CFIA runs ASF drills

Jul 23, 2019

Provincial partners and stakeholders participate in exercises

By Jonathan Martin
Staff Writer
Farms.com

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and swine industry stakeholders checked another item off the list in the ongoing effort to protect the industry from African swine fever (ASF).

The groups met last Thursday to “prevent and mitigate the impact of African swine fever” in case the disease makes its way into Canada, a Monday release said.

To that end, the CFIA coordinated its Québec, New Brunswick and western Canadian offices to hold two exercises simultaneously.

Québec

In Québec, participants from the CFIA, the Ministère de l'Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l'Alimentation du Québec (MAPAQ) and the Équipe québécoise de santé porcine (ÉQSP) worked remotely from Gaspé, Montréal, Québec City, St-Hyacinthe and Moncton, N.B. in response to a simulated ASF outbreak on a Québec hog farm.

The drill allowed the parties to

· practice information-sharing

· manage the organizations’ initial response

· figure out the logistics of quarantining the area

· discuss the possibility of voluntary movement stoppages

The groups stopped the simulated outbreak from spreading.

The exercise’s success “confirmed the value of carrying on with preparedness activities, exploring additional training and updating response plans,” Dr. Jaspinder Komal, Canada’s chief veterinary officer, said in the release.

Winnipeg

More than 30 representatives from both the Canadian government and the Canadian swine industry met in Winnipeg to discuss a response strategy in case ASF makes its way into Western Canada.

The talks focused on

· establishing a multi-province incident command structure (ICS)

· the logistic of culling infected herds

· monitoring the movement of pigs

· using a zoning system to coordinate the groups’ response

The western Canada group still needs to identify planning gaps and work out a joint emergency operations centre structure. It has committed to establishing its ICS and forming a steering committee with federal, provincial and industry partners.

Video: Lambs Are Taking Over The Farm!

In today's exciting episode of our daily sheep farming vlog at Ewetopia Farms, we witness the lambs taking over the lambing barn as it rapidly fills up. Join us as we embark on a thrilling day of managing lambs as we work on emptying lambing jugs to accommodate the lambs that just keep on coming!

We begin by providing updates on the events of the previous night and share the progress of all the lambs. Throughout the day, we engage in various tasks such as tagging, vaccinating, docking, and recording the lambs as they demonstrate their readiness to leave the lambing jugs and join the group pen. As lambs are moved in and out of the jugs, we ensure each pen is thoroughly cleaned and disinfected with lime before welcoming the next ewe and her lambs. Along the way, we encounter and resolve a few challenges related to lambing, including unplugging a ewe's teat to facilitate milk flow for her lamb's nourishment and addressing a bleeding umbilical cord on a newborn Dorset lamb. We remain hopeful for the lamb's full recovery and will keep you updated on its progress in future videos.

To conclude the day, we take a moment to relax in the group pen, reflecting on our busy day of sheep farming and cherishing the rewards of our hard work. Join us in this well-deserved break and immerse yourself in the joys of sheep farming and caring for these adorable lambs