Section 50. Scrapie management

All known cases of scrapie and any sheep or goat known to originate from a scrapie-infected or source flock or to have had contact with scrapie-infected animals, unless determined not to be a high-risk animal and released for movement by the state of origin, or any sheep or goat showing clinical signs of scrapie not known to be caused by some other disease or injury shall be isolated from all other nonaffected animals and reported by an accredited veterinarian to the State Veterinarian within 24 hours of the isolation.

Upon notification of known cases of scrapie and all suspected cases of scrapie, or that a flock received a high-risk animal, was the flock of birth of a positive animal, or was the flock in which a scrapie positive female animal resided, the flock shall be quarantined, investigated, all animals in the flock individually identified, and a risk analysis conducted. A diagnostic plan shall be developed and reviewed by the State Veterinarian utilizing approved live diagnostic tests and submission of appropriate samples to an approved laboratory for scrapie testing upon the death or destruction of any animals in a flock quarantined for scrapie. All flocks shall remain under quarantine until a determination of the status of the flock is made. Animals that are not needed for testing to determine the status of the flock and that are not high-risk, suspect, or positive animals may be released based on a risk assessment or as provided in a flock plan. All flocks under quarantine shall be examined at least yearly, or more frequently as determined by the State Veterinarian, and an inventory of all animals in the flock recorded with all deaths, sales to slaughter, as allowed by the State Veterinarian and destruction accounted for. Upon confirmation of the existence of scrapie in a flock, a thorough epidemiological report of all source flocks and contacts with other animals shall be documented and a risk analysis conducted. Subsequently flocks that are identified as source or as infected flocks and all flocks that received high-risk animals shall be quarantined, investigated, all animals in flock individually identified, and testing conducted if needed to determine the status of the flock. Trace information for scrapie positive and high-risk animals to flocks outside Virginia will be reported to the affected state as well as APHIS.

Test positive or suspect animals shall be moved only with the approval of the State Veterinarian, for transportation to a USDA-approved research facility or for the purpose of destruction.

All known scrapie-infected and source flocks and high-risk animals shall be quarantined with movements of animals only (i) to slaughter, (ii) to feedlots under permit and quarantine for later movement to slaughter, (iii) for destruction, or (iv) to a USDA-approved research facility. Animals destroyed as a result of this section will be disposed of in a manner approved by the State Veterinarian.

Infected and source flocks may be released from quarantine after completion of a USDA flock plan or in a USDA-approved pilot project flock plan that includes the owners agreement to comply with a five-year postexposure monitoring and management plan. The State Veterinarian may release any suspected case of scrapie from quarantine when other causes of the symptoms are confirmed and scrapie has not been diagnosed.

Any flock under quarantine that has not had a test positive confirmation for scrapie diagnosis within five years that has followed the USDA-approved flock plan shall be released from quarantine. The State Veterinarian may release any flock from quarantine based on epidemiological or diagnostic factors.

Historical Notes

Derived from Volume 24, Issue 25, eff. October 3, 2008.

Statutory Authority

§§ 3.2-6001, 3.2-6002 and 3.2-6004 of the Code of Virginia.