November 27, 2010

Thai provinces on high alert after swine disease outbreak

Local authorities in Thailand's Phitsanulok and Chanthaburi provinces are on high alert following an outbreak of Porcine and Reproductive and Respiratory syndrome (PRRS).

Trisadee Chaonacharoen, an Agriculture Ministry inspector, and Chawaphan Antrasen, the head of the Livestock Office in Phitsanulok province, inspected six pig farms in Bangrakam district, after a number of swines died of PRRS.

Trisadee said the PRRS virus is only found in pigs and it destroys their respiratory and reproductive systems, causing premature delivery and stillbirth.

He said that the outbreak has been reported in Muang, Bangrakam and Wangthong districts, and the latter two have been declared danger zones. The inspector added that more than 2,200 cases of pig miscarriages and deaths have been reported.

He said livestock officials and volunteers have been sent to educate pig farmers about the disease and disinfect pig farms in nine districts in hopes of controlling the epidemic.

In Chanthaburi province, local authorities and pig farmers in Koh Khwang district are on high alert following a reported outbreak in Phitsanulok province, since the district is a major pig farming area.

Many farmers are cleaning up their ranches and surrounding areas, as well as checking the water and feeding systems, to prevent infection.