Our 2-Day Workshop
LifeStock International is the implementing partner for a USDA study in Ghana to examine the use of aggregate oral fluid samples from swine to determine their possible use in early diagnosis of African swine fever.
Oral fluids from swine have been used by many in the swine industry for other diseases. Pigs are curious creatures and will chew on cotton ropes hanging in their pens. The soggy ropes can then be collected, the saliva squeezed from the ropes, and assayed for the presence of pathogens or antibodies.
Experiment - presence of ASF virus
This study in Ghana is under the capable leadership of Dr. Bonto Faburay (USDA) and Dr. Theophilus Odoom (Director, Accra Veterinary Laboratory).
The experiment has been carefully devised to determine the earliest possible moment when the oral fluids from a pen of pigs will test positive for African swine fever.
If successful, the results will make it much easier to do surveillance for the disease in Ghana and the USA. This would help to alert authorities about the presence of disease, and could make control and eradication more feasible.
The training program in Ghana was held in early May, 2024, and was led by Dr. Corrie Brown, Founder and Executive Director of LifeStock, and Dr. Raquel Rech, of Texas A&M University, and also a LifeStock volunteer. They gave a short course on swine necropsy to the technical team overseeing the project there.
Interactive training
The 21 animal health participants reviewed scenarios involving clinical signs and postmortem lesions of various swine diseases to enhance their abilities in field diagnosis. All instruction was done in an interactive and participatory manner.
