Bernaerdt Elise, Dewulf Jeroen, Verhulst Robin, Bonckaert Caroline, Maes Dominiek
Unit of Porcine Health Management, Department of Reproduction, Obstetrics and Herd Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, 9820, Merelbeke, Belgium.
Veterinary Epidemiology Unit, Department of Reproduction, Obstetrics and Herd Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, 9820, Merelbeke, Belgium.
Porcine Health Manag. 2021 Mar 8;7(1):25. doi: 10.1186/s40813-021-00205-2.
The breeding population is very important in pig herds, for productivity, health and profitability. Replacement of breeding animals can be accomplished by own rearing of breeding gilts or by purchasing them. Purchasing breeding gilts is a hazardous event in terms of biosecurity and introduction of pathogens into a farm. However, in literature, little is known about gilt introduction in a herd. The present study investigated the introduction procedures of purchased breeding gilts in Belgian pig herds, and the compliance of these herds to the optimal introduction procedures. A questionnaire consisting of twenty questions related to farm characteristics (n = 2), purchasing policy (n = 6), quarantine period (n = 5), and acclimation practices (n = 7) was designed, and 68 farms completed the questionnaire during an on-farm interview.
The median (min. - max.) number of sows on the farms was 300 (85-2500). Fifty-seven per cent of the farms purchased breeding gilts, and there was a lot of variation in the frequency of purchase and the age at which gilts are purchased. On 95 % of those farms, a quarantine unit was used, and on most of these farms the quarantine was located on the farm itself (internal quarantine). The median (min. - max.) duration of the quarantine period was 42 (14-140) days. The most common acclimation practice was vaccination against Porcine parvovirus (96 %) and Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae (94 %), although in some farms exposure of gilts to farm-specific micro-organisms was done by providing faeces from suckling piglets (18 %) and bringing gilts in contact with sows that will be culled (16 %). Only 10 % of the farms complied with the optimal introduction procedures, i.e. purchasing policy, quarantine building and quarantine management.
This study showed that in many farms, practices related to purchasing, quarantine and acclimation could be improved to maintain optimal biosecurity.
繁殖群体对猪群的生产力、健康状况和盈利能力非常重要。繁殖动物的更新可以通过自行饲养后备母猪或购买来实现。就生物安全以及病原体引入农场而言，购买后备母猪是一件有风险的事情。然而，在文献中，关于猪群中引入后备母猪的情况却知之甚少。本研究调查了比利时猪群中购买的后备母猪的引入程序，以及这些猪群对最佳引入程序的遵守情况。设计了一份包含20个问题的问卷，这些问题涉及农场特征（2个问题）、购买政策（6个问题）、隔离期（5个问题）和适应措施（7个问题），68个农场在农场访谈期间完成了该问卷。
各农场母猪数量的中位数（最小值 - 最大值）为300头（85 - 2500头）。57%的农场购买后备母猪，购买频率和购买后备母猪的年龄存在很大差异。在其中95%的农场使用了隔离单元，并且在大多数这些农场中，隔离区位于农场内（内部隔离）。隔离期的中位数（最小值 - 最大值）为42天（14 - 140天）。最常见的适应措施是接种猪细小病毒疫苗（96%）和猪丹毒疫苗（94%），不过在一些农场，通过提供哺乳仔猪的粪便（18%）以及让后备母猪与即将淘汰的母猪接触（16%），使后备母猪接触农场特定微生物。只有10%的农场遵守了最佳引入程序，即购买政策、隔离设施和隔离管理。
本研究表明，在许多农场中，与购买、隔离和适应相关的做法可以改进，以维持最佳生物安全。
