Swine vets go whole hog with new Data Pig technology

A new electronic recording system is hoped to enhance the health, productivity, profitability and sustainability of Australia’s pig herd.

Data Pig is a user-friendly delivery platform, developed by Apiam Animal Health through a team of swine veterinarians.

The project was four years in the making, with more than $1 million invested.

Successfully trialled in WA, its nationwide rollout aims to assist pork producers, in partnership with their veterinarians, to upscale record keeping, enhance antimicrobial stewardship, better monitor pig health and treatments in real time and improve quality assurance and compliance.

WA Pork Producers Association president Graeme Dent gave the technology his endorsement.

“If the technology is implemented properly and producers are correctly trained to use it, the potential is unlimited in real-time advances,” he said.

“I am planning to include my 400 sow piggery into the trial uptake program when 10 WA producers have been selected to participate.

The initial trial in WA took place at an Esperance piggery to work out any software issues.”

Apiam swine business manager Tom Harrison said Data Pig would accurately record medication administration, using PowerBI reports for real-time monitoring, integrating veterinary approved medication lists and generating Australian Pork Industry Quality Assurance Program’s compliant digital records.

Dr Harrison said Data Pig’s pen-side application synchronised with veterinary prescribed medication lists would provide accurate medical treatments and dosage instructions based on animal class, animal numbers and clinical signs of disease.

Apiam managing director and veterinarian Chris Richards said Data Pig promised to enhance the Australian pig industry’s disease surveillance capabilities by allowing real time monitoring of clinical signs of disease, treatment events and mortalities.

“The success of eradicating diseases such as African swine fever, foot and mouth disease and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, if they were to land here, is intimately linked to the time lag from incursion to detection and then to identification.” he said.

“A proven and tested resource such as Data Pig, which works on-farm, hand in hand with producers backed up by their veterinarians, will initially be the canary in the coal mine and then first responder.”

In collaboration with WAPPA, AgriFutures, and Pork Innovation WA, Apiam will deliver a pilot technology uptake program to WA pork producers.

It will target supporting producers to build their knowledge, capacity and confidence to better utilise and embrace technology within the piggery setting.

Data Pig will be used as the technology in this program to kick-start and improve piggery specific technology in WA.

To find out more, visit datapig.com.au.