A nursery-finisher barn in southeastern Manitoba that was thought to be the province’s fifth case of porcine epidemic diarrhea has tested free of the virus.
The office of the province’s chief veterinarian said Oct. 9 that subsequent sampling of the suspected case, which was initially confirmed Sept. 30, proved there was no infection.
However, the chief veterinarian continues to investigate.
Manitoba Pork chair Karl Kynoch said in a statement that pigs, manure and the environment of the site were tested, and repeated visits to the unnamed farm resulted in no clinical signs of PED infection.
Read Also
Farm cash receipts rise in first half of 2025 on livestock gains
Farm cash receipts in the first half of the year were up 3.3 per cent over the same period last year buoyed by livestock receipts. Overall receipts between January and June totalled $49.6 billion, up $1.6 billion from the same period last year, Statistics Canada reported.
“It was also noted that this site had good biosecurity practices and was not directly linked to any positive farm,” said Kynoch.
“The PEDv source of the positive test from the site is unknown.”
PED is almost always fatal to young piglets and also affects the health of older animals. As the name indicates, it is characterized by acute watery diarrhea that results in death from dehydration and malnutrition.
PED does not affect people or the safety of pork.
Sixty-three farms have been affected in Ontario, four in Manitoba and one each in Quebec and Prince Edward Island.
Effects of the virus have been more severe in the United States, where it has been found in 31 states and has killed millions of piglets. Iowa, North Carolina and Minnesota have the highest number of cases.
PED spreads easily in manure and can also travel on clothing, equipment, transport trucks and multiple other vectors. Strict biosecurity is considered the only method of protecting farms from infection.
