African Swine Fever: Top Ten Key points for producers and livestock industry to know.

By Jon Ertl, DVM – Sioux Nation Ag Center // July 15, 2022

Keeping foreign animal diseases (FADs) out of the US is a top priority and requires team effort. This includes each individual producer, state, and federal entity. Preparation is the key to prevention. For more information on FADs and African Swine Fever (ASF) in particular, consult the USDA website, Pork.org and your state’s individual pork checkoff website.

  1. ASF has not been identified in the US, and this virus does not infect humans or other animal species.
  2. ASF continues to spread throughout China, Russia, and Europe. Last summer, it was detected closer to the US in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
  3. Clinical signs include: red/blotchy skin and/or ears, high fever, loss of appetite, weakness, decreased appetite, diarrhea, vomiting, difficulty breathing or coughing, abortion, and sudden death. Mortality rates reach up to 100%.
    • Clearly the variation in these clinical signs can make it difficult to distinguish ASF from other diseases like PRRS, salmonellosis, Erysipelas, Circovirus, and others.
    • Sick pigs showing potential signs of ASF should be immediately reported to state or federal animal health officials.
  4. The virus will be present in all bodily fluids and tissues of infected pigs.
  5. Once exposed, pigs will become sick typically between 3 and 21 days.
  6. There is no effective vaccine or treatment for ASF.
  7. Keeping ASF out of this country is our number one priority.
  8. If it ends up in the US, finding ASF as soon as possible is extremely important.
    • The sooner this or any other FAD is identified and controlled to minimize spread, the faster and easier it will be to stamp out and regain negative status for the country to return to regular export operations.
  9. Preparation for responding to any FAD including ASF is an ongoing activity at the local, state, and national levels. Biosecurity, first and foremost, starts at the farm level using every feasible method to keep bugs out.
  10. Passive and active surveillance for ASF and Classical Swine Fever is constantly occurring through testing samples from Veterinary Diagnostic Labs, at slaughter, high risk populations and feral hog populations.