Project overview
Intestinal parasites can negatively impact the growth and productivity of pigs, leading to economic losses for farmers. Timely interventions through monitoring minimize the impact of parasites on feed efficiency and growth rates in pigs with outdoor access.
Certain pig intestinal parasites may have zoonotic potential, posing a risk to human health, especially if produce is fertilized with contaminated pig manure, or if the garden is watered with contaminated water. It is important to highlight, though, that most of the pig intestinal parasites are not transmitted to human by consumption of pork!
Therefore, the objective of this project is to investigate the occurrence of intestinal parasites of pigs raised with outdoor access in farms located in Ohio and surrounding states. This project will help producers to better understand the intestinal health status of their pigs in relation to parasites and adopt practices to control the level of parasite infection in their pigs, as well as diminish the risk of contamination of produce and parasite transmission to humans.
How to participate
The inclusion criteria for a farm to enroll in the study are to have pigs raised with oudoor access and be located in Ohio or surrounding states. If the criteria are met, a visit will be scheduled for the collection of pig fecal samples and for the application of a survey about the management practices in place.
Collected samples will be sent to The Ohio State Veterinary Parasitology Laboratory for a centrifugal fecal flotation. This test is qualitative and aims to detect the presence of intestinal parasite eggs/oocists in feces. More information about the test can be found here.
Laboratory results will be emailed to the farmer and an in-person follow-up visit can be scheduled if necessary to discuss the results in details.
All costs related to the farm visit, sample collection, and the parasitology test is covered by the study!
Are you intestested?! Contact us to schedule the visit at your farm!
Dr. Talita Resende
Assistant Professor
Swine Health Extension Specialist
resende.2@osu.edu
Kara Flaherty - Extension/Research
Education Program Specialist
flaherty.177@osu.edu
Preliminary results
We already have preliminary results for this project. Click here to go to the eBarns 2024 and find out more!