MSU Extension Pork

Disease surveillance can be an extremely useful tool for detecting and preventing spread of disease. Traditional methods for disease surveillance requiring collection of blood or other tissues can be stressful for animals and require considerable technical skill, time and expense. Fortunately, new methods have been introduced that allow detection of several important diseases, at the herd or individual pig level, by sampling oral fluids. The method requires little time or skill and involves little additional handling. Oral fluids consist of saliva containing antibodies and other proteins that enter the mouth. These fluids can be collected when pigs chew on a cotton rope suspended at pig shoulder height in the pen, typically for 20-30 min. The rope is then collected and processed using a simple procedure. For pigs raised outside, other sampling techniques can be used, including: using segments of a cotton mop, which pigs always find interesting. Or, for a single pig 
hat is uninterested in the mop, fashion a cotton rope into a “harness” that passes through the back of the pig’s mouth and loops behind the ears. This harness typically collects enough oral fluid within 5-10 minutes. Remember, your veterinarian is the best source of advice regarding diseases to test for. Samples you collect are shipped by you or your vet to a diagnostic laboratory for testing to determine either the presence of a specific bacteria or virus, or confirmation that the animal has been exposed.