By Rob Moritz
Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas livestock officials are implementing a new testing program to prevent an epidemic of a sexually transmitted disease in bulls that could threaten the state’s $1.4 billion cattle industry.

Beginning this week, the state will require that bulls be tested for Bovine Trichomoniasis before being sold or leased within the state. Animals that test positive have to be slaughtered.

The disease is asymptomatic in bulls and does not affect the safety or quality of beef. But it is considered dangerous because it infects the uterus of heifers, causing fertility problems and spontaneous abortion of calves that could sharply reduce herds in the state.

“It is dangerous to producers,” said state Veterinarian Pat Badley, adding an outbreak of Trichomoniasis could reduce a ranch or farm’s calf production by 50 percent in one year.

“It could devastate a producer’s calf crop and make it near impossible for them to make any money,” Badley said.

Arkansas ranks 17th nationally in cattle production with 1.8 million head of beef cattle, according to the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture. About 30,000 cattle farms operate in the state, with an average herd of about 29 head.

Kent Reading, owner of I-40 Livestock Auction in Ozark, said the disease worries farmers and ranchers who sell at his auction barn.

“It’s a concern of mine, not only because I run several mother cows, but also because if it cuts the calf crop in half then I won’t have as many to sell,” Reading said.

Because many farmers use the money they make off selling calves to make payments on their farms, “If they have a calf problem they’re in trouble. It’s a scary thing,” he said.

The new regulation, approved the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission on June 2, will be in effect for 120 days. The commission, which meets July 15 in Harrison, will review the regulation to determine its effectiveness.

“During that time, we’re going to have a public hearing and determine if the regulation should be permanent,” Badley said.

The cattle STD has been a problem in neighboring states in recent years and it is now beginning to appear in Arkansas’ cattle population, Badley said. In the last six months, 20 cases of the disease have been reported in the state, he said.

Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas have already implemented new regulations regarding the testing of bulls because of outbreaks there, said Tom Troxel, associate head of animal science with the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture.

If a cow becomes infected, the animal, if kept away from bulls for four to six months can “shed the disease” and resume normal breeding, Troxel said. Also, he said, a vaccine is available that farmers and ranchers can give their cows if the disease is detected in the herd.

Badley said the vaccine, which costs $15 the first year, comes in doses which must begin in consecutive months. The vaccine is given annually after that.

No vaccine is available for bulls and they do not shed the disease, Troxel said.
“Once infected, bulls carry the organism for life,” he said.

Troxel and Badley said state law currently requires bulls brought into the state to be tested, with the exception of bulls that are 24 months old or younger and have never been used for breeding. Current regulations also exempt bulls used for rodeo in the state or designated for slaughter.

The new regulations also will require a negative test for Trichomoniasis for bulls being sold or leased within the state.

Badley said the test, which costs about $50 a bull, can be done by a veterinarian. The samples, however, must be sent to a certified laboratory for testing. The only certified laboratory in Arkansas for such testing is the one run by the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission.

Reading said any bulls up for sale at his auction barn will be tested by a veterinarian on site. The person buying the bull will then take the bull home and keep it quarantined until the test results are available.

Troxel recommended that anyone purchasing a bull from someone else in the state isolate the animal and have it tested before turning it lose with cows. He also suggested testing bulls currently on the farm and vaccinating the cows.