21/05/2026
Erysipelas In Swine 🐖 AKA (Diamond Skin Disease).
This disease affects all pigs over the age of 12 weeks. The key clinical signs include small raised diamonds on the skin, fever and inappetence.
Background and history
Swine erysipelas is caused by a bacterium,
Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae (syn, insidiosa ) that
is found in most if not all pig farms.
Up to 50 percent of animals may carry it in their tonsils.
It is always present in either the pig or in the environment because it is excreted via saliva, faeces or urine. It is also found in many other species, including birds and sheep and can survive outside the pig for a few weeks and longer in light soils. Thus it is impossible to eliminate it from a herd.
Infected faeces is probably the main source of infection, particularly in growing and finishing pens. Contaminated water also aids the spread of infection.
Disease is relatively uncommon in pigs under 8 to 12 weeks of age due to protection provided by maternal antibodies from the sow via the colostrum.
The most susceptible animals are growing pigs, non-vaccinated gilts and up to fourth parity sows.
The bacterium alone can cause the disease but concurrent virus infections, such as porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome ( PRRS) or swine influenza (SI), may trigger outbreaks.
The organism enters the body through the tonsils, naturally occurring breaks in the integrity of the small intestine, or through wounds associated with fighting.
The organism multiplies in the body, and invades the bloodstream to produce a septicaemia.
The rapidity of multiplication and the level of immunity in the pig then determines the clinical symptoms.
Once a pig has been infected it will become immune and in many cases this is only associated with mild or sub-clinical disease.
It also causes local skin lesions in humans but this is rare. Strains of erysipelas vary in their capacity to produce disease, ranging from very mild to very severe.
The incubation period is 24 to 48 hours.
🛡️ Prevention
✅If a boar is ill with a temperature and shows skin lesions, treat immediately and do not use for mating for a minimum period of four
weeks.
✅Alternatively, cross mate with boars that have no disease history or use AI.
✅Vaccinate all gilts and young boars twice, two to four weeks apart (according to manufacturer's instructions) from 14 weeks
of age.
✅In herds where there is a high challenge it may be necessary to re-vaccinate gilts and boars so that a third dose of vaccine is given
two months after the second often when the breeding animals arrive on the farm.
✅Re-vaccinate sows either two weeks prior to
farrowing, or at weaning time, depending on
the incidence and history of disease on the
farm.
✅Make sure boars are re-vaccinated every six
months.
✅If disease breakdowns occur in spite of vaccination it is likely that the levels of challenge from the environment are high.
✅Assess hygiene in breeding pens and move to an all-in all-out method of housing.
✅In an outbreak remember that water, faeces, dung, nasal secretions, bedding and feed, harbour the organisms.
✅Killed vaccines are quite safe and have no adverse effects on the sow.
✅Efficient storage of the vaccine as per themanufacturers recommendation is essential.
✅Sporadic disease is common in sows but if one sow in a group becomes infected the exposure is high from her urine and faeces and it is advisable to inject all contact animals with penicillin.
✅Birds can also contaminate feed. Assess the levels of the exposure in your herd.
✅If feed-back of faeces is practised in the herd, it should be stopped immediately or it will spread the disease faster.
