animal agrosecurity

NDSU Animal SciencesNDSU Animal Sciences

Animal Agrosecurity

Charlie Stoltenow, DVM, DACVPMAssociate Professor/Extension Veterinarian

ANSC 488, March 25, 2010

Special thanks to the Extension Disaster Education Network(EDEN) and the University of Kentucky Extension Service

NDSU Animal Sciences

Dairy Basics• Milking Cows

– Cows milked 2 – 3 times per day

– Cow has to calve in order to produce milk

– Many cows may be pregnant while milking

• Other Dairy Animals– Replacement heifers/Open cows– Calves housed in hutches, hand-fed

• Logistics– Milk pick-up every other day for processing– Transportation/housing for off-farm events


Paul & Joan’s Family Farm

• Paul – Father• Joan – Mother• Scott – 16-year-old son• Bonnie – 8-year-old daughter• Two farm employees


Paul & Joan’s Farm Operation

• Neighboring farms• Pastures• Corn fields• Pond – water for

replacement heifers• Old well – crop and

livestock needs• Farmhouse – municipal

water supply• Goats, dogs, etc.


An Unfolding Crisis


Setting Bonnie wins a ribbon

at a large multi-species livestock exhibition

Early June during a rainy period

Insect problems abundant


After the Exhibition

• Day 1 – 4-H picnic at Paul and Joan’s farm– Children played with the goats, calves, and

beagle puppies all the over farm• Day 2

– Goats become ill on Paul and Joan’s farm


More Problems

• Day 3– Heifers sold by Paul to out-of-state producer

who came to look at the heifers that day• Day 4

– Heifers on Paul’s farm become ill– Called extension agent– Aborted fetus found in the heifers’ pen


• Where are some areas where Paul’s actions might be found lacking?

Assessing Paul’s Response


Diagnostics Begin

• Day 5– Paul’s cows start to abort– Reduced milk production– Rain resumes– Veterinarian contacted– Necropsy performed/samples taken


Regulatory Action

• Day 6– All cows abort– State Veterinarian contacted– FADD arrives– Samples taken– USDA lab diagnostics


Human illnesses

• Day 7– Neighbor’s child sick– Neighbor’s animals off-feed

• Day 8– Beagle puppies dead– State lab unable to diagnose– Bonnie becomes ill


• What are some good biosecurity measures that should have been implemented?

• What are some other issues that should be addressed?

Biosecurity


Scope of Incident Expands

• Day 9– Regional FADDs investigating– Public Health Department alerted– Link to exhibition suspected– Multiple states involved


Diagnosis

• Day 10– RVF confirmed– FBI investigates


International Consequences

• Widespread stop movement orders• Trade embargoes• Joint Operations Center established

– Local– State– Federal

• Joint Information Center established– Media/public information


JOC and JIC

• Federal Bureau of Investigation• Public Health• United States Department of Agriculture• State departments of Agriculture• Food and Drug Administration • Federal Emergency Management Agency• Law enforcement• Environmental Protection Agency• Department of Transportation• Department of Fish and Wildlife


• Could the US economy be affected by a Rift Valley Fever (RVF) outbreak?

• In a scenario such as the RVF outbreak, how could the US consumer confidence in meat, milk, eggs and other foods be affected after the diagnosis is made?

Economics


Management

• What modifications to Paul’s farming operation could reduce the effects of this type of incident?

• What prevention or mitigation actions may have reduced the exposure of Bonnie’s goats to any disease at the exhibition?


Animal Identification

• How would a database of individual animal identification information and a list of pen locations of exhibited animals assist trace-back and trace-forward identification of cases of RVF?


• What frameworks exist for local, state, and federal agencies to provide an organized, efficient, and coordinated response?

• During a RVF outbreak in the United States, what potential response tasks may be required?

Coordinated Response


Public Information

• How should Extension agents and veterinarians handle phone calls from the media?

• What can be done to address rumors that may circulate on the Internet or by email, television, and radio during a disease outbreak like RVF?


Containment/Eradication

• People infected with RVF can be a source of the virus for mosquitoes and other insects. Could people be quarantined and confined to hospitals or homes in this situation?

• How difficult could it be to eliminate an insect-borne foreign animal disease from North America?


• What differences could geographic location have on the persistence of an insect vector-borne foreign animal disease outbreak over time?

Containment/Eradication


• What psychological, social, and economic issues may arise from a foreign animal disease outbreak?

Social Effects


• Could insurance and indemnity programs play a role in the recovery phase of a foreign animal disease outbreak?

Recovery


The Need for Functional Exercises


Agricultural Significance/Vulnerability

• Significance– Livestock and poultry - $100 billion/year– 17% of American jobs– Exports - $50 billion/year

• Vulnerability– Spinach – E. coli – Peanut Butter – Salmonella – Great Britain – FMD & BSE


Animal Agosecurity• Prevention• Surveillance

– Local veterinarians– Extension personnel– Animal diagnostic laboratories– Producers

• Biological risk management• Owners responsible for animal health

– Work with animal health professionals to develop a biosecurity plan


Animal Agosecurity Program

• Should vary by operation• Economics• Components

– Resistance– Isolation– Traffic control– Sanitation and disinfection


Resistance and Isolation

• Resistance– To infection– To illness after infection– As a result of vaccination

• Isolation– Health monitoring– Containment for 28 days


Traffic Control and Sanitation

• Traffic control– People– Vehicles– Animals

• Sanitation– Clean, hygienic conditions– Clothing, equipment, people, etc.


Coordinated Response• Interaction among many agencies

– Local– State– Federal

• Common local emergency responders– Fire– Rescue– Police– EMT


Local Veterinarian

• Trained to recognize disease• Trained to take samples• Trained to report suspicious diseases to

regulatory authorities– State Veterinarian– Federal Veterinarian


Office of the State Veterinarian• Regulatory authority to enforce

regulations and quarantines • Should be contacted when suspicion

of an FAD or other reportable disease exists


Office of the Federal Veterinarian

• Has access to incredible resources– FADD– Diagnostic Laboratories– Personnel– USDA emergency funds

animal agrosecurity

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