Symptoms of tremors and shaking in newborn piglets are not a sign that the animals are cold, but rather that they are suffering from a specific viral infection. Researchers at Vetmeduni Vienna have now been able to prove this correlation for the first time using a newly developed test. The scientists detected a previously unknown virus, termed atypical porcine pestivirus (APPV), in “shaking piglets”, making it possible to clearly diagnose the potentially fatal disease. The virus remains in the animals for a long time following an infection and may also be transmitted sexually. The findings were published in the journal Veterinary Research.