What to Do About Piglet Edema Disease? A Detailed Guide to Treatment and Medication

Porcine edema disease, also known as porcine gastrointestinal edema, is an acute sporadic disease of weaned piglets caused by the toxins of pathogenic Escherichia coli. So what should be done when a piglet comes down with edema disease? What medicine should be used?

What are the symptoms of piglet edema disease?

Piglet edema disease mainly occurs with sudden onset, without a high body temperature, with impaired movement of the limbs, weakness of the hindquarters, swaying and ataxia; some affected pigs move in circles or dash about blindly, suddenly lurching forward; when subjected to various stimuli or caught, they scream when touched, with a hoarse cry, fall to the ground, and move their limbs wildly, as if swimming; affected pigs commonly show edema of the face and eyelids, which in severe cases extends to the cheeks and neck, with the head becoming swollen.

What should be done when a piglet comes down with edema disease? What medicine should be used?

1. Piglet edema disease is an acute swine disease caused by pathogenic Escherichia coli that mostly affects weaned piglets, and piglet edema disease has a sudden onset: a normally robust piglet suddenly becomes listless, slow to respond, with weak hind limbs and difficulty walking, and when it falls to the ground it moves its limbs wildly, with a hoarse cry, and even edema over the whole body, loss of appetite; weaned piglets sometimes develop diarrhea.

2. Prevention methods: Since piglet edema disease is closely related to changes in feed and feeding methods, piglets should not be weaned abruptly at weaning time; supplementary feeding measures should be carried out before weaning to avoid weaning stress in piglets; after weaning, the feed and feeding methods should not be changed suddenly, and the feed amount should be increased gradually; keep the pig house well insulated and ventilated in a timely manner to avoid the piglets' growing environment being too damp.

3. Treatment methods: Symptomatic treatment should be adopted in the early stage of onset, restricting the feed intake of affected pigs, reducing the protein content in the feed, appropriately increasing the fiber content in the feed, adding organic acids and administering antibacterial drugs orally; if listlessness occurs, and if there is reduced appetite, diarrhea and other such conditions, intramuscular injection should be carried out immediately.