Vigilance urged after SVV outbreak surge
Pig producers are being urged to be vigilant after an upswing in the number of outbreaks of the Seneca Valley virus (SVV).
More than 60 cases of SVV, which causes lesions and lameness in pigs, were diagnosed in the United States from January to June 2016, Pork Network reports.
According to the Swine Health Information Center, only 20 cases had been reported in the previous thirty years.
The virus, which runs in the same family as foot-and-mouth disease and swine vesicular disease, causes vesicular lesions.
Fluid-filled blisters to appear inside a pig’s mouth, snout and the ‘v’ of its coronary band, and can often rupture before they have been noticed.
Corinne Bromfield, University of Missouri extension veterinarian, said that acting quickly and using common industry biosecurity measures are key if producers suspect SVV on their farms.
Producers should report any suspected cases to the state department of agriculture’s state animal health veterinarian so that clinical testing can be carried out.
If the disease is suspected, producers should quarantine animals and halt movement of anyone who has been near the hogs, Bromfield added. Pigs with active open lesions should not be marketed.
No vaccines exist to treat SVV, so it’s vital that measures are taken to limit the spread of disease, she said.
“Keep it off your neighboring farms. Contain it and treat it. Don’t be complacent.”
