To cope with recent outbreaks of diseases among pigs in Vietnam, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has recommended the implementation of good pig production practices on small farms.
"FAO is working closely with the Department of Animal Health of the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to strengthen the technical capacity in disease surveillance, laboratory diagnostics, and to increase awareness of the disease among front-line animal health workers and farmers," Andrew Speedy, FAO Representative to Vietnam, was quoted in a press release by the organization's office in the country on Tuesday.
According to FAO experts, pig mortality in recent outbreaks in Vietnam was 10-15 percent of affected animals, which they said is not considered unusually high for livestock in Southeast Asia. Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS), commonly known as blue-ear disease, reduces immunity in pigs and leads to secondary infections of bacterial diseases like Streptococcus suis, Haemophilus parasuis and Salmonella, as well as being associated with other viruses.
The experts said sick pigs can be cured from secondary infections by appropriate use of approved antibiotic injections.
PRRS was first recognized in the United States in the mid 1980s and is now present in most pig producing countries. The symptoms include reproductive failure, pneumonia and increased susceptibility to secondary bacterial infection.
Source: Xinhua
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