Don't overlook value of West Nile virus shots for your horses

By Joe B. Baker, DVM

Washington State Veterinarian

One week ago the count of horses confirmed with West Nile virus in our state totaled 10 cases. As of Wednesday, it has climbed to 18 cases.

The first case was reported in late July in Benton County, and since then there have been cases reported in six more counties, including Adams, Franklin, Grant, Kittitas, Lincoln and Yakima counties. The south-central portion of our state has historically been where most of the West Nile virus infections are documented each year. After experiencing a significant number of cases in the region in 2008 and 2009, there had been relatively few cases in horses reported in 2010-2014. Five cases were reported in 2014.

Photo: Erin Danzer

Unfortunately, none of the horses reported this year had current booster shots for West Nile, and many of them had never received any vaccination for the disease. After several consecutive years with few or no cases, horse owners may have been lulled into thinking that vaccinations for West Nile virus did not have to be included in their horse’s annual shots. In one case the owner had reportedly been advised by their trainer that vaccinations in horses were a waste of time.

About half of the virus-infected horses reported this year in our state have either succumbed to the disease or have been euthanized. Statistically, 40 percent of those horses that recover will be likely to have long-lasting if not permanent neurological deficits. 

I would like to make a personal plea to all horse owners in Washington to include a West Nile virus shot as a core vaccine in your horse’s vaccination schedule.  The American Association of Equine Practitioners considers the core vaccinations for horses to be eastern/western equine encephalitis, tetanus, rabies and West Nile virus.

The American Veterinary Medical Association defines core vaccinations as those “that protect from diseases that are endemic to a region, those with potential public health significance, required by law, virulent/highly infectious, and/or those posing a risk of severe disease. Core vaccines have clearly demonstrated efficacy and safety, and thus exhibit a high enough level of patient benefit and low enough level of risk to justify their use in the majority of patients.”

Typically Washington’s mosquito season lasts until freezing temperatures return in the fall. If you have a horse that has been given West Nile virus vaccine in the past, it is not too late to give it a booster. Boostering a previously vaccinated horse usually induces a rapid rise in immune levels. If you have never vaccinated your horse in the past, it will take two shots about a month apart to establish immunity.  So you could still manage to protect your horse for the last few weeks of this year’s mosquito season if you start now!

Help for farmers, ranchers affected by massive wildfires

Mike Louisell
Communications 

Wildfires burning across Washington have been devastating, particularly in Eastern Washington. Lives have been lost, families displaced and homes destroyed. The losses in agriculture continue to mount with reports of packing houses, chicken coops, barns and fencing destroyed, livestock lost or killed, and pasture and crops burned.

Right now, WSDA's role in responding to these fires is far more limited than other agencies directly engaged. But we can, at least, share information on resources available for those in agriculture affected by the fires.

Topping the list are federal agency assistance programs, such as the USDA's Farm Service Agency, which has a Livestock Indemnity Program to help those who have lost livestock due to the wildfires.

USDA Rural Development also has resources for agriculture, listed on the USDA Fire Recovery Assistance webpage, prepared by the State Food and Ag Council's Outreach Committee. The webpage lists programs that are available with financial and technical assistance, including recovery expertise from Washington State University Extension.

On the state side, Gov. Jay Inslee's office has created this webpage of wildfire resources with information on Red Cross shelters, state agency assistance programs and even opportunities for those wishing to volunteer locally. If you're on social media, Gov. Inslee's office is sharing the most up-to-date information on Twitter with the hashtag #WAwildfire.

Most likely, WSDA's role in the future will be in supporting the agricultural community as events transition to a recovery phase. Once the fires subside and farmers, food processors and those with livestock operations evaluate the extent of their losses, WSDA may be called upon to help directly with services.

For now, like all others in Washington state, we can only watch the courageous crews fighting these wildfires and work to support those affected by them.

Count stands at 10 horses with West Nile virus—all in Eastern Washington

By MikeLouisell

Communications Office

We now have 10 cases of horses struck with the West Nile virus, with those horses spread across seven counties in Eastern Washington.

West Nile virus is a disease carried by mosquitoes which can be fatal to horses. Symptoms include loss of appetite, lethargy and loss of coordination. Horse owners are urged to keep horses indoors at dawn and dusk, when mosquitoes are prevalent, especially if their horses have not been vaccinated against West Nile.

There's still time to vaccinate for this mosquito season. And, for greater comfort for your horses, consider insect repellent sprays or wipes, fly sheets or fly-repellent feed supplements.

The newest West Nile virus cases have been found in Grant, Kittitas and Lincoln counties and include:

• A 9-year old Quarter horse mare in Moses Lake which became ill but is improving with treatment. That horse was last vaccinated for the virus four years ago.
• A 5-year old Quarter horse mare in Moses Lake contracted the virus and was euthanized. There was no vaccine history for this horse.
• A 14-year old Quarter horse gelding in Ellensburg contracted the virus and was euthanized. It appeared the horse had not been vaccinated for at least the past five years. 
• A 5-year old Appaloosa mare in Almira became ill and was euthanized. It did not appear that the mare had been vaccinated for the virus.

This summer, there have been several cases of horses with West Nile virus in Adams, Benton, Franklin and Yakima counties. So far, no equine cases involving Western Washington horses have been reported. 

West Nile virus is a reportable disease, so veterinarians who learn of potential cases in horses or other animals should inform the State Veterinarian’s Office in Olympia by calling (360) 902-1881.

How dairy producers and livestock sellers can help keep cattle healthy and safe

by Dawn Grummer

Animal Disease Traceability

Are you a livestock seller or dairy producer selling cattle under the “15-head” livestock inspection exemption?  If you are, there are a few changes you should know about.

The first change is that, beginning  July 1, 2015, WSDA began collecting an Animal Disease Traceability (ADT) fee on all cattle. The 15-head exemption from livestock inspection does not exempt dairy producers or livestock sellers from paying this new ADT fee. In fact, failing to pay the fee can result in a civil penalty of up to $250 per violation or per head.

We were contacted recently by a livestock seller asking for an easy way to track transactions and submit the ADT fee. Working with that seller, WSDA's Animal Disease Traceability Program created an ADT Fee Remittance form  that you can use. This form will make tracking ownership transfers under the “15-head exemption” and the remittance of the ADT fee easy for dairy producers or livestock sellers.

So, how much is this fee? The new rule established an ADT fee of 23 cents per head on all cattle sold or slaughtered in the state or transported out of state. There is a fee of 5 cents per head on all out-of-state cattle that are shipped directly to a federally inspected slaughter facility. 

Normally, a WSDA livestock inspector will collect the fee at the time of inspection. However, right now there is an exemption from the livestock inspection requirements. Commonly known as the “15-head exemption,” it allows individual private sales of unbranded female dairy breed cattle involving 15 head or less to take place without inspection by the WSDA.

The 15-head exemption is going away and will no longer be available as of January 1, 2016. At that time, all cattle will be required to get a livestock inspection or report livestock ownership transfers through an Electronic Cattle Transaction Reporting system (ECTR), once made available by the department.

No one likes to pay a fee. But the ADT fee is about protecting the livestock industry. The money raised through this fee will help support our state's animal disease traceability activities, including maintaining a robust database that can be used in an animal disease outbreak to quickly and accurately locate and quarantine the source of the disease. Having this ability will not only provide assurance to your customers that they are purchasing safe, quality products, but also will provide each of you assurance that in the case of a disease outbreak, the risk of spreading the disease is greatly limited.

Reporting ownership transfers and paying the ADT fee is a vital step in protecting public health and maintaining the economic vitality of our livestock industries. If you want more information on our state's animal disease traceability efforts, email adtwa@agr.wa.gov or call our Animal Disease Traceability Program at (360) 725-5493 or (360) 902-1987.

What’s in your trailer or truck?

By: Mike Louisell

Communications Office 

WSDA investigators talk with hay haulers.

With summer travel and harvests well under way, WSDA is making an extra effort to ensure drivers transporting agriculture products or livestock meet state requirements meant to safeguard our crops and livestock.

As part of this effort, we teamed up with the Washington State Patrol to conduct emphasis checks along State Route 12 at the end of July. Investigators from WSDA’s Agricultural Investigations and Animal Health programs waved drivers off the road and into the check point set up at White Pass.

There, our staff talked to the drivers - some pulling trailers filled with cattle or horses, and some hauling hay or other agricultural crops. The investigators wanted to make sure drivers transporting this material had proper ownership documents, appropriate licenses, records of necessary inspections or animal health certificates when needed.  

State troopers joined in to ensure trucks and trailers met commercial vehicle regulations. The troopers conducted safety inspections, enforced compliance with weight limits and checked for current licensing and registration.

WSDA investigators spoke with nearly 40 drivers hauling hay, sweet corn, carrots, apples, watermelon and other field crops - most of this bound for farmers markets and private sales. Two horses and 140 cattle made up the livestock being carried over White Pass. 

Corn hauler chats with WSDA investigators.

Five violations were detected involving ag commodity dealers who either were not licensed or had a brand violation involving livestock. Some verbal and written warnings were also issued. Of those found in violation of licensing requirements, two have already begun the process of getting licensed and one has already become licensed. 

For team members, this was a successful effort - they were able to find some violations of state rules and get those people into compliance, but more importantly, they were able to educate a number of people about the rules involving livestock and commodities. 

The team is planning to conduct more of these checks through the summer, including in an area near the Idaho border. If you need info on licensing for commodity dealers, visit the Agricultural Investigations Program. For information on requirements regarding livestock, visit the Animal Health Program.