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Hogvet, I have an outdoor pig herd here in S.Cal. although I am trying to get out. Pigeons, Asian ring necked doves , blackbirds , crows and vultures all visit my farm , daily. When a pigeon ,blackbird, or a dove dies in the pig lots the pigs eat them. If you had a pig herd would you collect dead wild birds and send them in ? USDA slaughter and processing for the entire southern half of Calif. is already broken. Not a single butcher on your dot map will make USDA bacon or hams. One place in Glendale can legally do it, but the cost of hauling animals or frozen cuts over a thousand miles to get legally cut and processed is nuts. So in reality there are very few pig farms , and even fewer pig vets. And those of us left see the writing on the wall or should by now.

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Hello Bruce:

Thanks for reaching out! Pig farming is hard work - without a market it is really impossible... are you home butchering the hogs you raise? Do you farrow you off-spring or buy feeder pigs to raise? What is your source of feed for the pigs?

It sounds like you lack much of a network of growers or swine infrastructure in your area. Do you know your area California state veterinary official or wildlife specialist? The reason I ask is because these would be the people to contact regarding testing dead birds or your swine for influenza, if you feel if could be a problem. it may not be an issue if you don't have dairies in your area, and if migrating birds are not part of the picture right now. These folks could give you a better idea regarding risks of local infection from birds as well as from feral swine contact.

If your pigs should develop signs of influenza, any accredited veterinarian (if willing) should be able to collect nasal swabs for submission to the CA NAHLN lab in Davis, maybe with testing costs reimbursed by USDA. Actually, if the case is compatible, the state may be willing to test the pigs themselves at no cost to you. I can't say that for sure, but I'd hope USDA is anxious to test any pigs exposed to birds or dairy cattle possibly showing signs of influenza.

Back to the more important issue of your future in the swine business, your description sounds kind of grim. The market is king-as the old saying goes, if you can't sell it, you smell it!

John

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John, we are a USDA producer so I have to drive long distances for compliance. The problem is with USDA compliance issues for smoking meats. The butchers are trying to get back into USDA but it has been most of a year with only one distant option. As a producer you can’t foresee these sorts of problems . Things are improving a bit with a new butcher trying to get a smoker going.

I have always been vigilant about cleaning my trailer tires when returning from places with other pigs and keep a closed herd so biosafe at least from other pigs. I do not believe my pigs have shown any signs of flu, but from what little evidence we have pigs haven’t shown symptoms even when H5 positive. I was trying to say the pigs eat birds and that I have no way to know why a wild bird dies or to control where they die.

It isn’t a problem till it is but my opinion is pig farming will get more difficult if H5 shows up more often in domestic pigs.

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Thanks for the clarifications, Bruce. By USDA producer, do you mean you are certified USDA organic, or utilize USDA federal slaughter, or what? I can see where the organic route might be successful for you in California!

As for H5 getting into pigs, I agree wholeheartedly that we have no way of knowing if birds are infected, or if pigs could be asymptomatically infected. I no longer practice and am not licensed in California; however, you could consult with a veterinarian about utilizing human POC flu-COVID tests on swabs from dead birds, or even on swine swabs if you suspect influenza (see my column today). They will only measure for influenza A (and B), AND SENSITIVITY IS UNKNOWN - A NEGATIVE RESULT DOES NOT GUARANTEE A NEGATIVE SAMPLE! However, If a sample should test positive, that would indicate that some subtype of influenza A (not necessarily H5!) may be present in the sampled specimen, calling for further, more urgent diagnostics.

if you have only a few dead birds. I'd encourage you to try to get all of them tested by wildlife officials; however, if that is not feasible due to logistics, screening with a $10 lateral flow test from Amazon could be an option. Just don't over-interpret negative results if you sense flu is there in the pigs. If in doubt in the pigs, get them tested via PCR through veterinary guidance!

John

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John, in Calif. you need both USDA slaughter and butcher cut and wrap to be legal to sell to restaurants . You also need to be certified Calif prop 12 which is easy . I farm farrow to finished product. I see there are H5 tests for birds available and an individual could probably test dead birds without triggering all hell breaking lose if you turned in an infected bird.

Like I said before the pigs will eat dead birds before I find them and I am in with every pig twice a day to feed. You just find a patch of feathers on the ground. I am not concerned with anything currently happening on my farm but vigilance about potential vectors and mitigating them as much as possible seems prudent. Stock shouldn’t be sharing waterholes with waterfowl or migratory birds. Chickens should be kept separate from pigs. Duck ponds are an issue. Something’s seem intuitive but I don’t see any organized effort to help people make wise decisions about the potential viral interface we as farmers represent. By comparison prop. 12 confinement regulations are more important than a potential H5 outbreak, if outreach and inspection are government signs of engagement.

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