do that with a vet (has to be a vet to take the test and send it to the lab) I guess for scrapie. The last blood sample I took from one of my ewes cost me 68.00 for the test and another 14 for coming out. Obviously I lost money on that ewe! I think their putting homesteaders out of business. The big guys need to have the ram tested. Anyway between that new testing law which will be effective next year and not being able to get my chixs this year, I am unset. anyone smarter than me understand these new testing procedures on sheep? Debbie

-- Debbie (bwolcott@cwis.net), September 28, 2001

Answers

Debbie, are you sure that the vet has to draw the blood? Because if you could draw it and identify each animal on the tubes of blood, and then take it in to your vet for him to send to the lab, it would be a LOT cheaper.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), September 28, 2001.

Yea it has to be the vet because, like with the horse coggins tests, the vet is making sure of what blood came from what. I am trying to get the information together regarding this. On the sheep forums they seem to be worried but they are all dealing with show sheep and it is just another expense but they make big bucks showing. I am raising sheep for meat the to sell a few, hobby and family food. The ewes are good. I just feed out a few lambs for sell and I should feel lucky to get my feed back on them. I do not understand this scrapie thing to much, wouldn't know if I saw a case but this will ruin our sheep market it all animals have to be tested.

-- Debbie (bwolcott@cwis.net), September 28, 2001.

Scrapie is the disease that is supposedly related to mad cow. So far the research is linking feed with animal parts being the cause--as of now no mad cow has been found in organically fed cows, even in Britain. So maybe going completely organic is the answer, but that can take time and some expense.

All you need to do these days is read one article on mad cow and it puts you right off meat (for a while, at least).

Is it only sheep sold for meat that need to be tested or those raised for wool production as well?

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), September 28, 2001.

Debbie, the scrapie issue is on the Aphis site. There is no mandatory testing at this point, and probably only will happen to herds if one of the animals is sold and tests positive (because of a suspicious death etc.) Only at export would the animals then be tested, and export is what this whole sheep scrapie issue is about. To be able to export sheep they have to be from a scrapie free country of origin, something we can't prove right now because we don't have a scrapie program. At this point the scrapie issue only affects us sheep and goat homesteaders who happen to show, sell over state lines, fly our stock by planes for sale, and export, with some new paperwork. But no testing. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), September 29, 2001.

Vicky, I read the article and called that number. it is voluntary as long as you dont ship from state to state. My sheep go either to Texas or Ark.. I have a trucker that picks up what I don't sell locally and takes them to either the aution in Dallas area or the one in Ft.Smith area. So..those sheep have to be tagged. It turns out that it the tagging of an animal instead of drawing blood. There is a large percentage of false negatives or positives so..who knows. I do sell a few as show sheep and they would have to be cleaned . Now I am thinking of buying a ram that has been tested but not sure if that would help, I am sure my ewes are gray in that area. Never seen a case of scrapie or spider but there is some inbreeding going on. The ram I am using this year father was a great gradfather to the ewes so I will pray for luck. All the lambs born from this breeding season was to be market as market lambs. Suppose, for instance I have a ewe lamb that is going to the butcher Sunday, finally fed out and the buyer wanted an extra month of corn feeding on it. Now it is a beauty and has the weight plus is ideal age 7 mts. What if it does carry the bad genes how would it affect a human. I have the brains and internal organs dumped. Do you or anyone know?

-- Debbie (bwolcott@cwis.net), September 29, 2001.

Here in Michigan they have ordered TB testing and since it was a government order the government is paying for it. I would think it would apply to this also.

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), September 29, 2001.

It still is not testing though. It just means like always if you cross a state line you have to have a health certificate. Goats must have their tattoo's and registration papers with them also. Sheep must have their ear tags for ID. Since they are giving the tags away for free, only the time for paperwork is the cost. You have to keep up with breeding stock sales for 5 years. We just got an overview of what Texas is doing in the mail today. There is a list of Commercial low risk goats that are not on this tag or paperwork list, and rules for sheep. The only sheep needing eartags are sheep over 18 months old, All breeing sheep, all scrapie exposed, suspect, test-positive and high-risk animals, breeding goats, except low-risk commercial goats, and all sheep and goats for exhibition. Less stringent requirements for sheep and goats moving interstate for grazing....... www.animalagriculture.org/scrapie

or www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/scrapie

for your own copy write United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Scrapie Eradication Program Coordinator Animal and Plant Health inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinary Services (VS) 4700 River Toad Unit #43 Riverdale, Maryland 20737-1231

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), September 29, 2001.

Thank you Vicky, What I don't understand is okay most of my lambs will be sold here are of course under the 18 months, so no worry. But, I do sell lambs out of state and sell breeding ewes over 18 months out of state also. So., I get the tags, will the tags say I do or don't have this possible disease which I wouldn't have any idea of if I did. I do have the prime suspects Suffolks, Hamps,. I do understand if this disease affects humans as to why it is being done. But from what I read of the sites you listed it doesn't affect humans. Now is this like when some (clowns) feed their cows with sheep brains and give humans Mad Cow Disease. I really wondering what is going on. I do not tag my sheep as you say you do in Texas and my sheep go to Texas. Are they going illegal! Thanks, Debbie

-- Debbie (bwolcott@cwis.net), September 29, 2001.

Hi Debbie, until the first of October, all states had different rules for interstate and out of state travel of livestock. You should read the list in the Houston Livestock Show rule book!! Now things have changed. Any travel out of state will require a health certificate. And though your sheep that are sold before 18 months don't need to be tagged, or those for slaughter, older breeding stock, or any traveling, will. We have registered goats, so their tattoo's and registration papers is all we will need as of now. I would think just using the free APHIS metal or plastic tags as your permanant form of identification from birth, would be the way to go. I have my annual talk with the vet this week, I will be curious of her take on this. Perhaps your vet will have a different view. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), September 30, 2001.

Hey Vicki,

Does that mean that someone can't go to Ohio to buy goats at the auctions and bring them home to KY? A friend of mine keeps saying he wants to go up there and get some. Goats at the auctions never have any paperwork with them. Would a person get in trouble doing this? I never have, but I am curious now as to the legality of it all with all these changes going on.

-- Cindy in KY (solidrockranch@msn.com), September 30, 2001.

Though some goats at an auction barn may be registered, as in private sale, boer/dairy type sales, and would obviously since they know in advance outside state buyers come, would come with health certificates. Most nice auctions make folks have health certificates anyway. Now regular :) auction barns would include goats that are considered "Commercial Low-risk goats" these are goats raised for fiber or meat, are not registered or exhibitied, have not been in contact with sheep, are not scrapie positive, high risk or exposed animals, are not from an infected or source herd. Then these would not need health certificates because they are not part of the scrapie eradication program. Even our nasty local auction barn, that has been closed for years, had a state vet at it for on the spot inspections, and testing of cattle, so surely this is what the barns will do, have visual inspections, tags on hand, and issue health certificates with "commerical low-risk goats" stamped on it. They will also have to now, keep sheep and goats seperated, in pens and only working sheep after the goats come through, since the sheep are the carriers. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), September 30, 2001.

At the sale barns here, the sheep and goats are mixed together all the time. The only ones they separate are the big mean bucks or rams. All the does and bucks are together and there is allot of "mingling" going on. And no paperwork whatsoever unless the goat is registered, and then just the registration paper. One auction down south has a vet on hand, but not the smaller county auctions. I've never been to the one in Ohio. Anyone know how it is up there? I would like to go up there any buy bottle calves, they are still too high down here. But still, it might be hard to get them back or too expensive, huh?

-- Cindy in KY (solidrockranch@msn.com), October 01, 2001.