Category Archives: Boehringer Ingelheim

BIVI Panel: Observe, Be Patient & Help Others

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bivi-vets-13-panelAll this week we’ve been hearing from some of the presenters at the annual Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI) Swine Health Seminar for swine vets held in San Diego. A panel session that featured Dr. Darin Madson from Iowa State University; Dr. Jim Lowe, a private livestock veterinary consultant in Illinois; Dr. Edgar Diaz, associate director of swine for BIVI; and Dr. Dale Polson, technical resources specialist with BIVI, (seated, left to right) talked about vertical transmission of disease, with BIVI Director of Swine Technical Services Dr. Tyler Holck moderating (standing, on right).

“Understanding [the gilt's] immunity and her status coming in to that farm is probably the most important thing you can do,” said Madson. “It’s too late once she’s there, because that’s when you’ll have see this vertical transmission.”

Lowe urged the vets attending to have patience and understand that you need to collect data over a number of years to truly understand a problem. “One test result probably doesn’t change my attitude… 10 in a row might tell me something more.”

Diaz echoes the first two sentiments on carefully observing and being patient to gather and consolidate the right amount of data.

Polson told the audience that they need to give to gain and play well with others. While it’s good to work to better the client’s herd, “if we are too narrowly focused and too myopic on just our stuff, we don’t appreciate how much of the effort that we put in dealing with our stuff we could mitigate by giving, collaborating with the neighborhood or across businesses.”

Listen to the panel discussion here: BIVI Swine Health Seminar panel on vertical transmission


BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

Pigs Start Coughing Long Before Our Brains Hear It

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bivi-vets-13-loweUnderstanding how early in the production chain a disease actually starts will give veterinarians a better chance at stopping it before it becomes a problem.

“Twenty percent of those pigs are coughing before our brain will let us hear that,” Dr. Jim Lowe, a private livestock veterinary consultant in Illinois, told attendees of the annual Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI) Swine Health Seminar for swine vets in San Diego. He added that if you work the math of how long it takes a pig to go from infection to cough, you’re looking at 60 days to possibly between 120-150 days. “So if we’re hearing a cough in 15-, 16-, 17- weeks old pigs, those infections likely started back in the farrowing house.” He suggested more patient monitoring of gilts earlier in the process.

Lowe also talked about how swine vets can remain relevant to increasingly larger corporate operations, cautioning those vets are on the verge of becoming not very important, and they can’t just run around trying to cure the problem of the moment. He said vets need to use as sophisticated technology as the big producers are using, lest they become opinion-givers instead of fact-givers. Lowe also touched on the importance of husbandry and taking a holistic approach to managing a swine herd. Using the cattle feedlot business as an analogy, he said how good the caregiver is in the overall production chain makes a 10-fold difference. “The skill of our caregivers is really important, and that’s a real opportunity for us as veterinarians.”

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Dr. Lowe here: Interview with Dr. Jim Lowe


BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

Vaccination Sharply Lowers In Utero Disease Transfer

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bivi-vets-13-madsonIn utero transmission of Porcine Circovirus Associated Disease (PCV2) is more common than we might think, and vaccinations can make a world of difference to lower those transmissions from sows to their unborn piglets. That was the message veterinarians at the at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) Swine Health Seminar heard in San Diego. Dr. Darin Madson, Assistant Professor of Pathology with the Iowa State University’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, gave a talk titled “From Uterus to Fetus: PCV2 Unstable Sow Herds,” and said that while it might not show clinical signs in utero, it can cause problems downstream.

He said that in non-vaccinated herds, 17-71 percent of in utero piglets or piglets being weaned are infected. Vaccination drops that dramatically. “Repeat the same study, and you’ve got from less than 1 percent to 20 percent of the pigs being born actually are infected,” Darin said.

He went on to say that producers need to consider the primary effects of the vaccination, that the sows themselves won’t get the disease, and the secondary effects, the impacts on production, more stability and increased immunity to PCV2. “Which would include decreased sow mortality, decreased wean to service intervals, and even decreased piglet mortality and increased weaning weights.”

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Darin here: Interview with Dr. Darin Madson Iowa State


BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

PRRS Like Waterfalls, Waldo & National Debt

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bivi-vets-13-slideAnalogies are a great way to illustrate your point, and Dr. Dale Polson, technical resources specialist with Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI), really used them in talking about vertical transmission of PRRS at the BIVI Swine Health Seminar for swine vets in San Diego. Polson compared PRRS waterfalls, Where’s Waldo and even the national debt, among others, to talk about how transmission of the disease is defined too narrowly.

He said if you look at transmission of PRRS from the sow to the piglet as a waterfall, you also have to consider where that “water” travels. “That water is going to other sites, which then, themselves become waterfalls, and that’s going to other downstream sites, which then, themselves are waterfalls as well.” And Polson added you need to manage an entire area for PRRS, because that just like a waterfall crashing down on the rocks below, PRRS spreads horizontally as well, which creates even more waterfalls.

And when it comes to comparison to the national debt, Polson said while the numbers $16.5 trillion for the national debt compared to $16.5 billion that PRRS has cost swine producers, the cost-share per farm is larger than each home’s share of the national debt.

Finally, just like finding the cartoon character Waldo, when it first starts out, PRRS seems to be everywhere. But as “Waldo” … or PRRS in this case … gets harder to find, it is just as impactful. “Especially if people pull the trigger on sending pigs to a negative area,” Polson explained.

Polson said managing vertical transmission of PRRS is non-negotiable and that there needs to be better, more active collaboration between swine producers and observation of a modified Golden Rule: “Transmit unto others as you would have others transmit unto you.”

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Dr. Polson here: Interview with Dr. Dale Polson, BIVI


BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

BIVI: Control More than Vaccination or Medication

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bivi-vets-13-diazControlling disease in swine herds is more than vaccinating or medicating your livestock … that’s the message attendees of the annual Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI) Swine Health Seminar in San Diego received before the the American Association of Swine Veterinarians annual meeting. During a session titled “Infection Chain – A New Perspective on Disease Management,” Dr. Edgar Diaz, associate director of swine for BIVI told the vets about the infection chain concept and its relationship to vertical transmission of pathogens.

“I think we over-focus on control of disease in piglets,” he said, adding that if a pig is sick in finishing, there was something wrong introduced into that herd in the first place. “[Long before that], we did something wrong with the introduction of the gilt to the reproductive herd… in the stabilization of the reproductive herd… in [trying] to short out the transmission of the disease between the sow and the piglet. Be more aware of all the infection chain and all of the process.”

Diaz suggested more focus on the vertical transmission of disease from the sow to the piglet.

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Dr. Diaz here: Interview with Dr. Edgar Diaz, BIVI


BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

BIVI Invites Swine Vets to Live the Adventure

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bivi-vets-13-2The annual Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI) Swine Health Seminar for swine vets was quite the adventure this year.

BIVI addressed the issue of vertical transmission of pathogens in swine herds, featuring presentations by members of the BIVI swine vet team and other veterinary professionals. BIVI Director of Swine Technical Services Dr. Tyler Holck is very proud of their team. “It’s a team that has grown over the years,” he said. “We felt we needed a strong technical team to deliver the value through innovation that we have for a vision for BI.”

bivi-vets-13-1Dr. Holck says BI appreciates the opportunity to discuss important issues with swine vets each year at this time in advance of the American Association of Swine Veterinarians annual meeting. “It’s not a large industry from the standpoint of people, so our customers are our partners,” he said.

Listen to my interview with Dr. Holck here: Interview with Dr. Tyler Holck, BIVI

As always, BI provided a wonderful evening of entertainment for the swine vets and their families. This year it was aboard the USS Midway aircraft carrier, featuring a night skydive, great USO-style entertainment, and a fun fireworks display. Check out the photo album to see! Great idea for anyone planning a big event in San Diego.

BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

For PRRS Eradication: Use Technology, Share Info

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Some people are better than others when it comes to sharing. At the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica 4th PRRS ARC&E Seminar at the International PRRS Symposium there was plenty of information to share… including how to do a better job at sharing information, as well as using technology. Dr. Jean-Pierre Vaillancourt from the University of Montreal was one of the presenters who really promoted that sharing will be the true key to eradication of PRRS.

“We know how to eradicate diseases. We know how to biosecure farms. But when it comes to regional disease control, what we need to understand is that we need to share information,” he said. Vaillancourt admitted that since we are dealing with personalities, it’s difficult to get everyone on board, and just one or two individuals can interrupt the information flow. He believes that the seminar BIVI sponsored is a good step to making sure information is shared and PRRS is closer to eradication. “Training and knowledge brings attitude change, and that is critical. When you want to get compliance or a paradigm shift, people need to be fed information, and they need to be able share it with others to eventually come to a conclusion that they need to engage in a different way from what they used to do. So this kind of meeting is quite critical.”

Vaillancourt added that there must be a regional approach to PRRS eradication, because it can’t be done just one farm at a time.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Dr. Vaillancourt here: Interview with Dr. Jean-Pierre Vaillancourt

2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album

See the PRRS Big Picture, But Don’t Miss Details

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You’ve heard the expression, can’t see the forest for the trees. Well, when it comes to the PRRS eradication conversation at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica 4th PRRS ARC&E Seminar at the International PRRS Symposium, you have to make sure you’re seeing the big picture without missing important details.

“Important stuff has some different levels – the micro level, the macro level and the meta level. The big picture most applies to the meta level, but the micro and macro levels has more to do with information people need to make decisions,” explained Dr. Dale Polson, who works in a technical resource capacity for BIVI in Des Moines during a break after his talk entitled, “Sufficient Surveillance for ARC&E: Getting the big-picture without missing the important stuff.” He said there are ways to gather information at all three levels without leaving one out. He added the limitations on some information gathering has been the high cost of getting that data, and that’s where they need to find surveillance approaches that are effective and economical.

Polson said there also needs to a common language to promote better collaboration. And he believes a meeting, such as this one sponsored by BIVI, is key. “Venues like this, opportunities like this are absolutely… required to facilitate that type of interaction.”

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Dr. Polson here: Interview with Dr. Dale Polson

2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album

With PRRS, It’s the Last 1 Percent that’s the Problem

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One of the talks at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica 4th PRRS ARC&E Seminar at the International PRRS Symposium was dubbed “Unreasonable Expectations,” given by Dr. Eric Neuman, originally from Illinois, but now a veterinary epidemiologist with Massey University in New Zealand. Part of the “unreasonable expectation” in PRRS eradication could be thinking the disease can be solved easily. The problem is, the last lingering cases of the swine diseases seem to keep it going. Neuman calls it an anti-Pareto Effect, referencing the Pareto principle that says taking care of 20 percent of causes, solves 80 percent of the problems, the low-hanging fruit researchers look for. But in disease eradication, especially with PRRS, it’s flipped around.

“We can get rid of 99 percent of the cases, [but] it’s the last 1 percent [that can't be solved] that make the difference,” Neuman says. In addition, he said there’s plenty of surveillance information about PRRS… maybe to the point of information overload. “We don’t need more information… I just need the right information.”

Neuman added that he likes where the industry is at this moment, but he’s worried there’s not enough diverse thinking contributing to a wider spectrum of answers. He said we know how to take PRRS out of a single farm, but we don’t know how to eliminate it on a larger scale. Neuman hopes that meetings like this one will foster more creative thinking.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Dr. Neuman here: Interview with Dr. Eric Neuman

2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album

BIVI Focus on Solutions, Not Sales, at Seminar

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While Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica might be one of the key players in swine vaccines, the company’s 4th PRRS ARC&E Seminar was not about selling inoculations.

“The reason [we created this symposium] was [there was] a lot of frustration about how to control PRRS. We didn’t really make the progress we thought we should be making, and we found out we had to take a different approach to things,” explained Dr. Stephen Lange, Head of Global Marketing Swine for BIVI, during the seminar held in conjunction with the International PRRS Symposium. He said meetings like this one helps promote a dialogue between all the key players on how to move forward together. In addition, BIVI offers veterinarians and representatives in the field, as well as a dedicated PRRS solutions team… all to promote communications. “What we want to do is partner with our customers to come up with a holistic approach to disease control.”

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Dr. Lange here: Interview with Dr. Stephen Lange

2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album

Bioportal Could Help with PRRS Decisions

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Providing field practitioners with a bioportal to help them make better decisions was one topic of conversation at the 4th Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica PRRS ARC&E Seminar, an event held in conjunction with the International PRRS Symposium. Chuck caught up with Dr. Jean-Paul Cano, a veterinarian with BIVI and on the company’s PRRS team. His talk, “Application of Disease Bioportal for decision making in a production system,” focused on how to adopt bioportals (mentioned in our previous article) used in other animal agriculture to use for swine, in particular in fighting PRRS.

“We learned about this tool about two-and-a-half years ago, and we approached the guys at the University of California and [asked], ‘Can we use the tool and adapt it to the swine industry which has a very different dynamic than the cattle industry or poultry industry?’ and use that tool to tell practitioners which kind of virus they’ve got,” Cano explained, adding that he expects you could see this kind of bioportal become more widespread. “We think this could become the new standard for vet clinics and production systems for organizing all that information.”

Cano said this is still a work in progress, but it could be ready to go in possibly just a few months. He said this is just another example of BIVI investing in solutions for pork producers.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Dr. Cano here: Interview with Dr. Jean-Paul Cano

2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album

Bioportal Source of Info on Livestock Diseases

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Researchers at the University of California-Davis have created a bioportal, a place where information on a variety of diseases from all over the nation and the world can be combined into one place. The idea was of great interest at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica 4th PRRS ARC&E Seminar at the International PRRS Symposium (and we’ll talk more later how the folks at BIVI want to use it). Dr. Andres Perez, a veterinary epidemiologist at Cal-Davis, told Chuck during an interview that their bioportal helps control diseases by combining information into one place.

“One of the challenges that we have is to identify what is a new introduction of a virus. Then we can make a distinction between outbreaks from circulation of the disease within the farm versus a new introduction,” Perez said. He added this real-time tool is particularly helpful with something like PRRS, and they have been working with BIVI and the PRRS control group to see how the bioportal could be helpful in the eradication of PRRS. “We are developing prototypes right now with the idea to scale it up to include some progressive control programs and later on, statewide and nationwide.”

Perez said that the system is less than 1 percent of production costs… very cost effective when you consider how much an outbreak might cost.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Dr. Perez here: Interview with Dr. Andres Perez

2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album

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Pork Industry Comes Together To Fight PRRS

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Welcoming everyone to the 4th Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica PRRS ARC&E Seminar was Dr. Laura Batista. This event is held in conjunction with the International PRRS Symposium. They bring together an international group of researchers, students, swine health specialists, companies and producers for a couple of days of informational presentations and to have a chance to network with people in areas outside their own.

Dr. Batista says the idea of controlling the PRRS virus is no longer a dream but is becoming a reality. There are still challenges though. That’s why educational efforts like today’s seminar are so important. Communications is essential and area control project coordinators play a big role doing that. Many of them are here.

You can listen to my interview with Dr. Batista here: Interview with Dr. Laura Batista

2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album

BIVI Goes Ogio

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If you were attending the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica PRRS ARC&E Seminar then you’d be sporting a brand new Ogio Half Dome Duffel Bag! It’s a gym bag that has the following features:

Audio pocket with headphone exit port
Standard webbing shoulder strap
Reinforced base with triple needle stitch trim
Front sleeve pocket
All metal hardware
Side grab handle

The veterinarians and swine producers attending the seminar here have been scooping them up!

We go to so many meetings that have bags. Most are shoulder bags. How many of them can you have? This is a great idea because it has so much functionality. I will probably use at the gym. But I can see this carrying some equipment and supplies in a truck or a tractor.

Our PRRS Seminar is just now underway. I’ll have interviews to share shortly. Photos are already being uploaded and you’ll find them here: 2012 BIVI PRRS ARC&E Photo Album. Remember that you can download photos you find in our albums by clicking on the photo you want, using the drop down menu above the photo to select All Sizes and then choosing which size you want to download directly to your computer.

A Kansas City Moon

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Pulling out of the Kansas City airport last night I had stop on the side of the road for a quick photo of the nearly full moon. Also showing very brightly was the planet Jupiter. My photo doesn’t do the scene justice. There was a lot more color just a few minutes earlier but I couldn’t get out of the rental car center fast enough to catch it.

It was a pretty greeting to Kansas City, MO where I’m attending today’s Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, PRRS ARC&E Seminar. That would be porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, area regional control & elimination seminar. Remember that. It’s so much easier to just say PRRS!

Lots of photos and interviews will be done so that we can spread the word and an understanding of what is possible and being done to control this virus.

NAFB Creative and Broadcast Excellence

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Honors for creative and broadcast excellence were presented Thursday night at the NAFB annual meeting in Kansas City.

The Herb Plambeck Award for Creative Excellence was won in both categories by Broadhead. Broadhead’s work for the Mosaic Company received the Best Single award for the 30,000 feet spot. The TrichGuard series for Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica won for Best Series.

Finally, the last ever Oscar in Agriculture was presented to the niece of NAFB veteran Al Gustin, Sarah. Yes, you read that right – the last ever “Oscar” in Agriculture. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences suddenly realized this year, after 50 years, that NAFB uses the name “Oscar” for the annual award recognizing broadcast excellence. The academy sent a “cease and desist” order just a month or so before the meeting, but were magnanimous enough to allow us one last year – since the award was already made up! Every one who has an Oscar should post it on Facebook or Twitter and give the Academy grief! I plan to do that with mine when I get back home. I was fortunate enough to receive one of the old big pewter Oscars in 1991 and it still proudly displays on my desk.

2012 NAFB Convention Photo Album

Buck-a-Liter Program Supports Wounded Warriors

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Beef and dairy producers will have the opportunity to show wounded veterans their appreciation, simply by buying Cydectin® Pour-On from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30, 2012. For each liter of CYDECTIN (moxidectin) Pour-On purchased, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. will donate $1.00 to Wounded Warrior Project™ (WWP). In 2011, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. donated nearly $200,000 to support Wounded Warriors through the Buck-a-Liter program.

The money raised through the CYDECTIN Pour-On Buck-a-Liter Program is used to help support WWP’s programs, which are uniquely structured to nurture the mind and body, and facilitate economic empowerment and engagement.

Producers are encouraged to visit their local veterinary clinic or dealer store to purchase CYDECTIN Pour-On from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30 to support WWP.

Pipestone System Explained at BIVI Swine Seminar

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One of the presentations at the recent 12th annual Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Swine Health Seminar held in North Carolina included information about the Pipestone System in Minnesota. “The Pipestone System is an organization of about 250 farmers who own their sows and hire us to manage them,” Barry Kierkart, one of the managing partners at the Pipestone Veterinary Clinic explained to me. Pipestone then produces high-quality, weaned pigs and return them to those independent farmers for them to raise and bring to market.

During his presentation, Barry wanted producers to understand the importance of research and the importance of very small numbers that could make the difference in their bottom lines. “That’s really been our focus for them: to measure things that we think are important that they can change to try and improve their efficiency,” he said. One example includes how to improve the gut health of the animal to better use the feed they get. He added that most people are interested in how to apply research done by others to their individual operation.

Interview with Barry Kierkart

2012 BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

Come for Beach, Stay for Info at BIVI Swine Seminar

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Lots of good information and a chance for plenty of questions at the recent 12th annual Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Swine Health Seminar held in North Carolina. I talked with Mike Neil with Murphy Brown in Virginia. While he (kiddingly) said he comes for the beach, it’s really the amount of information valuable to his company that brings him there. “It looks like they have a lot of interesting and important topics set out.”

In addition to getting information, Mike said he’s been able to ask some important questions of his own. “For example, the trade agreements and where the U.S. export is going… the topics of disease,” are ones he cited. He concluded saying he appreciates that a seminar like this shows that Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica is in it with the producer. “With all the things we have to deal with, we need everybody doing their part.”

Interview with Mike Neil

2012 BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

Managing Enteric Disease

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Dealing with a tough subject at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Swine Health Seminar was Dr. Michael Appley, Kansas State University. He talked about antimicrobials and the control of enteric disease and the future of using them including the issue of resistance. He says producers need to know how and why they use them. But he also says that a lot of the concerns over their use are driven by people and organizations with an agenda that is not based on science. That makes it tough to respond to those concerns. He talks about a specific concern of MRSA which is an overblown concern if you look at the science, especially here in the United States.

Interview with Mike Appley

2012 BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album