VETS Promdi

22/05/2023

Do your share. Spread awareness to stop ASF

21/05/2023

African swine fever (ASF) is considered one of the most dreaded diseases of swine. Unlike for most other transboundary animal diseases (TADs), no vaccines or drugs are available to prevent or treat ASF infection. Therefore, it is particularly important that ASF-free areas are maintained free through strict prevention and control measures. Measures can be taken at the institutional or at the individual level, e.g. the farmer, the middleman, the butcher, etc.
The following is a summary of those measures, which can be summarized in one word: biosecurity. In order to understand what measures will be most effective, it is key to bear in mind that ASF spreads mainly through the movement of infected pork and other animal products, as well as live animals. The measures below are listed in chronological order from the times when the infection is not present and needs to be prevented, to the actions that are needed when the disease is already in your area. Biosecurity, in any case, always applies.
1. Regulatory and quarantine services should be equipped to effectively intercept foodstuffs and other risk materials at international airports, seaports and border crosses. Confiscated risk materials should be destroyed or disposed, and not dumped where it can be accessed by scavengers (animals and humans). Past events suggest that particular attention should be paid when disposing of waste food from aircraft, ships or vehicles from infected countries.
2. Swill feeding (kanin baboy or damog): Swill feeding is a very high risk route of introduction of several diseases into healthy populations. An effective ban on swill feeding would be ideal, but compliance at household level is unlikely, since it would defeat one of the main motivations for keeping pigs, i.e. minimum feed inputs thanks to swill feeding or scavenging. In any case, pigs should not be fed swill that might contain pork, and swill should be boiled for 30 minutes.
3. Containment of pigs: The construction of pig sties under hygienic conditions should be encouraged. Also, perimeter fencing will prevent the spread of disease from domestic pigs to wildlife and wild pigs (and feral pigs) and vice versa. Authorities should discourage pig production systems based on scavenging, which allows pigs to access potentially infected garbage and contact with wild boar. However, as with swill feeding, traditional ways of keeping pigs will not easily change, as many producers will not find it worthwhile to confine (and feed) their pigs.
4. Cleaning and disinfection: Equipment and premises should be periodically cleaned and disinfected. Organic matter should be cleaned from sheds, equipment, vehicles, etc. before disinfection. Vehicles and personnel (shoes, equipment, etc.) should be disinfected on entering and leaving farms. Proven effective disinfectants include detergents, hypochlorites, alkalis and glutaraldehyde. Equipment that cannot be easily disinfected should be exposed to sunlight.
5. Other biosecurity measures: Visitors kept to a minimum, pig-loading and unloading outside the perimeter fences, and cleaning and disinfection of pig-carrying trucks after unloading. Village settings where pigs roam freely are particularly challenging, but the same biosecurity principles apply. Sharing of equipment among farms/villages should be discouraged without previous proper cleaning and disinfection. People working with pigs should avoid contacting other pig populations. Dedicated work clothing and footwear should be promoted. Replacement breeding stock should come from trusted sources. Effluents and discarded parts from slaughtered pigs should be disposed of appropriately, so as to prevent the access of wild pigs to them.
6. Awareness: Farmers, veterinarians and all actors down the pig chain should be made aware of ASF, how to prevent and recognize it, and what to do if they suspect ASF. The dangers of swill feeding and other biosecurity breaches should be stressed, particularly to small pig holders. In the event of ASF entering a country, outbreaks should be well publicized, emphasizing the need to enhance biosecurity at all levels, to inspect pigs regularly, and to promptly report suspicious lesions and deaths to the authorities.
7. Surveillance: Passive surveillance, i.e. the investigation of suspect cases reported to veterinary authorities, should be encouraged among pig owners, hunters, etc. through awareness campaigns. All suspect cases should be followed up systematically by clinical inspections, necropsies and serology. The potential origin of the disease and spread should be investigated (trace-back and forward, respectively). Once the disease is present in the country, passive surveillance should be coupled with active surveillance.

https://www.pig333.com/articles/recommendations-for-the-prevention-and-control-of-asf-i_8793/

19/05/2023

Travellers, shippers, pork traders, consumers, hog raisers..
Please take time to read and comprehend

para iwas sa maling impormasyon. Maging armado laban sa fake news.

14/05/2023

Status of African Swine Fever in the Philippines

African swine fever (ASF), according to current data, is transmitted purely through pig-to-pig, pig-to-boar and boar-to-boar. No case of pig or boar-to-human transmission currently exists. While humans cannot be infected, the ASF has wreaked havoc in the Philippines with its rapid transmission and a 100% mortality rate. The hog-raising industry, valued at about P260 billion (Phys Org 2021), has suffered the most with thousands of pigs dying from ASF, including those culled in prevention efforts. The public has been affected as well by dwindling pork supplies and soaring prices that reached a high of P400 per kilogram, almost the equivalent of the minimum daily wage in Metro Manila before the government-imposed price control. ASF has its greatest adverse impact
on backyard hog raisers, composed of poor and middle-income households.

The disease is very difficult to control as it is carried by fomites and contaminated pork products. Strict farm biosecurity and border control are the best preventive activities.
Strengthened ASF surveillance and monitoring by LGU Veterinarians is the key to early detection and prompt response is recommended to prevent the spread of ASF.

14/05/2023

Grateful to be one of the volunteers in the Five (5) days Veterinary Medical mission sponsored by Boracay Foundation Incorporated. Indeed it was a very successful activity!
Thank you to everyone who made this event a success. To the VETERINARIANS and organizers, your generosity and kindness touched the lives of many Pets lovers/owners and the community.