Of course, African Swine Fever continues to be a threat but closer to home we have Seneca Valley virus which causes blisters.It's present at least in environmental samples on assembly yards in Canada so it's very close and it would not be a good disease to have spread to our swine herds because it interferes with our Foot and Mouth disease surveillance because it causes blisters.
Every blister needs to be investigated by CFIA and that would be a huge task if Seneca Valley virus became widespread in the region.The other threat that we see on the horizon right now closer to home is Streptococcus zooepidemicus.It causes 15 to 19 percent mortality losses in sows.They die suddenly so you can't live with it.
It's a bacteria so some antibiotic treatments might work but there's indications that they pick up resistance very quickly so it becomes harder and harder to treat so it's a nasty disease to have.So, I see both Streptococcus zooepidemicus and Seneca Valley virus as threats closer to home.
Dr. Christensen says the vision is to have a swine health network with three pillars, the surveillance system where swine health is monitored throughout the region, an intelligence network to facilitate knowledge exchange among laboratories and practitioners and practice-oriented prevention, control and treatment.
Source : Farmscape.ca