Bucellosis, Montana cattle

[kelpiegirl]

<http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/05/19/news/state/20-brucellosis.txt>

 

 

Seven Montana cows have tested positive for brucellosis, and if at

least 2 cows from a separate herd near Emigrant test positive next

week, Montana will lose its brucellosis-free status.

 

That means Montana ranchers would have to pay to test all adult

cattle being shipped out of state until Montana can regain its

brucellosis-free status.

 

Gov. Brian Schweitzer said he expects the 2nd set of test results as

early as Tuesday [22 May 2007]. "There is a process you go through --

rounding up cattle, drawing blood, testing it., and then it's either

'Whew!' or 'Oh, my God,' " Schweitzer said.

 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (DOA) Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service (APHIS) is in charge of controlling the disease.

APHIS rules say that a state loses its brucellosis-free status when

at least 2 cows from 2 herds test positive within 12 months.

 

On 1 May 2007, 51 Angus cows bound for Iowa were tested for

brucellosis in Baker. Because Montana is a brucellosis-free state,

the cows wouldn't normally be tested, but because the cows were going

to be surrogate mothers, the tests were conducted. On 4 May 2007, the

Montana State Lab in Bozeman found that one cow had tested positive

for brucellosis. That cow was euthanized and tissue cultures were

re-tested at the National Veterinary Services lab in Ames, Iowa,

which conducts the testing for APHIS. The infected cow was traced

back to a herd of 301 cows in Bridger, and that herd was quarantined

after 6 more cows tested positive for brucellosis. The cattle came

from a ranch near Emigrant, Schweitzer said. A 2nd herd in the

Paradise Valley is being tested now.

 

To prevent the spread of [the disease] from bison to area cattle,

officials from the Montana Department of Livestock have hazed

wandering Yellowstone National Park bison back into the park. Last

year [2006], more than 1000 bison that ranged onto private lands in

Montana were captured, and most were sent to slaughter. However, the

governor said information he has received indicates that bison aren't

to blame. "It seems almost impossible this was a direct transmission

from Yellowstone bison to cattle. It could have been it came from

elk," Schweitzer said. "Or it could have been someone shipping cattle

into Montana from some infected herd in Texas or Mexico." Jeremy

Seidlitz, executive director of the Montana Cattlemen's Association,

expressed concern but said he feels helpless for now. "I really don't

think there is anything we can do but watch and hope," Seidlitz said.

"Losing the brucellosis-free status is very expensive in terms of

money and time."

 

[brucellosis is a contagious disease in ruminant animals that can

cause fetuses to abort. It is considered one of the most serious

livestock diseases, primarily affecting cattle, swine, bison, and

elk.] Ranchers, veterinarians, and workers in slaughterhouses are

most at risk for the human strain, called undulant fever.

 

Montana has been brucellosis-free since June 1985. Wyoming found

brucellosis in its cattle in 2004, and regained its brucellosis-free

status last September, [2006]. Currently, Idaho and Texas are the

only states without a brucellosis-free rating.

 

Testing costs from USD 5 to USD 10 per animal, depending on whether

the tests are conducted at the ranch or elsewhere, said Ray Randall,

who owns Bridger Veterinary Service. "It's a significant problem," he

said. "The last time I remember having a brucellosis-positive herd

was in the '70s." Randall said he hasn't taken any blood tests for

brucellosis yet.

 

Even if the 2nd herd tests free of the disease, the 301 cows

quarantined near Bridger must be slaughtered, according to APHIS

rules. There is no immediate financial help for the owner. Indemnity

funds exist for ranchers who lose livestock to wolves, but not this

disease, Seidlitz said, adding that he has never heard of brucellosis

insurance.

 

Schweitzer said the bad news is reason to adopt his plan to test all

cattle within a ring around Yellowstone National Park. He has

proposed to APHIS that Montana be allowed to mark off an area of 60

to 70 miles (approx. 97-113 km) around Yellowstone National Park and

require that all the cattle moving in and out of the zone be tested.

If the disease shows up, only that zone would lose its

brucellosis-free status, not the whole state. "We would have caught

it at its source," the governor said. "Now we're in a position where

people long removed from Yellowstone Basin are being painted with the

same brush."

 

Meanwhile, APHIS spokeswoman, Teresa Howes, in Fort Collins,

Colorado, said tracing back and testing cattle is a long process, one

that's just starting in Montana. "The good news is that this was

found and it didn't go on to infect the national herd," she said.

"Now we're doing the investigation to make sure no other herds are infected."

 

[byline: Jan Falstad]

 

- --

Communicated by:

ProMED-mail Rapporteur Joseph P. Dudley, Ph.D

 

[Animal caretakers, including veterinarians, are especially

susceptible to brucellosis from infected animals. Generally, when the

animal requires assistance during the birthing process, the person

providing the assistance is most at risk of exposure to the causative

bacterium _Brucella abortus_. This agent can be passed to humans

through unpasteurized or raw milk as well.

 

Brucellosis is commonly transmitted to susceptible animals by direct

contact with infected animals or with an environment that has been

contaminated with discharges from infected animals. Aborted fetuses,

placental membranes or fluids, and other vaginal discharges present

after an infected animal has aborted or calved are all highly

contaminated with infectious brucella organisms.

 

Cattle, bison, and cervids are susceptible to _B. abortus_; other

_Brucella_ species affect other animals. The animals experience a

loss of production (including abortion of the fetus), a drop in milk

production, weight loss, infertility, and lameness. Although the

animal may abort the 1st fetus, the animal may successfully carry a

fetus to term during the next pregnancy. Offspring may be born weak

or dead, without actual abortion.

 

The brucellosis eradication program in place for about 50 years has

almost eliminated the disease. Currently, only Texas and Idaho are

classified as Class A states, meaning they have a herd infection rate

of less than 0.1 percent. All other states are classified as

brucellosis-free. - Mod.TG]

 

[The state of Montana (MT) in the western United States may be

located on the map at

<http://www.infoplease.com/atlas/unitedstates.html>. Yellowstone

National Park is located mostly in the state of Wyoming (WY), but it

extends into Montana (MT) and Idaho (ID). - CopyEd.MJ]