Success stories: Cross-protection makes a big difference

Veterinarians Marty Mohr of New Ulm Regional Veterinary Center in New Ulm, Minnesota, and Bill Hollis of Carthage Veterinary Service, Ltd. in Carthage, Illinois, have one thing in common: Both have had a client outsmart swine influenza virus.
calendar icon 12 January 2018
clock icon 4 minute read

Before

For Dr. Hollis, his client in Iowa had more than 10% of weaned pigs with signs of swine influenza A virus (IAV-S), and both H1N2 and H3N2 viruses were isolated. Dr. Mohr saw an outbreak of influenza H1N2 in his Minnesota client’s suckling and nursery pigs.

When reviewing the persistent swine influenza situations on their clients’ operations, it was clear to both Dr. Hollis and Dr. Mohr that they needed to explore options to help get immunisation in as soon as possible.

They recommended a strategic opportunity to help boost immunity: Vaccinate the entire breeding herd with two doses of commercially available FluSure XP®.

After

“I admit I was sceptical, but this strategy worked very well to stop swine influenza activity,” Dr. Hollis said.

Swine influenza has evolved to multiple subtypes (learn more about this in this video and article), but FluSure XP covers the most relevant strains circulating in swine production today.1 You have an advantage because it helps provide broad protection against more than one strain that might be impacting your operation.

For both operations, making a change in vaccination strategies not only helped eliminate coughing pigs but with two doses of FluSure XP, they also saw positive and consistent results in about the same amount of time it would have taken to create an autogenous vaccine.

Dr. Hollis and the sow operation’s production supervisor experienced:[2]

  • Almost a complete disappearance of clinical signs in nursing pigs.
  • Improvements in gilt health post-arrival and drastic improvement of overall pig quality in just eight weeks.
  • An average post-weaning mortality decline from 12% to 4.4%.
  • Approximately an 18-to-1 return on investment. The potential increase in income per year for this operation was almost $200,000 for a $10,800 investment.

"I recommend swine veterinarians consider this alternative strategy,” Dr. Hollis said. “It helps aggressively homogenise the sow herd’s immunity to improve the quality of weaned pigs leaving the farm."

Dr. Mohr and the sow farrow-to-finish operation in Minnesota saw a turnaround as well: [3]

  • IAV-S-negative pigs achieved within 10 weeks of vaccinating the entire breeding herd with two doses of FluSure XP five weeks apart.
  • Nasal shedding in sows decreased below detectable levels.

“The owner took a leap of faith and trusted me and the diagnostic results because he knew we had to make a monumental shift in building immunity against swine influenza,” Dr. Mohr said. “We attacked the problem with good planning, sound science and strong monitoring.”

You can work with your herd's veterinarian to help find the best vaccination and vaccination strategy for your operation. For more information and resources, please visit FluSureXP.com.

About Zoetis

Zoetis is the leading animal health company, dedicated to supporting its customers and their businesses. Building on more than 60 years of experience in animal health, Zoetis discovers, develops, manufactures and markets veterinary vaccines and medicines, complemented by diagnostic products, genetic tests, biodevices and a range of services. Zoetis serves veterinarians, livestock producers and people who raise and care for farm and companion animals with sales of its products in more than 100 countries. In 2016, the company generated annual revenue of $4.9 billion with approximately 9,000 employees. For more information, visit www.zoetisUS.com.

References:
1 Veterinary Services, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services, US Department of Agriculture. Influenza A Virus in Swine Surveillance: Fiscal Year 2017 Quarterly Report; Surveillance Summary for Third Quarter FY 2017. Published July 2017. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_dis_spec/swine/downloads/fy2017quarter3swinereport.pdf
2 Data on file, Study Report No. OR-2011-10-27, Zoetis Inc.
3 Corzo CA, Gramer M, Kuhn M, Mohr M, Morrison R. Observations regarding influenza A virus shedding in a swine breeding farm after mass vaccination. J Swine Health Prod. 2012;20(6):283-289.

© 2000 - 2024 - Global Ag Media. All Rights Reserved | No part of this site may be reproduced without permission.