AgWired

Dr. Erin Johnson, DVM, technical manager, PRRS Solutions Team explained that the goal of the ARC program, is to voluntarily get a group of producers in an area to work together to better understand and control the spread of disease in their neighborhoods, townships and counties. To make the ARC effective, continued Johnson, the producers must develop processes to provide open and transparent communication, cooperation in outbreak investigations, and coordination of their individual disease control efforts to create a positive effect.

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) has been utilizing area regional control (ARC) programs with swine producers for more than six years. During their PEDV is Speaking: Are We Listening ? seminar at 2014 World Pork Expo when BIVI first began working with producers who wanted to create ARC programs, PRRS (Porcine Reproductive & Respiratory Syndrome) was the main issue at hand. Today these groups are using the same strategies and tactics to address PEDV (Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus). People on the ARC team, including Johnson, have been providing a wide range of support to meet their producers’ needs as their programs evolve – especially into new disease areas. Johnson also noted that one of the most important lessons producers have learned through these programs are ways to improve biosecurity, a means to reduce viruses spreading and creating breakouts among herds.

Johnson has a saying about the ARC programs, “Transmit unto your neighbors as your neighbors would transmit unto you”. Very applicable especially in that many viruses that affect swine are airborne. In this example, one production facility can inadvertently transmit PRRS to their neighbor a few miles down the road.

The direct value, stresses Johnson, of an ARC program is improvements in health, productivity and ROI. In addition, there are indirect benefits including: reduction of infection risk; reduction of genetic diversity; generation of critical knowledge; improvement in on-farm morale; and improvement of the image of the swine industry.

Speaking of critical knowledge, Johnson said that when you combine the leanings from ARC programs with other research sources such as the Swine Health Incident Program and the Disease Bioportal website managed by University of California Davis, the industry is better able to track disease outbreaks.

Learn more about Area Regional Control in my interview with Dr. Erin Johnson: Interview with Dr. Erin Johnson

As Johnson mentioned, many ARC programs are know quickly advancing their collaborative efforts to fight PED. Once such ARC is the Northeast Illinois PRRS ARC (located in De Kalb county Illinois). The program is located in the number 2 hog producing county in Illinois and the county borders Chicago. Dr. Noel Garbes, DVM with Bethany Animal Hospital gave a testimony to their program. What began in literally a coffee shop, has grown into nearly 95 percent producer participation in their area.

He explained that producers sign a consent form so that their information can be shared during other meetings, such as this seminar where I heard him speak. During meeting producers share successes or areas in where they are struggling to get ideas and strategies from other producers. Now moving into PEDV, the ARC began issuing alerts and notifications (the first confirmation was December 26, 2013) of PED positive farms with positive results using the tools they already had in place.

In his area they have had success in keeping PED outbreaks fairly low and this is one reason why producers from his group are sharing their experiences with others. When I asked him what piece of advice he had for other producers, he cited something several other speakers noted: While is great to have 30 ARC, we need 300 ARC. Garbes said it only takes a few people to get an ARC started and he believes everyone should be involved because until everyone gets involved, we will always have a chance for new virus’ to emerge.

Learn more about the DeKalb Area Regional Control in my interview with Noel Garbes: Interview with Dr. Noel Garbes

2014 World Pork Expo photo album

The talk of the 2014 World Pork Expo town:  PEDV and the emergence that took the U.S. by storm.

According to Dr Phillip Gauger, with Iowa State University, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, between April 28 – May 4, 2013 they had four separate ISU-VDL submissions – one from Indiana and three from Iowa – from farms with no relationship. He and his team realized after running diagnostic tests that more tests were needed. Then in partnership with the National Veterinary Services Laboratory (NVSL) they conducted additional tests and discovered the virus was PEDV (Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus). On May 17, 2013 NVSL announced that PEDV was in the U.S. and with that the PEDV epidemic began.

I asked Dr. Gauger, who participated in Boehringer Ingelheim’s (BIVI) seminar, “PEDV is Speaking: Are We Listening,” at the 2014 World Pork Expo, to explain exactly how the PEDV virus works. He explained that PEDV is a viral infection that infects the pig through fecal-oral transmission, it can infect an animal orally, then sets up replication or propagation of the virus within the intestinal tract destroying the mucous. And as the virus replicates, and more virus gets shed into the environment naturally, that intestinal lining becomes destroyed. Depending on the age of the pig some could be severely affected with profuse diarrhea followed by death. In older pigs they can become clinical but less affected and mortality isn’t as severe.

There are two known strains of the virus in the U.S. and Dr. Gauger said there are several challenges with regards to the virus: prevention and control; vaccination; virus transmission (they still don’t know exactly how the virus is transmitted); and diagnostic tests.

In addition, he said there are some future PEDV perspectives that need to be considered. For example, there are still some unanswered questions: How did PEDv enter the U.S.? What are the pathogenic differences between the original and variant PEDV? What new biosecurity needs and methods of control of PEDV are needed?

Today, Dr. Gauger said there are 13 labs voluntarily reporting PEDV and it has been confirmed in 26 states. It has also been found in Canada and Mexico. In the U.S. there has been a loss of 10 percent of the pig population or 7 million pigs, since May of 2013.

Dr. Gauger stressed the need for more voluntary samples to be submitted to labs for testing. In addition, he stressed the need for voluntary collaboration within the swine industry to expand PEDV research and knowledge. When I asked him about the talk around mandatory reporting, he said, “The industry is much better off taking a proactive stance to lead the efforts and do some voluntary reporting including voluntarily offering information and voluntarily offering samples unique to their particular system. In the long-run this will become more productive than waiting for something to become mandatory and that’s required and that can cause some consternation or concern on the part of the producer when they don’t understand what potential ramifications could come out of that.”

*Note: The day following my interview with Dr. Gauger, USDA Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack announced mandatory reporting of PEDV.

Learn all things PEDV in my interview with Dr. Phiilip Gauger: All Things PEDV

2014 World Pork Expo photo album