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Showing posts from May, 2019

Feeding Camelina Meal to Pigs

By Lee Johnston, Yuzhi Li, Adrienne Hilbrands, Ryan Cox, William Lazarus, Wayne Martin, Frank Forcello & Russ Gesch The use of camelina meal in grow-finish diets was evaluated at the UMN West Central Research and Outreach Center (WCROC). It appears camelina meal can be a useful replacement for soybean meal in diets for grow-finish pigs when used at low levels (10% or less). Read the full article, Feeding Camelina Meal to Pigs.

A quick guide to Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae diagnostics

Microbiome studies in swine systems: Challenges and opportunities (Part 2) Reprinted as posted on Swine in Minnesota blog. Materials by Dr. Maria Pieters, University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine Dr. Maria Pieters, head of the MycoLab has created an online quick guide to help swine practitioners decide which sample type they should collect if they are looking for Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae. View the online quick guide . The guide classifies the sample types on their sensitivity and if collected antemortem or postmortem: Oropharyngeal swabs Tonsillar swabs Nasal swabs Laryngeal swabs Deep Tracheal swabs Bronchial Lavage Lung Tissue Each sample type is linked to a page listing advantages and disadvantages of the technique along with a "How to Sample" video.

Educate yourself on foreign animal diseases

UMN Swine Extension has been working with Dave Wright, Secure Pork Supply coordinator with MN Board of Animal Health on spreading the word about Secure Pork Supply (SPS) Plan. The latest is four short videos to assist producers and veterinarians in identifying and preparing for a possible Foreign Animal Disease. The videos are intended to supplement materials found on the Secure Pork Supply website and focus on: Secure Pork Supply (SPS) Intro video (7:13 minutes) SPS - Foot and Mouth Disease video (5:21 minutes) SPS - Classical Swine Fever video (5:58 minutes) SPS - African Swine Fever video (12:19 minutes) The videos can be viewed on the UMN Swine Extension YouTube Channel . They are also embedded in Step 7 of the "Seven Steps to Participate in Secure Pork Supply" found on the UMN Swine Extension blog . If you missed the SPS workshops that were held this fall/winter, be sure to check out the Secure Pork Supply blog post.

2019 Midwest Farm Energy Conference

The 2019 Midwest Farm Energy Conference is scheduled for July 10-11, 2019 at the West Central Research & Outreach Center , Morris, MN. Conference will include: Optimized systems for dairy production, including solar shading for grazing cattle Energy conservation and generation in swine facilities, featuring sow cooling and piglet heating systems Opportunity to network with energy experts and professionals

Dr. Peter Davies receives the Howard Dunne Memorial Award

Dr. Peter Davies, UMN College of Veterinary Medicine faculty received the 2019 Howard Dunne Memorial Award at the American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV) conference in March. The Howard Dunne Memorial Award is one the most prestigious recognition given to an AASV member for their important contributions and outstanding service to the association and the swine industry. Read more about Dr. Peter Davies and his contributions.

May is mental health month

Join the U.S Ag Safety and Health Center's effort to promote resources for farmers and rural communities. Accessing mental health resources and support is challenging for American farmers and their families who increasingly face financial hardship, weather changes, chronic pain, suicidal thoughts and other unrelenting difficulties. This year, the 11 U.S. Agricultural Safety and Health Centers are teaming up to promote resources for farmers during a five-week Mental Health Awareness campaign that focuses on a different topic each week.

Corn DDGS is a high-value feed ingredient for swine: part 11

By Dr. Jerry Shurson, University of Minnesota Department of Animal Science © 2019 Feedstuffs. Reprinted with permission from Vol. 91, No. 04, April 1, 2019 Less research has been conducted to evaluate the effects of feeding diets containing corn dried distillers grains plus solubles (DDGS) to gestating and lactating sows than for nursery and growing/finishing pigs. However, there is substantial evidence indicating that adding up to 30% DDGS to lactating sow diets and up to 50% DDGS to gestation diets can result in acceptable sow and litter performance. The first study to evaluate the use of DDGS in gestating sow diets was conducted 40 years ago by Thong et al. (1978) using DDGS as a replacement for soybean meal. A total of 64 gilts were fed diets containing 0%, 17.7% or 44.2% DDGS during gestation. There were no differences in the number of pigs born per litter and average pig birth weight among dietary treatments. These results provided the first evidence suggesting that DDGS could r

How to read pigs' ear notches

Do you need a refresher on how to read pigs' ear notches using the Universal Ear Notching System or do you mentor youth who show pigs and are looking for a good way to teach them to read ear notches? In the new video below, created by Sarah Schieck, swine Extension educator, Sarah answers why ear notches are needed for most shows, including 4-H, and explains how to read ear notches.

Recently published

Congratulations to the following swine faculty and educators from the Swine Extension Team who have had their work published recently. Garrido-Mantilla, J., Alvarez, J., Culhane, M., Nirmala, J., Cano, J.,& Torremorell, M . (2019). Comparison of individual, group and environmental sampling strategies to conduct influenza surveillance in pigs. BMC Veterinary Research, 15, 61. doi: 10.1186/s12917-019-1805-0. Machado, G., Vilalta, C., Recamonde-Mendoza, M., Corzo, C., Torremorell, M ., Perez, A., & VanderWaal, K. (2019). Identifying outbreaks of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus through animal movements and spatial neighborhoods. Scientific Reports, 9, 457. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-36934-8. Urriola, P., Mielke, J., Mao, Q., Hung, Y., Kurtz, J., Johnston, L., Shurson, G ., Chen, C., & Saqui-Salces, M. (2018). Evaluation of a partially de-oiled microalgae product in nursery pig diets. Translational Animal Science, 2(2), 169-183. doi: 10.1093/tas/txy013. Zhu, J. L., Zeng, Z. K.,

Quality assurance standards date back 30 years

By Diane DeWitte, Swine Extension Educator Originally printed in The LAND - April 5/April 12, 2019 Did you know that for 30 years, pork producers in the United States have participated in a voluntary program to ensure that customers have the utmost confidence that the pork they feed their family is safe to eat? SIMPLE, YET IMPORTANT, BEGINNINGS In 1989 the National Pork Producers Council initiated the Pork Quality Assurance (PQA) program to encourage swine farmers to use animal health products responsibly. This voluntary effort was the pork industry’s first step in addressing their food safety responsibilities through self-governance.

Time for PQA+ Advisors to re-certify

June 2019 the revised PQA+ version 4 will be released. All PQA+ Advisor certifications for PQA+ version 3 will expire August 31, 2019, regardless of when an Advisor trained on PQA+ version 3. Therefore all current PQA+ Advisors must be re-certified. Minnesota Swine Extension, in collaboration with Minnesota Pork, will offer PQA+ Advisor re-certification sessions throughout Minnesota. If you are a current PQA+ Advisor, make sure you look at the schedule and register to attend an Advisor re-certification session before August 31, 2019.

Episode 10: All About African Swine Fever

Sarah Schieck, UMN Swine Extension Educator talks to University of Minnesota Veterinary Medicine Ph.D. Student, Gustavo Lopez about his first-hand experience with African Swine Fever while working in Russia for 6 years. Listen to the podcast: z.umn.edu/PodcastEpisode10 (April 1, 2019) Learn more through resources referenced in the podcast as well as other resources National Pork Board - www.pork.org/fad Secure Pork Supply - www.securepork.org .  There you can find information on how to create your farm's specific secure pork supply plan that in the event we experience a Foreign Animal Disease in the U.S and you are a negative site in a control area, having a Secure Pork Supply plan will increase your chance of obtaining a movement permit. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) - www.aphis.usda.gov and search for African Swine Fever if you don't see a link on the home page. UMN Swine Extension blog -  z.umn.edu/SecurePork7Steps  where you will fin