FROM THE STATE VET’S OFFICE
Reporting Large Die-offs:
Magic Number is FOUR The
If you have read more than a few of the articles that I have written over the past several years, you should know that I continually hammer on the point that producers should report large die-offs in addition to other possible foreign animal disease red flags. Today I want to focus on the importance of reporting large die-offs. These events are usually not tied to a foreign animal disease outbreak, but it is important to rule out a foreign animal disease that could devastate animal agriculture. It is also important that we hopefully help the producer find out what is affecting the animals and stop the losses. Since there is a need to answer the question, “What is a large die-off,” I have gone with the number four. If someone has two hundred cows maybe four doesn’t seem like that many, but it is a number that I believe would keep us from missing a foreign animal disease. Most often, large die-offs, four or more dead animals in proximity timewise, is going to be some sort of toxin. However, I think it is important to identify the toxin or the infectious agent in the event it is caused by a virus or bacteria. Early in my time as State Veterinarian, I received a call one afternoon on my way home from my office in Montgomery. Someone in Baldwin County had just lost 50 cows. They were fine yesterday and today they were dead. That was back when agroterrorism was high on our radar screens. We were able to establish 16
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