Piglets, Sows Will Return to New York State Fair

From the state Department of Agriculture and Markets:

Sow and piglets from a previous state fair

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball and New York State Veterinarian Dr. David Smith today announced the return of the hugely popular piglets and sows exhibit and competition at the 2015 Great New York State Fair.  

In 2014, due to a relatively new virus known as Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv), which has a high mortality rate among piglets, a decision was made by the state Department of Agriculture and Markets to suspend the exhibit to protect the well-being of piglets and their mothers.  

Due to the fact that there were no reported cases at the State Fair as well as county fairs in 2014, coupled with no unusual uptick in cases this winter in contrast with last winter, Commissioner Ball and Dr. Smith have made the decision to allow this exhibit to return in 2015.

“I’ve gotten more questions on the status of this exhibit for 2015 than I can count, and after careful consideration by the one of best animal health experts in the country, we couldn’t be more pleased that this wildly popular exhibit is returning to the Fair in 2015,” said Ball. 

“We are first and foremost an agricultural fair, and we take our responsibility as caregivers to the animals there very seriously," Ball said. "This is great news for fairgoers coming to the premier agritourism location in New York State in 2015.”

“We’ve been monitoring this situation with respect to PEDv very closely since its outbreak almost two years ago,” said Dr. Smith. “Our staff was at every agricultural fair in New York state last year monitoring animal health and no evidence of the virus was reported.  Vaccines were also made available to pork producers last year with some success."

A welcome home party for this popular exhibit will take place during the Fair’s media preview day Wednesday, Aug. 26. At any given New York State Fair, there are between four and six sows with eight to 12 piglets each. Fair officials estimate that as many as half of all fairgoers visit the swine-and-piglets exhibit during the 12-day extravaganza.  

New York had 70,000 hogs on Dec 1, 2014, up from 66,000 on Dec. 1, 2013. 

Ed Dutton, owner of Churchill Farms in Holland, NY, said, “As a longtime exhibitor, I think this is great news for fairgoers because seeing piglets with their mothers up close is always one of the most positive experiences at the Fair.” 

Dr. Smith encourages exhibitors at every agricultural fair in the state to practice sound biosecurity to protect their animals, including:

• 4H-ers purchasing feeder pigs for their fair projects should only acquire their feeders from reputable farms. If they’re from out of state ask to see the certificate of veterinary inspection.
• All swine should be examined closely before taking them to the fair.  Exhibitors should take their animals’ temperature prior to the trip to the fair. Swine with temperatures over 102.5 should be left home.
• If any of your pigs have diarrhea, no pigs from the affected farm should go to the fair.

• All exhibitors should practice a high level of sanitation at every fair, including avoiding unnecessary contact with other swine and other exhibitors’ equipment.
• Left over feed and bedding are best discarded at the fair and not brought home, since these materials are very difficult or impossible to disinfect.
• Isolate all pigs after returning home for at least 2 weeks. Observe pigs closely during this period and consult a veterinarian if any become sick

Hand sanitizers will again be used at barns located throughout the 12-day fair.

PEDv is relatively new to the US, first appearing in the Midwest in May 2013 and has taken a heavy toll on the nation’s hog farmers, having caused the death of millions of piglets since its outbreak. When sows and litters become infected, PEDv kills nearly 100 percent of piglets less than 10 days old, while pigs older than 10 days tend to recover.

No Pigs, Piglets at the 2014 State Fair

Sow and piglets from the 2013 State Fair

From the state Department of Agriculture and Markets:

Due to a relatively new virus known as Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea (PED), which has an extremely high mortality rate for piglets, the state Department of Agriculture and Markets has decided to suspend the Sows and Piglets exhibit and competition and at the 2014 Great New York State Fair, said Acting State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball and State Veterinarian Dr. David Smith.

"The health and safety of all livestock at the 2014 Fair is of paramount importance," said Ball. "We understand that some fairgoers may be disappointed, but we want the Fair to continue to show off the best in New York agriculture and we need to do so in the best possible way to protect the well-being of the animals in our care."

"Fairs in general are a challenging environment in terms of animal disease control, and a lack of vaccine that's been proven effective against PED makes the risk for piglets too high this year," said Dr. Smith.  "Animals come to the Fair from all over the state and with a disease like PED circulating, it's in the best interests of the animals that we take this action."

PED is relatively new to the US.  It first appeared in the Midwest in May 2013 and has since spread to about half the US.  Cases have now been identified in NY and 24 other states.  The disease has taken a heavy toll on the nation's hog farmers, having caused the death of an estimated 5 million piglets in just under one year.  

When sows and litters become infected, PED kills nearly 100 percent of piglets less than 10 days old, while pigs older than 10 days tend to recover.

As Dr. Smith noted, there is no vaccine yet to protect pigs against PED.   PED is caused by a Corona virus and is highly infectious to swine. The virus is shed in large quantities and the infectious dose is very small so cleanliness is critical. The American Association of Swine Veterinarians, in conjunction with the National Pork Board, has made a wealth of information available at: 

www.aasv.org/aasv%20website/Resources/Diseases/PorcineEpidemicDiarrhea.php