Pig Healthcare Services

Service Description

Disease in pork production is generally caused by multiple factors. Microbial pathogens are rarely the sole cause of a health problem on a pig farm. Clinical disease is usually the interaction of a pathogen with errors in management and a variety of contributing influences such as environment and host factors. Many pathogens are endemic in the swine population and yet some farms suffer heavy losses from disease, whereas the impact on other farms is much less because of management differences. Economic considerations influence all decisions regarding health care on pig farms. Health management and disease prevention programs tend to be prioritized based on financial return, although other important considerations include animal welfare, food safety, and risk management. Pigs are omnivores extremely well suited to convert low-cost feedstuffs (often including waste products) into meat. Pigs efficiently convert feed to muscle while growing at a rapid rate. In addition, their fecundity is remarkable. Female pigs reach sexual maturity, breed, and produce a litter of ≥10 piglets at ~1 year of age and then continue to produce litters 2.5 times per year.