Have you ever had a disease pop up and you’re 99% confident that you know what it is only to have diagnostics come back and tell you you’re wrong? Becca Riggs, DVM with Four Star Veterinary Service in Rushville, Indiana, had this experience recently with what turned out to be an unusual presentation of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae. Dr. Riggs recently spoke
Register Now: 2024 Four Star Pork Industry Conference to be held Sept 10-11
Register Now: 2024 Four Star Pork Industry Conference to be held Sept 10-11 Join Four Star Veterinary Service for the Midwest pork industry’s premier educational and networking event CHICKASAW, Ohio (July 25, 2024) — Four Star Veterinary Service announces its annual Pork Industry Conference will be held September 10-11, 2024 in Muncie, Indiana and invites producers, nutritionists, academia and industry from
Time to commit to a national biosecurity, traceability strategy
Swine health is critical to ensuring a quality, nutritious product for domestic and international consumers of US pork. While monitoring a swine herd for domestic diseases is part of a farm’s daily routine, foreign animal diseases (FADs) like African swine fever (ASF), classical swine fever (CSF) and foot and mouth disease (FMD) tend to take a back seat. Part of
Chicken Psychology: Catering to Complex Relationships within Cage-Free Flocks
With the continued transition from conventional, caged layer farms towards alternative egg production systems, veterinarians, researchers, and farmers have been heavily scrutinizing the behavioral needs of chickens in their new group-housed environments. Historically, poultry farms optimized the ability of laying hens to be efficient and prolific egg layers in multi-level battery cages – where a hen would share her small
Slimmer Margins Require Expert ROI Focus
Return on Investment (ROI) is the bane of every pork producer or pork production systems manager. And with increasing margin cuts and low markets to compete in, it’s more frustrating than ever. Improving ROI is always a priority to pork producers, however, according to Daniel Gascho, DVM (Purdue, ’17), partner in Swine Health Care, Mexico, IN, it’s not always their
Tips for tackling cattle biosecurity inside and out
Implementing biosecurity procedures can feel like a daunting task on cattle farms, but breaking the process down into more manageable steps can achieve your goals. You can always add more steps later. “A successful biosecurity plan is really about doing the little things correctly every day,” said Trey Gellert, DVM, with Four Star Veterinary Service in Chickasaw, Ohio. “Also, inspect
PRRS diagnostics not always straightforward
When it comes to porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome (PRRS), high sow death rates, abortion storms and poor nursery performance grab the headlines. But less familiar are milder cases and even those where a positive test is hard to find. Bottom line, there are many PRRS virus strains, and a strain can behave differently in different settings. “It’s easy to
Management is the best defense against Histophilus somni and sudden death in feeder calves
It’s something no one wants to see: You go out to check feedyard calves and find a nice one lying dead. Overall, the cattle look fine, just as they did yesterday. If another calf or two die the next day, Histophilus somni (H. somni) could be the culprit, and it’s time to call your veterinarian. The challenge is that this
Swine nutrition tips during a down market
There’s no question the US swine industry is struggling through a down market cycle. Jason Woodworth, Research Professor at Kansas State University, spoke to attendees at the Annual Four Star Pork Industry Conference held in Muncie, Indiana in September about nutritional strategies for feeding pigs during a down market. “Unfortunately, the goal may be to lose the least amount
Adapting to industry changes keeps NC swine veterinarians moving forward
North Carolina was known to be a dream location to raise pigs. But now, according to veteran swine practitioner, Randy Jones, DVM (NCST ’85), doing business in a highly regulated state combined with the inflated cost of feedstuffs, fuel, labor, and the high rate of litigation, makes pig ownership a burden that seems only accessible to the biggest of integrators.
Step-by-step guide to recruit US farm labor from Mexico
Taylor Rock, production supervisor at Heimerl Farms based in Johnstown, Ohio, spoke at the Annual Four Star Pork Industry Conference held in Muncie, Indiana in September. Rock shared his experience working with TN visas used to recruit and secure on-farm labor in the US. “I have experience and an idea about how to help you save some money and
Meeting consumer needs: what consumers want from their food and pork
Paul Kalmbach, Jr., President with Kalmbach Feeds, spoke to attendees at the Annual Four Star Pork Industry Conference held in Muncie, Indiana in September about consumer trends and their impact on the pork industry and what producers can do on their farms to meet consumer and industry needs. Kalmbach challenged the audience to think about their farm and the