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1. VDACS urges horse owners to vaccinate animals
By: News Staff
Newsplex.com
March 23, 2016
Richmond, Va. -- The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is urging horse owners to make sure their animals are protected from diseases.
Vaccinations for horses exist that will prevent West Nile Virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis, both of which are mosquito-borne, and rabies, which can be transmitted through the bite of an infected animal like a fox or raccoon.
VDACS says three horses died of rabies in 2015 in the Commonwealth, in Fairfax, Frederick and Loudoun counties.
An Orange County horse was the only confirmed case of West Nile for 2015, and three horses in Chesapeake got sick with Eastern Equine Encephalitis in unrelated cases.
Horse owners should check with their veterinarians for vaccination recommendations for their animals.
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2. Elk feeding tweaked to battle brucellosis [WY]
By Mike Koshmrl
Jackson Home News & Guide
March 23, 2016
The Jackson Elk Herd and other herds nearby that congregate at winter feedgrounds will no longer be vaccinated for brucellosis, and the state is formalizing the change in its management plans.
Instead of receiving vaccinations, elk herds are being fed in a checkerboard pattern to reduce clustering and are being weaned off hay earlier in the winter. The proposal to end the "Strain 19" vaccinations, which are administered through "bio bullets" fired from air rifles, stems in part from the vaccine's ineffectiveness, said Brandon Scurlock, supervisor of Game and Fish's Brucellosis-Feedground-Habitat Program.
"We've seen no difference in the reproductive or abortion rate between vaccinated and unvaccinated animals," Scurlock said.
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3. State veterinarian to serve as interim ag secretary [SD]
Tri-State Neighbor
March 23, 2016
Dr. Dustin Oedekoven will serve as the interim South Dakota Secretary of Agriculture while the search continues for a full-time replacement for Lucas Lentsch, who resigned to take a the CEO position with the Midwest Dairy Association.
Oedekoven serves as South Dakota's state veterinarian and head of the Animal Industry Board. His interim appointment is effective immediately, as March 23 is Lentsch's last day with the Department of Agriculture.
"I am pleased that Dr. Oedekoven has agreed to serve in this capacity," Gov. Dennis Daugaard said in a statement announcing the appointment Wednesday. "Dusty is well-respected throughout the agriculture industry and will do a great job leading the department until we identify a permanent replacement."
Oedekoven said it's an honor to have the opportunity to serve as secretary.
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4. Virginia Training Facility Released from Quarantine
By Edited Press Release
TheHorse.com
March 23, 2016
A Thoroughbred training facility in Fauquier County, Virginia, has been released from a quarantine put in place after a horse previously residing there tested positive for equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) in Florida.
In late February, the state veterinarian's office at the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) received notification from the Florida state veterinarian's office that a Virginia horse recently relocated to Martin County, Florida, had tested positive for EHV-1. The index horse was placed in isolation and the Florida facility was placed under quarantine.
An investigation revealed that the index horse was shipped from the Virginia Thoroughbred training facility to Florida shortly before testing positive for EHV-1. As such, the VDACS placed that training facility has under quarantine, and all exposed horses were monitored twice daily for fever (a temperature over 101.5�F) and other clinical signs.
The Florida quarantine was released on March 16.
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5. First Tick Genome Map Could Chart Ways to Stop Parasite
By Erika Celeste
Voice of America News
March 23, 2016
WEST LAFAYETTE, INDIANA - There are more than 900 species of ticks in the world, many of which carry serious diseases. In fact, ticks transmit a wider variety of pathogens than any other arthropod, causing thousands of human and animal deaths annually. But no one had thought to study them until about 10 years ago.
Now researchers, led by Purdue University entomologist Catherine Hill, have mapped the genome of Ixodes scapularis, the deer tick that is infamous for carrying Lyme Disease. With backing from the National Institutes of Health, Hill put together a tick research team of 93 scientists from 46 institutions around the world. Their findings are published in Nature Communications.
"A good way to think about a genome-sequencing project is to relate it to a jigsaw puzzle," Hill explained. "So you break everything up like little pieces of DNA and then you have to put them back together again."
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6. Probiotics offer alternative to in-feed antibiotics
By Lallemand Animal Nutrition
Drovers CattleNetwork.com
March 23, 2016
Focusing on gut health may help cattle producers find replacements for in-feed antibiotics now that the Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) is in place.
"Some producers may be looking to avoid dealing with VFDs entirely," says Kerry Barling, DVM, Ph.D., Global Manager of Beef Technology, Lallemand Animal Nutrition. "For these producers, the time is right for thinking about proactively treating respiratory disease on multiple fronts - through vaccinations, management changes and improved gut health."
By 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will require medically important antibiotics - those approved for use in both humans and animals - to be used in animals only under the order of a veterinarian. When producers incorporate specific medications into feed, the rate and timing must be based on a VFD issued by a licensed veterinarian. Producers will also be required to retain VFD records for two years.
Even though adding antibiotics to feed is now more cumbersome, rations are still a great opportunity to incorporate health products, Dr. Barling notes.
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7. French beef industry awaits mad cow test results
By Daniel Enoch
Agri-Pulse.com
March 23, 2016
WASHINGTON -- French livestock officials are awaiting test results on tissue samples from a cow suspected of having bovine spongiform encephalopathy. If confirmed, it would be the country's first case of BSE since 2004.
Better Food Better World
France is Europe's biggest cattle producer and there is concern that a new case of BSE - more commonly known as mad cow disease -- could affect exports in an industry already struggling with low prices. Last year French beef exports totaled just over $1 billion, trade ministry data show.
The suspect cow died on a farm in the Ardennes region of France. Preliminary testing on the carcass on March 17 indicated the presence of BSE. Tissue samples have been sent to an official European BSE reference laboratory in the UK for further testing. Officials said it could be several days yet before results are available.
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