Dr. 'Buddy' Faries cautions producers to be vigilant

By MONETTE TAYLOR | South Central Texas

November 1, 2001 -- In dealing with the recent terrorist attacks and how it could affect producers, Dr. "Buddy" Faries, professor and Extension Veterinary at A&M University, spoke to a full house concerning animal diseases at the recent South Texas Farm and Ranch Show held in Victoria.

Faries said that there are several diseases that can be classified in the transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) family. These include Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), widely referred to as "mad cow disease," as well as Scrapies in sheep.

According to literature from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), currently, there is no test for BSE in a live animal. Testing is done by "postmortem microscopic examination of brain tissue or by the detection of the abnormal form of the prion protein."

The BSE name relates to the spongy appearance of the brain tissue of infected cattle. These diseases cause holes in the brain, said Faries.

"When that prion protein is ingested and swallowed, it goes to the brain. When it reaches the brain, it signals the normal prions of the brain to start multiplying. All people and all animals have prions in the brain, but they're normal prions.

"If someone eats and swallows an abnormal or mutated prion, it will go to the brain and signal the normal prions to start multiplying and holding together and make holes in the brain," said Faries.

One of the diseases in this category is Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease (CJD) and can be passed to humans by eating human brains or drinking blood from a skull, a ritual practiced by some groups in secret meetings.

"We have CJD in Texas. We have CJD in the United States," said Faries.

Scrapie is a disease in the TSE group that affects sheep. In 1986, Great Britain had been feeding animal protein which contained the scrapie protein, and the result was the outbreak of mad cow disease that has escalated in recent years.

"The cows that were dying of mad cow were primarily ... old cows, dairy cows ... several years old. They were slaughtering these cows and processing them, grinding them up into hamburger meat and some brain and spinal cord got into the hamburger meat," said Faries.

"The USDA recognized that (disease) and by 1989 said 'no more ruminants will be imported from the United Kingdom (UK),' so that stopped."

In 1997, these restrictions were extended to include all other countries in Europe, and in 2000, the USDA prohibited all imports of "rendered animal protein products, regardless of species, from Europe," according to USDA literature.

"There's no Mad Cow disease in the United States. There's no chance of you getting Mad Cow from eating ground beef or any kind of meat, so eat all the meat you want," said Faries.

He did add that travelers to the U.K. did have a risk of contracting the disease, but most of the cattle over there are processed by the age of two and one-half years old, so they should be safe.

According to Faries, the latest, biggest threat to Texas comes from West Nile Encephalitis, which can affect humans and horses.

"We've got a new one that's on it's way to Texas. It started in New York in '99, and killed people and horses," he said.

It moved down the Eastern coast to Florida and has started west.

"Now, it's moved on in this direction, on through Alabama, Mississippi and now it's in Louisiana. If it's not in Texas, it's on it's way and will be here, shortly," said Faries.

He said that birds are the source of the disease. Birds that have been identified as carriers include blue jays, crows and hawks. The mosquitoes bite the birds and then bite humans and horses, transferring the disease.

Faries said that one in 100 people bitten by the infected mosquitoes get the disease, and 10 percent of them will die. While horses have the same probability of being bitten, one out of four will die.

He said that the disease cannot be passed from human to human or horse to horse, and the best defense is an early diagnosis. He reminded the audience that if anyone finds dead blue jays, crows or hawks to call the Texas Department of Health in Austin at (512)458-7255, as they are trying to track infected birds. There is a vaccine for horses, but it hasn't been approved by the USDA.

Faries also updated the group on Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).

"This is the most highly contagious livestock disease of all diseases. When it hits Texas, it's going to spread rapidly, and it's going to have a devastating impact on the livestock industry and to the economy," he said.

Although the disease has not been in the U.S. since 1929, he said the risk is "getting higher and higher." Also, travelers from Europe can bring the disease in, mostly by "smuggled" or "illegal" meat products in their suitcases. He advised the audience to dispose of the meat properly, and to avoid getting it around livestock. As of September 1, there can be no meat in cooked garbage feed for hogs.

If a producer notices sick livestock with symptoms of FMD, they are to call: (800) 550-8242, immediately.

Finally, Faries talked about the Anthrax threat in South Texas.

"Anthrax is a big problem in South Texas, and used to be a problem on the Gulf Coast," he said.

The anthrax outbreaks in Texas "occur most often in low-lying areas where the soil is alkaline (pH is greater than 6), when the low temperature is higher than 60 degrees, and after there has been a flood or a drought," according to the Texas Agricultural Extension Service.

Animals usually become infected by eating spores in the soil while grazing, and symptoms usually appear from three to seven days after infection has taken place. Animals infected with anthrax die quickly.

Most cases of anthrax in Texas have been detected in Uvalde, Ozona and Del Rio, said Faires, but there is a vaccine available to producers for the animals.

He said the spores clump together so compactly, it makes them too big for the pulmonary type of anthrax that affects humans, and that has been in the news so much, lately.