The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Nicholas Lauterbach from Pharmgate Animal Health explains the impact of PRRSV and why it remains one of the most costly diseases for pork producers. The discussion focuses on the efficacy of a modified live immunization strategy during a 1-4-4 L1C PRRSV challenge, using a study designed to reflect real-world production conditions. Results...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Abbey Canon, Director of Public Health and Communications at the American Association of Swine Veterinarians, shares insights into developing and supporting early-career swine veterinarians. She discusses mentorship, education, and professional growth through the Early-Career Committee’s initiatives and USDA-funded training programs. Learn...

In this special New Year episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Thomas Gillespie from Performance Health P.C. explores how mentorship shapes growth, confidence, and decision-making in swine veterinary practice. He reflects on the experiences that guided his career, the value of thoughtful support, and the skills veterinarians can strengthen to help others succeed. Gain a perspective on...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Elisa De Conti, research assistant at Iowa State University and member of the FieldEpi team, explains how E. coli detection is being improved under real field conditions. She discusses diagnostic workflows, virulence factor identification, and how field data integration enhances the understanding of pathogenic isolates. Discover how these...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Jishu Shi from Kansas State University explains the latest scientific outlook on African swine fever and why vaccine development remains a major global challenge. She clarifies the differences among swine fevers, the limits of current immunization protocols, and the diagnostic risks producers must watch for. Listen now on all major platfor...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Marie-Louise Hansen from the University of Copenhagen discusses her research on umbilical outpouchings in pigs. She explains their prevalence, pathology, and the challenges they pose for animal welfare and production. Dr. Hansen also shares insights from intervention trials and future directions for research. Listen now on all major platfo...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Chris Rademacher from Iowa State University discusses integrated pest management and its impact on swine health. He explains how insect infestations can quickly damage carcass value, the role of surveillance and entomology, and how producers can prevent costly outbreaks. Learn practical steps for environmental management, chemical control,...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Rick Hernandez from Purdue University discusses the challenges of transporting pigs and how microclimate conditions impact welfare and productivity. He shares research findings on heat stress, ventilation, and why standardized measures are needed to better monitor transport conditions. Learn about practical solutions and future technologies to...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Guilherme Cezar from Iowa State University shares insights from the Dynamic Pig Health Project, which tracks how multiple pathogens interact and impact pig performance. He explains how co-infections influence mortality rates, what diagnostic data reveals, and why pathogen timing plays a critical role in disease outcomes. Learn practical st...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Mariana Kikuti from the University of Minnesota explains how PRRSV variant classification is structured and how it supports more effective monitoring of disease outbreaks in swine herds. She shares how lineage and variant tracking improve virus identification and situational awareness. Discover how real-time data enables smarter decision-m...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Thomas Gillespie, a swine veterinarian and owner of Performance Health PC, explores how past disease eradication efforts shaped today’s biosecurity protocols. He shares lessons learned from decades in the field and reflects on the industry's capacity to eliminate current threats. Tune in now on all major platforms! "Biosecurity pra...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Ryan Dilger, University of Illinois and Dr. Brooke Smith with Cargill, discuss the research they conducted on soybean meal, revealing its mitigating effects on respiratory disease, specifically, the ability of soy-derived components to improve immune function and viability of PRRSv-infected pigs and the mechanisms for immunity and resilien...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Ana Paula Poeta Silva from Iowa State University breaks down the latest findings from the POMP program. She explains how PRRS virus lineages affect herd stability and economic loss, and highlights key factors that influence outbreak outcomes, including herd immunity and vaccine strategies. Listen now on all major platforms! "The POMP d...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Sarah Miller from AgCreate Solutions explores the critical role of engagement and leadership in building a sustainable culture of care on swine farms. She explains how equipping and supporting managers directly influences animal care and employee retention. Learn practical strategies for creating more connected and effective farm teams. Li...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Berenice Munguía-Ramírez, a PhD candidate at Iowa State University, explores the role of active participatory surveillance in early disease detection and control within the swine industry. She explains its potential to identify both emerging and endemic pathogens before widespread outbreaks occur. Learn how producer participation and surveilla...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Troy Kaiser from Boehringer Ingelheim shares the latest on PCV2 immunization innovation and how shifting genotypes influence swine health protocols. He details safety and efficacy trials, label claims, and what this means for herd-level protection. Learn what’s next in immunization strategy and how to optimize immunity. Listen now on all m...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Rodrigo Paiva from Iowa State University explores how E. coli genotypes in swine have evolved over the last decade. He shares critical insights from a retrospective study and discusses why certain virulence factors are increasing in prevalence. Learn what this shift means for post-weaning diarrhea and disease management. Listen now on all...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Aaron Juergens, owner of Juergens INC, shares practical biosecurity strategies to combat swine health challenges, especially in the face of emerging PRRS strains. He explains how cleaning protocols, inspection timing, and transportation hygiene directly impact herd health and operational efficiency. Learn how collaboration and communication st...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr.  Fernando Leite  from  Boehringer Ingelheim  explores how different PCV2 genotypes impact  immunity in swine.  He shares findings from a recent trial comparing homologous and heterologous  vaccination strategies under  real-world challenge conditions with PRRSV. Learn how genotype 2d  immunized pigs  performed and why  this  may offer supe...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Nele Caekebeke, CEO of Biocheck. UGent, explains how coaching techniques can transform biosecurity implementation on swine farms. She shares the importance of understanding farmer behavior, effective communication strategies, and the use of benchmarking tools to assess risk. Listen now on all major platforms! "We really see coaching as...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Jeff Zimmerman from Iowa State University explains how active participatory surveillance can transform disease detection and response across the swine industry. He highlights efficient sampling methods, cost considerations, and the role of US SHIP (Swine Health Improvement Plan) in ensuring business continuity during outbreaks. Learn what...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Arthur Finatto, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Saskatchewan, explores the role of porcine beta-defensin peptides in boosting swine immunity. He explains how these molecules fight both bacterial and viral infections, modulate inflammation, and offer promise for swine dysentery management. Learn how genetic selection and nutr...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Mariamawit Mohammed from Iowa State University shares her work on pathogen diversity in Live Virus Inoculation (LVI) materials. Using next-generation sequencing (NGS), she discusses the variability in LVI materials used in the swine industry, highlighting pathogen risks and implications for herd health. Learn how LVI practices may influenc...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Sebastiaan Theuns, veterinarian, CEO and co-founder of PathoSense, a spinoff from Ghent University, explains how nanopore sequencing is transforming the diagnosis of complex swine diseases. He discusses the limitations of targeted PCR testing, the advantages of whole-sample sequencing, and how new pathogens can be identified through compre...

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Xiaomei Yue from the University of Minnesota discusses PEDV eradication strategies and metrics used to track disease control effectiveness on sow farms. She shares new data comparing time to stability across epidemic and endemic periods, and explains how farm size and outbreak frequency impact recovery. Listen now on all major platforms! &...