Dr. John Clifford, Deputy Administrator, Veterinary Services, has issued a Veterinary Services Notice (VSN) clarifying the regulations governing the issuance of Certificates of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) covering weaned pigs born into herds participating in a routine herd health program.
The VSN confirms that veterinarians can issue a CVI to ship pigs born since the previous 30 day herd health visit (following the third such visit as part of a routine herd health program) without having to inspect the individual animals. The notice cautions, however, that the CVI must accurately reflect the actions that the veterinarian actually undertook. For example, the CVI must state that the herd was inspected within 30 days prior to the issuance of the CVI rather than the individual animals.
This should clarify an issue that the AASV has been working diligently to resolve since an issue arose early last year involving the shipment of weaned pigs under a CVI that indicated the pigs had been inspected when, in fact, the veterinarian had actually inspected the herd prior to the pigs being born. While in compliance with the regulation allowing for the issuance of a CVI to ship pigs under the 30 day health rule, the veterinarian signed an inaccurate statement on the CVI. The AASV is continuing to work with state animal health officials, through the National Assembly of State Animal Health Officials, to obtain approval for a standardized statement that can be inserted on the CVI by the accredited veterinarian that will accurately reflect the animals actually inspected. This issue will be considered by the NASAHO during the US Animal Health Association’s annual meeting in October.
The content of the VSN can be reviewed on the AASV website.