Arkansas Administrative Code › Agency 209 - Arkansas Agriculture Department › Division 01 - Livestock And Poultry Commission › Rule 209.01.11-002 - Trichomoniasis Testing and Movement Requirements for Cattle

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 6, June, 2024
Definitions
The following words or terms, when used in this Subchapter,
				shall have the following meaning unless the context clearly indicated
				otherwise:
"Acceptable specimen"
means a specimen determined
				satisfactory for diagnostic testing by the testing laboratory, including
				complete documentation.
"Approved laboratory
means any laboratory
				designated and approved by the state veterinarian for examining T. foetus
				samples.
"Approved veterinarian"
means an accredited
				veterinarian who is licensed and accredited in the state of Arkansas.
"Bovine"
means any sexually intact male and female
				animal of the genus bos.
"Change of ownership"
means control of an animal
				being transferred between two (2) persons by sale, lease, or lending.
"Commingle"
means animals of opposite sex and
				belonging to different owners in the same enclosure or pasture with a
				reasonable opportunity for sexual contact.
"Complete herd test"
means an official T. foetus
				test from each non-virgin bull in the herd.
"Herd"
means the group of animals consisting of
				all male and female bovines over twelve (12) months of age that have commingled
				during the last twelve (12) months.
"Official T. foetus laboratory testing"
means the
				laboratory procedures that shall be approved by the state veterinarian for
				culture and identification of T. foetus.
"Official T. foetus bull test"
means the sampling
				of the preputial content of a bull by a licensed, accredited and trich test
				certified veterinarian or a veterinarian from the Arkansas Livestock and
				Poultry Commission. The test shall be conducted after a one week separation
				from all female bovine and the bull and sample shall be positively and
				individually identified and documented for laboratory submission. The test may
				consist of three (3) culture tests one (1) week apart or one (1) PCR
				test.
"Positive T. foetus bull"
means a bull that has
				had a positive T. foetus test.
"Positive T. foetus bull herd"
means that group of
				all bovines which have had any opportunity for sexual contact in the previous
				breeding season and in which any male or female animal has had a positive
				diagnosis for T. foetus.
"Negative T. foetus bull"
means a bull that
				qualifies by one of the following:
A.
			 originate from a herd not known to be infected and has had a negative official
			 T. foetus bull test within the last year;
B. originate from a positive herd but:
1. Has a series of three negative official T.
			 foetus bull tests at intervals of at least one week;
2. Or a negative official T. foetus bull test
			 within thirty (30) days prior to entry with no sexual activity for one (1) week
			 prior to the test and between the test and movement.
"Suspect
T.
foetus bull"
means a bull
				from a positive T. foetus herd that has not yet had three (3) consecutive
				negative official T. foetus bull tests.
"Trichomonas (Tritrichomonas) foetus"
or
"T.
				foetus"
means a contagious venereal protozoan parasite disease of the
				trichomonas foetus species that frequently results in lifetime infection of
				male bovidae as an inapparent carrier and causes infertility, pyometra,
				abortions and reproductive inefficiency in female bovidae.
"Unacceptable sample"
means a sample that is
				deemed not diagnostic by the official testing laboratory.
"Virgin bull"
means a sexually intact male bovine
				less than twenty-four (24) months of age that has had no breeding and no
				potential breeding contact with females.
"Virgin bull affidavit"
means a signed affidavit
				from the owner, manager, or veterinarian that verifies the bull has had no
				breeding and no potential breeding contact with females.
I. import Requirements for Bulls
A. No bull that has tested positive for
			 trichomoniasis shall be brought into this state for any purpose
			 whatsoever.
B. No bull may be
			 brought into this state without being accompanied by a negative test for
			 trichomoniasis except for the following animals:
1. Exhibition and rodeo bulls that are
			 temporarily in the state only for the purpose of the event and will be leaving
			 the state after the event;
2. Bulls
			 consigned to go directly to slaughter; and
3. Virgin bulls (under twenty-four (24)
			 months of age).
C. A
			 bull that is brought into this state without being accompanied by a negative
			 test for trichomoniasis shall not be comingled with any cow unless the bull is
			 tested and found to be negative for trichomoniasis prior to
			 comingling.
D. All bulls, except
			 exhibition and rodeo bulls, brought into this state shall be identified by one
			 or more of the following means prior to importation:
1. Brucellosis ear tag;
2. Official 840 radio frequency
			 identification device (RFID);
3.
			 Official 840 flap or bangle tag;
4.
			 Official individual animal breed registry brand;
E. Virgin bulls, other than exhibition and
			 rodeo bulls, brought into this state shall, in addition to any other required
			 documentation, be accompanied by a certification of virgin status signed by the
			 owner of the bull, or the owner's representative or a duly authorized
			 veterinarian. The certification shall include the bull's individual
			 identification. If the owner seeking to import the virgin bull into this state
			 acquired the bull from a breeder or another owner, a certification of virgin
			 status signed by the breeder and each prior owner of the bull, or their
			 representative, must also accompany the bull. The use of the Arkansas Virgin
			 Bull Status form is required.
F.
			 The requirements for trichomoniasis testing shall be three separate culture
			 tests, each conducted not less than one week apart, or one (1) polymerase chain
			 reaction (PCR) test no more than thirty (30) days prior to entry of the bull
			 into this state. All sample collections and inspection of bulls must be
			 performed by a licensed and accredited veterinarian. Testing for trichomoniasis
			 must be performed at/by an accredited/approved laboratory.
G. All bulls found to be positive for T.
			 foetus must be taken to slaughter within two weeks on a VS-127. Arkansas
			 Livestock and Poultry Commission must be notified of all positive bulls and the
			 disposition of these bulls.
II. Intrastate Change of Ownership
			 Requirements for Bulls
A. Any bull changing
			 ownership within the state of Arkansas shall have a negative official T. foetus
			 test within thirty (30) days prior to change of ownership with no exposure to
			 females from seven (7) days prior to the test at the time of change of
			 ownership.
B. Exceptions to this
			 rule shall include the following:
1. Virgin
			 bulls (under twenty-four (24) months of age)
2. A bull sold directly to slaughter;
or
3. A
			 bull sold for feeding and slaughter that will be castrated within seven (7)
			 days of change of ownership.
C. Any bull presented for sale at a livestock
			 auction market that is not a virgin bull or having verification of a negative
			 official T. foetus test:
1. Shall be tagged
			 for slaughter only and sold for slaughter on a VS 1-27 form;
or
2. May
			 go to the purchaser's destination so long as the market veterinarian takes a
			 sample for an official T. foetus test and the purchaser agrees to keep the bull
			 under quarantine at the destination until receipt of negative test
			 results.
D. The market
			 veterinarian shall be responsible for the sampling and results for an official
			 T. foetus test performed at the livestock market
E. All bulls found to be positive for T.
			 foetus must be taken to slaughter within two weeks on a VS-127. Arkansas
			 Livestock and Poultry Commission must be notified of all positive bulls and the
			 disposition of these bulls.
III. Import Requirements for Reproductive
			 Bovine Females
A. Female cattle or bison may
			 enter Arkansas with no restrictions concerning Trichomoniasis unless
			 originating from a known positive T. foetus herd.
B. A female bovine originating from a known
			 positive T. foetus herd may enter Arkansas only upon a CVI with a statement
			 that the female is from a known T. foetus infected herd pursuant to one of the
			 following circumstances:
1. The female bovine
			 has a calf at side and no exposure to other than known negative bulls since
			 parturition;
2. The female bovine
			 are at least one hundred twenty (120) days pregnant;
3. The female bovine are known to be virgin
			 heifers;
4. The female bovine are
			 heifers exposed only to known negative bulls and are not yet one hundred twenty
			 (120) days pregnant;
5. The female
			 bovine are documented to have had at least one hundred twenty (120) days of
			 sexual isolation; or
6. The female
			 bovine are consigned directly to slaughter or to a quarantined
			 feedlot.
IV.
			 Exceptions
The state veterinarian may grant a written exception to this
				rule only on an individual basis.