Diagnosis and Control of Colitis in Grow- Finish Pigs

Diarrhoea in growing pigs due to colitis is a major cause of financial loss to pig farmers and can lead to delays of 14 21 days in pigs reaching finishing weight. There are many causes of enteric disease in pigs from weaning to finishing, as shown in Table 1. These include infectious and non-infectious (or diet-associated) conditions. Some of the infectious causes for example Classical swine fever and African swine fever are highly virulent pathogens that are notifiable in many countries and controlled by slaughter policies. Others, for example salmonellosis are important zoonotic infections. However the common endemic infections are recognised as having the most significant economic impact on farms as they effect successive batches of pigs and their subclinical influence extends well beyond the obvious clinical effects observed by the farmer and his veterinarian.