The goal of the American Sheep Industry Association and the U.S. sheep industry is to eradicate scrapie from our borders by 2017. In addition, it is the objective to have the United States recognized as scrapie free in accordance with the World Organization for Animal Health. This quarterly publication is created specifically for those of you in the field who are also working to achieve this goal.

This newsletter brings together, into one spot, current information from all 50 states, as well as from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and any other organization providing scrapie news, and reports it back to the field. If you have first-hand accounts that you believe would be relevant for others to read or have information that you would like included in this newsletter, please email judym@sheepusa.org.

September 2015

The Federal Register notice proposing changes to scrapie regula-tions by USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service was posted in September.

The ammendments would make the identification and record-keep-ing requirements for goat owners consistent with those for sheep owners but does not change the intrastate goat identification exemptions for consistent states.

A change to the definition of high-risk animal and adding a defini-tion for low-risk exposed animals is recommended to expand the use of genetic testing in classifying sheep and provide more flexibility when determining animal designations under the regulations. This change will also allow APHIS to relieve requirements for sheep and goats exposed to scrapie types, such as Nor98-like scrapie, that do not pose a significant risk of transmission.

The proposed changes also increase flexibility for how investigations can be conducted and require states to meet surveillance minimums based on the number of breeding sheep and goats in the state to remain Consistent States. Additional information on the proposed rule and the draft Program Standards is available at AnimalAgriculture.org/scrapie/scrapie.htm

ASI has, for several years now, asked APHIS to propose amendments

to the scrapie eradication regulation to help expedite the eradication process through the recognition of recent scientific findings, experi-ence with program implementation and progress toward the eradication goal,” said Burton Pfliger, ASI president. “We appreciate USDA finally getting this proposed rule out for public comment. ASI will be analyzing the proposed rule and will be filing comments.”

All comments must be submitted on or before Nov. 9 to be considered. The proposed rule is available at Regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2007-0127-0001.

Submitting Mature HeadsAPHIS provides shipping boxes and labels for the submission of heads for scrapie testing at no cost to producers. Many veterinary diagnostic

laboratories also accept heads for scrapie testing. To request a box or information on sample submission, contact the veterinary services area office for your state. Area offices can be reached through the toll free number, 866-873-2824. Contact information is also available online at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/downloads/sprs_contact/field_office_contact_info.pdf.

To view the National Scrapie Eradication Program current Monthly Report, prepared by the U.S. Department

of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Veterinary Services, go to

www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/scrapie/downloads/monthly_scrapie_report.pdf

Free ID For Producers

The National Scrapie Eradication Program provides scrapie

program official ID free of charge to producers (call 866-USDA-TAG

to get tags), testing of exposed flocks and indemnity for infected flocks.

Contact your State or local VS office for more information.

APHIS Proposes Scrapie Regulation Changes,Federal Comment Period Now Open

Animals Sampled for Scrapie TestingSheep and Goats

In Fiscal Year 2015, as of Aug. 31, 201537,290 animals have been sampled for scrapie testing: 35,356 RSSS and 1,934 on-farm samples,

of which 30,595 were sheep and 6,695 were goats. 32 positive cases: 30 sheep and 2 goats

Regulatory Scrapie Slaughter Surveillance (RSSS) Statistics

Since April 1, 2003 In FY 2015 (as of Aug. 31) 479,094 samples collected 35,356 samples collected (6,213 from goats) 477 NVSL* confirmed positives 3 NVSL confirmed positives *National Veterinary Services Laboratories

On-Farm Surveillance

In Fiscal Year 2015, as of Aug. 31, 20151,934 animals have been tested on farm – 1,452 sheep and 482 goats

* As of August 31, 2015.

Infected and Source Flocks New Statuses by Year - Fiscal Years 1997 to 2015*

0

50

100

150

200

Infected

Source

* As of August 31, 2015—Adjusted to exclude multiple positive animals from same flock. Mottled- and white-faced combined. Does not include Nor98-like scrapie cases found through RSSS (2 in FY 2007, 1 in FY 2008, 4 in FY 2010, 1 in FY 2011).

0.0%0.1%0.2%0.3%0.4%0.5%0.6%0.7%0.8%0.9%1.0%

% Pos '03

% Pos '04

% Pos '05

% Pos '06

% Pos '07

% Pos '08

% Pos '09

% Pos '10

% Pos '11

% Pos '12

% Pos '13

% Pos '14

% Pos '15

Percent of RSSS Sheep Samples that Tested Positive for Classical Scrapie - By Face Color - Fiscal Year (2003 – 2015*)

Slaughter Surveillance Samples Collected by MonthFiscal Years 2011 to 2015

As of August 31, 2015

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

10* 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

FY 11

FY 12

FY 13

FY 14

FY 15

* Surveillance numbers were significantly lower October 2013 compared to October in prior FYs because the furlough reduced the number of collection days.

State Sampling Minimums

The National Scrapie Eradication Program establishes annual sheep and goat sampling minimums for each State, and tracks the States’ level of compliance with meeting these minimums. These State minimums help ensure adequate geographical representation, so that APHIS can find the last remaining cases and document freedom from scrapie. State sampling minimums are established based on the population demographics of mature sheep in each State. The calculations used to derive the sampling minimums are described in the National Scrapie Surveillance Plan. Progress toward meeting these minimums in FY 2015 is shown in the following two slides.

WY

WV

WI

WA

VT

VA

UT

TX

TN

SD

SC

RIPA

OR

OK

OH

NY

NV

NM

NJ

NH

NE

ND

NC

MT

MS

MO

MN

MI

ME

MD

MA

LA

KYKS

INIL

ID

IA

HI

GA

FL

DE

CT

CO

CA

AZAR

AK

AL≤ 20%

21 - 40%

41 - 60%

61 - 80%

81 - 99%

100% +

Percent of Prorated Sampling Minimum Achievedin FY 2015—RSSS and On-farm Surveillance—Sheep*

* As of August 31, 2015. Percentage of sampling minimum achieved is based on 92% of the annual sampling minimum.

WY

WV

WI

WA

VT

VA

UT

TX

TN

SD

SC

RIPA

OR

OK

OH

NY

NV

NM

NJ

NH

NE

ND

NC

MT

MS

MO

MN

MI

ME

MD

MA

LA

KYKS

INIL

ID

IA

HI

GA

FL

DE

CT

CO

CA

AZAR

AK

AL≤ 20%

21 - 40%

41 - 60%

61 - 80%

81 - 99%

100% +

Percent of Prorated Sampling Minimum Achievedin FY 2015—RSSS and On-farm Surveillance—Goats*

* As of August 31, 2015. Percentage of sampling minimum achieved is based on 92% of the annual sampling minimum. AK, RI and DE have a sampling minimum of 1. IA and MD had a large increase in their minimums due to finding an infected herd in each State in FY 2014.

FY 2015* Scrapie Confirmed Cases by StateAs of August 31, 2015

StateSheep Goats

RSSS On-Farm RSSS On-Farm

CO 0 1 1 1

ID 0 26 0 0

OH 1 0 0 0

WI 1 1 0 0

TotalAll States

2 28 1 1

WY

WV

WI

WA

VT

VAUT

TX

TN

SD

SC

RIPA

OR

OK

OH

NY

NV

NM

NJ

NH

NE

ND

NC

MT

MS

MO

MN

MI

ME

MA

LA

KYKS

INIL

ID

IA

HI

GA

FL

DE

CT

CO1CA

AZAR

AK

AL

Open Source – 1

Scrapie Infected and Source FlocksOpen Statuses - As of August 31, 2015

Websites Dedicated to the Eradication of ScrapieAnimal and Plant Health Inspection Service: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal-health/scrapie

Maryland Small Ruminant Page: www.sheepandgoat.com/scrapie.html National Institute of Animal Agriculture: http://www.eradicatescrapie.org/

Scrapie SharePoint: http://sp.we.aphis.gov/vs/sites/SPRS/SGCE/scrapie/SitePages/Home.aspx (Federal employees can access this password-protected site State employees can request a copy on CD at scrapie@aphis.usda.gov .)

WY

WV

WI1

WA

VT

VA

UT

TX

TN

SD

SC

RIPA

OR

OK

OH1

NY

NV

NM

NJ

NH

NE

ND

NC

MT

MS

MO

MN

MI

ME

MA

LA

KYKS

INIL

ID1

IA

HI

GA

FL

DE

CT

CO1CA

AZAR

AK

AL

New Source – 3New Infected – 1

New Scrapie Infected and Source FlocksFY 2015 - As of August 31, 2015