DIVISION OF ANIMAL HEALTH 

 Mabel A. Owen, Director 



The eradication of serious disease in our domestic food and fiber ani- 

 mals is of incalculable importance to the consumer, especially in the area of 

 diseases having a direct human health impact. It is of no less importance to 

 the farmer/producer, who is as always caught on the horns of the twin dilemmas 

 of increasing feed costs and escalating transportation charges. The main- 

 tenance of good animal health and production is often his only profit margin. 

 With an administrative staff of seven and a field and professional staff of 

 fourteen, the Division of Animal Health seeks to achieve and maintain the 

 highest possible level of animal disease prevention, control and eradication. 



BRUCELLOSIS 



Since this bovine/porcine disease appears in man as Undulant Fever, its 

 eradication from our herds has always carried a top priority. We are pleased to 

 be able to say that Massachusetts has joined a select group of fifteen states as 

 "Free" of brucellosis. Under federal rules, this status is granted after a 

 state has been totally free of any known cases of brucellosis for a period of 

 not less than twelve months. Massachusetts was declared a "Free" state on June 

 1st, 1983. 



Maintenance of this status will be equally important as gaining it. To 

 this end, we mandate the vaccination of all female calves (between the ages of 

 four and eight months, as of October 1, 1983) and we retest all imported cattle 

 between forty-five and sixty days post entry. The Brucellosis Ring Test (BRT) 

 is performed for every dairy herd six times per year, with a full -herd blood 

 test for other than negative results. We monitor all slaughter cattle through 

 the MCI program with a similar serology follow-up. "Free" status in brucellosis 

 has been long sought in Massachusetts and represents tremendous effort and 

 cooperation from owners, producers and dealers alike. We have given the main- 

 tenance of this rating the highest possible priority. 



TUBERCULOSIS 



With sporadic outbreaks of human tuberculosis in cities the world over, we 

 cannot afford to relax our fight against this disease in cattle. All cattle and 

 dairy goats in Massachusetts are tuberculin- tested on a three-year rotation. No 

 reactors have been discovered within the state for almost five years and we 

 expect therefore to achieve Accredited-Free Status in tuberculosis early in fy 

 1984. Meanwhile we continue to test regularly and expect to have this program 

 firmly placed on an October- through-April testing season within the year. We 

 also plan to test regularly by town rather than by herd, for a considerable 

 saving in time and mileage. 



46 



