Video: What is the Canton of Ticino doing against African Swine Fever?

African Swine Fever (ASF) is a highly contagious viral disease that occurs in domestic pigs and wild boar.

Since the Canton of Ticino is located near countries where ASF is already widespread, it has implemented comprehensive measures to prevent an outbreak on its own territory.

Swine fever can be introduced through the natural migratory movement of wild boar and their mutual transmission of infection, or through human activity, explains wildlife warden Gabriele Cozzi: We are far more mobile than wild boar. Even simply walking through forests, for example, we can transmit the disease via our shoes. This is what is referred to as the disease “jumping”.

The Canton of Ticino has introduced a continuous monitoring programme to observe the wild boar population and their health. This enables the early identification of possible infections.

Events and information campaigns are aimed at farmers and hobby hunters, to inform them about the disease, its symptoms and the necessary measures to reduce risk. The goal is to raise awareness of the dangers of ASF.

Farmers are urged to introduce strict hygiene measures on their premises. These include disinfection protocols as well as controls on access and movement within and outside farms.

Should a suspected case arise, the competent authorities are obliged to act swiftly. This includes the isolation of the affected animals and the initiation of tests to confirm or rule out an ASF infection.

Wild boar enclosures in the region are subject to special regulations designed to ensure that there are no interactions with domestic pigs that could transmit the disease.

Coordination with neighbouring countries

The Canton of Ticino works closely with the authorities of neighboring regions and countries. Regular meetings and exchange of information are important to identify potential risks and to act jointly against a possible spread of African Swine Fever.

The Ticino game wardens use GPS trackers to monitor wild boars and prepare for African Swine Fever, which is already raging nearby.

With special collars that are fitted to the wild animals, their movements can be tracked. So far, six wild boars have been equipped, and more are planned in order to identify corridors and movement patterns. They provide game wardens with a picture of whether the animals move within individual terrain sections or cross barriers such as roads, rivers, and natural obstacles like mountain ranges. In addition, the game wardens can identify corridors frequently used by the animals. This information is intended to help slow the spread of swine fever in the future.

This information helps to control the spread of the disease and to establish potential exclusion zones for people. Swine fever has devastating effects on wildlife populations and, in the event of an infection, can lead to massive losses in pig farming, as affected herds must be culled.

In order to reduce wild boar populations, additional hunts are being carried out, during which thermal imaging cameras and bait feeding in forests are also permitted. From 2015 to 2023, the number of culled animals rose from 1’114 to over 2’656 in 2021.