Farmscape for September 8, 2023

A swine practitioner with Carthage Veterinary Services estimates the cost of Porcine Sapovirus infection at about 22 dollars per infected sow per year in lost weaning weight.
The emergence of Porcine Sapovirus as a cause of diarrhea in pigs is the focus of a Swine Health Information Center and American Association of Swine Veterinarians webinar.
Although identified in the U.S. in 1980, Porcine Sapovirus has only recently been implicated as a cause of diarrhea in U.S. swine herds.
Dr. Will Fombelle, a swine practitioner with Carthage Veterinary Services, says the infection typically shows up in the sow herd and causes diarrhea in young piglets that results in low mortality but high morbidity and reduced weaning weight.

Quote-Dr. Will Fombelle-Carthage Veterinary Services:
Clinically in our system we see it in sow herds.
Not to say we don't see it downstream but obviously it shows up in sow herds.
For us it's been usually healthy sow farms, more multiplication sow farms.
We don't think that we see it in our PRRS positive sow herds or just not looking for it as hard, we're working on other things.
But we definitely see it here in our healthy farms with the multipliers as well, mid to late lactation, piglet diarrhea, day 12 of age and above.
We always like to talk about consistency and how it looks.
I like to call it vanilla pudding-like consistency, that day 12 of age and above, similar to other diseases like coccidia and late Rotavirus, some rough haired pig, definitely some wean weight effects and again, high morbidity and low mortality.

Dr. Fombelle estimates the cost of a weaning weight loss of one pound would equate to 22 dollars per sow per year per year, a factor which will influence budgets for treatment.
He notes vaccines with favorable efficacy are available to manage Porcine Sapovirus as well as other recommended practical management strategies.
Links to the Porcine Sapovirus webinar can be accessed through the Swine Health Information Center website at swinehealth.org.
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Bruce Cochrane.

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