Because of an ever-increasing threat of foreign animal disease outbreaks in the
United States, there is a desire to develop strategies to prevent the occurrence of a
foreign animal disease and control an outbreak if it does occur. Infectious disease
models have been developed and are being used to determine reasonable mitigation
strategies. However, little information is available concerning premises characteristics
and movement of animals in extensively managed livestock areas. Hence adaptation of
these models to areas where there is low livestock density is not easy. We collected
empirical data, via mail out surveys, from an extensively managed livestock area. This
will aid in improving the results of infectious disease models in these areas.
In contrast to the intensively managed livestock that have previously been
modeled, this study has shown that in areas of low livestock density, multiple livestock
types often are managed on the same premises. Direct contacts, facilitated through the
planned movement of animals, appear to have a greater seasonality in extensively
managed areas as compared to intensively managed areas. Furthermore, wildlife contacts
are likely and of potential importance. The results of this study add to the knowledge base used to model the spread of
infectious disease in extensively managed livestock populations. Seasonal changes in
animal densities and contact rates may impact the results of the models. Additionally, the
effect of multiple livestock types on premises should be considered when the expected
spread of disease is modeled in extensive livestock areas.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/ETD-TAMU-1302 |
| Date | 15 May 2009 |
| Creators | Dominguez, Brandon James |
| Contributors | Norby, Bo |
| Source Sets | Texas A and M University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, Thesis, Electronic Thesis, text |
| Format | electronic, application/pdf, born digital |
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