FAQs - Frequently asked questions about ASP

African swine fever is a highly contagious viral disease that affects domestic and wild pigs. It leads to serious health problems and often has a fatal outcome for infected animals.

No, African swine fever is not transmissible to humans and therefore poses no risk to human health.

The virus can be transmitted through direct contact between infected and healthy animals, through contaminated food, animal products, tools or clothing and through some types of ticks.

Symptoms can include high fever, loss of appetite, weakness, skin haemorrhages, vomiting, diarrhoea and breathing problems. Infected animals often die within a few days of the first symptoms appearing.

The diagnosis is usually made using laboratory tests that can detect the virus in blood or tissue samples.

There is currently no specific treatment or authorised vaccination against African swine fever. Control is therefore focussed on prevention and disease management.

Prevention measures include strict biosecurity measures in pig farms, the control and monitoring of wild boar, a ban on feeding kitchen waste to pigs and compliance with international transport and trade regulations.

Pig farmers should immediately contact the county's food control, animal welfare and veterinary service, take quarantine measures and not transport pigs, products or materials from the farm or transport or sell materials from the farm until an official diagnosis has been confirmed.

In the event of an outbreak, environmental zones are established around the affected farm, strict biosecurity measures are enforced, infected and potentially infected animals are culled and the affected areas are disinfected to prevent further spread.