Swine delta coronavirus, an illness in the same family as the deadly porcine epidemic diarrhea virus, has been detected at an unnamed pig handling facility in Alberta.
It is the first time the virus has been detected in the course of regular testing for SDCV and PED by Alberta Agriculture in co-operation with Alberta Pork.
No sick pigs are involved and no reported cases of infection. The test only indicates presence of the virus, which has potential to infect pigs if not controlled. Officials are working to identify where the virus originated and manage the situation, according to Geoff Geddes of Alberta Pork.
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Alberta Agriculture is also contacting anyone who may have been at the infected site in efforts to control spread.
The positive sample was found late last week and confirmed by a research lab in Guelph yesterday, said Geddes.
“It’s the first positive of it that we’ve seen here. It was a positive PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, so not necessarily infected material, but most likely.”
Like PED, swine delta virus is easily transmitted in hog feces and on other surfaces. And also like PED, it has similar symptoms in pigs, including diarrhea and vomiting, that can be fatal, particularly in young pigs.
“It appears that the mortality rates at least are lower in SDCV than PED but still obviously a very serious concern,” Geddes said.
“We’ve kind of tried to take the attitude from the beginning, from when it was first detected in Ontario, that (infection) was a matter of when, not if. But still, we’ve gone for so long without, you hope that it will stay that way.”
Producers are urged to maintain strict biosecurity. Recent cases in Manitoba raise additional concerns in Saskatchewan and Alberta because transport trucks travel across the Prairies and are a potential source of PED and SDCV spread if they are not properly cleaned.
A news release about the positive test carries a specific warning: “If any truck tries to enter your farm that has not been cleaned, don’t let it on. It poses a serious risk for bringing PED or SDCV onto your farm and into your barn.”
SDCV was first found in pigs in Hong Kong in 2012. It was found in the United States in February and in Ontario in March. There is no effective treatment.
“At least it can be kind of a further sort of warning to people to really make sure that all the biosecurity is tightened up if it’s not already,” Geddes said.
“Hopefully, we can still head it off.”
Neither SDCV nor PED poses a risk to human health. It is generally fatal to young piglets and adversely affects the health of older animals.
