| (a) Testing of blood and semen.
(1) All tests shall be made by approved personnel only as the
basis for compliance with these regulations.
(2) All tests must be confirmed by a state-federal laboratory
as the basis for compliance with these regulations. Non-quarantined cattle
may be moved based upon the card test results. All samples initially tested
at other than state-federal laboratories shall be submitted (mailed) within
48 hours of collection and confirmed at the state-federal laboratory.
(3) When a discrepancy occurs between test results of the state-federal
laboratory and those of the person who originally tested the animal(s), the
entire consignment, shipment, or herd will be traced and held pending results
of a retest on the animal(s) with the discrepancy.
(4) Samples for all retest purposes will be collected by accredited
veterinarians that are approved by the Commission to perform brucellosis program
duties, or by commission or APHIS personnel and submitted to the state-federal
laboratory for confirmation testing. An epidemiologist may designate those
cattle that do not require a test. The herd of origin, as well as the herd
in which the animal(s) is presently located, will be affected by the test
results of the state-federal laboratory. The state-federal laboratory initial
test results will prevail if the traced animal cannot be positively identified
or if it has been slaughtered and cannot be retested.
(5) When the state-federal laboratory is unable to confirm
results of a test because of insufficient serum, hemolyzed blood, or broken
tubes, the commission may require a trace and retest of the animals not confirmed.
(6) When the commission has reason to believe the tests are
controversial, contested, or disputed, it may require that its personnel be
present at the time of blood collection and testing as a basis for compliance
with these regulations. In such case, the commission shall notify the herd
owner prior to the test.
(b) Classification of cattle. Cattle shall be classified by
approved personnel by an evaluation of titer responses for all cattle to serological
tests, or by identification of Brucella abortus in specimens taken from these
cattle. The following serological tests may be used for the classification
of cattle.
(1) Card test. The card test (buffered Brucella is a test antigen)
that may be used to classify cattle as suspects. Results of the card test
may be used with other test results conducted in the state-federal laboratory
to aid in the classification of cattle as reactors. The card test may be used
as a test to classify cattle as reactors on written approval of the owner
or his agent. The owner or his agent's signature on test charts prior to "B"
branding will be accepted as approval. Card tests may be used to classify
cattle negative on surveillance samples collected at slaughter, on routine
samples collected on farms, at livestock markets, and on tests of suspicious
and affected herds.
(2) Manual Complement fixation test. The manual complement
fixation test is an official test when it is conducted at the cooperative
state-federal brucellosis laboratory using recognized methods.
(A) Interpretation of the manual CF test results.
Attached Graphic
(B) Interpretation of test result codes. The following codes
are utilized by the laboratory to represent the corresponding test results:
Attached Graphic
(3) Rivanol test. The rivanol test is an official test when
conducted in cooperative state-federal brucellosis laboratories. Vaccinated
cattle tested under the MCI program that show complete agglutination at dilutions
of 1:25 or greater must be reported as MCI reactors for the purpose of state
or area classification.
(A) Interpretation of rivanol test results.
Attached Graphic
(B) Interpretation of test result codes. The following codes
are utilized by the laboratory to represent the corresponding test results:
Attached Graphic
(4) Brucellosis Milk Surveillance Test (BMST). The brucellosis
milk surveillance test, conducted by methods approved by USDA-APHIS-VS, is
a test that may be used to classify herds or cattle as suspected of being
infected with brucellosis.
(5) Buffered acidified plate antigen test. Buffered acidified
plate antigen tests may be used to classify cattle as negative on MCI samples
collected at slaughter and at livestock markets. This test may also be used
in state-federal laboratories for routine samples collected on farms.
(6) Rapid screening test (RST). The RST may be used as a test
for classifying cattle as negative in state-federal laboratories.
(7) Standard tube agglutination test (STT) or standard plate
agglutination test (SPT). The blood or semen titers of cattle and bison tested
by the STT or SPT methods are interpreted in the following ways:
Attached Graphic
(8) Particle concentration fluorescence immunoassay (PCFIA)
test. May be used to determine the brucellosis disease status of test-eligible
cattle and bison when conducted by methods approved by USDA, APHIS, VS. When
used as a supplemental test on card-positive Strain 19 vaccinated dairy cattle,
a negative PCFIA result will allow them to be classified as negative for intrastate
movement only.
(9) Concentration immunoassay test (CITE). Used as a supplemental
test in market channels where cattle have been disclosed as positive by use
of the card test. CITE positive animals will be considered as reactors and
the remainder of the consignment be considered as exposed and moved in accordance
with subsection (i)(2) of this section.
(10) New tests under research. Laboratory tests approved by
the executive director are authorized to be used in conjunction with tests
listed in this subsection for evaluation of their future usefulness in the
program.
(c) Reclassification of reactors. Cattle initially classified
reactors may be reclassified provided a complete epidemiological investigation
of the herd is conducted and there is no evidence of field strain Brucella
abortus infection or exposure thereto.
(d) Requirements for a herd test.
(1) Test eligibility.
(A) Priority herds--All sexually intact female cattle four
months of age and older and all bulls 18 months of age and older.
(B) Other than priority herds--All cattle that are parturient
or post parturient or 18 months of age and older except steers and spayed
heifers.
(2) Calfhood vaccination requirements. All female cattle between
four and 12 months of age in affected herds must be vaccinated at the time
of testing.
(3) Identification requirements. All cattle tested shall be
identified with either an official eartag, an individual registration tattoo,
or individual registration brand. All cattle in priority herds except steers,
spayed heifers, and bulls under 18 months must be officially identified regardless
of test eligibility.
(e) Requirements of a market test.
(1) All cattle 18 months of age and over except steers and
spayed heifers shall be tested unless they were tested within the previous
30 days and:
(A) are accompanied by a test document approved by the commission;
and
(B) identified with official eartag; and
(C) either identified with legible individual brand, bangle
tag, chalk number, or backtag with this identification shown on a test document;
or each animal examined so that the eartag can be matched to the test document.
(2) Each animal(s) tested at the market shall be identified
by official eartag and official backtag.
(3) The market shall supply the following information to the
accredited veterinarian prior to conducting the card test for inclusion on
the VS Form 4-54 after results of the test are known:
(A) full name, street address and/or route address, and zip
code of the owner of the cattle at the time cattle are delivered to the market;
(B) backtag number, with prefix, for each head of cattle.
(4) The veterinarian shall not conduct the card test prior
to receiving the name and address of the owner from the market.
(5) At time of testing of the cattle, the following additional
information is required to be included on the VS Form 4-54.
(A) eartag number (list all nine characters);
(B) date of test;
(C) full name and address of the market;
(D) tester's card test permit number; and
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