August 28, 2006

PEDS kills 60,000 piglets in Philippines

Porcine epidemic diarrhea syndrome (PEDS) has killed 60,000 piglets in the Batangas province of the Philippines since last June, provincial veterinarian Dr Rodrigo Bautista said.

Batangas is a province on the south-western part of Luzon.

PEDS is an acute diarrheal disease caused by the corona virus, affecting pigs of different age groups.

The disease is more common in China and European countries.

In adult pigs, the disease causes anorexia, lethargy and diarrhea while suckling pigs would have symptoms such as vomiting and watery diarrhea.

The disease is invariably fatal for sucklings and more than half of piglets infected with the disease die.

Local health authorities said the disease was able to spread rapidly from one town to the other.

Bautista said the airborne infectious disease could have been carried by winds or contaminated objects from affected farms.

As part of preventive measures, piglets were given electrolyte replacements as protection from diarrhea and secondary bacterial infection.

August, being the breeding season for pigs, is seen to be the period when pigs are at their most vulnerable to the disease.