Veterinary session

In the European Union the use of antimicrobials is being radically restricted, and various means of prevention, such as vaccination, are becoming increasingly important in the control of infectious diseases in livestock farming. The aim of our research was to assess the serological profile and vaccination protocol of large commercial pig farms in Hungary.

Between November 2020 and March 2021, serological test and vaccination data from 16 Hungarian farrow-to-finish and breeding pig farms were collected by using questionnaires through personal interviews with veterinarians. An average of 1,940 sows and their offspring were kept on the surveyed farms and 81% were free of Aujeszky’s disease, PRRS, swine brucellosis and leptospirosis. The mostly identified pathogens by laboratory tests (serological and/or PCR tests) were PCV-2 (in 81.3% of the surveyed farms) and Lawsonia intracellularis (81.3%), but Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (62.5%), swine influenza virus (62.5%) and Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (56.3%) were also quite prevalent.

In the survey of vaccination protocols we found that all farms vaccinated against PCV-2, swine erysipelas, parvovirus, and Escherichia coli, and three-quarters (75%) of them vaccinated against Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae. However, there was no vaccination against Streptococcus suis in any of the farms. Breeding herds were vaccinated against PCV-2 in 50% of the farms surveyed, but both breeding and progeny herds were vaccinated against PCV-2 in 44%. Regarding the vaccination of boars, only half of the farms surveyed used any kind of vaccination, and in 75% of these cases they used vaccination against PCV-2.

Serological tests to monitor antibody levels against each pathogen were most prevalent for parvovirus (88%) and PCV-2 (81%), however, no serological tests were performed on Clostridium perfringens, leptospiras, rotavirus, and Streptococcus suis in any farm.

The high vaccination rate and the large number of serological tests in the surveyed pig farms highlight the fundamental importance of protection against parvovirus and PCV-2, but Lawsonia intracellularis, which causes digestive problems, is receiving increasing attention in Hungarian pig herds, as well. Moreover, the high use of intradermal vaccines in the vaccination against PCV-2 and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae should also be mentioned.