In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Taylor Engle, veterinarian at Minton Veterinary Services, shares practical strategies to improve nursery pig start-ups. He explains how minimizing stressors, optimizing barn environments, and encouraging early feed intake can strengthen pig health and performance. Get key insights, including sanitation, preparation, and management practices that prevent disease challenges. Listen now on all major platforms!

"Minimizing stress during weaning, transportation, and placement creates a stronger foundation for pig health, reducing disease pressure and supporting consistent performance across the entire nursery phase."

𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁: Dr. Taylor Engle is a veterinarian at Minton Veterinary Services with experience supporting swine producers across the United States. He earned his DVM from Virginia Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine and holds a Master of Science in Animal Sciences from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His work focuses on improving swine health through practical management strategies.

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What you will learn:

• (00:00) Highlight
• (01:01) Introduction
• (01:39) Reduce stress
• (02:55) Barn environment
• (03:16) Feed intake
• (06:01) Mechanical focus
• (07:03) Stress stacking
• (11:25) Closing thoughts

The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast is trusted and supported by innovative companies like:

* Boehringer Ingelheim

- Ralco

𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀, 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗷𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺.

Website: The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast

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In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Ana Paula Silva, epidemiologist and research scientist at Iowa State University, explains how manure pumping and land application influence PRRS outbreak risk in grow finish systems. She shares findings on timing, proximity, and management strategies that affect disease spread. Learn how adjusting operational decisions can support better biosecurity outcomes. Listen now on all major platforms!

"Manure pumping events across grow finish systems showed a measurable increase in PRRS outbreak probability within five weeks, highlighting operational practices as critical disease drivers in commercial production environments."

𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁: Dr. Ana Paula Silva is an epidemiologist and research scientist at Iowa State University, specializing in swine health, disease surveillance, and molecular epidemiology of bacterial pathogens. Her work focuses on PRRS dynamics, gilt acclimation, and biosecurity strategies in production systems. Her research supports practical decision making for disease prevention.

Click here to read the full research article!

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What you will learn:

• (00:00) Highlight
• (00:54) Introduction
• (01:48) Study overview
• (03:38) Farm selection
• (04:56) PRRS focus
• (06:13) Risk findings
• (07:07) Seasonality control
• (10:16) Closing thoughts

The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast is trusted and supported by innovative companies like:

* Boehringer Ingelheim

- Ralco

𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀, 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗷𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺.

Website: The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast

Instagram: Swine Campus

LinkedIn: Swine Campus

In this episode of The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Brian Richert from Purdue University and Dr. Russell Fent, Swine Technical Director at Ralco Nutrition, discuss research on phytonutrient feed additives in sow diets. They explore impacts on litter performance, birth weight distribution, gut health, and sow productivity. Results from a commercial sow farm study highlight improvements in piglet viability and sow reproductive efficiency. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Building knowledge around phytonutrients required years of research because limited scientific information existed initially, requiring systematic development of data before identifying effective livestock applications.” - Dr. Russell Fent

𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁s:

Dr. Brian Richert is an Associate Professor of Animal Sciences at Purdue University, specializing in swine nutrition and management. His research focuses on improving sow productivity, litter performance, and nutrient utilization in commercial swine systems through applied nutrition and production management strategies.

Dr. Russell Fent is Swine Technical Director at Ralco Nutrition, where he leads research and technical support for nutrition technologies in swine production. His work focuses on phytonutrients, feed solutions, and practical strategies that support health, performance, and efficiency in commercial herds.

Liked this one? Don’t stop now — Here’s what we think you’ll love!

What you will learn:

• (00:00) Highlight
• (01:05) Introduction
• (02:08) Phytonutrient research focus
• (05:51) Commercial sow study
• (06:36) Microbiome and samples
• (07:31) Birth weight shift
• (08:25) Gut health insights
• (12:20) Closing thoughts

The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast is trusted and supported by innovative companies like:

- Ralco

* Boehringer Ingelheim

𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀, 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗷𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺.

Website: The Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast

Instagram: Swine Campus

LinkedIn: Swine Campus