Swine Extension

By Diane DeWitte, UMN Extension swine educator Written for submission to The LAND - as June 26, 2026, Swine & U column Photo credit: National Pork Board Summer’s here! Full sun, regular rains, the beauty of blooming flowers and growing crops, and the effortlessness of going to work in light, simple clothes. It’s the season when machinery starts for the first time, and we can work forever during the long days. The pigs generally do well in summer, both commercial herds and the special porkers headed for the county fair. High summer temperatures can be hard on swine, though, whether they’re growing indoors in a protected barn environment, outdoors in an open-air building, or on pasture. Here are some reminders for the best care for you and your pigs through the hot season. Hot pigs Pork Quality Assurance (PQA Plus) guidelines emphasize that pigs are highly susceptible to heat stress because they lack functional sweat glands. Overheating can quickly become life-threatening or degrade ...

By Diane DeWitte, UMN Extension swine educator Written for submission to The LAND - as the May 24, 2026, Swine & U column If you’re a hog producer or, like me, a former 4-H swine exhibitor of a certain age, you recall the blood testing, health certificates, vaccinations and eventual eradication of pseudorabies virus (PRV) just after the turn of the century. PRV was first isolated by a Hungarian veterinarian, Aladar Aujesky, in the early 20th century; they named it Aujesky’s disease, and it settled into swine as its natural host. However, as early as 1813 in the United States, the virus was linked to “mad itch” in cattle. When pig production got larger in the 1970s, PRV was an important disease, with the emergence of a highly virulent form in Indiana. A 1983 U.S. swine industry survey revealed an 18.8% prevalence of PRV in breeding swine. An attenuated live vaccine was approved for use in 1986. The vaccine was used to manage herds with PRV outbreaks, but in many cases, genetics comp...

July July 18: Confidence with tractors, trucks and trailers , Steele County Community Center, Owatonna, MN August Aug 5: SowBridge program - “What are cull sow buyers looking for?” by Hayden Parks of The Parks Companies Aug 27-30: 4-H Livestock Encampment at the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN Aug 31-Sept. 3: Open Class Swine Show at the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN September Sept. 2: SowBridge program - “ On-farm semen management - tips and tricks” by Kara Stewart of Smithfield Sept. 19-22: Allen D. Leman Swine Conference , Saint Paul River Centre, St. Paul, MN Sept. 23 & 24: Minnesota Nutrition Conference , Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center, Mankato, MN October Oct. 7: SowBridge program - “What’s the latest PRRS research” by Daniel Linhares of Iowa State University November Nov. 4: SowBridge program - “Fixed time AI with gilts” by Rob Knox of University of Illinois Nov. 17: PQA+ Advisor training session , MN Pork Board Office, Mankato, MN. December Dec. 2:...

  Episode 48: Precision and accuracy of the doser in electronic sow feeders  is now available on our Minnesota Swine & U podcast channel. In the podcast, Swine Extension Educator Sarah Schieck Boelke speaks with Samuel Berrio, who is a current graduate student in the University of Minnesota's Department of Animal Science studying Animal Science with an emphasis in Swine Nutrition. Samuel’s research involved evaluating the precision and accuracy of the doser in electronic sow feeders. Listen to episode 48 podcast (~ 16 minutes, recorded March 16, 2026). Learn more about research featured in the podcast Abstract published in Journal of Animal Science, Volume 104, Issue Supplement 3. doi: 10.1093/jas/skag107.050 .