Hitchhikers not allowed!
Intended audience: U.S. pork producers
Subject: Transport vehicle biosecurity
The U.S. pork industry moves pigs all over the place, sometimes more than once during their growth cycle. Making sure that you don’t move unwanted hitchhikers such as viruses or bacteria along with those pigs must be a priority.
Everyone involved in pork production, including producers, veterinarians and transporters must maintain a biosecurity mindset as it relates to moving pigs. Here are some recommendations to help emphasize that mindset and tighten up your transport biosecurity system.
Start by evaluating your current vehicle protocols involving all animal transport trailers, feed delivery and other trucks entering the premises. After evaluating traffic flow for each vehicle, establish a biosecurity perimeter or a clean/dirty line. Provide drivers with clear instructions on where they are allowed within the site. Personnel should use foot dips and protective clothing prior to entering the premises.
Next, determine your current compliance level and where improvement is needed. Work closely with the trucking company, schedulers, drivers and load crews. Specify the cleanliness expectations for trailers entering your operation. To ensure the best return on your biosecurity investment, focus on the highest risk areas. For example, in breed-to-wean, breed-to-finish, continuous-flow or sow units it pays to spend more time and devote more to your trailer-washing budget than in an all-in/all-out system.
Focus on the Basics
Trailer washing and sanitation provide the foundation to improve your transport biosecurity plan. You can start by ensuring that dirty trailers are kept outside of your biosecurity perimeter.
Remove all organic debris from the vehicle such as manure, mud, snow, ice and straw, as it can contain high contamination levels.
Start on the top decks and work down. Using brushes, shovels or scrapers, remove all built-up mud, bedding and debris. Ensure that sidewalls, gates and other elevated areas are free of debris before turning your attention to the trailer floors. Also make sure that material is removed from the ramps and gates by thoroughly scraping and brushing.
Next, spray a foaming cleaner/degreaser inside and outside of the trailer, covering the ceiling, sides and floors. Starting at the bottom and working up can help prevent streaking caused by the detergent running through dirty surfaces below.
Apply disinfectant at the manufacturer’s recommended rate starting at the top and moving down, paying close attention to covering all surfaces. Disinfect all storage compartments and the contents. Leave the disinfectant solution in contact with surfaces according to manufacturer’s recommendations.
Don’t neglect the cab interior. Remove and clean all floor mats and any equipment that’s been in contact with animals or debris. Also, thoroughly clean foot pedals and all interior surfaces with disinfecting solution.
Trailer Washing: The Foundation
Effective trailer washing is a crucial step to improving a transport biosecurity program. Reduce areas in trailers where manure and debris can build up. Sliding doors on trailers reduce debris build-up in roller tracks found with overhead doors, and they make cleaning easier and faster. With some minor alterations, you can make equipment easier to clean. For example, close off ends of tubular structures and drill small holes on the ramps between steps or ridges to allow drainage.
During the washing process, pay close attention to corners, ramps, door hinges, ceiling braces and around light fixtures. Don’t neglect washing and disinfecting boots and coveralls as well as any equipment such as sorting boards that came in contact with animals. Disinfectants play a vital role, as well.
Try Baking a Trailer
Trailer baking is gaining attention as more producers work to improve biosecurity and reduce disease transmission. This involves exposing empty trailers that have been cleaned, disinfected and thoroughly drained, to high heat levels — 142° F for 10 minutes. Circulating fans help disperse the heat during the baking process.
Crew Compliance is Crucial
To help ensure success, emphasize the importance of transport biosecurity to the wash crew. Be especially watchful for lapses such as inadequate washing, disinfection and drying; breaches of clean/dirty areas; contaminated equipment; or encroachment of unauthorized personnel into clean areas.
Farm staff must determine if an arriving trailer is clean enough to allow its use. Dedicate one individual to monitor and enforce biosecurity protocols; it can increase compliance.
With so much at stake, it’s worth your time and attention to improve your transport biosecurity. With these steps and close attention and commitment, you can “just say no” to unwanted hitchhikers.
Intended audience: U.S. pork producers
Subject: Transport vehicle biosecurity
The U.S. pork industry moves pigs all over the place, sometimes more than once during their growth cycle. Making sure that you don’t move unwanted hitchhikers such as viruses or bacteria along with those pigs must be a priority.
Everyone involved in pork production, including producers, veterinarians and transporters must maintain a biosecurity mindset as it relates to moving pigs. Here are some recommendations to help emphasize that mindset and tighten up your transport biosecurity system.
Start by evaluating your current vehicle protocols involving all animal transport trailers, feed delivery and other trucks entering the premises. After evaluating traffic flow for each vehicle, establish a biosecurity perimeter or a clean/dirty line. Provide drivers with clear instructions on where they are allowed within the site. Personnel should use foot dips and protective clothing prior to entering the premises.
Next, determine your current compliance level and where improvement is needed. Work closely with the trucking company, schedulers, drivers and load crews. Specify the cleanliness expectations for trailers entering your operation. To ensure the best return on your biosecurity investment, focus on the highest risk areas. For example, in breed-to-wean, breed-to-finish, continuous-flow or sow units it pays to spend more time and devote more to your trailer-washing budget than in an all-in/all-out system.
Focus on the Basics
Trailer washing and sanitation provide the foundation to improve your transport biosecurity plan. You can start by ensuring that dirty trailers are kept outside of your biosecurity perimeter.
Remove all organic debris from the vehicle such as manure, mud, snow, ice and straw, as it can contain high contamination levels.
Start on the top decks and work down. Using brushes, shovels or scrapers, remove all built-up mud, bedding and debris. Ensure that sidewalls, gates and other elevated areas are free of debris before turning your attention to the trailer floors. Also make sure that material is removed from the ramps and gates by thoroughly scraping and brushing.
Next, spray a foaming cleaner/degreaser inside and outside of the trailer, covering the ceiling, sides and floors. Starting at the bottom and working up can help prevent streaking caused by the detergent running through dirty surfaces below.
Apply disinfectant at the manufacturer’s recommended rate starting at the top and moving down, paying close attention to covering all surfaces. Disinfect all storage compartments and the contents. Leave the disinfectant solution in contact with surfaces according to manufacturer’s recommendations.
Don’t neglect the cab interior. Remove and clean all floor mats and any equipment that’s been in contact with animals or debris. Also, thoroughly clean foot pedals and all interior surfaces with disinfecting solution.
Trailer Washing: The Foundation
Effective trailer washing is a crucial step to improving a transport biosecurity program. Reduce areas in trailers where manure and debris can build up. Sliding doors on trailers reduce debris build-up in roller tracks found with overhead doors, and they make cleaning easier and faster. With some minor alterations, you can make equipment easier to clean. For example, close off ends of tubular structures and drill small holes on the ramps between steps or ridges to allow drainage.
During the washing process, pay close attention to corners, ramps, door hinges, ceiling braces and around light fixtures. Don’t neglect washing and disinfecting boots and coveralls as well as any equipment such as sorting boards that came in contact with animals. Disinfectants play a vital role, as well.
Try Baking a Trailer
Trailer baking is gaining attention as more producers work to improve biosecurity and reduce disease transmission. This involves exposing empty trailers that have been cleaned, disinfected and thoroughly drained, to high heat levels — 142° F for 10 minutes. Circulating fans help disperse the heat during the baking process.
Crew Compliance is Crucial
To help ensure success, emphasize the importance of transport biosecurity to the wash crew. Be especially watchful for lapses such as inadequate washing, disinfection and drying; breaches of clean/dirty areas; contaminated equipment; or encroachment of unauthorized personnel into clean areas.
Farm staff must determine if an arriving trailer is clean enough to allow its use. Dedicate one individual to monitor and enforce biosecurity protocols; it can increase compliance.
With so much at stake, it’s worth your time and attention to improve your transport biosecurity. With these steps and close attention and commitment, you can “just say no” to unwanted hitchhikers.
Selection and maintenance of animal feeders can be a significant investment for pork produces but it can also pay off in feed efficiency.
Photo at left courtesy of Chore Time
Time for New Feeders?
By Rick Jordahl
Intended audience: U.S. pork producers
Subject: swine nutrition management
Good quality feeders represent a substantial investment for pork producers and spending the time and studying the advantages and disadvantages of each system before purchasing is time well spent. New feeders for a 2,000-head finishing barn might cost $7,000 to $10,000, or more. However, when deciding on the optimal feeder design for your operation, cost is not the only factor to consider.
If you’re considering replacing feeders, be aware that the choices you make can impact areas which are seemingly unrelated. While improved growth performance may be an obvious objective there are several other factors to consider such as time required for recouping your feeder investment.
Even a small improvement in feed efficiency, or reducing waste, will have an effect on your bottom line. As with most barn equipment, better quality usually pays off. Purchase a high quality feeder with heavy gauge metal that offers good adjustment capabilities.
Since most quality feeders should last 10 years or more, be certain the design will accommodate the ever-increasing market weights common to the industry. To accommodate the heavier market pig, grow-finish feeders should provide at least 14 inches per pig space with a front-to-back depth of at least 10 inches. Nursery feeders should have feeding spaces seven to eight inches wide with a front-to-back depth of more than six inches.
Dry or Wet/Dry
If you’re building new finishing facilities, you may still be undecided on which feeder type to install. Both dry and wet/dry feeders have advantages and disadvantages. Make your decision based on your operation’s feed efficiency objectives and management capabilities.
During hot weather, wet/dry feeders have the advantage. In general, pigs on wet/dry feeders will consume about 5 percent more feed than pigs on dry feeders, Tokach adds. Feed efficiency is similar between the two models, thus, growth rate is 5 percent greater with wet/dry feeders.
Wet/dry feeders can reduce your operation’s water use as well as the volume of liquid in manure pits, especially when compared to dry feeders combined with nipple drinkers. This can be an advantage on the frequency of pumping and in the nutrient concentration of the slurry.
Feeder manufacturers of can help you determine the best feeders for the diets you are using. In the Midwest, a majority of the pigs are weaned onto a pellet diet and then go to meal.
For optimum function of feeders, keep an eye on pellet quality. Good pellets have less fines and are more consistent on flow from the feeder.
Sow Feeding Systems
Because many gestation sow housing options are available, feeding systems also have grown in number and complexity. Since achieving acceptable sow body condition at farrowing is a primary objective, feeding systems that deliver individualized feed amounts generally provide better results.
With increasing social awareness and consumer concern surrounding animal well-being, some meat packers and producers are adopting group gestation sow housing. Electronic sow feeding (ESF) units are seeing increased use in these systems though initial cost is high.
Electronic sow feeding requires technical orientation by the management team as well as close observation by crews. However, ESF stations allow for controlled feeding for each sow which can result in improved body condition at farrowing.
There are many ways to evaluate gestation sow feeding systems such as sow performance and longevity, animal well-being, social acceptance or pigs weaned. Close management along with the ability to rapidly address issues that arise are keys to capturing the best possible results with each system.
Photo at left courtesy of Chore Time
Time for New Feeders?
By Rick Jordahl
Intended audience: U.S. pork producers
Subject: swine nutrition management
Good quality feeders represent a substantial investment for pork producers and spending the time and studying the advantages and disadvantages of each system before purchasing is time well spent. New feeders for a 2,000-head finishing barn might cost $7,000 to $10,000, or more. However, when deciding on the optimal feeder design for your operation, cost is not the only factor to consider.
If you’re considering replacing feeders, be aware that the choices you make can impact areas which are seemingly unrelated. While improved growth performance may be an obvious objective there are several other factors to consider such as time required for recouping your feeder investment.
Even a small improvement in feed efficiency, or reducing waste, will have an effect on your bottom line. As with most barn equipment, better quality usually pays off. Purchase a high quality feeder with heavy gauge metal that offers good adjustment capabilities.
Since most quality feeders should last 10 years or more, be certain the design will accommodate the ever-increasing market weights common to the industry. To accommodate the heavier market pig, grow-finish feeders should provide at least 14 inches per pig space with a front-to-back depth of at least 10 inches. Nursery feeders should have feeding spaces seven to eight inches wide with a front-to-back depth of more than six inches.
Dry or Wet/Dry
If you’re building new finishing facilities, you may still be undecided on which feeder type to install. Both dry and wet/dry feeders have advantages and disadvantages. Make your decision based on your operation’s feed efficiency objectives and management capabilities.
During hot weather, wet/dry feeders have the advantage. In general, pigs on wet/dry feeders will consume about 5 percent more feed than pigs on dry feeders, Tokach adds. Feed efficiency is similar between the two models, thus, growth rate is 5 percent greater with wet/dry feeders.
Wet/dry feeders can reduce your operation’s water use as well as the volume of liquid in manure pits, especially when compared to dry feeders combined with nipple drinkers. This can be an advantage on the frequency of pumping and in the nutrient concentration of the slurry.
Feeder manufacturers of can help you determine the best feeders for the diets you are using. In the Midwest, a majority of the pigs are weaned onto a pellet diet and then go to meal.
For optimum function of feeders, keep an eye on pellet quality. Good pellets have less fines and are more consistent on flow from the feeder.
Sow Feeding Systems
Because many gestation sow housing options are available, feeding systems also have grown in number and complexity. Since achieving acceptable sow body condition at farrowing is a primary objective, feeding systems that deliver individualized feed amounts generally provide better results.
With increasing social awareness and consumer concern surrounding animal well-being, some meat packers and producers are adopting group gestation sow housing. Electronic sow feeding (ESF) units are seeing increased use in these systems though initial cost is high.
Electronic sow feeding requires technical orientation by the management team as well as close observation by crews. However, ESF stations allow for controlled feeding for each sow which can result in improved body condition at farrowing.
There are many ways to evaluate gestation sow feeding systems such as sow performance and longevity, animal well-being, social acceptance or pigs weaned. Close management along with the ability to rapidly address issues that arise are keys to capturing the best possible results with each system.