Lancaster farming. (Lancaster, Pa., etc.) 1955-current, April 01, 2000, Image 44

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    A44-Lanc«ster Farming, Saturday, April 1, 2000
Information On The West Nile
Virus Threat And Its Aftermath
Anthony E. Castro, DVM,PhD
Virologist (PADLS)
The occurrence of West Nile
virus (WNV) in birds, horses,
and humans in the northeastern
United States in 1999 was the
first encounter of this arbovirus
in the USA. Arboviruses are
those viruses that are transmit
ted by an insect vector from one
species to another. The WNV is a
typical arbovirus (flavivirus)
which is transmitted by the bite
of a mosquito vector from an ani
mal which is viremic (ie. virus
circulating in the blood stream)
to a susceptible species.
The strain of WNV presently
in the USA is genetically related
to the WNV strains found in the
Middle East. It has been seen to
be extremely lethal to crows
which when infected, die in high
numbers, thus crows provide a
sentinel for the presence of the
WNV in a vicinity. The virus also
infects horses when bitten by
mosquitoes carrying the virus,
i In horses, the illness is usually
expressed as neurologic signs
(encephalitis) or ambulatory
deficits.
Transmission from animal
to-animal, birds-to-horses or
animal to human has not been
known to occur. In horses, an
“influenza-like” syndrome
occurs with weakness and cir
cling. Incoordination also fol
lows, which may lead to eventu
al death. Thus, all horses and
also humans are considered “ter
minal hosts.” Nevertheless, hors
es usually have a low viremia
BUY,
SELL,
TRADE
OR
RENT
THROUGH
THE
CLASSIFIED
ADS
IN
Lancaster
Farming
aiiiwn*'*™
mull a
Corn planing Is dinning soon, we have excellent quality and
quanitityayT seef corn this year. Seed corn has been our
business for oMr 54 pars. •
We have a laiAeUtftion Reasonably priced!
. Z? many Wo es °f Gras &£* s - . ,
We alsolmve Oats, SoWtans, Twine & Chemicals IftU
y HORST SEED AMP CHEMICALS
Charles L. Horst Dennis S. Horst
I Mile East of Marion Along Marion - New Franklin Rd
(717) 978-3882 (717) 378-4600
which allows them to produce
antibodies to the WNV. Such
immune animals are not sources
of virus and should not be eutha
natized. In areas where the dis
ease has been identified suscep
tible horses should by kept
indoors to avoid mosquito con
tact.
The WNV can be isolated in
approved state and federal labo
ratories. Usually, the virus can
be obtained from cerebrospinal
fluids or identified in tissues by
molecular procedures (ie.,
reverse transcriptase poly
merase chain reaction). Serum
is used to detect specific anti
bodies (IgM and IgG) to WNV 7 .
Pools of trapped mosquitoes can
be used to detect WNV by anti
gen capture ELISAs.
A passive surveillance pro
gram can be instituted by ani
mal owners by informing veteri
nary personnel of neurologic ill
ness in horses, excessive death
of birds, specifically crows, and
increases in the mosquito popu
lations. In humans, public
health departments should be
informed of flu-like illnesses,
skin rash, with neurologic symp
toms and flaccid paralysis when
they are seen as these can lead
to death. Suspected human
cases can be tested for their
exposure to WNV by serology
(serum antibodies). However,
most human infections by WNV
are usually clinically inappar
ent.
Vertical transmission of WNV
occurs in mosquitoes (ie, Culex
Agricultural • Commercial • Residential
\\i' si ll .ill kinds of s|h ;i\ nuttri inls
and Aedes genus), but has not
yet been seen in the strain iso
lated in the northeastern US.
The viral RNA has been shown
to exist in mosquitoes that have
overwintered in New York City.
Nonetheless, persistence of
infectious WNV has not yet been
proven to occur in the virus iso
lated in the USA. Vector control
is critical by mosquito abate
ment programs and destruction
of breeding areas for mosquito
larvae.
Precautions to follow include,
the use of gloves and face pro
tection when handling dead
birds or horses. At present, the
WNV has not been detected or
has not occurred clinically in
animals located in
Pennsylvania. A surveillance
program has been instituted by
the Department of Agriculture
to insure the rapid detection of
WNV should it occur in the
Commonwealth.
"•/»/. /.
little money buy* i lot of Action.
USE CLASSIFIED ADS
The Pennsylvania
Feeder Calf Roundup
Dr. John Comerford
Penn State University
Extension Beef Specialist
Pennsylvania feeder calf pro
ducers are at a disadvantage in
the marketplace because of
small herd sizes and variability
of management and genetics.
The roundup program began in
1993 as a means to make pro
duction, health programs, and
marketing more consistent
among small herds.
Calves are consigned to the
program in the summer.
Vaccinations for the respiratory
complex, including pasturella,
begin in late August on the
farm. Booster shots are given 2
weeks later with the addition of
deworming, ear tags, and option
al implants. After another two
weeks, the calves are transport
ed to a weaning center, where
they are weighed, comingled,
graded by PDA, sorted into
truckload lots for sale, and start
ed on limited grain rations.
Calves that are overweight,
under weight, improperly cas
trated, not graded Ml or LI, or
have health problems are reject
ed.
Calves are offered for sale on
a teleauction in late September
or early October from a sale
originating at Buckhannon, WV.
Delivery from the weaning cen
ter usually occurs 10-14 days
after the sale, for a total wean
ing period of 20-22 days.
Consignors are paid based on
the weight of the calves at deliv
ery. Costs for consignors include
Boosts Your
Efficiency
and Products
with these
innovative Products...
The
system grows chicks into FINISHED
broilers efficiently.
Start chicks with the feeder resting on the
floor and the feed pan entirely filled The Pax
QUICK-START™ pan provides easy access to
plenty of fresh feed - with no accumulation of
stale feed in the drop tube - attracting even the
smallest chicks to begin feeding right away
A
.y
WINCHED
When the feeder is
winched me feed level
lube eotorrvettcely low
e«s to your pre selected
brushing level
ON THE FLOOR
With IN feeder resting
on the floor the feed
level tube is raised to
present feed n the
entire pen without over
filling tike ether typical
flood feeders
Zeiset a— n 5
Equipment '■
2187 North Penryn Rd., Manheim, PA 17545
Phone (717) 665-4056 Fax (717) 665-2240
the health program, feed,
yardage at the weaning center,
and sale commissions.
Pennsylvania Roundup
calves have developed an out
standing reputation for health
and feedlot performance. The
objective of “feed them and for
get them” cattle has been
attained. Morbidity after the
sale has averaged less than 1%,
and only one calf has been lost
from traceable records. These
results are attributed to the
waiting period after the booster
shots are given before trans
portation and weaning occur.
Calves have sold at the top
price or near the top of all 1200
cattle sold on the sale annually.
Repeat buyers occur regularly. A
survey among producers indi
cates they feel the additional
price they receive for the cattle
is the most important feature of
the program, which often aver
ages $2O/cwt above local mar
kets.
Costs for the program have
varied from $35.00 to $47.00 per
calf, and usually requires a pre
mium price of $4.00/cwt.
Producers also indicate the pro
gram has helped them make
production and breeding deci
sions that have improved the
value and pride they have in
their cattle. Future improve
ments include the purchase of
half-sib sires among consigning
herds to increase the genetic
consistency, source verification
validation, and enterprise finan
cial analysis.
A
& >
in feeding
Feed Storage and
Delivery Systems
Flexible Auger for
Low Volume, Standard
Volume, High Volume, i k
as well as High
Moisture (up to 25°)
and pellet applications