BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL G. BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – The Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) of Negros Occidental is looking into declaring a hog cholera outbreak. Cases are increasing.
Dr. Ryan Janoya, PVO chief of Research and Laboratory Services, said hog mortality rates are also increasing.
If an outbreak is declared, local government units (LGUs) will be able to access their calamity funds.
The province recorded 2,421 hog deaths. Janoya, however, said they are revalidating the number. They received information that some of the deaths were not related to hog cholera but other swine diseases such as pneumonia.
Earlier, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson issued an executive order forming an Incident Management Team to monitor hogs.
The provincial government also sent 27 blood samples to the Department of Agriculture in Western Visayas, which all tested negative for the African Swine Fever (ASF).
Despite the province remaining ASF-free, Lacson said they have begun preparations for the possible entry of hog diseases into the province.
Lacson ordered LGUs to set up border controls in all villages to limit the movement of sick pigs.
He added that they will not stop raisers from shipping their pigs out of the province as long as they provide the required shipping documents at the border control points.
According to the Iowa State University in the United States, hog cholera, also known as “classical swine fever,” is a highly contagious disease of swine.
The disease occurs in most major swine-raising countries where eradication programs have not been successfully implemented.
The disease is currently endemic, mostly in Asia.
However, unlike ASF, there is an existing vaccine for hog cholera. The virus is also harmless to humans./PN
