SHIC’s USDA FAS Grant-Funded ASF Seminars in Vietnam Begin

Apr 15, 2021

The Swine Health Information Center (SHIC), with support from the National Pork Producers Council, obtained a USDA Foreign Ag Service grant to fund workshops on African swine fever (ASF) in Vietnam. Now underway, the workshops are conducted for SHIC by the University of Minnesota's (UMN's) Center for Animal Health and Food Safety (CAHFS) via ProgRESSVet. CAHFS is a World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) collaborating center for capacity building on OIE Advanced Competencies. ProgRESSVet has been active in countries around the world where each offering is adapted to the needs of the targeted country. ProgRESSVet Vietnam is a partnership between the USDA, SHIC, and the Vietnamese Department of Animal Health (DAH), facilitated by UMN CAHFS. The goal of the workshops in Vietnam is helping the DAH workforce acquire knowledge and develop skills on OIE Advanced Competencies with a focus on the prevention and control of ASF.

ProgRESSVet is an innovative eLearning initiative with the goal of increasing the capacity of veterinary services. The primary objective of ProgRESSVet is to create and implement a training program, delivered predominantly online, to enhance the capabilities of human resources of veterinary services. The program is based upon OIE's Advanced Competencies for veterinary service professionals and seeks to enhance both the knowledge and skills necessary for advanced practice in veterinary services.

ProgRESSVet Vietnam Workshop 1 is completed. The objective of the workshop was to provide understanding of the context and objectives of the program for the Vietnamese participants, including an initial exposure to the program content. E-Books are an essential element of the program. During a three- to six-month period, participants will review at their own pace materials for the training provided to them in the Vietnamese language. Topics include:

ASF impact
Introduction to biosecurity and control strategies
Introduction to risk analysis
Design of a biosecurity plan
Key components of outbreak response
Role of official veterinarians
Structure and organization of veterinary services
Disease control program goals
Veterinary services and the organization of plans to control ASF

Click here to see more...

Video: WARNING! Rough Start To Breeding Season!!

WARNING! Sheep Breeding Season Begins With A Bang! Breeding season is officially underway at Ewetopia Farms, but it didn’t exactly start the way we planned!

This vlog begins with us sorting through our rams to find the perfect match for a customer’s breeding program. What should have been routine quickly turned dangerous when one of our more nervous rams panicked. In seconds, Arnie’s knee was injured, and then I was slammed hard onto the concrete floor — both of us taken down by one ram!

Thankfully, it was just bruises, but it’s a reminder of how unpredictable and powerful mature rams can be. Once we recovered, it was time to get back to the real work — the start of breeding season.

We sorted the ewes into four breeding groups (two Suffolk and two Dorset), checking parentage as they ran through the chute, deworming those that needed it, and setting aside thinner ewes for session two of breeding season in a month’s time.This staggered approach keeps lambing organized and prevents overcrowding in the barns.

From rogue rams to the excitement of new breeding groups, this episode is full of action. Stay tuned for the next vlog, where we’ll share how we chose the rams for each group!