Small ruminant panel offers convenient approach to herd health
When it comes to sheep and goat health, there’s no room for pulling the wool over anyone’s eyes. Everything may look fine in the pasture, but appearances don’t always tell the whole story. Factors such as subclinical infections, incubation periods, and animals carrying infections without showing clinical signs can allow diseases to go unnoticed for extended periods.
Conveniently, the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, TVMDL, now offers the Small Ruminant Biosecurity Panel, a bundled set of diagnostic tests designed to help sheep and goat owners and veterinarians proactively monitor herd health and make informed management decisions. The panel conveniently combines testing for the following:
- Caseous lymphadenitis (CL)
- Johne’s disease
- Infections caused by small ruminant lentiviruses
- Caprine arthritis encephalitis (CAE) virus
- Ovine progressive pneumonia (OPP) virus
Caseous lymphadenitis
This is a bacterial infection caused by Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis. Infected animals may develop abscesses, weight loss, and sometimes pneumonia. When abscesses rupture, bacteria can contaminate the surrounding environment and potentially infect other animals through skin abrasions or mucous membranes.
Johne’s disease
This is a bacterial infection caused by Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis. Infection can lead to severe weight loss and diarrhea. The disease is most commonly spread through fecal contamination but may also be transmitted through colostrum and milk.
Small ruminant lentiviruses
Goats and sheep are affected by different forms of lentiviral infection. These viruses can cause CAE in goats and OPP in sheep. Both diseases can lead to serious health complications, including arthritis, mastitis, pneumonia, and neurologic disease. These viruses are primarily transmitted through the ingestion of infected colostrum or milk but can also spread through contact with respiratory secretions or contaminated equipment.
How is this panel beneficial?
The panel may be particularly useful when purchasing, selling, or moving animals. It can also support routine herd health monitoring, pre-shipment testing, and certain herd certification or disease eradication programs.
For example, this testing option could protect producers’ existing livestock investments. Because the panel detects antibodies for multiple infectious agents at once, producers and veterinarians can identify carriers and reduce the risk of unknowingly bringing in disease that impacts animal productivity, viability, and survival.
The panel may also help enhance the marketability of their animals. Producers can share the panel results with prospective buyers. Demonstrating an animal’s health status with official diagnostic reports can possibly increase buyer confidence.
Important considerations
Testing represents only one component of a strong biosecurity program. Routine monitoring, proper sanitation, and careful management of new animals are also essential.
A careful interpretation of results also matters. A negative result reflects an animal’s status at the time of sampling, and early infections may not always be detected. Testing multiple animals, or ideally the entire herd or flock when appropriate, can provide greater confidence than relying on the result of a single animal.
Upon receiving the comprehensive report of results from TVMDL, producers should consult their veterinarian for management plans.
When sheep and goat owners or their veterinarians need to monitor herd health status, evaluate a new purchase, or strengthen an existing biosecurity program, TVMDL’s Small Ruminant Biosecurity Panel is a great tool to start with.
For more information about veterinary diseases or TVMDL’s test offerings, visit tvmdl.tamu.edu or call the College Station laboratory at 888-646-5623.
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