Feasibility of pooled oral fluid collection from pre-weaning piglets using cotton ropes

Abstract

Highlights Pooled oral fluid (OF) sampling from piglets is achievable pre-weaning using a cotton rope. OF collection was successful for 62–100% of the litters depending on age and pre-exposure. 84.7 and 95% of naïve pigs interacted spontaneously with a rope at 21 and 28 days age, respectively. Latency to interact with the rope highly varied between piglets within litters.

Guidelines for oral fluid-based surveillance of viral pathogens in swine

“…Allow 45 to 60 min of sampling time at the first collection for pigs to learn the process. Thereafter, the pigs will remember and will respond quickly to the presence of the hanging rope and 30 min should be sufficient to obtain the sample [15,69,73]. To harvest the sample, remove the rope, place the wet portion of the rope inside a plastic bag, extract the oral fluid (by hand or wringer), and decant the sample into a container [76].…”

“…Oral fluids can likewise be collected from individual animals, as is done in sows, gilts, or some boar studs. However, sampling individuals tends to be less successful than group sampling, particularly older sows and boars, although "training" the animals (see description in trouble-shooting section) can be helpful [15,73,75].…”

“…Three-stranded cotton rope~1.6 cm in diameter is optimal for oral fluid collection in animals ≥40 kg, but younger animals prefer smaller diameter rope (≤ 0.8 cm). Alternatively, individual strands of larger diameter rope can be used to meet the younger pigs' thinner rope preference [70,73].…”

“…Oral fluid samples are readily collected from groups of pigs ≥21 days of age by providing access to a suspended length of cotton rope for ~ 30 min [ 64 , 72 , 73 ]. The majority of oral fluid research has been done on pens of ~ 25 pigs, in which case one rope will provide an oral fluid sample representing ~ 80% of the animals in a 30 min sampling [ 74 , 75 ].…”

Advances in oral fluid antibody-based surveillance for porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV)

“…Oral fluid samples are readily collected from groups of pigs ≥ 21 days of age by providing access to a suspended length of cotton rope for ~30 minutes [55][56][57] . The majority of oral fluid research has been done on pens of ~25 pigs, in which case one rope will provide an oral fluid sample representing ~80% of the animals in a 30 minutes sampling 58,59 .…”