The Threat of Foreign Animal Diseases
Posted on February 3, 2010
Written By Bradford P Smith, Professor Emeritus
For the last 30 years the only foreign animal diseases (FAD) that have had to be eradicated in the US are those of birds; highly pathogenic avian influenza in 1985 and 2004 and exotic Newcastle disease in 2003. Pet birds and fighting cocks were the source of recent outbreaks that threatened our vital poultry industry, and it was a small animal practitioner who alerted us to the recent threat. We live in a world of international movement and the possibility of bioterrorism is present as well. Accidental entry or bioterrorism could involve a disease of veterinary importance such as foot and mouth disease or rinderpest, which at first can look a lot like bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) , malignant catarrhal fever (MCF), pseudocowpox , or bovine herpes mammillitis, all of which are found within the United States.
The first people likely to encounter a FAD are practicing veterinarians, so it is vital that all veterinarians and animal health workers to be familiar with these threats and to be alert. The USDA established an accreditation program in 1907 to allow private practitioners to assist federal veterinarians in certifying animals for interstate and international movement and to assist in controlling animal diseases. In your final year in school you can attend an accreditation seminar, submit an application to the USDA and become accredited once you have a state license. Accredited veterinarians are the backbone of US regulatory programs, and serve as the first line warning to us if a possible FAD is detected.
Other important FADs include classical swine fever (eradicated in 1978), African swine fever, peste de petits ruminants, sheep scabies, African horse sickness, contagious equine metritis, dourine, glanders, piroplasmosis, VEE, contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (eradicated in the US in 1892), and screw worms. There are also many exotic diseases of birds and small animals that one needs to be aware of.
