While raising hogs can be quite profitable, you'll raise your chances of getting a good return on your investment by taking the time to familiarize yourself with the common hog diseases that could affect your animals and seriously impact their profitability.
There are many factors that might play a direct role in your success raising hogs and even if you only raise a few hogs on your farm, you should take all of those factors into account, including disease.
Bear in mind that treatment for hog diseases isn't as effective as prevention of those diseases. This requires a lot of hard work to maintain, safe, healthy accommodations for hogs and endeavoring to reduce the risk of disease, parasite infestation, poisoning and other environmental factors that can affect the health of your hogs.
Here are the most common hog diseases found in North America, with a brief explanation of the disease including symptoms. Treatments and vaccines are listed including the QC Supply product numbers and drug names.
Common Hog Diseases & Some Possible Options for Treatment
- Anemia: Most common in newborn pigs, especially where there isn't enough iron or copper in the soil. Symptoms include difficulty breathing, weakness and lethargy, swelling around the head and shoulders, loss of appetite. Treatment involves giving the affected animal a nutritional supplement. Treatment at one to three days of age.
TREATMENT:
#540565 Iron Dextran 100 mg
#540567 Iron Dextran 200 mg
- Arthritis: You can incur heavy losses of hogs from this disease, which has different causes including Streptococcus bacteria, erysipelas and injury. You should avoid keeping your hogs on damp, cold or rough surfaces as these may contribute to arthritis. Symptoms include lameness, swollen, hardened joints and stunted growth. Treatable with antibiotics if caught in the early stages. There is a vaccine available to protect against arthritis caused by erysipelas and Streptococcus.
VACCINATION:
#540668 Emulsibac SS (Strep)
#540523 Rinogen BPE (Erysipelas)
- Bordatella Rhinitis: Caused by atrophic rhinitis, which is an infection of the nasal cavity of hogs by Bordetella bronchiseptica, an organism that gets onto open scratches or wounds in the nose or mouth. It can be transmitted from sow to piglet. Symptoms include rough hair, wrinkled snout, sneezing and a general failure to thrive. Treatment with antibiotics may be effective. A vaccine is available, which would be even better than treatment. Vaccination is indicated for sows and gilts pre-farrowing, baby pigs 5 to 7 days old, feeder pigs and boars.
VACCINATION:
#540523 Rinogen BPE
- Circovirus: Porcine Circovirus Disease (PCVD) or Circo is a viral disease that has become a major problem in the United States. Caused by Porcine Circovirus Type 2 (PCV2), not all pigs develop clinical signs of the disease but most swine are infected. Symptoms, duration and mortality can vary by herd. Symptoms can include enlarged lymph nodes, skin rashes, difficulty breathing, jaundice, fever, stomach ulcers and diarrhea. Risks include poor growth, weight loss and weakness with increased chance of mortality between 5 to 14 weeks. Vaccinate at three weeks of age and older.
VACCINATION:
#545520 Ingelvac CircoFLEX
#541625 Circumvent PCV
Combination vaccine:
#541631 Circumvent PCV M (Circovirus & Mycoplasmal Pneumonia)
- Clostridium Enteritis: This disease is found among piglets less than a week old and is caused by the bacterium Clostridium perfringens Type C. Symptoms include yellow, pasty diarrhea, weakness and trying to be near a warm place. It is spread through piglet to piglet contact and infected feces of the sow. Treatment with antibiotics, but most survivors will be permanently stunted. Vaccination indicated for healthy, pregnant sows and gilts prior to farrowing.
VACCINATION:
#540226 Litterguard LT-C
- Erysipelas: This very common hog disease is caused by the bacterium Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, found in almost every pig farm. Up to half of the animals may carry it in their tonsils. It's always there in the pig or in its environment since it is present and spread through saliva, feces or urine. It's rare for piglets under 3 months old to get it because they have a natural immunity from their mothers. It comes on suddenly and the first sign you may see of this disease is one or more dead hogs. There may be raised, reddened areas on the skin called diamonds which turn black after about a week and eventually heal. This disease may be acute or chronic. It is most often caused by poor hygiene. Treatment is penicillin. A vaccine is available to be given at 3 weeks of age and older.
VACCINATION:
#540516 ER Bac Plus
#540867 Suvaxyn E-Oral
Combination vaccine:
#540515 FarrowSure Gold B (Parvovirus, Erysipelas and 6 strains of Leptospirosis)
- Flu: Yes, this is the same swine flu that people get. In fact Swine Influenza Virus can be passed by infected pigs, birds or humans. This disease can be dramatic with a rapid onset in 12 to 48 hours. Symptoms include coughing, fever loss of appetite and pneumonia. Infertility can result in sows and the high fevers can cause abortions. Vaccination of healthy swine 3 weeks and older is indicated.
VACCINATION:
#543226 FluSure XP
- Ileitis: A common ailment in swine of all ages and especially in pigs that have been recently weaned. Symptoms include inflammation of the small and/or large intestine, diarrhea and stomach distress. Stress is often listed as a cause for this illness. Vaccination of swine 3 weeks of age and older through drinking water.
VACCINATION:
#540862 Enterisol Ileitis
- Leptospirosis: Caused by the bacterium Leptospira. The main symptoms include loss of condition and reproduction problems. It's difficult to eradicate once started among your hogs. It is spread by mouth, urine, wallows, feed, water, venereal transmission and contaminated surfaces. Treatment with antibiotics. There is a combination vaccine available.
COMBINATION VACCINATION:
#540515 FarrowSure Gold B (Parvovirus, erysipelas and 6 strains of Leptospirosis)
- Mycoplasmal Pneumonia: Swine pneumonia. Symptoms include coughing and difficulty breathing. Caused by bacteria and highly contagious, it can be spread by air, contaminated surfaces, pig to pig, feed and water. Treatment with antibiotics. Vaccinations available.
VACCINATION:
#540678 RespiSure ONE
Combination vaccine:
#541631 Circumvent PCV M (Circovirus & Mycoplasmal Pneumonia)
- Porcine Parvovirus: This one is probably the most common cause of infectious infertility in hogs. There are rarely any clinical symptoms except stillbirths, mummified piglets and small litters due to loss of embryos in the womb. Unlike most viral infections, Porcine Parvovirus can live in soil and on surfaces for months. To complicate matters even more, it's resistant to most disinfectants. Once a pig has had it, there is a lifelong immunity. There is no treatment, but combination vaccine.
Combination vaccine:
#540517 FarrowSure Gold (Parvovirus, erysipelas and 5 strains of Leptospirosis)
- PRRS: Porcine Reproductive & Respiratory Syndrome. Production losses can be attributed to reduction in farrowing rate, reduced number of live births/increased stillbirths, poor reproduction in gilts and early farrowing. Symptoms include a reluctance to drink, loss of appetite in sows at farrowing, blueing of the ears, respiratory signs and coughing, no milk and lethargy. This disease first classified in 1991. A vaccination is available.
VACCINATION:
#540525 Ingelvac PRRS-MLV
Combination vaccine:
#540528 ReproCyc PRRS-PLE (PRRS, Parvovirus, erysipelas and 5 strains of Leptospirosis)
- Rotavirus: Rotavirus is widespread in almost all pig populations. Symptoms include diarrhea, dehydration, sunken eyes and wasting. The skin around the rectum is sometimes wet. Rotavirus is usually caused by poor hygiene, temperature fluctuations and contaminated boots and clothing. Vaccination indicated for healthy pregnant sows and gilts.
VACCINATION:
#540522 ProSystem Rota
- Scours (E. coli/Clostridium perfringens type C): Scours or baby pig diarrhea is the most common disease among baby pigs. While scours can occur at any age during nursing, there are often two peak periods- before 5 days and between 7 and 14 days. Scours causes severe production losses as well as substantial death losses. Vaccination indicated for healthy, pregnant sows and gilts prior to farrowing.
TREATMENT:
#540226 Litterguard LT-C
#540521 Prosystem CE
Many common hog diseases can be prevented through a solid program of good hygiene and animal husbandry, control of flies and biting insects and vaccination when possible.
Prevention of common hog diseases will mean healthier, more productive animals and higher profits for you!
