A study funded by the Swine Health Information Center Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Research Program, in partnership with the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research and Pork Checkoff, sought to determine if an environmental enrichment (EE) device could be used to self-vaccinate pigs through natural behavior and reduce labor requirements. Led by Dr. John McGlone at Texas Tech University collaborating with Dr. Rebecca Robbins and Dr. Jessica Seate and a team of students, the EE device was developed to allow pigs to self-administer liquids, such as vaccines, through pig rooting, investigating, and natural play behaviors. Through measuring antibody response after self-vaccination compared to hand-vaccination, researchers investigated efficacy of vaccine delivery to pigs for erysipelas, iIleitis, influenza, and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae. Researchers determined efficacy varies by pathogen, with erysipelas and ileitis vaccines showing similar efficacy between self and hand-vaccination.
Find the industry summary for project #23-052 on this page.
This study sought to determine if an EE self-administration device could deliver vaccines and generate robust antibodies in growing pigs against Lawsonia intracellularis (ileitis), Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (Mhp), influenza A virus (IAV), and Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae (erysipelas). For each vaccine trial, 36 growing pigs at approximately 200 pounds were utilized over a period of up to 49 days after vaccination. Oral fluids and serum antibodies were collected at baseline and post-vaccination to compare vaccine efficacy between the EE self-vaccination technology and traditional vaccine administration by a person. Assays for serum IgG and IgA were compared across three treatments, including 1) non-vaccinated controls, 2) pigs with individual vaccination by oral gavage or intramuscular injection, and 3) self-vaccinated group.