A just completed survey conducted by the Prairie Swine Center will help in developing new resources designed to help small scale pork producers enhance their biosecurity and reduce the risk of disease. In an effort to help reduce the risk of African Swine Fever entering Canada, the Prairie Swine Centre, in partnership with Swine innovation Porc, reached out to small scale swine producers through an online "Backyard Pig Farmer Survey" which ran from February to April.
Dr. Murray Pettitt, the CEO of the Prairie Swine Centre, says the objective is to learn more about the approach of small-scale producers to biosecurity, their understanding of African Swine Fever and the threat is poses and what they are looking for in terms of information and to develop practical resources to help expand their understanding of appropriate biosecurity practices and their implications for disease prevention.
Clip-Dr. Murray Pettitt-Prairie Swine Centre:
We've learned about the production practices employed by small scale swine producers and these can vary such as housing. Some may house their animals outside, some inside and some a combination of both inside and outside. We also have collected information about where they get their information that they require for their animals.
They often speak with other small-scale producers and they may access their veterinarian for information and, following that, they go to the internet and look up information that way. We also found out that there are differences in regions throughout Canada, especially with where they may source their pigs.
The information will be used by the stakeholders who provide support to small scale producers to develop resource materials to improve the health of pigs and reduce the risk of disease.
Source : Farmscape