Flu season is upon us, so it?s important to think about how to keep pigs and their caretakers happy. The National Pork Board (NPB) encourages producers to talk with their families and employees about impacts of the flu, specifically implications to human and herd health. Heather Fowler, NPB director of producer and public health, said that vaccination is a good first step, and it?s not too late to do so.
?Veterinarians, our producers, our swine health teams, are working to make sure that we’re optimizing pig health year-round,? Fowler said. ?And that includes vaccines, that includes different herd biosecurity practices to prevent the introduction, and we need to do our part to prevent introduction and spread of this disease to pigs.?
The flu season is underway and will continue through April. Fowler said getting vaccinated is a good idea for both people and pigs.
?With influenza, it?s something that can be spread person-to-person, and there could be an opportunity to spread it to pigs as well,? Fowler said. ?We know that, in the barns, we have different herd health programs that include vaccination of pigs themselves, so some of those pigs might be vaccinated for influenza, as well, too. So, that helps cover them.?
Fowler added that more guidance for this flu season can be found in the public health section of the Pork Quality Assurance Plus Manual.
?It’s really built into our flagship program as a good production practice to get vaccinated and to protect those employees,? Fowler said. ?So, if our producers need more information or forgot some of that information, we direct them to that PQA Plus manual.?
For more information, visit the National Pork Board website at pork.org.
