Farms quarantined following African Swine Fever outbreak in Gauteng

The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development has urged pig farmers to only buy pigs directly from known healthy herds following an outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in one of the farms in Gauteng.

As a result of the outbreak, farms in Gauteng, North West, and the Free State have been placed under precautionary quarantine.

AFRICAN SWINE FEVER OUTBREAK IN GAUTENG

According to the department, the farm has been put under quarantine, and the Provincial Veterinary Services instituted forward. Back-tracing investigations to identify properties that could have had direct or indirect contact with the affected farm are underway.

The source of the infection on the positive farm has not yet been identified, but it’s believed that the infection was already on the farm since mid-December.

The department’s spokesperson, Reggie Ngcobo, said outbreaks of African Swine Fever started in the previous ASF-free areas of South Africa in 2019, and these outbreaks eventually affected many areas of the country.

Ngcobo said the spread of the disease seems to have slowed down, with fewer new properties becoming infected since October 2022.

“Control measures are based on quarantine and movement controls, with awareness drives to highlight essential biosecurity measures to enable pig owners to prevent infection of their pigs. This outbreak of ASF on a farm with suitable biosecurity measures again illustrates that the virus is highly contagious,” he said.

All pig farmers and pig keepers have been urged to only buy pigs directly from known healthy herds and to prevent contact between their pigs and other pigs or wildlife. Visitors should be discouraged from entering the area where pigs are kept.

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WHAT ARE THE CLINICAL SIGNS OF ASF?

• Severe cases of the disease are characterised by high fever and they die quickly within two to ten days.
• Deaths can be as high as 100% and the disease spreads quickly between contact pigs.
• Other clinical signs may include: abortion in pregnant sows, pigs don’t want to eat, depression, difficulty breathing, vomiting, bleeding from the nose or rectum, diarrhoea and redness of the skin of the ears, abdomen and legs.
• Some forms of the virus produce less intense diseases, though deaths can still range from 30-70%.
• Chronic disease symptoms include loss of weight, intermittent fever, respiratory signs, chronic skin ulcers and arthritis.

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