The Swine Health Information Center urges continued biosecurity as immunity to PED resulting from exposure dissipates.
Although the level of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea in the U.S. is low, there is still virus circulating.
Dr. Paul Sundberg, the Executive Director of the Swine Health Information Center, says improved biosecurity and a buildup of natural immunity as herds have been exposed have helped reduce the level of PED but that natural immunity may be short lived.
One of the things that we think is going on with PED is that the immunity that the sows develop is not as long lasting as other corona viruses like TGE. So, where we can detect immunity in sows following a PED outbreak, that might only be 6 to 8 to 12 months so we very well may be at a spot now where we have a growing susceptible herd in the country.
So the biggest recommendation is to work with a veterinarian and implement a secure and rigid biosecurity plan and not just develop one but actually to implement it, to make sure that everybody coming on the farm, everybody that deals with the pigs, any of the traffic, anything that happens on the farm as far as inputs, goes through a biosecurity protocol. That’s the biggest recommendation.
The second one though is for those herds that don’t have PED as well as those that have had it and may continue to have a low level or are experiencing it right now is to get with their veterinarian and get the most recent updates on recommendations as far as exposure, vaccination, biosecurity, all of those things so we can manage this disease as we go through the winter.
Dr. Sundberg says even though PED is at a low level there is a lot of due diligence that needs to happen as far as biosecurity and pig movement on the farm.
