The Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) became one of the greatest challenges in pig production since its appearance at the end of the last century. This virus represents a very important risk in areas with a high density of pig farms due to the implications it entails and the high economic losses it generates, which some authors place between € 100 and € 200 per sow.
Caused by an RNA Virus, of the Arteriviridae family, with a high mutation rate, this syndrome can manifest itself in two main ways.
All these processes favour a significant worsening of zootechnical parameters, contributing to large economic losses.
Which characteristics does the virus have and how does it spread?
It is not a particularly resistant virus when it is free in the environment due to its characteristics, although long survival has been seen in certain conditions of low temperatures.
The problem is that it is a highly contagious virus since it can enter the farm through new animals or semen, as well as through vehicles, insects, personnel, equipment, or even transported by air. Subsequently, there can be both horizontal and vertical transmission once inside the farm. Within a farm, the PRRS virus can survive endemically due to the constant flow of susceptible animals. So having a biosecurity plan is essential.
In addition, as we have commented previously, it is a virus with a high mutational rate, which is an obstacle to maintaining stable farms and therefore will make the strategy to be followed more complex, having to pay special attention to the state of the farm animals, the health status of the replacement animals and even that of our neighbours.
That is why many companies consider whether the goal is to be free or to live with controlled PRRS viruses and take the appropriate biosafety measures to keep them away.
Once the virus is known, we can check the importance of implementing a good plan to avoid these high economic losses on our farm, and we can establish a biosafety plan. Diagnosis, control, and vaccination strategies are established that are beneficial to combat it, but nothing would be possible without good management and optimal biosafety measures, which help us avoid its spread.
It is essential to reinforce external biosafety, controlling the entry of new animals and semen, as well as internal biosafety, which is more focused on the measures applied in the farm itself. Within these measures, it will be essential to establish a good cleaning and disinfection plan, which allows optimal hygiene of the farm, vehicles, equipment, and personnel, to avoid that we have to consider as if everything that enters from outside can act as a fomite for the virus. For this, from Biocidas ZIX, we have a wide range of products that will help us achieve these objectives..
Detergents:
Disinfectants:
ZIX super tip
During farm empty periods, maintenance work or other visits to the facilities are carried out that can reintroduce the virus into a previously disinfected facility. For this reason, we recommend carrying out a second disinfection before the entry of animals using Virox Fumigeno.
Litazix is the Biocidas ZIX tool to reduce or eliminate humidity from the surfaces of our maternity wards and/or corridors and thereby avoid the presence of the PRRS virus, which is not very resistant to dry conditions..
Dirty farm areas.
One of the most important places for the Biosafety Plan is the loading and unloading docks because they are areas with a lot of traffic, trucks, people, and animals come into contact with them. Its design and materials must prevent the entry of possible pathogens and allow easy cleaning and disinfection that must be carried out after each use.
The transports
The vehicles that enter our farms, whether they are trucks, vans, or cars, must always be treated as contaminated elements.
Supplies
All materials that are going to enter our facilities must be disinfected and remain stored for at least 2 hours before entering the clean areas of the farms.
We know more and better about the PRRS virus, but many farms remain vulnerable to its devastating effects. In places with large concentrations of animals such as southern Europe, preventive measures are our greatest ally.
Controlling the PRRS virus is everyone’s responsibility, we can help by working from our farms to our collaborators and neighbours.
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