Epidemic among animals - Completion of evacuation at the site of a swine fever outbreak
In Friedberg near Pasewalk (Vorpommern-Greifswald district), a pig farm was affected by an outbreak of African swine fever. On Monday, Agriculture Minister Till Backhaus (SPD) shared that a special company had successfully removed the entire herd from the farm. The herd consisted of approximately 3,500 pigs.
Earlier last week, two pigs on the farm had shown signs of a high fever, prompting samples to be sent to the national reference laboratory, the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute. The lab confirmed the presence of African swine fever. This led to the initiation of appropriate animal disease control measures.
To ensure that only the domestic pigs were affected by the outbreak, authorities are now conducting a search around the affected farm using a drone, looking for any deceased wild boars. So far, none have been found. The outbreak farm is now under a quarantine zone, made up of a protection zone and a surveillance zone. More than 50 pig farms in the area are affected by this quarantine, stated Backhaus. The ministry's veterinary office will begin biosecurity checks in those farms.
African swine fever is a highly contagious viral disease afflicting both domestic and wild pigs, typically resulting in a fatal and incurable outcome. There is currently no way to protect pigs with vaccinations. This disease can be transferred between animals directly or indirectly through contaminated objects such as clothing, shoes, and feed. It can also spread to other areas through humans. However, African swine fever is not contagious or dangerous for humans or any other animal species.
