By NewsDesk @infectiousdiseasenews
This year, the Vesicular Stomatitis Virus (VSV) outbreak began on June 21, 2019, when the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) in Ames, Iowa confirmed the first VSV-positive premises in Kinney County, Texas.
According to the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, since then, VSV-positive premises have been confirmed to date in 3 states: Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas.
Since the start of the outbreak, Colorado has identified 56 affected premises (31 confirmed positive, 25 suspect) in 6 counties (Adams, Boulder, Broomfield, La Plata, Larimer, and Weld Counties). New Mexico has identified 30 affected premises (27 confirmed positive, 3 suspect) in 6 counties (Los Alamos, Rio Arriba, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Taos, and Valencia Counties). Texas has identified 22 affected premises (20 confirmed positive, 2 suspect) located in 12 counties (Bastrop, Coleman, Hays, Hood, Johnson, Kerr, Kinney, Shackelford, Taylor, Tom Green, Val Verde, and Wichita Counties).
Currently, 101 premises in these three states are under quarantine, with half in Colorado. Seven have been released from quarantine.
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VSV can cause blisters and sores in the mouth and on the tongue, muzzle, teats or hooves of horses, cattle, swine, sheep, goats, llamas and a number of other animals. Lesions usually will heal in two or three weeks. Because of the contagious nature of VSV and its resemblance to other diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), animal health officials urge livestock owners and caretakers to report these symptoms to their veterinarian immediately. Most animals recover with supportive care by a veterinarian.
Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) Executive Director, Dr. Andy Schwartz warns livestock owners, “Known competent vectors for transmission of VSV include black flies, sand flies, and biting midges.
“Livestock owners should implement best practices to limit livestock exposure to insects.”
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