The State Veterinary Service of the South-Eastern Administrative District recalls the continued unfavorable epizootic situation in Russian Federation on African swine fever (ASF) and the emergence of new foci of the disease.

As of September 9, 2016, 128 active outbreaks of ASF were registered in the Russian Federation.

In the population of domestic pigs - 99:

22 - in the Moscow region, 6 - in the Vladimir region, 3 - in the Voronezh region, 1 - in the Krasnodar region, 4 - in the Kursk region, 2 - in the Lipetsk region, 2 - in the Nizhny Novgorod region, 9 - in the Ryazan region, 1 - in the Pskov region, 5 - in the Tambov region, 10 - in the Volgograd region, 1 - in the Bryansk region, 2 - in the Oryol region, 29 - in the Saratov region, 2 - in Chuvash Republic. Also, there are 22 objects in the quarantine mode in the wild fauna (Tver, Yaroslavl, Bryansk, Oryol, Kursk, Voronezh, Belgorod and Kaluga regions).

Also in the quarantine mode in the wild fauna there are 29 objects in the population of wild boars (Moscow, Vladimir, Nizhny Novgorod, Ryazan, Voronezh, Ivanovo, Novgorod, Volgograd, Saratov regions and in the Chuvash Republic).

In 2016, ASF was registered in the Smolensk, Kaluga, Penza regions, the Republic of Crimea, and the Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria.

In order to prevent the introduction of the ASF agent into the territory of Moscow, the State Veterinary Service draws your attention to the inadmissibility of the receipt of products of animal origin from the subjects of the Russian Federation that are unfavorable for ASF, and without veterinary accompanying documents to the territory of the South-Eastern Administrative District of Moscow.

Reminder for the hunter.

Every self-respecting hunter wants to get such a trophy as a wild boar. At the height of the hunting season, the animal disease control station of the South-Eastern Autonomous Okrug reminds of the need to prevent the spread of African swine fever among wild boars. When drawing up a contract (voucher) for the provision of services for the organization of hunting, it is necessary to clarify with persons planning to carry out hunting in a particular hunting farm, their presence earlier in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation in which outbreaks of African swine fever were recorded. Butchering of carcasses of hunted animals shall be carried out centrally in equipped places. Disinfect vehicles used to transport carcasses of hunted animals. Upon completion of the hunt and butchering of wild boar carcasses, disinfect hands, shoes, as well as knives, axes, hooks, ropes and other devices. In the event that in the course of rounds, guarding the ground or hunting the corpses of wild boars or animals whose behavior does not correspond to their natural behavioral reflexes, as well as in the case of shooting animals with such signs, it is necessary to immediately inform any body of the state veterinary service of the Russian Federation (veterinarian, local veterinary hospital, animal disease control station, territorial administration Rosselkhoznadzor), as well as other executive authorities of the subject of the Russian Federation or federal executive authorities (Ministry of Emergency Situations, Ministry of Internal Affairs). Hunters and / or persons employed in the field of hunting, hunting other types of game animals in hunting farms that are unfavorable for ASF, living in countryside and keeping domestic pigs in the backyards, it is necessary to clean shoes (wash) and subsequent disinfection.

REMEMBER! The ASF virus in the field is resistant to putrefaction, and persists for a long time in various secretions of sick animals. In pig manure, the ASF virus remains active for 60 to 100 days. And in faeces at room temperature (18-24 ° C), the virus is active for more than 10 days, in the soil - up to 4 months.

Outside the body in physiological media or blood serum, the virus persists:

African swine fever affects domestic pigs of all breeds, ages, regardless of the season, as well as wild boars. Animals of other species and humans are immune to the virus.

The main sources of the pathogen are sick, ill pigs and virus carriers, from which ticks become infected. From the body of such animals, the virus is excreted in large quantities with feces, urine, and saliva. The transmission factors of the virus are all objects of the external environment (food, water, bedding, manure, containers, transport), as well as service personnel.

African swine fever causes enormous economic damage to animal owners and large pig farms. People suffer huge losses, lose their jobs. The supply of animals to pig farms in the area of ​​the first threatened zone can begin only a year after the quarantine is lifted. The state suffers huge economic damage. After the quarantine is lifted, the market may experience a shortage of pig products. Due to the lightning-fast course of the disease (up to 1 week), there is a huge loss of pigs. To prevent and prevent the spread of African swine fever on the territory of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia approved in 2012 an updated Action Plan to prevent the spread and eradication of the African swine fever virus on the territory of the Russian Federation. According to this plan, in the outbreak and within the first threatened zone, pigs are subject to bloodless killing. African swine fever is an uncontrolled natural infection. The virus itself dies only with high heat treatment (over 100 degrees Celsius). At the moment there is no vaccine against this particularly dangerous disease.

Today, in the European part of the Russian Federation and a number of neighboring countries, there is an endemic zone for African swine fever (ASF).

The ongoing expansion of the epizootic with the capture of more and more countries indicates the pandemic nature of the infection, and once again confirms the danger of ASF as a transboundary disease.

The history of the development of epizootics indicates the need to tighten socio-economic measures aimed at controlling and preventing the disease.

African swine fever- a particularly dangerous, acutely contagious, viral disease. The introduction of the disease to the territory of the Russian Federation occurred in 2007 with wild boars. The virus infects wild and domestic pigs of all breeds and ages at any time of the year. It does not pose a danger to human life and health.

The disease is highly lethal, spreads very quickly and causes huge material damage. agriculture. Up to 100% of diseased pigs die. Treatment is prohibited, there is no vaccine.

Pigs become infected contact with sick and recovered animals: through feed (especially food waste), water, care items, vehicles contaminated with secretions of sick animals, as well as through contact with the corpses of dead pigs and slaughter products of infected pigs. Most often, ASF is caused by feeding pigs uncooked food waste from home kitchens, various food and canteens, slaughterhouse waste, as well as mixed feed and grain products that have not undergone heat treatment. The disease is carried by domestic and wild animals, birds, rodents and insects.

The virus is very stable: in food, water and external environment stored for months, freezing and drying does not work on it. It is destroyed exclusively by heating to high temperatures.

Symptoms. It takes 2-7 days from infection to the onset of symptoms. In animals, body temperature rises to 42 ° C, shortness of breath, cough appear, appetite disappears, thirst increases, bouts of vomiting and paralysis of the hind limbs are noted, on the skin of the inner surface of the thighs, on the abdomen, neck, at the base of the ears, on the patch and tail become noticeable red-violet spots. Death occurs in 1-5 days, less often later. There is a chronic course of the disease.

When diagnosing African swine fever to a disadvantaged point (farm, locality) is quarantined. Hard quarantine is the only measure to combat the disease. All pigs in the epizootic focus are killed by a bloodless method, the carcasses are burned. Pig corpses, manure, leftover feed, inventory, as well as dilapidated premises, wooden floors, etc. are burned on the spot. Disinfection of places where animals are kept, as well as measures to exterminate rodents, insects and ticks are carried out. Within a radius of 20 km, all pigs, regardless of signs of disease, are seized and killed by a bloodless method, other activities are carried out, including the destruction of stray animals and rodents. Under the terms of the quarantine, it is prohibited to sell all types of livestock products on the markets and export them outside the outbreak during the entire quarantine period (30 days from the date of slaughter of all pigs and the implementation of a complex of veterinary and sanitary measures). Also, in the next 6 months, it is prohibited to export crop products from the focus of the disease. Breeding pigs on farms is allowed only one year after the quarantine is lifted.

Reminder for pig owners

• - Do not allow strangers into your household. Move the pigs to the free range. Owners of personal subsidiary farms and farms should keep pigs in pigsties and barns without walking and contact with other animals;
• - exclude feeding pigs with feed of animal origin and food waste without boiling. Buy food only industrial production or boil them, at a temperature of at least 80 ° C, before feeding;
• - treat pigs and premises for their keeping once every 10 days against blood-sucking insects (ticks, lice, fleas). Constantly lead the fight against rodents;
• - do not carry out house-to-house slaughter and sale of pork without conducting an ante-mortem inspection and conducting a veterinary and sanitary examination of meat and slaughter products by specialists of the state veterinary service;
• - do not buy live pigs in places of unauthorized trade without veterinary accompanying documents, do not import pigs and pig products from other regions without the consent of the state veterinary service;
• - be sure to provide the pig population for veterinary examination, vaccinations (against classical swine fever, erysipelas) and other treatments carried out by veterinary specialists;
• - do not throw away animal corpses, waste from their maintenance and processing in landfills, roadsides, do not bury them in your garden or other land plot. Do not attempt to process the meat of dead or forced slaughtered pigs - this is prohibited and may lead to further spread of the disease.

Prevention of the introduction of the disease into pig farms and individual farmsteads

In order to prevent the introduction of the ASF pathogen into pig farms located in the regions of the Russian Federation adjacent to territories that are unfavorable for the disease, it is rational to carry out and subsequently support the following measures:

• transfer them to the regime of closed enterprises with a ban on the walking of pigs (including in the households of the population);
• fence farms;
• equip points for disinfection of vehicles at the entrance;
• provide service personnel with change of clothes and footwear. isolated from production premises, equip sanitary inspection rooms for changing clothes and personal hygiene, as well as places for eating;
• conduct a daily clinical examination of the pig population (in the households - a regular examination);
• conduct laboratory studies to confirm the diagnoses established by clinical and epizootic methods in case of mass diseases of pigs. In accordance with the results obtained, adjust the scheme of preventive measures of the economy;
• all pigs (both in farms and in the backyards of citizens) should be immunized against classical plague and erysipelas;
• Prohibit the feeding of food waste and confiscated food to pigs without heat treatment. To carry out the purchase of feed for pigs from territories free from infectious diseases. Properly equip the places of storage and preparation of feed, with its control and quality. Drinking water for animals must be disinfected;
• limit the movement of animals, with the control of the health status of pigs subjected to transfer;
• regularly, in full (both in the premises for keeping animals and in the adjacent territory) to carry out decontamination, deratization, disinfestation work with monitoring of their effectiveness. Exclude the access of birds, dogs, cats to production facilities and food storage areas;
• slaughter sites, points, as well as autopsy sites, should be equipped in isolation from livestock farms;
• properly organize the disinfection of manure, wastewater, disposal of the corpses of dead animals;
• clean the territory of the farm and the area adjacent to it from manure, garbage.

Removal of quarantine and restrictions

Quarantine is removed from a farm, point, district (region, territory, republic) that is unfavorable for African swine fever 30 days after the destruction of all pigs in the epizootic focus and the slaughter of pigs in the first threatened zone, carrying out other activities provided for by the Instruction.

For a period of 6 months. After the quarantine is lifted, restrictions are set:

It is forbidden to export pork, products and raw materials from their slaughter outside disadvantaged areas, regions, republics by transport of all types.

Citizens are prohibited from selling pigs in the markets of districts, regions (krais), republics that are unfavorable for ASF, and farms are prohibited from purchasing them from the population.

Post offices of districts, regions, republics unfavorable for ASF are prohibited from accepting parcels from citizens with products and raw materials of animal origin.

During the period of validity of the restrictions on the roads, when leaving the disadvantaged areas, regions, republics, control veterinary and police posts should function.

The acquisition of farms with a livestock of pigs in the former epizootic focus and the first threatened zone is allowed one year after the quarantine is lifted and a negative result of biological control is obtained.

The formed natural foci are kept in quarantine. In agreement with Rosprirodnadzor, ecologists and entomologists carry out entomological control (trapping insects and protecting animals from insects by periodic disinfestation) and, in agreement with hunting supervision and foresters of subordinate forestries, shoot wild boars in the focus of infection.

IMMEDIATELY REPORT all cases of disease and sudden death of pigs to the Interdistrict Departments of the Office of the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance.

Remember, for actions (inaction) that led to the emergence of foci of ASF and its spread, administrative and criminal liability is provided!

Information on inspections of the activities of the executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and local governments

www.site /home/Afrikanskaya_chuma_sviney_pamyatka_naseleniyu/Borba_s_ACHS_na_territorii_Rossiyskoy_Federatsii/

The fight against ASF in the territory of the Russian Federation

from 22.02.2011. - download (468.04kb)

Plan of measures to prevent the spread and eradication of the African swine fever (ASF) virus in the territory of the Russian Federation from 25.10.2012. - download (468.04kb)

Plan of meetings of the Commission of the Government of the Russian Federation for the Prevention of the Spread and Elimination of the African Swine Fever (ASF) Virus on the Territory of the Russian Federation (Operational Headquarters) for September-December 2013. from 18.09.2013. - download (2,21Mb)

Action plan to prevent entry into the territory Russian Federation African swine fever (ASF) and its spread in the Russian Federationdated 30.09.2016. - download (4.04Mb)

Plan of organizational and special measures to monitor, regulate the number and reduce the migratory activity of wild boars on the territory of the Russian Federation, including specially protected natural areas of regional and federal significance dated 11/15/2016. - download (2,32Mb)

On the work of the Interdepartmental Commission for the Prevention of the Spread

African swine fever in the Russian Federation

AFRICAN SWINE FEVER African swine fever ( pestis africana suum , ASF) - an infectious disease only of domestic and wild pigs, caused by a virus that, regardless of the method of distribution, affects 100% of animals of all ages, has a high mortality rate. It belongs to the group of especially dangerous diseases.

History reference. The disease was first registered at the beginning of the 20th century. in East Africa. The viral nature was proved by the English researcher R. Montgomery (1921). was introduced to Europe in 1971 and 1978. appeared on the American continent.

In the countries of Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, the disease is stationary. This is due to the involvement of wild virus-carrying pigs and argas ticks in disadvantaged areas in the epizootic process. In 1986 - 1988 ASF has been reported in Spain, Portugal and Italy. Individual outbreaks have been reported in Belgium and the Netherlands. In Africa, the largest number of outbreaks was observed in Angola, Cameroon, and isolated cases - in Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zaire, Tanzania, and South Africa.

Sustainability. The virus is resistant to physical and chemical factors. At a temperature of 5 ° C - up to 7 years, 18 ° C - up to 18 months, 37 ° C - 30 days, 50 ° C - 60 minutes, 60 ° C - 10 minutes, at sub-zero temperatures - several years. Ether destroys the virus within 15 minutes, 3% toluene - 24 days. Formalin, phenolic and chlorine-containing drugs quickly destroy the virus. The pathogen persists in the corpses of pigs for up to 10 weeks in meat from sick animals - 155 days, in smoked ham - up to 5 months, in the manure of pigsties - up to 3 months.

epidemiological data. Domestic and wild pigs are susceptible to the disease, regardless of age and breed. The disease can occur at any time of the year. However, all cases of primary epizootic foci of African swine fever in previously prosperous countries of Europe and America were observed in the winter-spring period.

The source of the exciter. The source of the pathogen are sick and recovered pigs. Virus carrying in individual animals lasts up to 2 years (or more). In Africa, wild pigs (warthogs and bush pigs) are asymptomatic, and they are the main reservoirs of the virus in areas of stationary trouble. From the body of infected animals, the virus is excreted with blood during nosebleeds, feces, urine, secretions of the mucous membranes of the nasal cavity, and saliva. Animals become infected mainly by eating feed contaminated with the virus. Infection is also possible through the respiratory route, through damaged skin and through the bites of infected argas ticks of the ornithodoros genus, carriers and reservoirs of the ASF virus, in whose bodies this virus persists for many years.

The virus is spread by infected animal carriers, including those in the incubation period, as well as through various infected objects. The products of slaughter of infected pigs (meat, meat products, lard, blood, bones, skins, etc.) are of particular danger. African swine fever. Healthy animals become infected when they are kept together with sick and virus carriers, as well as when they are in infected premises and in vehicles. Mechanically, the virus can be spread by people different kinds domestic animals, insects, rodents that were in the epizootic focus or in the infected territory of objects (slaughterhouses, warehouses, etc.)

African swine fever manifests itself as an epizootic and is characterized by high rates of morbidity, mortality and mortality (up to 98 - 100%), especially in the primary foci of the disease.

Course and symptoms. By external manifestations, the African plague is difficult to distinguish from the classical plague. The duration of the incubation period, the form, the severity of the course of the disease depend on the virulence of the strain, the dose of the virus and the method of infection. The incubation period is 2-7 days, sometimes up to 15 days and rarely longer. The disease proceeds superacutely, acutely, subacutely, chronically, and in enzootic zones and asymptomatically.

Superacute current rarely noted. At the same time, in diseased animals, the body temperature rises to 40.5 - 42 ° C, a breakdown and a depressed state are observed. Animals rise with difficulty, severe shortness of breath is expressed and in 1-3 days they die.

Acute course - the most characteristic of the disease, lasts up to 7 days and, as a rule, ends in death. The disease begins with an increase in body temperature to 40.5 - 42 ° C, which is maintained at this level until the penultimate day of the animal's life. Simultaneously with the rise in temperature or after 1-2 days, oppression, stagnation and reluctant eating of food are noted. Then there is unsteadiness when moving, signs of pneumonia - breathing becomes short, intermittent, superficial, sometimes accompanied by a cough. During this period, there is a strong hyperemia of the conjunctiva and visible mucous membranes, the blue of the skin is pronounced in various areas with multiple hemorrhages. This is especially pronounced in the abdomen, submandibular space, groin. Sometimes noted indigestion: constipation or diarrhea mixed with blood. Pregnant sows are aborted. Some animals show symptoms of nervous disorders (convulsions, paralysis and coma) and epistaxis.

Subacute course characterized by the same symptoms as acute, and lasts up to 20 days. In sick animals, the body temperature in the first week is kept within 40.5 - 42 C, then decreases to 40 - 40.5 C. Most of the animals die, and some become chronic. At the same time, gradual emaciation is noted with preserved appetite, growth retardation, signs of bronchopneumonia, arthritis, ear necrosis up to their falling off, skin necrosis on the lower limbs, back, and head. Patients die in a state of extreme exhaustion.

pathological changes. Regardless of how the virus enters the body, severe septic phenomena develop, manifested by hemorrhagic diathesis, inflammatory, dystrophic and necrotic changes in various organs.

In the acute course of the disease, the skin of the auricles, abdomen and inner thighs is dark red with a bluish tint with diffuse hemorrhages. The blood vessels are dilated. Sometimes hematomas, especially in the groin and retrosternal region. In the muscles, hemorrhages and hematomas are not uncommon. On the serous membranes diffuse hemorrhages from small to bruises. Hemorrhagic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. The walls of the gallbladder are strongly thickened due to edema and dilation of blood vessels. Almost always, pulmonary edema, serous-hemorrhagic pneumonia with a sharp gelatinous edema of the interlobular connective tissue and parenchyma are noted. Kidneys with numerous hemorrhages. Diffuse hemorrhages are observed in the renal pelvis. Lymph nodes, especially gastric, hepatic, renal and mesenteric, are enlarged and completely saturated with hemorrhages, resembling a clot of coagulated blood or hematoma. The spleen is greatly enlarged, its edges are rounded, easily torn when pressed. In subacute and chronic course of the disease, these changes are less pronounced and more often resemble lesions in classical swine fever.

Histological examination reveals intense damage to the walls of blood vessels and destroyed cells of the reticuloendothelial system.

Diagnosis. African swine fever is established on the basis of epizootological indicators, clinical symptoms, pathomorphological changes and laboratory tests. Epizootological diagnostics take into account trade and economic relations with countries that are unfavorable for plague, the rapid development of epizootics with high mortality, and especially the development of epizootics among animals vaccinated against classical plague. Of the clinical symptoms, one should take into account a high persistent fever for 3-6 days, depression, hemodynamic disturbances, blue skin, ears, abdomen, symptoms of pulmonary edema, diarrhea sometimes with blood, bloody discharge from the oral and nasal cavities. The disease ends lethally within 2 to 6 days. Clinical signs are not characteristic and are very similar to those of classical plague. Of the pathomorphological changes, it is necessary to distinguish an increase in the spleen by 1.5-2 times, serous-hemorrhagic pneumonia with gelatinous swelling of the interlobular connective tissue, plethora of the kidneys with multiple hemorrhages, hemorrhagic infiltration of the portal, mesenteric, renal and other lymph nodes, accumulation a large number serous-hemorrhagic infiltrate in the thoracic, abdominal and pericardial regions and gallbladder edema. The presence of three or more signs in several animals gives rise to the suspicion of African swine fever.

differential diagnosis. Classical plague, Aujeszky's disease, pasteurellosis and erysipelas are excluded. It is most difficult to distinguish the first two diseases, since their clinical manifestation is very similar.

Treatment has not been developed.

Immunity. There is no consensus on the mechanism of immunity. However, there are numerous observations on the resistance of recovered or vaccinated animals with weakened strains to an identical virulent virus. Animals that have been ill are carriers of the virus. Means of specific prevention of ASF have not been developed.

© 2009 Management Federal Service for veterinary and phytosanitary supervision in the city of Moscow and the Moscow and Tula regions

Last week, the Rosselkhoznadzor discovered the African swine fever virus in meat sold in stores near Moscow. Swine fever is completely harmless to humans. It cannot be infected. But for pig farming, this is a huge problem.

Now in Russia there is actually an epidemic of African swine fever. This year, more than two hundred outbreaks of ASF have already been recorded in 42 regions of the country. Large Russian agricultural companies destroy, burn tens and hundreds of thousands of affected pigs. The damage is estimated at billions of rubles. Hundreds of thousands is not much more. In the 1990s, plague destroyed 12 million head of livestock in Holland and Belgium.

Swine fever entered Russia in 2007 from Georgia. Then there were suspicions that this was a special operation of the Saakashvili regime, which is unfriendly to us. There is no reliable evidence. But some experts believe that this is a possible option.

Why did the plague not penetrate Russia earlier, when the epidemic was raging in Europe? We had a strong federal veterinary service. Very strict control of livestock transportation. In 2004, the service was reformed. Its functions were transferred to different levels, including the regions. Funding has been cut. Why was this done? The task is to reduce the notorious administrative barriers, to facilitate the work of small businesses. To make it easier to breed pigs in private farms. It seems to be correct solution. Pigs have become easier to breed. But only it turned out that personal farmsteads are the main source of swine fever. Sanitary regulations are often not followed. Infected dead animals are not burned. Waste is not treated properly. But since the veterinary service is weakened, control is lost. It is difficult to carry out serious anti-epidemic measures coordinated with different regions. And yes, there is not enough money. Here swine fever is creeping all over Russia.

The idea is expressed that it is possible to defeat ASF only if the number of pigs in private farms is eliminated. This was done, for example, in Spain. This has already been done in our Belgorod region. In this area, the huge scale of pig breeding and the risk of an entire branch of the economy did not begin. But across the country, millions of families raise pigs. For them, this is an important bonus. And if it's small farms, then the main income. And this is a serious social problem.

Marina Alexandrovna is in grief because four piglets were seized by the veterinary supervision staff. And the director of a large holding is also in trouble: 17,000 thoroughbred pigs have been destroyed.

“This complex brought us about 15-20 million monthly profits,” says CEO OOO "Verdazernoprodukt" Andrei Parakhnevich.

And it is difficult to say which of them is harder in these moments. The pigsty is empty and cattle cannot be kept here for at least a year. African plague is not a dangerous disease for a person, even if he eats plague meat. But for other pigs - deadly.

Each case of suspected African plague must be checked in a special laboratory. Pig blood samples come here from all infected regions of Russia. This is no longer the south of Russia, as it was in the beginning. Data for the fall of last year: just a couple of outbreaks of fever. And today the geography of the virus is striking. He has almost reached the Arctic Circle. In the east, for the time being, I stopped in Tatarstan. And it all started in the south of Russia almost 10 years ago.

The African plague is known to have crossed the border from Georgia. Then they hoped that in Russia it would be possible to stop it. The African plague turned out to be contagious and tenacious. Since then, the state has been doing nothing but extinguishing outbreaks in different regions.

This whole special operation is just because of a few sick pigs. Villages and cities within a radius of 20 kilometers become an exclusion zone - these are international quarantine rules.

“It is necessary to destroy all the livestock and, in general, everything needs to be disinfected, or even better, burned, because only fire destroys everything,” says Igor Nikulin, expert of the Supreme Ecological Council of the Committee on Nature Management and Ecology of the State Duma.

10 thousand sick and healthy pigs were also burned in one day. The largest pig complex in the republic was closed. Wild boars are shot in the surrounding forests. And employees of the veterinary supervision go to private yards, but they are usually met as enemies of the people, even despite the compensation.

Ever since African swine fever appeared in Russia, veterinary services more than a million animals had to be destroyed. And despite such strict lockdowns, there are hundreds of new outbreaks this year alone.

This institute was created specifically for the fight against biological weapons. In the Soviet Union, they feared that the planted African swine fever virus could be a blow to the entire industry.

“Thus the Americans ravaged Cuba. They poisoned both tobacco and sugar cane, and those same pigs. They have a lot of experience in this. They are undoubted leaders in the field of military virology,” said Igor Nikulin, expert of the Supreme Ecological Council of the State Duma Committee on Nature Management and Ecology.

However, Cuba is the only well-known case when the African plague was used as a biological weapon. The source of introduction to Russia has not been established. But it is known that it is in Georgia, near the border with Russia, that the newest American biological laboratory is located.

“Make sure nothing is secret here. We only conduct scientific research here,” says Professor Amiran Gamkrelidze, Director of the Center for Disease Control.

Scientific research has not yet improved the situation. On the contrary, infected wild boars regularly carry the virus across the border. At modern industrial pig farms, security measures are like in a laboratory, but this does not save from African plague.

“We conducted our own investigation, no matter how strange it may sound. We are still considering the moment, perhaps, roughly speaking, stuffing,” said Sergey Lazarev, chief veterinarian of Verdazernoprodukt LLC.

This pig farm is now closed for a year. It is guarded like a military facility.

“We have neither treatment nor prevention methods, that is, vaccination. They are missing, they are still missing,” says Alexei Chastov, head of the veterinary department of the government of the Saratov region.

The film crew came to the Research Institute of Veterinary Virology to find out if there really are no means of protection against African fever.

There are four scientific institutes on the planet who deal with the vaccine. You are one of them. Tell me, who is the first in these studies?

“There is a certain competitiveness and each scientific group follows its own paths of implementation. I can say with full confidence that we have made progress in developing a vaccine against African swine fever. Who will be the first to make a vaccine is an open question. And the competition is quite fierce. In our work, there is such data that animals are able to survive after new effective vaccines,” said Alexander Malogolovkin, Deputy Director for Research at the Research Institute of Veterinary Virology.

Journalists were not shown the pigs on which the vaccine is being tested. These are perhaps the most secret pigs in the world. There is a vaccine, it is already working. It remains only to make sure that it will be safe and will not cause new outbreaks. Oddly enough, scientists who are working on a vaccine are sure that you need to fight using different methods. Firstly, vaccination for the entire livestock is too expensive. And secondly, it is possible to defeat swine fever right now, and even without drugs.

“It is necessary, for example, to abandon the feeding of food waste and replace it with industrially produced feed. It is expensive. And this makes keeping animals unprofitable,” says Denis Kolbasov, director of the All-Russian Research Institute of Veterinary Virology and Microbiology of the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

But few people know that ordinary village pigs make up a third of the entire industry. And 90 percent of outbreaks occur just on subsidiary plots. Country people they are well aware of the symptoms of the plague, but rarely admit when they have grief. And it's understandable why. Svetlana Zueva honestly announced the death of the piglet, and the whole village stopped greeting her.

The situation in Russia now is very similar to what happened in Spain half a century ago. The African plague virus has endangered the entire pig industry.

“When we first started, the whole country was infected. And only a few provinces remained healthy. Already in the first year, we have reduced the number of diseases in the controlled area of ​​pig farms. But it turned out that the problem is with private producers,” says Professor, Director of the OIE Laboratory for African swine fever and African horse sickness of the University of Madrid, José Manuel Sanchez-Viscaino.

Spanish peasants were faced with a choice: to engage in pig breeding professionally and comply with sanitary standards, or to engage in other animals. In five years, the country completely defeated the virus and became world famous not for the plague, but for its delicacies. Perhaps the same path awaits Russia. But then the pig, lying in a village puddle in the middle of the road, will remain only on newsreels.