Scrapie Program

Since 1952, the United States Department of

Agriculture (USDA) has worked to control and 

eradicate scrapie, which entered the United States 

in 1947 from English–origin sheep imported from

Canada. Today, USDA uses two approaches to eradicate scrapie: flock certification and an eradication

program.

Scrapie Flock Certification Program (SFCP)

The SFCP has been in place since October

1992. The certification program is a voluntary, cooperative effort among producers, allied industry representatives, accredited veterinarians, State animal

health officials, and USDA's Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service (APHIS). The program provides

participating producers with the opportunity to protect

their sheep from scrapie and to enhance the 

marketability of their animals through certifying their

origin in scrapie–free flocks.

As of April 30, 2004, there were 1,849 flocks 

participating in the SFCP. Of these, 123 were certified flocks, and 124 were newly enrolled. During 

fiscal year (FY) 2003, there were 310 flocks newly

enrolled or certified in the certification program.

National Scrapie Eradication

Operation of the accelerated eradication program

was initiated in FY 2000 through the use of 

emergency funding. Federal regulations put the 

program into effect in August 2001. In FY 2003,

USDA received $15 million in appropriated funding to

conduct the scrapie program.

Summary—FY 2003 

In FY 2003, the Scrapie Eradication Program focused

on: (1) developing a genetics–based approach to

flock clean–up plans; (2) cleaning up infected and

source flocks; (3) tracing and testing exposed animals and flocks; (4) completing the Scrapie: Ovine

Slaughter Surveillance study to determine the prevalence of scrapie in mature cull ewes; (5) implementing regulatory slaughter surveillance; (6) implementing producer education; and (7) reaching a consensus on and finalizing the Scrapie Eradication UM&R

for FY 2004. The Scrapie Eradication UM&R is posted at

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/nahps/scrapie/umrscrapie-erad.pdf.

Infected and Source Flocks 

As of April 30, 2004, there were 48

scrapie–infected and source flocks; at the end of 

FY 2003, a total of 50 scrapie–infected and source

flocks identified. As of April 30, 2004, 38

newly–infected flocks were reported. Of these, 

32 infected and source flocks were released. In FY

2003 there were 73 newly–infected flocks reported.

Sixty of these flocks, or 82 percent, were released or

put on clean–up plans. Additionally, 351 scrapie

cases were also confirmed and reported by the

National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) for

FY 2003, with 172 cases confirmed so far for FY

2004. No case of scrapie in goats was reported in

FY 2003; however, one new case was reported in

January 2004.

Scrapie: Ovine Slaughter Surveillance

(SOSS)

APHIS’ Center for Epidemiology and Animal

Health (CEAH) released the results of the SOSS

study. The objective of SOSS was to estimate the

national and regional prevalence of scrapie in mature

cull ewes. Prior to the SOSS study, the prevalence of

scrapie in the United States was estimated to be 0.07

percent (based on information from NAHMS Sheep

’96, unpublished data). The SOSS study estimate for

the national prevalence in mature ewes is 0.20 percent. The prevalence phase of the SOSS study 

started April 1, 2002, and continued through March

31, 2003. During this time period, samples were collected from 12,508 mature sheep at 22 slaughter

facilities, as well as a major livestock market. Of the

sheep tested, 33 were found to be scrapie positive.

Of these, 27 were black face, 3 mottled face, 1 white

face, and 2 unknown face color. A complete report

and analysis is available at

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/ceah/cahm/Sheep/

SOSS.pdf.

Regulatory Scrapie Slaughter Surveillance

(RSSS)

RSSS started April 1, 2003. RSSS is a targeted

slaughter surveillance program designed to identify

infected flocks for clean–up. Since April 1, 2003,

18,700 samples have been collected from 29 slaughter plants, and the results have been reported for

16,319. There were 44 positive sheep: 5 white face,

1 mottled face, and 38 black face.

Factsheet

Veterinary Services August 2004

APHIS
Scrapie Testing Summary

During FY 2003, 16,803 animals were sampled or

tested for scrapie. This includes 3,724 regular field

necropsy cases, 42 third eyelid biopsies for the test

validation project, 244 necropsy test validations, 579

third eyelid biopsies for the regulatory program, and

approximately 12,214 animals for SOSS and RSSS.

As of April 30, 2004, (for FY 2004) 12,456 

animals have been sampled and/or tested for scrapie:

11,054 RSSS; 1,227 regulatory field cases; 85 regulatory third eyelid biopsies; 13 third eyelid validations;

and 57 necropsy validations.

Assignment of Premises ID Numbers 

There were 85,242 sheep and/or goat premises

listed in the Scrapie National Generic Database

(SNGD) as of May 18, 2004. Of these, 59,939 have

requested and been shipped official premises ear

tags.

Conclusion

The effectiveness of the scrapie eradication program will depend largely on the thought, effort, and

care given to program implementation by those

involved and will need the continued support of the

industry. APHIS looks forward to working with industry, individual producers, accredited veterinarians, 

and approved laboratories to make these projects a

success.

Contact Information

Additional information on scrapie can be found at

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/nahps/scrapie/. If you

have questions or concerns, please contact your local

Veterinary Services area office

(http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs) or e–mail scrapie_program@aphis.usda.gov.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination

in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national

origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to

all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative

means for communication of program information (Braille, large

print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at

(202) 720–2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of

Civil Rights, Room 326–W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence

Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250–9410 or call (202) 720–5964

(voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and

employer.

United States Department of Agriculture • Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service • Safeguarding American Agriculture