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Penicillin antibiotics such as penicillin G, ampicillin and amoxicillin have been widely used in the pig industry to control salmonellosis, bacterial pneumonia, and urinary tract infections. Extensive use of antibiotics in veterinary clinics has resulted in tissue residues and bacterial resistance. To prevent unwanted drug residues entering the human food chain, extensive control measures have been established by both government authorities and industries. The demands for reliable, simple, sensitive, rapid and low-cost methods for residue analysis of foods are increasing. In this study, we established a rapid prediction test for the detection of pigs with unacceptable tissue residues of penicillins. The recommended therapeutic doses of three penicillins, penillin G (withdrawal time, 7 days), ampicillin (withdrawal time, 7 days) and amoxicillin (withdrawal time, 14 days), were administered to three groups of 20 pigs each. Blood was sampled before drug administration and during the withdrawal period. The concentration of penicillins in plasma, determined by a semi-quantitative ELISA, were compared to that of internal standard, 4 ppb, which corresponded to the Maximum Residue Limit in milk. The absorbance ratio of internal standard to sample (B/Bs) was employed as an index to determine whether drug residues in pig tissues were negative or positive. That is, a B/Bs ratio less than 1 was considered residue positive, and larger than 1 negative. All 60 plasma samples from pigs were negative to three penicillins at pretreatment. Penicillin G could be detected in the plasma of the treated pigs until day 4 post-treatment and ampicillin until day 2, whereas amoxicillin could be detected until day 10 of its withdrawal period. The present study showed that the semi-quantitative ELISA could be easily adapted to detect residues of penicillin antibiotics (penicillin G, ampicillin and amoxicillin) in live pigs.