Pig farming is a primary activity done by people in Sumba based on their traditional life. Raising pigs is not their main work but a complementary because pigs are needed for the people of Sumba related to customs, burial, marriage or any other occasions.

Currently, the people of Sumba are devastated by disease that attacks pigs, namely Hog Cholera and the ASF virus. Thousand of pigs in Sumba suddenly diedy and cannot be overcome until now. The people seemed to give up with the condition and did not know what to do to overcome it.

For this reason, the Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Sumba especially the Livestock Program provided assistance and training for students, church youth and farming communities who suffered from the impacts of this disaster. The discussion was so interesting because it fitted with the context of reality in the society. The participants of the discussion on Pig Farming (29/07/2020) exceeded the target from 25 to 43 participants, and the estimated time was 3 hours expanded to 5 hours due to their high enthusiasm. Moreover, the resource persons, Yessy Tamu Ina, S.Pt, M.Si, a lecturer at Faculty of Animal Husbandry of Unkriswina Sumba and field assistants team for small farmer community, answered all participants’ questions and curiosity.

The material presented by the source persons discovered many types of diseases that often attack pigs and it needed to be known by the breeders, such as: Vitamin A deficiency, Anemia, White Diarrhea, Hog Cholera, Agalactia, Smallpox, Rounded worm, Pneumonia and African swine fever (ASF) virus. Hog Cholera is a disease that often attacks pigs but this disease can be overcome by vaccine, so it is not too frightening for the farmer. If the livestock is routinely vaccinated, the livestock is guaranteed safe. However, the most dangerous is the African Swine Fever (ASF) virus. This virus is very dangerous because of its fatality and possibly kill all pigs around the affected area. It is possible this type of virus caused thousands and even tens of thousands of pigs throughout Sumba died. The worst news is the vaccine has not been invented yet.

The discussion led to several conclusions: Every breeder must keep the cage clean, Maintain the nutrition balance for the livestock, Having routine vaccination per 6 months (1 syringe per pig), If pigs are found sick or died, report to the agency immediately, If pigs are found sick, they should be separated from others. If you consume pork, only the leftovers with contain pork can be given to pigs.

During the discussion, the participants were actively involved by asking questions and conveying their experiences because the topic talked about the actual problem in Sumba and closely related to their daily activities. ***