Abstract
We compared the seroprevalence of both Toxoplasma gondii and Trichinella spiralis in finishing pigs raised in different production systems in North Carolina, USA. Farms were either finishing sites using all-in/all-out management of buildings in multiple-site systems (14 farms) or farrow-to-finish systems using continuous-flow management of finishing barns or outdoor accommodation (14 farms). The two groups of herds differed with respect to several management variables. A total of 13 of 2238 samples (0.58%) were positive for antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii using the modified agglutination test. Of these, 12 were from 63 pigs sampled on a farm where finishing pigs were kept on pasture. Only one of 1752 (0.057%) samples from pigs kept in total confinement systems was seropositive. Only one pig of 2183 (0.046%) tested positive by ELISA for antibodies against T. spiralis. In this region, management practices in modern production systems appear to be adequate to virtually eliminate the risk of infection of finishing pigs with both T. gondii and T. spiralis.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 67-76 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Preventive Veterinary Medicine |
| Volume | 36 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 17 1998 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This work was supported by a grant from the National Pork Producers Council. We thank Amy Barefoot, Charles Faulkner, Skip Hevener, Robbie McCracken, Wendy Rountree, and Patty Routh for technical assistance and appreciate the cooperation of the swine producers involved.
Keywords
- Pig-parasitological diseases
- Production systems
- Toxoplasma gondii
- Trichinella spiralis