Potential Occurrences of Foreign Animal Diseases in Wildlife

1. Potential Occurrences of Foreign Animal Diseases in Wildlife Angie Dement Extension Associate for Veterinary Medicine Texas AgriLife Extension Service Texas A&M System College Station, TX 77843 http://aevm.tamu.edu

2. U.S. Threatened by Potential Occurrences of FEAD • Foreign Animal Diseases • Not currently present in U.S. • Accidental, intentional (bioterrorism) risks for entry • Emerging Animal Diseases • A new disease or a new form of an old disease • Natural, accidental or intentional risks of emergence • Commerce, mutation, environmental reasons

3. Types of Occurrences • Natural • Accidental • Intentional (Bioterrorist Act)

4. Devastating Effectsof Animal Diseases • Economic impacts • Sociologic impacts • Emotional impacts • Political impacts

5. First Line of Defense • Biosecurity • Livestock owners • Early detection and reporting

6. Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) 1-800-550-8242 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

7. Foot and Mouth Disease

8. Highly contagious virus • Spreads rapidly • People not affected • Devastating • Emotionally • Economically • Sociologically • Politically

9. Susceptible domestic and wildcloven-hoofed livestock • Cattle • Sheep • Goats • Domestic and feral swine • Deer • Llamas

10. Transmission • Aerosol • wind • Mechanical • people, vehicles, animals • Biological • movement of infected animals • uncooked or undercooked meat products

11. If an outbreak occurs – “Big and Bad” • Restrictions • Quarantines • Eradication (Depopulation) • Slaughter of animals • Proper disposal

12. FMD Outbreak in 2001 in Great Britain • Delayed response • 10,472 farms depopulated • 4 million destroyed to stop disease • 2.5 million “humanely” slaughtered • Over $13 billion

13. Increased risks for entry • Travelers • Meat products • Garbage • Bioterrorist

14. Mad Cow Disease

15. Not contagious • Reduced risks of entry and spread • USDA regulations • Feed bans • Slaughter bans • Import bans

16. Classical Swine Fever (Hog Cholera) • Also known as Hog Cholera • Affects swine and javelina • Reportable • Viral disease • Eradicated from the U.S. in 1978

18. Routes of exit • Semen • Blood • Saliva • Feces • Meat • Routes of entry • Ingestion • Mucous membranes • Broken skin • In-utero

19. Acute form • Fever • Lethargic • Off feed • Purplish discoloration of skin • Ears • Legs • Abdomen • Death in 10-21 days • 100% mortality in piglets

20. Chronic form • Unpredictable appetite • Fever • Diarrhea for up to 1 month • Secondary pneumonia • May recover only to relapse and die • Recovery possible • 30-70% mortality

21. Prenatal form • Sows • Transient fever • Loss of appetite • Piglets • Persistently infected • 100% mortality • Death in 6-12 months • Mummified fetuses • Stillbirths

22. Fences to separate domestic and feral pigs • Properly cook waste food before feeding to pigs • Quarantine new pigs for at least 30 days • Maintain good biosecurity practices

23. Anthrax • Reportable • Bacterial disease • Worldwide distribution • Endemic to U.S. • triangle of Uvalde, Ozona, Eagle Pass, TX • Affects numerous animal species • Primarily domestic and wild livestock • Zoonotic

24. Bacterium - Bacillus anthracis • vegetative bacteria in animal • spore bacteria in environment

25. Vegetative bacteria leave dead animal via hemorrhagic exudates • mouth, nose, anus and vulva • contain large numbers of bacteria • Spores contaminate soil • spores remain viable for decades

26. Incubation period is 1-20 days Infections apparent after 3-7 days

27. Ruminants: Sudden death Staggering Trembling Dyspnea Fever Diagnosis • Respiratory distress • Convulsions • Abortions • Bloody discharge • FATAL

28. Pigs: • Sudden death • Mild, chronic infections • Fever • Swelling • Enlarged lymph nodes • Usually recover

29. Dead animals: • Sudden death – blood poisoning • Rigor mortis absent • Rapid decomposition – extreme bloat • Dark blood • Enlarged spleen • Non-clotting blood People: • Wound infections – carbuncles

30. Burn carcass and bedding • Don’t open carcass • spores will not develop without oxygen • bacteria will decompose within a few days • Vaccination of herd required • Quarantine of herd required for 10 daysafter vaccination

31. Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) • Endemic • Viral • Reportable • Wide spread in white-tail deer • Not contagious • No vaccine

32. Incubation period 5-10 days • Viremic for 2 mos • Biological transmission • Biting midges • Some gnats • Some mosquitoes

33. 3 Forms • Peracute • Fever, anorexia, respiratory distress, swelling of tongue and conjunctiva, and die rapidly (8-36 hours) • Acute • Extensive hemorrhages, salivation, nasal discharge, ulcers and high mortality • Chronic • Lameness (crawling on knees), ulcers, emaciation, but do recover

34. Cases found in late summer early autumn • Usually dies down with first good cold front

35. Biosecurity • For all diseases implement and maintain biosecurity practices

37. Questions?