Swine Extension

Take a peek and see how researchers and the University of Minnesota (UMN) Department of Animal Science graduate students at the West Central Research and Outreach Center (WCROC) in Morris, MN utilize the LeeO Pig ID system for capturing and sharing valuable data from the UMN swine herd at WCROC.

The Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center (UMASH) has a new video for those working with pigs and protecting them from getting injured on the job. Farm Worker Sow Behavior Safety Tips video was created in collaboration with Diane DeWitte, UMN Extension swine educator, Colin Yoder, UMN Veterinary Public Health resident, and Hayford Manu, UMN researcher. The video incorporates expert and industry advice to address sow behavior and management techniques to handle the animals safely. The video is available in English and Spanish. Two additional videos can be used as training materials for new employees or as a refresher for existing workers. Those videos are Protecting People and Pigs from the Flu and Moving Sows: Be Safe and Smart. These two videos are also available in both English and Spanish. Watch these video resources.

by Megan Roberts, Extension educator, Ag Business Management The United States Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency’s   Pandemic Livestock Indemnity Program (PLIP)  opened for application by qualified livestock producers on July 20 and remains open until September 17. The program assists swine, chicken, and/or turkey producers who suffered financial losses due to depopulation related to COVID-19 disruptions, i.e. insufficient access to processing. Losses must have occurred between March 1 and December 26, 2020. Producers must have had  ownership  of the depopulated animals on the day of the loss. In other words, contract growers are not eligible for payment under this program. According to the USDA, "PLIP payments will compensate eligible producers for 80 percent of the loss of the eligible livestock or poultry, and for the cost of depopulation and disposal, based on a single payment rate per head. Any previous payments you received for disposal of yo...

The University of Minnesota Extension Swine Team has created a video on how to butcher a pig for home use. With COVID-19 causing reduced operations at many pork processing facilities, pig farmers are experiencing a bottleneck of pigs on farms causing them to look for alternative market options. One option is for a farmer to sell a live pig directly to a consumer. The consumer typically would book an appointment with a local small scale meat processor in Minnesota to get the pig butchered, but the problem is when the video was recorded (May 22, 2020) many small scale meat processors are booked out for months. With no space available at a local processor and a pig that is ready for butchering, many people are choosing to butcher the pig themselves. With few Extension resources available on how to butcher a pig for home use, Sarah Schieck Boelke and her colleagues, Ryan Cox, Dallas Dornink and Lee Johnston created a video on how to butcher a pig for home use, including human saf...

Some pigs may need to be euthanized as a last resort option due to pork packing plant closure. Be sure to consult with your herd veterinarian and use euthanasia methods that comply with the current American Association of Swine Veterinary (AASV) guidelines for euthanasia in the On-Farm Euthanasia of Swine publication . The AASV has provided updated guidance related to swine depopulation. Producers needing to depopulate due to pork packing plant closures should contact Minnesota Board of Animal of Health carcass disposal contact to be sure euthanasia methods are not only following AASV guidelines but more importantly, that carcass disposal methods are approved for Minnesota.

Before producers start depopulating because of packing plant closure they must contact Minnesota Board of Animal Health carcass disposal to be sure carcass disposal methods are approved for Minnesota. The Minnesota Board of Animal Health (MN BAH) has a Carcass Disposal Resource Guide to help farmers know the options and methods of approved carcass disposal in Minnesota. The MN BAH webpage for carcass disposal has contact information for disposal experts and rendering companies and information for different carcass disposal options.

Do you need to submit samples to the UMN Veterinary Diagnostic Lab (VDL) and unsure how to submit proper samples? Good news....UMN VDL has put together a 1-page illustrated handouts to help you submit commonly used sample types. The "how-to" for each commonly used sample type is available in a downloadable PDF format. The handouts can be found on UMN VDL's website.

Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center (UMASH) worked with their partners National Pork Board, the UMN College of Veterinary Medicine and UMN Southern Research and Outreach Center at Waseca to develop two new training videos addressing sow handling and biosecurity measures to prevent influenza. The videos are available in English and Spanish and were designed as training tools for employees. Be sure to check out the videos on UMASH's website.

The MN Board of Animal Health has new resources available to inform the public, producers, veterinarians and markets about how they can prevent African Swine Fever (ASF) and other swine diseases. The new fact sheets provide a background of ASF and how to prevent it with biosecurity. The fact sheets are available in multiple languages and are available on MN Board of Animal Health's website . The MN Board of Animal Health has also created a "Know the signs of foreign animal disease" fact sheet aimed at hobby or small scale pig owners. These fact sheets have been distributed to select feed stores across MN. These fact sheets show clinical signs of ASF, foot and mouth disease and classical swine fever to raise awareness and encourage pig owners to contact a veterinarian if they suspect any of these viruses in their pigs.

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.

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) has teamed up with the National Weather Service to design a tool that helps farmers and commercial applicators determine the best time to apply manure. The Runoff Risk Advisory Forecast tool uses past and predicted National Weather Service weather data like precipitation, temperature and snow melt. It predicts the likelihood that applied manure will run off fields in daily, next day and 72 hour increments. Farmers and commercial applicators use an interactive map to locate their field and find the forecasted risk. Users can also sign up for email or text messages for their county that alert them to a severe runoff risk for that day. When someone goes to the interactive map, the runoff risk is displayed in one of four categories: no runoff expected, low, moderate and severe. When the risk is moderate or severe, it is recommended that the applicator evaluate the situation to determine if there are other locations or later dates when the...