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Herd Health & Cattle CareEmergency Disease Outbreak Plan
An outbreak plan is easy to ignore until it is needed. A page of phone numbers and clear steps can save animals and keep a bad week from becoming a worse one.
Key points
- Write the plan and contact list before an outbreak happens.
- Call your vet right away for multiple sick animals or sudden deaths.
- Isolate sick animals and limit movement and visitors.
- Never handle suspect carcasses yourself; call the vet or state veterinarian.
Why plan before trouble starts
When animals start getting sick or dying, people panic and make decisions quickly. A written plan makes those decisions easier because the thinking was done when everyone was calm.
Plans cover several kinds of events: a common illness spreading through a group, sudden unexplained deaths and a suspected reportable or foreign animal disease. Each calls for a slightly different response.
Share the plan with everyone who works on the ranch, including family and hired help. A plan that only one person knows about fails the moment that person is away.
Contacts at your fingertips
Write down the phone numbers and keep a copy in the barn, the truck and the house. Include after-hours numbers.
Call your veterinarian first for most problems. For suspected reportable or foreign animal diseases, the state veterinarian and USDA APHIS are also part of the response.
- Herd veterinarian and after-hours number
- State veterinarian's office
- USDA APHIS
- Extension office
- Your buyer or processor
- Neighbors who can help with equipment or labor
Recognize the warning signs
Several animals sick at once, sudden deaths, abortions in a group, blisters or sores on the mouth or feet, neurologic signs or unusual illness that does not match what you know should be treated as a possible emergency.
Do not wait to see if it passes. Call your veterinarian immediately and describe what you see.
Take photos or short videos of what you see and keep notes on the time you first noticed each sign. Your veterinarian can often use them to decide how urgent the situation is.
Isolate and limit movement
Separate sick animals and stop moving cattle on or off the ranch until you have advice. Limit visitors, vehicles and equipment, and keep clean boots and clothing for work with sick animals.
Ask your veterinarian how to clean and disinfect equipment and facilities. Do not borrow or lend tools or trailers during an outbreak.
Set up a small station at the entrance with a footbath or boot cleaning supplies and a sign asking visitors to check in. Simple habits cut down on what is carried in or out.
Do not handle suspect carcasses yourself
Some diseases, including anthrax and brucellosis, are dangerous to people. If an animal dies suddenly or you suspect a reportable disease, do not open or move the carcass. Call your veterinarian, the state veterinarian or USDA APHIS right away.
Keep people, dogs and other animals away, and follow the instructions you are given.
Wear gloves and wash thoroughly after any contact with sick animals. Some diseases that affect cattle can also affect people, so tell your doctor you work with cattle if you become ill.
Records, communication and the aftermath
Write down what you see, when, which animals and what has moved on or off the ranch. These notes help the investigation. Be honest with buyers and neighbors, since cooperation protects everyone.
After the event, review what happened. Update the plan, restock supplies and talk to your veterinarian about how to prevent a repeat. Ask your lender, accountant or USDA FSA about assistance programs if you have losses, since terms change.
Check your insurance, your lender terms and any state programs before you need them, so you know what documentation to keep. Terms change, so ask the agency or your accountant directly.
Common mistakes and what to ask
Common mistakes include waiting too long to call, moving sick cattle, handling suspect carcasses and having no written contact list.
Ask your vet to help write the plan, ask your state veterinarian's office what to report and how, and ask your extension office for local resources. Keep the plan short enough that someone can follow it under pressure, with the phone numbers on the first page.
Practice the plan once a year. Walk through the steps with your crew, check that phone numbers are current and make sure the isolation area can really be set up in a hurry.
- Waiting to call
- Moving sick cattle
- Handling suspect carcasses
- No written plan
Sources and further reading
- USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
- American Association of Bovine Practitioners
- Beef Quality Assurance
- USDA Farm Service Agency
Organization homepages are linked so you can search them for current guidance on this topic.