Vomiting is the ejection of stomach contents through the mouth. Regurgitation is swallowed food that does not reach the stomach, and is ejected through the mouth. If there is any confusion of whether vomiting or regurgitation is occurring, it may be settled by measuring the pH of the ejected material.

Vomitus has an acid pH and regurgitated material is alkaline. Pig vomiting is a symptom of several swine diseases.

Pathogenic causes of pig vomiting. Vomiting is a prominent clinical sign of Hemagglutinating encephalomyelitis (HEV), Porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED), Transmissible gastroenteritis (TGE). It is also a clinical symptom of African swine fever (ASF), Classical swine fever (CSF), and Aujesky’s disease.

Younger piglets are more susceptible to viral infection, as are older piglets. To do differential diagnosis, check major symptoms and organ systems affected by pathogens, then start disease control.

Toxigenic causes of pig vomiting. Deoxynivalenol (DON), also known as vomitoxin, and in rare cases T-2 toxin can be a cause of pig vomiting.

Vomitoxin is a trichothecene mycotoxin isolated and characterized in 1973 as a major emetic and feed refusal factor for swine. It can be found in corn and cereal grains contaminated in the field mainly by Fusarium graminearum.

Nutritional causes of pig vomiting. Clinical sign and subclinical deficiency symptoms for several nutrients are a wide variation in the amount of time that elapses before symptoms of nutrient deficiency begin to appear.

Certain nutritional deficiencies are more common and have greater consequences than others today in swine. For example, some vitamins as niacin, riboflavin, thiamine (vitamin B1), pyridoxine (vitamin B6), vitamin D, and zinc deficiencies can be a cause of pig vomiting. On the other hand, too much vitamin D and B1 can sometimes cause vomiting.

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