

Antimicrobial Sensitivity Testing and Heat Treatment on Orego-Stim Powder
Results from the company's own laboratory and from University Putra Malaysia demonstrate that Meriden Animal Health's Orego-Stim Powder is highly effective against the multi drug-resistant strains of bacteria, and that it is stable in the feed following...

Porcine Intestinal Adenomatosus (Pig Ileitis)
The causes, different clinical forms and control/treatment of ileitis are covered in this article from Meriden Animal Health.

Research on Porcine Circovirus-Associated Diseases
A review of current projects researching Porcine Circovirus-Associated Disease (PCVAD) from the BPEX Annual Technical Report 2008-2009.

Improving Sow and Piglet Health
An article from Hypor covering uterine and udder health and feet/leg problems in sows and gilts, and joint-ill, greasy pig disease and scours (diarrhoea) in piglets.

Swine, Stress and Salmonella Infection
Researchers with the USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are learning how pathogens like Salmonella communicate with their host – in this case, the pig. They hope to apply this knowledge to reduce foodborne infections in humans. The article is...

PWMS and Circovirus Disease
In the latest Health Bulletin from NADIS, pig veterinarian Mark White presents the latest information on post weaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) and other diseases involving circoviruses. Also covered are various methods of control,...

Review of On–Farm Intervention Strategies against Salmonella
A 40-page report summarising the available scientific literature on various aspects of Salmonella on pig farms has been written by R. Friendship of the University of Guelph in Canada and published by BPEX. The authors' findings and recommendations have...

Rectal Prolapse and Rectal Stricture
Pig veterinarian, Mark White, explains the causes, identification and treatment of these conditions in the July 2009 Health Bulletin from NADIS.

The Rational Use of Antibiotics in Relation to Antibiotic Resistance
David Burch (Octagon Services) reviews the current understanding of pharmacokinetics in pigs, the pharmacodynamic information that may be developed in clinical and university laboratories. He also describes how these can be integrated so that the use,...

Boar Taint Vaccine Improves More Than Welfare
A new vaccination that inhibits boar taint in meat has also been found to have other benefits for the pig producer by improving feed efficiency and delivering a leaner carcass with better meat quality, writes ThePigSite senior editor, Chris Harris.

Latest Vaccine Research from PCVD Forum
As part of its ongoing commitment to research and development into PCV2, Merial held its inaugural PCVD Forum in Athens where 350 pig veterinarians from across Europe exchanged information and views on Porcine Circovirus-associated diseases (PCVD).

Variability of Water Flow Rates and the Impact on Therapy Using Tetracycline Powder
The results presented at the 28th Centralia Swine Update by Glen Almond and colleagues at North Carolina State University indicate that medicating pigs with tetracycline in the drinking water is problematical and ineffective.

Learning Pig Health and Welfare Virtually
Learning what can go wrong on a pig farm and how to cope with outbreaks of sickness is an essential part of production management, writes ThePigSite senior editor, Chris Harris.

Piglet Coccidiosis
Piglet coccidiosis is caused by a protozoan parasite called Isospora suis. Although Eimeria debliecki has been known to cause clinical disease in piglets, it seems that the only important pathogenic species known to cause clinical...

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
Despite the finding of MRSA in pigs and pork in Canada, the potential role on human health is unclear, according to Dr Scott Weese of the University of Guelph, speaking at the 28th Centralia Swine Research Update.

Sarcoptic Mange
The costs of control are far outweighed by the potential penalty to efficient growth, writes Dr Mark White in the latest NADIS Health Bulletin Pig Health.

Clostridial Diseases in Pigs and Public Health Concerns
C. difficile from pigs might be a serious public health concern and needs to be further investigated, according to R. Friendship, J. Gallant, K. Warriner and S. Weese of the University of Guelph. They presented a written paper at the 28th Centralia...

H1N1 - an Economic Impact on the Pig Industry
Apart from economic events and challenging feed prices, one of the most important events this year to hit the US pig meat industry has been the outbreak of H1N1 influenza in Mexico and then in the US, writes ThePigSite senior editor, Chris Harris.