Screening for disease reduces the chance of transmission between farms, between animals on the same property, and ensures that consumption of food products from animals is safe. However, it’s still important to be aware of disease presence even if your sheep and goats are backyard pets. Samples may also be hand delivered to the site during normal business hours (8.30am - 4.30pm).Biosecurity screening practices have been established to control infections that cause significant production losses in small ruminant herds. Most submission sent by veterinarians to the SVDL for testing are defined as “Biological Substance Category B” and must be packed according to the IATA packing instructions 650 (Biological Substance Category B). As requirements for transport can change, customers should consult with their transport agent to obtain current requirements. For information on the scheme contact NSW submissions, please contact the relevant Customer Service team for courier account details and to order consignment notes.įor submitters outside of NSW, Couriers can be contacted directly to make bookings and arrange collection of packages at the submitters own cost.Ĭommercial couriers may use either road or air transport and specimens should therefore be packed in accordance with International Air Transport Association (IATA) requirements. NSW DPI administers a CAE accreditation scheme.For more comprehensive information on the disease, testing and control in NSW, see the Primefact, Caprine arthritis encephalitis (CAE) (PDF, 74.21 KB).Suspect animals with a negative test result should be retested in a few months time to confirm their negative status. It can take up to three months, rarely up to two years, for antibodies to develop after exposure to the virus. Because the virus is transmitted in colostrum, a kid that has acquired antibody through colostrum is likely to be infected. The antibody against CAE virus is not a protective antibody, so any antibody positive animal should be regarded as infected. In addition, no goat should be tested within one month of vaccination. Interpretation of viral serology: Adult does should not be tested in the period of one month before or after kidding as inconsistent results may occur.Submitted fixed in neutral buffered formalin at a 10:1 ratio of formalin: tissue.Carpal joint, brain, spinal cord, lung and mammary gland.10ml of blood collected into a plain red top tube.

For specific information about your submission please contact Customer Service. Up to 5 days for all other sample types.ġ Turnaround times are provided as a guide only. Tests availableĬaprine arthritis and encephalitis virus antibody ELISA Histopathology can assist in providing a definitive diagnosis. A positive viral serology result infers infection, but does not confirm that the clinical signs are caused by CAE virus. Since the majority of infected animals are subclinical, viral serology is the preferred method for detecting infection in individual goats and herds. Diagnosis and tests available Diagnosisĭiagnosis is supported by history, clinical signs, viral serology and histopathology. Clinical signs in adult animals may include lameness, ill thrift, weight loss, viral and indurative mastitis (‘hard udder’) and chronic progressive pneumonia. Arthritis occurs predominantly in adult goats and is most noticeable in the carpal joints, giving rise to the term ‘big knee’. CAE is primarily transmitted through ingestion of virus-infected colostrum or milk however horizontal transmission also occurs by direct animal contact or contaminated fomites.ĬAE virus infection in kids from one to six months old may result in encephalomyelitis and includes clinical signs of posterior weakness and ataxia progressing to paralysis. Only a proportion develop clinical disease months to years later. Most goats acquire the infection at an early age and they remain infected for life. CAE virus infection is widespread in dairy goat breeds.

The Caprine arthritis and encephalitis (CAE) virus is a lentivirus (slow virus) in the family Retroviridae. Also known as Big knee and Caprine retrovirus infection

Cae in goats testing