Service Information
Password protected access is now available for veterinarians to access their client's ZAP reports on-line for the latest results and changes to their ZAP status. Please go to the Home page and follow the instructions Registering for access to your ZAP services
We are also about to start the intervention studies, if any of your clients are interested in taking part or would like more information please contact Adrain Cox MRCVS on his mobile Mobile: 07710 910018 or email him adrianrcox@hotmail.com. Alternatively contact the ZAP team.
A number of potentially effective interventions for reducing Salmonella in pigs have been identified in a recently completed literature review (copies available on request), these are:
- Salmonella vaccination of sows
- Salmonella vaccination of slaughter generation
- Acidification of feed
- Acidification of water
- Change from pellet feeding to a Salmonella-reducing pelleted feed
- Change from pellet feeding to a Salmonella-reducing meal feed
- Liquid feeding
- Depopulation and repopulation from Salmonella tested or vaccinated source of weaners
We propose to evaluate the effectiveness of these interventions in reducing the prevalence of Salmonella on pig farms in England and Wales and to establish, within the practical constraints of this project, the associated cost benefit at farm level. The farm-based trials will be used to demonstrate the practical implementation of these interventions on farms where basic standards of biosecurity, hygiene, record keeping and pest control are already in place.
We need to recruit up to 40 farms through their veterinary practices, which will be involved in the design, implementation and supervision of the intervention trials on the units.
The recruited farms will be ZAP Level 2 or 3 or in exceptional cases have >50% positive and suspect Elisa results. For each satisfactorily completed trial, the farm will receive up to £1000 for additional expenses and be returned to ZAP1, regardless of their Salmonella prevalence on completion and the vet will receive up to £500 for associated expenses.
Additional sampling and trends in results from meat-juice ELISA testing will be monitored Mixed-pen faecal sampling may also be undertaken with the support of the VLA. Basic record keeping will be agreed at the design stage. The effects of the interventions on Salmonella levels, ease of use, costs and performance will be monitored with a view to communicating results to all producers and vets. A key aim will be to communicate outcomes to vets and feed advisors at the joint Pig Veterinary Society/ Society of Feed Technologists conference in November 2007