African swine fever is a contagious disease. It is characterized by fever, necrotic or inflammatory changes in parenchymal organs. It is also characterized by hemorrhagic diathesis.
African swine fever: what kind of disease
Its causative agent is a DNA-containing virus that has been isolated in an independent family. This virus is very resistant to low temperatures. It is also resistant to drying and decay. Sick animals that carry the virus for more than fifteen months are the source of infection. Most often, infection occurs through damaged mucous membranes, wounds on the skin, through meat, blood and so on. Sometimes the infection is carried by insects that come into contact with a sick (dead) animal.
In vivo, African plague affects both wild and domestic pigs. The virus can lurk in the body for a long time and not make itself felt. Basically, the incubation period lasts from five to ten days. Most often, the disease is extremely fast. Its main forms: acute, super acute, chronic, subacute, latent. The most common of these forms are acute and super sharp.
An extremely acute course is characterized by a very high body temperature of the animal. He has shortness of breath, death occurs within three days. African swine fever can cause death even without any clinical manifestations.
In acute course, the temperature is also always elevated. The condition of the animal becomes depressed: weakness, lack of appetite, drowsiness, paresis of limbs, vomiting is possible, as well as diarrhea with blood. The latter is not a particularly frequent occurrence, as in most cases animals suffer from constipation. In this case, you can observe purple spots that are located on the snout, belly, neck, and crotch. Acute African plague may be accompanied by bronchitis. Before death, the temperature drops below normal. In most cases, the animal dies while in a coma.
The subacute course of the disease does not differ much from the acute symptoms. It just goes slower. In this case, the African plague can last up to twenty days. The result is death.
In the chronic course of the disease, it is not so common. Some animals survive. Symptoms: slow development, stunted growth, exhaustion, arthritis and more.
Latent course does not have any specific clinical manifestations.
African swine fever: treatment and prevention
There is still no cure. Prevention measures may be different. Do not allow the spread of contaminated meat. For this, there is veterinary supervision. Particular attention is paid to imported pig meat, which is imported from countries in which outbreaks of the disease were once recorded.
When a pathogen is found, all animals that belong to a particular farm are quarantined. In almost all cases, they are killed in a bloodless manner. Bodies are burned - this is a must. All farms in the neighborhood are subject to verification.
When the infection spreads, the entire pig population is cut at a distance of ten square kilometers.
African swine fever in Russia
For the first time in our country, it was recorded in 1977. Many animals died that year, but the epidemic was stopped. The second time she hit our country in 2008. It is worth noting that in recent years it can be observed quite often. African swine fever in the Krasnodar Territory, Rostov Region, Novokubansky District and other constituent entities of the Russian Federation dealt a big blow to farming.