Alberta-led research aims to improve control of rotavirus in piglets amid strain mismatches

A three-year project spearheaded by an Alberta research team seeks to enhance strategies against rotavirus in piglets, addressing the growing challenge posed by virus strain mismatches and vaccine limitations.

An Alberta-led research team is beginning a three-year project aimed at giving pork producers a more workable response to rotavirus, a disease that remains one of the industry’s most expensive problems in young piglets.

Dr Rienske Mortier, a swine veterinarian in Red Deer, said the virus affects almost every commercial herd she advises, with rotavirus a concern on about 90 per cent of the farms in her caseload. The project, called Rota-check, was developed after producers repeatedly asked why control remains so difficult and why vaccines have not kept pace with the disease.

Researchers at the University of Calgary, led by virologist Dr Frank van der Meer, will combine laboratory work with on-farm assessment to examine diagnostics, hygiene, vaccination, sow management and staff practices. The goal is not simply to build another vaccine, but to identify which interventions actually reduce infection pressure and improve piglet survival and growth.

That matters because the disease often lingers long after scouring stops. Piglets may recover clinically in around 10 days, yet intestinal damage can persist, leaving them slower to grow and more vulnerable to secondary infection.

The challenge has intensified as Rotavirus B and C have become more common, while existing vaccines were largely developed against Rotavirus A. Van der Meer said the strain mismatch helps explain why current products often underperform.

The team will also study whether antibody transfer from sow to piglet is strong enough to offer meaningful protection.