Clostridial Diseases

(326) Clostridial infections in the sow during lactation are not common but occasionally do occur and the only sign is sudden death. If mortality is high detailed post-mortems must be carried out within 1 to 2 hours of death. The dead sow should be removed immediately from the farrowing house into a more cooler environment, otherwise differentiation between disease and post-mortem changes becomes impossible. Diagnosis is by post-mortem examinations and fluorescent antibody tests performed on impression smears from the cut surface of the liver made onto glass slides. Sows can be vaccinated against the disease.