Antimicrobial use through feed, water, and injection in 20 swine farms in Alberta and Saskatchewan |
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| Authors: | Leigh B Rosengren Cheryl L Waldner Richard J Reid-Smith John CS Harding Sheryl P Gow and Wendy L Wilkins |
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| Affiliation: | Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5B4 (Rosengren, Waldner, Harding, Gow, Wilkins); Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Unit, Laboratory for Foodborne Zoonoses, Public Health Agency of Canada, 160 Research Lane — Unit 103, Guelph, Ontario N1G 5B2 (Reid-Smith, Gow); Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1 (Reid-Smith) |
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| Abstract: | Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an emerging animal welfare and public health issue linked to antimicrobial use (AMU) in livestock. This study was conducted in 2004 on 20 swine farms in Alberta and Saskatchewan. On-farm records and questionnaires were used to retrospectively describe the antimicrobial exposures of pigs through feed, water, and injection. Antimicrobial use in all production categories was described over 12 months. On-farm records and questionnaires provided sufficient data to describe antimicrobial exposure rates through feed and water. In contrast, on-farm records did not supply sufficient data to describe parenteral antimicrobial exposure rates. Records lacked data on the number of exposures per treatment, therefore parenteral AMU was described as an exposure incidence. Parenteral exposure records were often unavailable for pigs less than 22 kg, in which case questionnaires were used. The incidence of parenteral AMU was significantly higher in herds reporting exposure by questionnaire compared with existing records, suggesting that on-farm records did not reliably describe parenteral AMU. However, because antimicrobial exposures in feed and water were markedly more common than through injection, it was concluded that existing on-farm data would be a valuable resource for investigating AMU and AMR in pigs. |
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