Báo cáo nghiên cứu khoa học " Diagnosis and control of diarrhoea in suckling pigs - APPENDIX 4 " pot

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Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development






Collaboration for Agriculture and Rural
Development (CARD) Program



Diagnosis and control of diarrhoea in suckling pigs


APPENDIX 4:

Farm Reports for northern herds September 2006



Dr Tony Fahy
Ms Karen Moore

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Table of Contents

Dong My (Thai Binh Province) - Farm 1 (140 sows) 5
General Comments on farm visit 3
rd
October 2006 5
Farrowing 5
Weaner/Grower/Finisher shed 5
Vaccination schedule 5
Comments 5
Farrowing house audit 19/7/05 5
Ambient Conditions ~ 9am 6
Sow 6
Piglet 6
Farrowing Shed 6
Comments 6
Anh De - Farm 2 (150 sows) 7
General Comments on farm visit 3
rd
October 2006 7
Farrowing shed 7
Ambient Conditions 7
Weaners/Growers/Finishers 7

Vaccines 7
Comments 7
Farrowing house audit 19/7/05 7
Ambient Conditions ~ 11.30am 7
Sow 8
Piglet 8
Farrowing Shed – old 8
Farrowing Shed - new 8
General 8
Diagnostic Report 8
Comments 8
Anh Thiet (Hung Yen Province) - Farm 3 (100 sows) farrowing house audit 20/7/05 9
Ambient Conditions 9
Sow 9
Piglet 9
Farrowing Shed 9
Diagnostic Report 9
Comments 9
Anh Hiep (Hung Yen Province) - Farm 4 (120 sows) 10
General Comments on farm visit 4
th
October 2006 10
Farrowing House 10
Dry sow shed 10
Weaner/grower shed 10
Growers 10
General comment 10
Farrowing house audit 20/7/05 (Cargill Feed Demo farm) 11
Ambient Conditions ~ 9am 11
Sow 11

Piglet 11
Farrowing Shed 11
Diagnostic Report 11
Comments 11
Trang Due (Hai Phong Province) - Farm 5 (206 sows moving to 250 sows) 12

3
General Comments on farm visit 1
st
October 2006 12
Ambient Conditions 12
Farrowing 12
Comments 12
Farm audit 18/7/05 12
Ambient Conditions ~ 9am 12
Sow 13
Piglet 13
Farrowing Shed – old 13
Farrowing Shed - new 13
Diagnostic Report 13
Comments 13
Anh Tinh (Hai Phong Province) - Farm 6 control (150 sows) 14
General Comments on farm visit 1
st
October 2006 14
Ambient Conditions 14
Farrowing 14
Weaners/Growers/Finishers 14
Comments 14
Farm audit 18/7/05 15

Ambient Conditions 15
Sow 15
Piglet 15
Farrowing Shed 15
Diagnostic Report 15
Comments 15
Minh Duong (Ha Tay Province) - Farm 7 (100 sows) 16
General Comments on farm visit 4
th
October 2006 16
Farrowing House 16
Dry sow shed 16
Weaner/grower shed 16
General comment 16
Farm audit 21/7/05 16
Ambient Conditions 16
Sow 17
Piglet 17
Farrowing Shed 17
Comments 17
Chi Huong (Ha Tay Province) - Farm 8 (currently 120 sows moving towards 200 sows) 18
General Comments on farm visit 4
th
October 2006 18
Farrowing House 18
Dry sow shed 18
Weaner/grower shed 18
Grower/Finisher shed 18
Finisher sheds 19
Post visit meeting 19

General comment 19
Farm audit 21/7/05 19
Ambient Conditions 19
Sow 19
Piglet 19
Farrowing Shed – old 19
Farrowing Shed - new 20

4
Comments 20
Nhon Hoa (Binh Dinh Province) - Farm 9 (200 sows) 21
General Comments on farm visit 29
th
September 2006 21
Ambient Conditions 21
Farrowing 21
Comments 21
Farm audit 24/7/05 21
Ambient Conditions 21
Sow 21
Piglet 22
Weaners 22
Farrowing Shed 1 22
Farrowing Shed 2 22
Comments 22
Dinh-Dung (Binh Dinh Province) - Farm 10 (3 X 50 sow units) 23
General Comments on farm visit 29
th
September 2006 23
Ambient Conditions 23

Comments 23
Farrowing house audit 24/7/05 23
Ambient Conditions 23
Sow 23
Piglet 23
Farrowing Shed 23
Comments 23
Appendix 1 - Sow feeding 24
Appendix 2 - Condition Scoring of Sows 25
Appendix 3 - Water Requirements for Pigs 26
Appendix 4 – Temperature Requirements 27
Appendix 5 - Mange eradication 28
Appendix 6 - Reproductive efficiency 28


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Dong My (Thai Binh Province) - Farm 1 (140 sows) TEST FARM

General Comments on farm visit 3
rd
October 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Farrowing

• Temperature - 29 °C
• Heat Index - 32°C
• Relative Humidity - 64%
• Wet bulb - 23.7°C

There were twenty-three farrowing crates occupied. Three of these sows were still to farrow.
There were 13 crates of weaners in the shed. Not only were the drippers, installed in July last
year, not in use half of them had been dismantled.
In general there were no dedicated creep areas. A few farrowing crates had wooden boxes as
creep areas but there were no heat lamps or covering on the floor to prevent draughts.
Overall there were no changes from the last visit.
There are 100 sows in the dry sow shed. This gives a total of 123 breeders for this farm.

Weaner/Grower/Finisher shed

There were 324 pigs in total. There was a large amount of Sarcoptic mange visible and a
coughing index greater than 10.
• Temperature - 30 °C
• Heat Index - 34°C
• Relative Humidity - 67%
• Wet bulb - 25°C


Vaccination schedule

Breeders
• Parvo - 2 weeks before mating
• Hog Cholera – 1 month prior to farrowing
• Erysip & Pasteurella – 18 days after farrowing
• E.coli – 25 days after farrowing
• FMD - Breeders twice per year.
Progeny
• M.hyopneumoniae one shot vaccine at 21 days.
• Hog cholera 35 & 65 days of age

• FMD - No progeny are vaccinated.

Comments



Farrowing house audit 19/7/05




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Ambient Conditions ~ 9am
• Temperature - 33.3°C
• Heat Index - 42.3°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.1°C
• Relative Humidity - 62.4%
• Wind Speed - 0.7 m/sec

Sow
• Farrow 20 per month
• Vaccinate with Litterguard
• Preweaning mortality 10-12%
• Water rate approximately 1 L/min
• Feeders empty (feed 5kg/day and 6kg for skinny sows)
• Respiration rate of 140 for one sow

Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days
• Use 175 watt lamps

• Piglets were comfortable

Farrowing Shed
• Shed east-west orientation
• Temperature - 34.1°C
• Heat Index - 44.0°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.1°C
• Relative Humidity - 59.7%
• Wind Speed - 0.4 m/sec
• Exhaust fans broken
• Misting system and blinds
• Roof cooling with sprinklers
• Roof vents not all working
• 38 crates available with 20 occupied, 16 had litters


Comments
• Sell 40kg (20,000 VD/kg) pigs at 110 days and 90kg (16,500 VD/kg) pigs at 170 days.
• Wide opening on sheds but partially blocked by trees. Good potential for ventilation and
cooling but not being fully achieved.
• Concrete blocks in the farrowing crates blocking piglets from gaining access to the
bottom row of teats

7
Anh De - Farm 2 (150 sows) CONTROL FARM

General Comments on farm visit 3
rd
October 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.


Farrowing shed

Ambient Conditions

• Temperature - 29.9 °C
• Heat Index - 35°C
• Relative Humidity - 69%
• Wet bulb - 25°C

There were twelve sows with litters in crates. One pen of weaners.
There were some heated creep areas. The windows of one side of the building were closed thus
preventing any ventilation. The ceiling was low, being approximately 7 feet.

There were 81 dry sows. The blinds were down thus there was little air flow. Most of these
sows were condition score 2. They claim to feed the sows 2 kg per sow twice per day – ie 4 kg
per sow per day.

Weaners/Growers/Finishers

There was a lot of coughing in the growers.
One feeder per 20 to 40 pigs.
Blinds were completely closed on one side, thus no ventilation. There were 290
growers/finishers and 180 weaners.
Three or four pens of weaners looked wet and cold. This was the only part of the shed where the
blinds were open.

Vaccines

M.hyopneumoniae vaccine - 7 & 21 days
FMD - 1 shot at 45 days of age
Hog Cholera - Sow – 21 days post farrowing, Piglets – 35 days of age. ( we believe it is
the Vietnamese produced live modified vaccine)


Comments

Farrowing house audit 19/7/05



Ambient Conditions ~ 11.30am
• Temperature - 34.6°C
• Heat Index - 48.0°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.6°C
• Relative Humidity - 50.5%
• Wind Speed - 1.0 m/sec

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Sow
• No vaccination schedule
• Feeder empty (fed 5kg/day)
• Respiration rate of sows 44, 180 and 150/min

Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days
• No designated creep, use 100W globes

Farrowing Shed – old
Pre drip cool Post drip cool
• Temperature - 35.9°C - 35.1°C
• Heat Index - 49.5°C - 45.8°C
• Wet Bulb - 29.1°C - 27.9°C
• Relative Humidity - 60.2% - 58.0%
• Wind Speed - - 0.4 – 1.1 m/sec
• Roof cooling
• Only 3 of 8 fans working
• 30 crates (16 old and 14 new) available with 8 old crates occupied
• Farrowing dates for 1 sow were 9/5/04, 26/9/04, 18/2/05 and 7/7/05

Farrowing Shed - new
• Temperature - 34.4°C
• Heat Index - 44.9°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.9°C
• Relative Humidity - 60.1%

General
• Buildings run east/west
• Weaners no feed

Diagnostic Report

Comments
• Side wall blocked by shade cloth
• Diarrhoea in grower pigs possibly due to Hog Cholera or salmonella.
• Open flush drains filled with water (emptied twice daily) were a potential source for
spread of enteric diseases.

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Anh Thiet (Hung Yen Province) - Farm 3 (100 sows) farrowing house audit 20/7/05 (Note
this control farm was removed from the study due to an outbreak of classical swine fever)

Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 34.2°C
• Heat Index - 48.1°C
• Wet Bulb - 28.8°C
• Relative Humidity - 63.8%

Sow
• Respiration rate of some sows was 120, 60 and 100

Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days

Farrowing Shed
• Temperature - 33.5°C
• Heat Index - 46.4°C
• Wet Bulb - 28.8°C
• Relative Humidity - 68.0%
• Wind Speed - 0.0 m/sec
• Blinds half way down
• Sow cooling system but most of it was not working
• Roof cooling
• 31 crates available with 14 occupied

Diagnostic Report
•

Comments
• Sell approximately 200 pigs/month at 20 weeks of age and at about 80kg
• This number of pigs sold cannot be achieved with 100 sows with a maximum of 152
being possible
• Shade cloth blocking ventilation
• Poor water flow rate to drinkers for growers



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Anh Hiep (Hung Yen Province) - Farm 4 (120 sows) near new bridge (TEST FARM)

General Comments on farm visit 4
th
October 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Farrowing House

• Temperature - 31°C
• Heat Index - 37.6°C
• Wet Bulb - 26.3°C
• Relative Humidity - 68%

The side walls blinds were open. The end wall has had all the rubbished removed and is open.
The far end of the shed is blocked. There were two standing 18” fans operating. The crates had

dedicated creep areas but no lids.
They had 13 crates with farrowed sows and seven crates with sows due to farrow. There were 4
crates with weaned pigs.
They have a problem with diarrhoea at seven days of age. Samples were collected. As they treat
with baycox we suspect Rotavirus or TGE are most likely cause. If this is the case we
recommend feedback of scour material to dry sows at the rate of 1 part manure water to 19 parts
ordinary water into the dry sow feeder troughs.

Dry sow shed
In total there were 73 dry sows and 4 boars. All sows were in condition score 3. Give
Bivermectin 0.25% (100mL bottle) before farrowing.

Weaner/grower shed
• Temperature - 31.6°C
• Heat Index - 39.4°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.0°C
• Relative Humidity - 70%

There were 8 pens of weaners scouring at ten days post weaning. The weaner scour looked quite
bad. For some reason the weaners were wet. Suggest they need a ‘kennel’ in each weaner pen to
allow the pigs to stay dry and seek their thermal comfort zone.

Growers
Open gutter drains at the back of the pens . These should be covered to prevent pigs drinking the
faecal contaminated water.

General comment
For the weaners we recommend they add Apramycin in the water or the feed for 2 weeks post
weaning until we establish the cause of the scour. They can also inject clinically affected pigs
with Enrofloxacin. Currently they are doing it orally.

This also applies to any pigs weaned in the farrowing house.
Any pigs weaned into crates in the farrowing house should be given heater lamps and fed
Apramycin either in feed or water.

Range of antibiotics found on this farm.

Injectables

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• Gentamycin
• Enrofloxacin
• Tiamulin
• Kanamycin
• Streptomycin
• Penicillin G
• Ivermectin 0.25%

Oral
• Amoxicillin 100g/kg + Colistin 250MU/kg. Use rate is 50grams in 100ml water or 0.1% in
feed

Farrowing house audit 20/7/05 (Cargill Feed Demo farm)


Ambient Conditions ~ 9am
• Temperature - 31.2°C
• Heat Index - 38.8°C
• Wet Bulb - 26.9°C
• Relative Humidity - 69.1%
• Wind Speed - 0.7 m/sec

Sow
• Preweaning mortality 3%
• 20% litters scour
• Good water flow rate
• Feed 6-7kg/sow/day
Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days
Farrowing Shed
• Shed east-west orientation
• Temperature - 31.9°C
• Heat Index - 39.5°C
• Wet Bulb - 26.9°C
• Relative Humidity - 67.5%
• Wind Speed - 0.0 m/sec
• 24 crates available with 21 occupied
Diagnostic Report
Comments
• Cooling system in place for sows but poorly adjusted
• Shade cloth blocking 50% of the ventilation
• No ridge vent
• Trees and tin blocking the lagoon end of the farrowing house, with shade cloth and
equipment blocking the other end
• Restricted feed to weaners and growers, should be ad libitum
• Bad mange in growers
• Open drains, potential for spread of enteric diseases
• Dry sows had sprinklers but the sidewalls were blocked with shade cloth.
• Dry sows had a water trough which would allow for oral vaccination (feed back) of sows


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Trang Due (Hai Phong Province) - Farm 5 (206 sows moving to 250 sows) this is a govt run
farm CONTROL FARM

General Comments on farm visit 1
st
October 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Ambient Conditions

• Temperature - 27.3 °C
• Heat Index - 29.7°C
• Relative Humidity - 67%
• Wet bulb - 23°C


Farrowing

There were 39 occupied crates giving them an average weekly farrowing of 10 sows. This is
what would be expected for a herd of 200 sows.
The farrowing house still has the problem of the shade cloth (as opposed to blue plastic blinds)
dropping down over the side openings blocking airflow and cross ventilation.


Comments

• Mange still remains uncontrolled. One sow had particularly bad keratosis of the ears and
there was a high percentage of growers showing Sarcoptic hypersensitivity.
• Sucker pigs had a high level of scour with most litters having diarrhoea somewhere between

7 and 19 days. They do not use Baycox
• Most crates do not have a good creep area.
• We counted 130 dry sows. This with the sows in the farrowing house gives a total of around
170 sows. The farm reputedly has 200.
• Supposedly having problems with Salmonella and hog cholera. One pig was euthanased for
autopsy. Main findings were bronchopneumonia, splenic infarct, enlarged oedematous large
intestine that contained fluid contents. Suspect oedema was due to low blood protein,
complicated by hog cholera. The preliminary diagnosis by NIVR was Salmonellosis.
Samples collected for laboratory testing.
• The second site across the road, which originally had exotic breeds, now has Moncais.
• Weaners/growers – a total of 84 pigs were observed. Where are the rest of the pigs? There
should be at least 1200.
• Overall this farm has excellent facilities but they are being grossly under utilised.


Farm audit 18/7/05


Ambient Conditions ~ 9am
• Temperature - 33.1°C
• Heat Index - 40.0°C
• Wet Bulb - 26.1°C
• Relative Humidity - 59.6%
• Wind Speed - 1.5 m/sec

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Sow
• Farrow 40-45 sows/month
• Preweaning mortality ~ 5%

• Water flow rate was good
• Feed 4.6kg/sow/day
• Respiration rate of 140 for one sow

Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days

Farrowing Shed – old
• Shed north-south orientation
• Temperature - 34.5°C
• Heat Index - 43.5°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.1°C
• Relative Humidity - 57.0%
• Wind Speed - 0.4 m/sec
• 28 crates available with 14 crates occupied
• Ridge vent covered
• Two fans
• Blinds partly down
• Water pressure was good
• Sow respiration rates 100 (sow 37°C) and 180 (sow 38°C), floor (31°C), slats (35.6°C)

Farrowing Shed - new
• 24 crates available with 9 crates occupied
• Temperature - 34.4°C
• Heat Index - 43.2°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.0°C
• Relative Humidity - 56.1%
• Wind Speed - 0.0 m/sec
• Sow respiration rates 100-120 (sow 38°C), floor (30°C), slats (32°C)

Diagnostic Report


Comments
• Post mortem on 2 pigs Pig 1 had pneumonia score of 55%, enlarged reddened spleen and
ulcers near ileo-caecal valve. The second pig had 25% of the lung affected by pneumonia
and ulcers near ileo-caecal valve and spiral colon.
• Sows in crates equal to 100 sow piggery not 206 sows
• Sow feeders empty, need to ad lib feed to lactating sows, weaners and growers
• Lift the shade cloth blocking ventilation in the farrowing house
• Water cooling of gestating and lactating sows

14
Anh Tinh (Hai Phong Province) – TEST FARM (150 sows) (son in sydney)

General Comments on farm visit 1
st
October 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Ambient Conditions

• Temperature - 30 °C
• Heat Index - 33.4°C
• Relative Humidity - 60%
• Wet bulb - 23.7°C


Farrowing

Of the 50 farrowing crates available there were 31 crates full, which included 5 that were due to
farrow.
Drippers were in use.
Ventilation was good but the side openings were 25% obstructed by the blue blinds which were
not fully opened up.
The creep areas were covered and had matting on the floor.
No E.coli vaccine used but gives Baycox at days four.
There was no scouring seen in the suckers, which looked good.

Weaners/Growers/Finishers

This farm had a 30% post weaning mortality, which has now gone.
Ambient temp 31 °C
Heat index - 35 °C
Humidity - 60%

The air quality in the weaner room was compromised because one side of the shed was
completely blocked by a blue blind preventing cross ventilation.

Similar poor ventilation applied to both growers and finishers. The temperature in this area was
31°C with a heat index of 35°C. Whilst the weaners can cope with a heat index of 35°C this
would have a negative impact on growers and finishers feed intake. The optimum temperature
for this age group of pigs is 18-20°C.
The biggest problem regarding the blinds is the detrimental effect on the air quality.

Comments

• Currently giving one shot Mycoplasma vaccine at 28 days. They would be better off using a
two shot vaccine at 4 and 21 days of age.

• Currently giving sows a hog cholera vaccine (Pfizer) booster at two weeks prior to farrowing.
They then vaccinate the offspring at three and five weeks of age. The recommendation
would be to vaccinate the sow at weaning to prevent maternal antibody interference in the
offspring. Given the nature of the weaner accommodation (ie in wire cages above the floor)
they could delay vaccinating weaners until 7 and 9 weeks of age.

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• This farm seems to be doing quite well except for the coughing in the growers and finishers
which could be alleviated by improving the cross ventilation and changing to a two shot
Mycoplasma vaccine. They should also consider pulse medicating I week in every 4.

Farm audit 18/7/05


Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 33.0°C
• Heat Index - 43.9°C
• Relative Humidity - 69.3%

Sow
• Preweaning mortality 1%
• Sows fed twice a day 6-7 kg/sow
• Sow with 15 piglets and 14 active teats, another with 14 piglets and 14 active teats
• Most sows had litters with 10-12 piglets
• Respiration rate for one sow was 33 and another ~90, most were OK

Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days
• 17 day scour problem

Farrowing Shed
• Temperature - 32.1°C
• Heat Index - 38.7°C
• Relative Humidity - 64.3%
• Wind Speed - 0.4 m/sec
• Drip cooling system good
• 50 crates available with 27 crates occupied

Diagnostic Report


Comments
• Lime floor, sheds very clean
• Blue shade cloth blocking ventilation



16
Minh Duong (Ha Tay Province) - Farm 7 (100 sows)-CONTROL FARM

General Comments on farm visit 4
th
October 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Farrowing House

• Temperature - 32°C
• Heat Index - 37.5°C

• Wet Bulb - 25.5°C
• Relative Humidity - 60%

The shed had good ventilation
Ten sows had farrowed and five were still to farrow.
There were dedicated creep areas with lamps. These require some bentonite when there is a
scour present.
Piglets are scouring around 12 days of age. Piglets are treated with amoxyl and colistin. Scour
does not respond therefore need to consider viral cause. Samples collected by nivr

Dry sow shed

Good ventilation. A number of sows are claimed to have a discharge. Three animals were
swabbed. Suggested to top dress the feed of affected animals with 2 grams of tetracycline per
day for three weeks.
A number of sows have abrasions of the sole of the feet. This could be due to the floors of the
gestation stalls. Suggested they top dress the feed of affected animals with 2 grams of tylosin for
two weeks.

Weaner/grower shed

Good ventilation. Lamps present in the weaner section. Diarrhoea in weaners ten days post
weaning. We took samples and suggested Apramycin in either feed or water for the first two
weeks post weaning and individually treat scouring animals with amoxycillin + colistin (what
ever they had in the shed).
Also coughing and conjunctivitis present in weaners. Suggested adding 400ppm of
chlortetracycline to all weaner rations. M.hyopneumoniae given to the sows two weeks pre-
farrow. Piglets are vaccinated at 7 and 21 days of age. Suggested they stop vaccinating the sows
and give the fist M.hyopneumoniae with Baycox at 4 days. Hog cholera vaccine to piglets at 35
& 60 days of age and sow at weaning. This might need revision in light of the possible hog

cholera present in the weaner pigs.

General comment
This is a well-designed farm and the owners are keen to make improvements.
Use Dectomax 1% in 50 ml bottles @190,000VND

Farm audit 21/7/05


Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 31.8°C
• Heat Index - 38.0°C
• Wet Bulb - 25.8°C

17
• Relative Humidity - 71.5%

Sow
• Sows with mange
• 10 day scour in 6 litters
• Respiration rate of 100 for one sow
• Vaccinate sows for parvo, erysipelas, CSF, E. coli and Mycoplasma

Piglet
• Weaning age 28 days
• Vaccinate piglets at 7 and 21 days for Mycoplasma

Farrowing Shed
• Shed east-west orientation
• Temperature - 32.4°C

• Heat Index - 42.0°C
• Wet Bulb - 27.8°C
• Relative Humidity - 72.9%
• Wind Speed - 0 - 0.3 m/sec
• No cooling system
• 26 crates available with 15 occupied


Comments
• Empty feeders
• Sow with vulval discharge
• Creep area for piglets but sides were open, need to be enclosed. Lamps and mesh flooring
• Good ventilation with sheds having open sides


18
Thanh Bich (Ha Tay Province) – TEST FARM (currently 120 sows moving towards 200
sows)
Wife of Govt offical

General Comments on farm visit 4
th
October 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Farrowing House

• Temperature - 31.5°C
• Heat Index - 36.3°C

• Wet Bulb - 25.4°C
• Relative Humidity -61%

There were 23 occupied farrowing crates. Seven of these were yet to farrow and six pens
contained weaned pigs.
The near end has a seven-foot ceiling and the far end has an eight-foot ceiling. This is the end
with the extractor fans. The environment was noticeably better in the far end.
Unfortunately they have built a greenhouse/hothouse next to the shed which has compromised
ventilation. They have another hothouse under construction, which will compromise ventilation
in adjoining sheds.
The weaned pigs in the farrowing house need heater lamps.
They had 4 litters scouring at 10-11 days of age. They will use Baycox for six months to see if
this solves the problem.

Dry sow shed

• Temperature - 29.2°C
• Heat Index - 31.8°C
• Wet Bulb - 23.5°C
• Relative Humidity -63%

Good ventilation with all walls open.
There were 93 sows and gilts. They were mostly condition score 3. Mange was presents.


Weaner/grower shed
Good ventilation.
Scours and coughing present in weaners.
A number of grower pigs had grade 3 hypersensitivity caused by sarcoptic mange. There was a
serious scour in this room as well.

Grower/Finisher shed

Appear to be ad lib fed.
The water supply empties into open gutters and the pigs are drinking this contaminated water
from the gutters instead of from the nipple drinkers.
Ideally these gutters should be covered, but at least the water should not flow freely from the ½
inch pipe into the gutters.


19
Finisher sheds
One feeder between two pens each with eleven pigs
All side walls are open.
One shed has side walls covered with bags which are fixed. This is in contrast to one of the other
sheds that had blinds that could be raised or lowered.

Post visit meeting.
They claim that farrowing rate was 100% Weaners may need tetracycline in feed for the entire 4
week period due to bad coughing and to protect them until they can respond to the
M.hyopneumoniae vaccination.
General comment
• They have stopped vaccinating with M.hyopneumoniae as they didn’t think it worked. They
are now giving Amoxycillin for the first week in each new shed, ie weaner/grower/finisher.
• We suggested that they should resume vaccination of piglets and to pulse medicate
weaners/growers/finishers one week in four with either Lincomix 220 ppm or 200ppm
chlortetracycline plus Tiamulin at 50ppm.
• They currently give foot and mouth vaccine to growers at 8 and ten weeks of age. Sows are
given two vaccinations in total.

Farm audit 21/7/05


Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 29.6°C
• Heat Index - 36.0°C
• Wet Bulb - 25.8°C
• Relative Humidity - 74.5%

Sow
• Vaccinate for E. coli (at 12 and 14 weeks), parvo, Aujeszkys, CSF (at 10weeks) and
FMD
• Water pressure was good but big variation between pens
• Feed 4-5kg/sow/day
• Sow respiration rates 50, 60 and 60
• Mange

Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days
• 20% of litters scour post 7 days, varies with season
• Vaccinated with CSF (at birth and 21-24 days), Mycoplasma at 7 and 21 days and
salmonella at 30 days

Farrowing Shed – old
• North-north west orientation
• Temperature - 30.4°C
• Heat Index - 38.0°C
• Wet Bulb - 26.3°C
• Relative Humidity - 74.0%

• Wind Speed - 0.0 m/sec
• 17 crates available, all were occupied
• Flat ceiling

20
• Small side fans off, turned on while there
• Roof cooling system
• Evaporative curtain
• Blinds fully down

Farrowing Shed - new
• 18 crates available with 0 crates occupied (190 x 213 x 560 wide)
• Temperature - 31.5°C
• Heat Index - 39.6°C
• Wet Bulb - 26.7°C
• Relative Humidity - 71.1%
• Wind Speed - 1 – 1.2 m/sec
• Two large extraction fans


Comments
• Evaporative curtain not being fully utilised
• Capacity for tunnel ventilation, blinds and extraction fans
• Dry sows crates 570 x 2100
• Spray cooling system
• Two pigs had post mortem examinations. They were found to have Mulberry Heart
disease

21
Nhon Hoa (Binh Dinh Province) – TEST FARM (200 sows)

General Comments on farm visit 29
th
September 2006
These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 25°C
• Heat Index - 26.5°C
• Relative Humidity - 81%

Farrowing

Of the 47 farrowing crates available 35 were full with 16/35 still to farrow. Farm claims 8
farrowings per week but they must be out of synchronisation if they have 16 to farrow. Twelve
of the farrowing crates had weaned pigs in them.
Farrow room 1 had one full side partially blocked by a new grower area on its northern side.
This grower area had a tin roof, which would be less than ideal for the growers and was blocking
the air flow to the farrowing room.

Comments
• They claim that foot & mouth disease is causing a major problem with the sale of stock.
They are unable to sell breeding stock, which is causing overcrowding. They are forced
to sell pigs as porkers. Where they were getting $2.40/kg for the sale of breeders they
only get $1.50 for the sale of pork.
• Mange continues to be a problem and no effort has been made to implement an
eradication program. The timing of their treatment is incorrect. Ivermectin should be
given one week before farrowing.
• Overall their preweaning mortality (around 10%) and reproductive performance are quite
good but any further improvements they make will be icing on the cake.
• They still have restricted feeding of each class of stock.

• Our recommendation would be that they fully implement the Herd Analysis and
Management System (HAAMS) so the farm efficiency can be truly evaluated. Along
with this there needs to be a quarterly visit by an extension person to provide advice on
areas for improvement based on the HAAMs data analysis.


Farm audit 24/7/05



Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 28.9°C
• Heat Index - 31.4°C
• Wet Bulb - 22.6°C
• Relative Humidity - 58.0%
• Wind Speed - 2.0-3.0 m/sec

Sow
• Vaccinate sows with CSF (at weaning), E. coli (6 and 2 weeks before farrowing),
salmonella (at mating), Pasteurella, FMD, Mycoplasma
• Ivermectin at 40-45 days before farrowing
• Water pressure was good

22
• Feed 2-2.5 kg twice daily plus 0.3kg/piglet (total 4-5kg)
• Respiration rate of 140 for one sow
• Farrowing rate greater than 80%
Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days
• Vaccinate for Mycoplasma (day 3), E. coli (day 7), salmonella (day 10) and CSF (day 21)

• Baycox given at 3-4 days of age
Weaners
• Temperature - 31.0°C
• Heat Index - 34.8°C
• Wet Bulb - 24.0°C
• Relative Humidity - 55.8%
• Wind Speed - 0.0-0.5 m/sec
• Poor water supply
• Numerous abscesses/site reactions
Farrowing Shed 1
• Sheds north/east – south/west orientation
• Temperature - 28.9°C
• Heat Index - 31.3°C
• Wet Bulb - 22.7°C
• Relative Humidity - 58.4%
• Wind Speed - 1.0-1.5 m/sec
• Open sides with no blinds
• Roof cooling but not working
• Total of 32 sows in crates (shed 1 and 2)
Farrowing Shed 2
• Temperature - 31.7°C
• Heat Index - 36.3°C
• Wet Bulb - 24.0°C
• Relative Humidity - 56.6%
• Wind Speed - 0.3 m/sec
• Roof cooling not working
• 32 crates available with 17 occupied
• Some tiled roof areas replaced with roofing iron
Comments
• Need to have a ridge vent

•
Some tiles had been replaced with tin. The temperature under the tin was 65 degrees and
38 degrees under the tiles. Replace or insulate the tin.
• Natural mating and replacements from breeding companies
• ~5% of gilt litters affected by Trembles (however, saw 4 litters affected) – all mated to
different boars


23
Dinh-Dung (Binh Dinh Province) – CONTROL FARM (3 X 50 sow units)

General Comments on farm visit 29
th
September 2006

These are to be read in the context of the full July report for 2005, which is below.

Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 29.4°C
• Heat Index - 33°C
• Relative Humidity - 67%

Comments
• This farm continues to have the same problem with ventilation that it has always had and no
improvements will be made until our recommendations are acted upon.
• Once again there appears a lack of extension input into this farm. This is a major cause for
concern for the industry generally.

Farrowing house audit 24/7/05

Ambient Conditions
• Temperature - 31.2°C
• Heat Index - 35.4°C
• Wet Bulb - 24.0°C
• Relative Humidity - 53.4%
• Wind Speed - 4.0-4.5 m/sec

Sow
• Feed 6-7kg/sow/day (over two-three feeds)
• Respiration rates of 50, 70 and120 were recorded
• Vaccinate sows for CSF (17 post farrowing), Salmonella (20 days before farrowing),
FMD/Parvo/Aujeszkys (twice a year)

Piglet
• Weaning age 21 days
• Vaccinate piglets for CSF (17 days) Pasteurella (25 days) and Salmonella (20 days)

Farrowing Shed
• Temperature - 31.7°C
• Heat Index - 36.1°C
• Wet Bulb - 24.1°C
• Relative Humidity - 54.2%
• Wind Speed - 0.0-0.5 m/sec
• 9 crates available with 8 occupied
• fans turned off

Comments
• Water to dry sow drinkers was turned off because of a leaking pipe
• Fans not being used

24
Appendix 1 - Sow feeding
• On all farms the lactating sows were inadequately fed; as a rule of thumb no more than 10%
of sow feed troughs should be empty on random inspection of a shed.
• The feed intake of the sows would also be negatively impacted by poor water flow and the
high shed temperatures. The respiratory rate of a non-heat stressed sow should be about 30-
35 /minute. Typically we found all sows to have a respiration rate of 60-120/min indicating
severe heat stress.

The following is a list of recommendations we use in Australia:
• Pigs must have access to feed at least daily and the diet must be nutritionally adequate to
maintain health and meet the requirements for maintenance, growth, pregnancy and
lactation.
• When the body condition score of a pig falls below 2.5 (on the scale of 1-5, appendix 1),
remedial action must be taken.
• All pigs (excluding piglets) must be maintained at a body condition score of 2 or more.
• Feed must be provided in such a way as to prevent undue competition or injury.
• Pregnant sows should be given enough bulky or high fibre feed to satisfy hunger. The feed
intake for dry sows needs to be nutritionally balanced, appropriate to the sow’s physiological
needs (which vary during pregnancy) and to provide satiety without the sow becoming
overweight.
• Body score of breeding sows at farrowing should be 3.5 – 4.
• Body score of breeding sows at weaning should be 3 or above.
• Condition scoring is recommended as a way of assessing the adequacy of nutrition, along
with monitoring of health and productivity. A guide to condition scoring of pigs is given in
Appendix 2.
• Drinkable water and/or other wholesome liquid must be easily available to pigs in sufficient
quantities to meet the physiological needs of the pigs at all times
• Water provided should be fresh, palatable, and at a temperature that does not inhibit drinking.

• Drinker allocation per pen group and drinker design and flow rates should be such that water
requirements of different classes of pig are easily met.
• Pigs should have constant access to water or other suitable wholesome liquid. The daily
consumption of water (or other wholesome liquid) by a pig will vary according to
environmental temperature, diet ingredients and live-weight. The table in Appendix 3 shows
the typical daily water requirements for various classes of pig.

Feed requirements for lactating sows
Day of lactation Daily feed requirement (kg)
1 2.5
2 3
3 3.5
4 4
5 4.5
6 5
7 5.5
8 6
9 7
10 8
11-15 9
16-20 10
21-28 10.5

25
* These are based on the Stotfield feed scales and are the minimum recommended intakes to maximise subsequent
farrowing rate and litter size. Parameters that will impact on feed intake are excessive ambient temperature,
inadequate water supply and poor ventilation. Any sow with a respiration rate above 30/min is considered to be heat
stressed. The lowest rate noted on our visit was in excess of 60 with some sows registering over 120 breaths/minute

Appendix 2 - Condition Scoring of Sows

Numerical
Score
Pelvic Bones,
Tail Head
Loin Vertebrae Ribs
1
Pelvic bones
very prominent.
Deep cavity
around the tail
head.
Loin very
narrow. Sharp
edges on
transverse spinal
process. Flank
very hollow.


Prominent and
sharp
throughout the
length of the
backbone
Individual ribs
very
prominent

2
Pelvic bones
obvious but
some slight
cover. Cavity
around tail head.
Loin narrow.
Only very slight
cover to edge of
transverse spinal
process. Flank
rather hollow.



Prominent Rib cage less
apparent.
Difficult to see
individual ribs.



3
Pelvic bones
covered.
Edge of

transverse spinal
processes
covered and
rounded.

Visible over the
shoulder. Some
cover further
back.
Covered but
can be felt.







4
Pelvic bones
only felt with
firm pressure.
No cavity
around tail.
Edge of
transverse spinal
processes felt
only with firm
pressure.

Felt only with
firm pressure
Rib cage not
visible. Very
difficult to feel
any ribs.




5
Pelvic bones
impossible to
feel. Root of tail
set deep in
surrounding fat.
Impossible to
feel bones.
Flank full and
rounded.





Impossible to
feel vertebrae.
Not possible to
feel ribs.