FDA/CVM/ONADE Swine Mycoplasma Pneumonia Workshop William L. Hollis, D.V.M. Kansas City, MO March 7, 2002
Disclaimer!! Speaking for myself and my clients 4 different Answers CVS is a 100% swine practice. CVS does dispense therapeutics CVS –Dr. Joe Connor –Dr. James Lowe –Dr. Sarah Probst –Dr. Bill Hollis
Disease Presentation Chronic non-productive cough Decreased growth rate Low mortality High morbidity Increase in culls and lights
Clinical presentation Chronic –MOST COMMON –Severe Economic consequences –Requires interventions pig flow ventilation air quality vaccination strategic therapeutics Acute –RARE –Much worse with mixed bacterial infection –Mortality increases –More simple to solve
Focus on the important stuff Chronic –MOST COMMON –Severe Economic consequences –Requires interventions pig flow ventilation air quality vaccination strategic therapeutics
How do we know it’s Mycoplasma ? First time….. –Necropsy (3-5 pigs with consistent gross lesions) –Histology –Serology (10-30 per age group) Each group that follows –PIG FLOW PIG FLOW PIG FLOW –Serology –Slaughter checks
Pig Flow Ask questions first and diagram movements... –Sow farm segregation from growing pigs? –Multiple ages of growing pigs in same building? –Multiple ages of growing pigs on same site? –Age at movements? –Current prevention/treatment protocol?
On farm clinical picture Cough in 20-40% with slow movement from pen to pen Cough is deep With or without nasal discharge (if mixed) Necropsy 3-5 looking for similar gross lesions Discuss movements, history, and other groups Draw serum from head
Why is economics important? We are a food producing industry. Agriculture is an old industry with narrow margins of profit and large capital investment. Production brings us back to the individual animal…....cost per pig
Cost of Losses in Efficiency
Not just Feed Only costs Feed only assumes they all still eat Assumes growth rate will be maintained Decision risk and unknown lies within the cost of light animals (premarkets) and cull animals (sort losses)
Opportunity Loss Equation
So then, What do I do about it? Eliminate? –Pig Density –Trusted/Monitored source Vaccinate? –Facility design and labor mangement Treatment and Control
Reduce individual animal suffering Prevent predictable population based disease V
Treatment and Control Options Pasteurella pneumonia (in 100% of herds) –Chlortetracycline –Oxytetracycline –Tiamulin Mycoplasma (in 98% of our herds) –Lincomycin Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (in 15%) –Tilmicosin
What’s it going to cost me? How big are the pigs? –usually in one of two groups 70lbs and lbs How long do we need to treat? –Most 14 days in the feed, although tilmicosin of course, is 21 day therapy
So then…What’s it going to cost me?
Well…What do you think I should do? No “blanket” protocol or policy… Treat for what you can see and measure Monitor with production records, feed budgets, and diagnostics. Reduce medication costs overall per pig
Thank you