The Moline farm, located near Manson, Iowa was the first turkey farm to restock after the worst animal disease outbreak in U.S. history regardless of species. To learn more about how Moline and his family handled the avian flu outbreak, I spoke with Brad Moline who is a fourth generation producer whose family has been producers turkeys for 91 years. … Read More
Antibiotic Usage in Swine During Changing World
Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. hosted media in St. Paul, MN this weekend to talk about how proven prevention drives the use of less antibiotics. Dr. Mike Eisenmenger, Swine Vet Center, spoke on how to drive pig performance in today’s world of antibiotic usage. “Instead of just saying our overall goal is to use less antibiotics at all costs, we are … Read More
USDA Releases Avian Flu Preparedness & Response Plan
The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) issued a report on planning and preparations for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in advance of a potential recurrence of the disease when birds migrate south this fall. While response operations continue in the Midwest, APHIS and its partners have used the time since the last positive detection to plan for … Read More
Thermo Fisher USDA-licensed Test for Swine Flu Virus
Thanks to Thermo Fisher, pork producers now have access to a comprehensive diagnostic kit designed to test production animals for swine influenza virus (SIV) subtypes with the launch of the VetMAX™-Gold SIV Subtyping Kit, the industry’s only USDA approved, real-time PCR test of its kind. Swine have a unique role in the transmission of influenza viruses among species. They are … Read More
USEF Declares Ban on Phenibut
The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) Equine Drugs and Medications Program released a statement earlier this month on the decision to classify the substance Phenibut (β-phenyl gamma aminobutyric acid), as well as any equine supplement containing Phenibut, as a forbidden substance under USEF rules, effective immediately. Phenibut is considered a derivative of gamma aminobutyric acid(GABA), an amino acid used in … Read More
Fostera® PCV MetaStim® Now Available from Zoetis
Zoetis has announced the availability of Fostera® PCV MetaStim®. The monovalent killed virus vaccine that helps protect against porcine circovirus associated diseases (PCVAD) caused by porcine circovirus Type 2 (PCV2) has been updated with the commonly used adjuvant known as MetaStim. MetaStim, the common name for the SP (squalane, Pluronic®) oil adjuvant, is an emulsion used in vaccines to help … Read More
The Passion Behind Your Beef
Updating agri-marketers on industry trends and educating them on the latest research and technology is always the goal of the NAMA Bootcamp and this year’s event also served that purpose. On the Mo-Kan Farm pre-conference tour attendees stopped at Byergo Angus Farms in Northwest Missouri to get a short-course on purebred beef production and direct market beef. Bryson Byergo led … Read More
Interpreting the FDA Veterinary Feed Directive
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently published a new final rule amending the veterinary feed directive (VFD) drugs section of the Animal Drug Availability Act of 1996 that will take effect in October and hog farmers, like all livestock producers, are trying to find out what it means for them. Dr. Harry Snelson with the American Association of Swine … Read More
Diversity Emerging in Swine Diseases
Add IAV-S to the list of letters that are being used to identify swine diseases. Never heard of that one before the Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI) North Carolina swine seminar last week. It stands for Influenza A Virus for Swine. “In general, the reason that we’re even utilizing a different term for influenza infections in swine is to represent the accuracy … Read More
Emerging Swine Diseases – Past and Future
Lessons learned from swine diseases already present can help us deal with any that come up in the future, according to Dr. Robert Derosiers with Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) Canada, who talked about past and future emerging swine diseases at this year’s North Carolina swine seminar. “For some diseases that are easily transmitted indirectly, an individual approach is usually not … Read More