Feral Swine Disease Risks to Cattle

Feral Swine Disease Risks to Cattle
Why should I worry about feral swine?
Feral swine destroy feed crops, damage fences, and contaminate water
sources but their greatest threat to domestic cattle is disease transmission. Feral
swine can carry many bacterial, viral, and parasitic diseases of concern for
cattle. Infection occurs through direct contact with feral swine that use pastures
or feedlots with cattle. Transmission also occurs indirectly if feral swine are able
to access feed and water sources utilized by cattle

Feral Swine Disease and Cattle Production
Many of the pathogens and parasites carried by feral swine can cause weight loss,
abortions, infertility, or death in cattle. A positive test for some diseases, even
without clinical symptoms, can require quarantine of cattle causing production
losses, reduced access to markets, and can even require disposal of animal
products. Some diseases, such as brucellosis, are caused by different strains of the
same species of bacteria. Feral swine typically carry Brucella suis, this strain
generally does not cause symptoms in cattle, however it can cause positive tests.
Other strains of the Brucella bacteria will cause clinical illness in cattle.

Diseases of concern for cattle production
Symptoms in Cattle

Disease

Routes of Transmission

Brucellosis (Brucella
species bacteria)

Direct contact with infected animals, aborted
fetuses, afterbirth, or vaginal discharges.
Ingestion of contaminated feed or water.

No clinical signs of Brucella suis infection, but can cause
positive milk ring test (a routine test for dairy farms.)
Other Brucella strains cause abortion and infertility.

Leptospirosis

Direct or indirect contact with infected urine.

Fever, anemia, lethargy, jaundice, abortion, and infertility.

Pathogenic E. coli

Ingestion of contaminated feces, food,
or water.

Diarrhea, lethargy, loss of appetite, and fever; although
most cattle show no signs of infection, transmission to
humans is a public health risk.

Pseudorabies (Aujeszky’s
disease or “mad itch”)

Nose-to-nose contact, contaminated water or
feed, ingestion of infected tissues, aerosol, or
contaminated equipment.

Intense itching, weakness, convulsions, rapid breathing,
and death.

Salmonellosis

Ingestion of contaminated feces, food or
water.

Severe watery, occasionally bloody, diarrhea, decreased
milk production, dehydration, increased salivation, and
fever.

Tuberculosis

Contact with infected animals, indirect
contact with contaminated feed or water.
Uncommon outside of Hawaii.

Loss of body condition (wasting), lethargy, fever, chronic
cough, death.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Feral Swine Disease Risks to Cattle
What is at risk?
The beef and dairy industries are invaluable; contributing more than $100 billion to the United States
economy annually and feeding millions. With expanding feral swine populations overlapping with beef and
dairy farms it becomes increasingly important to protect your livestock
from exposure to feral swine disease risks. Disease introductions from
feral swine could have a huge financial impact through losses in
productivity, decreased product quality, as well as potentially
detrimental impacts on trade.

How can I protect my cattle from becoming
infected?
• Take additional precautions to prevent contact between feral swine and cattle if feral swine are found in
your area. See the map to determine where feral swine currently exist.
• Store cattle feed in barns or prevent feral
swine from accessing feed whenever possible.
• Prevent feral swine access to water sources
used by cattle.
• Avoid feeding in troughs or on the ground, this
can cause an increased risk of pathogen
transmission since feral swine can access the
feed easily.

Want to learn more?
Call Wildlife Services, a program within the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA)
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, at 1-866-4-USDA-WS or visit
www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife-damage/stopferalswine
to learn more about the problems caused by this invasive animal,
as well as to seek advice and assistance in dealing with feral swine.