Division 2

When an official veterinarian visits a suspected holding to confirm or rule out classical swine fever:

• a check of the production and health records of the holding must be carried out, if these records are available;

• an inspection in each sub-unit of the holding must be carried out to select the pigs to be clinically examined.

The clinical examination must include the taking of body temperature and must primarily concern the following pigs or group of pigs:

• sick or anorexic pigs;

• pigs recently recovered from disease;

• pigs recently introduced from confirmed outbreaks or from other suspected sources;

• pigs kept in sub-units recently visited by external visitors which had a recent close contact with classical swine fever suspected or infected pigs or for which other particularly risky contacts with a potential source of classical swine fever virus have been identified;

• pigs already sampled and serologically tested for classical swine fever, in case the results of these tests do not allow to rule out classical swine fever, and in-contact pigs.

If the inspection in the suspected holding has not indicated the presence of the pigs or group of pigs referred to in the above subparagraph, the competent authority, without prejudice to other measures that may be applied in the holding in question in accordance with Directive 2001/89/EC and taking into account the epidemiological situation, shall:

• carry out further examinations in the holding in question in accordance with subparagraph 3 below; or

• ensure that blood samples for laboratory tests are taken from the pigs in the holding in question. In this case the sampling procedures laid down in subparagraph 5 and in F.2, shall be used for guidance purposes; or

• adopt or maintain the measures laid down in Article 4(2) of Directive 2001/89/EC, pending further investigations in the holding in question; or

• rule out the suspicion of classical swine fever.