Prevention is the only effective treatment for this financially damaging disease, writes Dr John Walton, University of Liverpool, UK. This is a condition most frequently seen in recently purchased gilts but it may also be recognised in any age group of pig. The most common clinical sign is that the pig will have its head tilted to one side, the ear on that side will droop down and the pig may have difficulty walking in a straight line. As the condition progresses the head will tilt more to one side and the pig will start to walk around in circles during which it may lose its balance and fall to the ground. After a short period on the ground the pig will try to stand up but this will only be possible in the early stages of the disease. As the diseaseprogresses standing up becomes more difficult up to the point where the gilt will be unable to get up off the ground at all. Further progression of the disease will mean that the pig will remain lying down on its side, unwilling to eat or drink. The pig will not die from the disease but will have to be slaughtered as a casualty.
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