CHAPTER 12

RULES GOVERNING BRUCELLA OVIS

 

 Section 1. Authority. Pursuant to Wyoming Statute § 11-18-103(a)(v), the Wyoming Livestock Board promulgates the following rules.

 

 Section 2. Definitions.

 

 (a) "Board" means the Wyoming Livestock Board.

 

 (b) "Brucella ovis Exposed Ram" means any test negative or untested Test Eligible Ram that has been in contact with a Brucella ovis Infected Ram during the last 45 days.

 

 (c) "Brucella ovis Infected Ram" means any ram with a positive Official Test result for the bacteria Brucella ovis.

 

 (d) "Common Grazing" means any common pasturing arrangement on all private, state, tribal, or federal lands or any combination thereof in which ovine from two or more Flock or Herd Units not under common ownership can commingle.

 

 (e) "ELISA Test" means the enzyme-linked immunoassay test used on serum to establish the individual animal and Flock status for Brucella ovis.

 

 (f) "Flock" or "Herd Unit" means a group of one or more ovine with one or multiple owners that is managed as one flock or herd.

 

 (g) "Indeterminate Test Results" means an ELISA Test with results in a low positive range that does not verify infection status.

 

 (h) "Official Individual Identification" means any official identification device conforming to the National Uniform Eartagging System, National Scrapie Eradication Program Identification Requirements, or National Animal Disease Traceability Rule Identification Requirements.

 

 (i) "Official Test" means a test to detect the presence of Brucella ovis that is approved by the Wyoming State Veterinarian and one of the following:

 

  (i) The American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians;

 

  (ii) The National Veterinary Services Laboratory; or

 

  (iii) An International Organization for Standardization (ISO) accredited laboratory.

 

 (j) "PCR Test" means the Polymerase Chain Reaction test used on semen from Brucella ovis indeterminate rams and low positive rams.

 

 (k) "Test Eligible Ram" means any ram over six months of age.

 

 (l) "Virgin Ram" means any ram six months of age or younger that has not had breeding contact.

 

 (m) "Wyoming Accredited Veterinarian" means an individual who is licensed to practice veterinary medicine in Wyoming and is accredited by the United States Department of Agriculture, Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinarian Services to perform accredited duties in the state of Wyoming.

 

 Section 3. Certification Requirements. 

 

 (a) The Board will issue a Brucella ovis free certificate for a Flock upon receipt of Official Test results showing that all Test Eligible Rams in the Flock have tested negative for Brucella ovis on two, consecutive Official Tests performed on samples taken 45 to 120 days apart.  If a Flock owner receives Indeterminate Test Results for any Test Eligible Ram, that ram must be retested more than 30 days after receiving the Indeterminate Test Results with either the ELISA Test or the PCR Test and test negative.

 

 (b) All samples for an Official Test shall be collected by a Wyoming Accredited Veterinarian or a veterinary technician working under the supervision of a Wyoming Accredited Veterinarian. The person who collected the samples shall record the Official Individual Identification of the rams tested on the test chart and shall submit the test chart and the samples to an approved laboratory for testing.

 

 (c) A Flock owner must apply annually for renewal of their Brucella ovis free Flock certificate by testing all Test Eligible Rams between the 30th day before the certificate's expiration date and the 30th day after the certificate's expiration date and by submitting the Official Test results to the Board's office. If all Official Test results are negative, the Board will renew the Flock owner's Brucella ovis free Flock certificate.

 

 Section 4. Test Requirements for Common Grazing.

 

 (a)  All Test Eligible Rams that will graze on Common Grazing lands or that will be used by Common Grazing participants for breeding purposes prior to Common Grazing shall test negative on one Official Test prior to turn out.

 

 (b) Virgin Rams are exempt from the testing requirement in Section 4(a).

 

 (c) If all Flock owners participating in a Common Grazing arrangement request a testing waiver in writing, the State Veterinarian may grant a testing waiver.

 

 (d) Before a Flock owner may turn out Test Eligible Rams onto Common Grazing lands, the Flock owner must submit to the Board's office copies of the Official Test results showing that each Test Eligible Ram tested negative.

 

 (e) A Flock owner who participates in a Common Grazing arrangement may request the State Veterinarian to investigate whether the other participants are complying with these rules.  Upon receiving the request in writing, the State Veterinarian shall investigate and take appropriate action in a timely manner.

 

 Section 5. Test-Positive and Exposed Rams.

 

 (a) A Brucella ovis Exposed Ram may not be sold for breeding purposes until the ram has tested negative on an Official Test not less than 45 days after the last contact with a Brucella ovis Infected Ram.

 

 (b) If a Flock owner receives Indeterminate Test Results for any Test Eligible Ram, that ram must be retested more than 30 days after receiving the Indeterminate Test Results with either the ELISA Test or the PCR Test and test negative before it may be sold for breeding purposes.

 

 (c) Brucella ovis Infected Rams may not be sold for breeding purposes.