Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is an animal health problem. It does not affect humans. A highly contagious viral disease, it affects animals with cloven (divided) hooves, such as cattle, pigs, sheep, goats and deer. The last FMD outbreak in the United States was in 1929, and that outbreak was quickly contained and eliminated.
There are seven types of the FMD virus, all of which have similar symptoms. Immunity to one type does not protect animals from other types. The average incubation period (the time of between initial infection and the appearance of symptoms) is between three and eight days, but can be up to two weeks. The disease may be fatal to young animals, but is rarely fatal to adult animals. Those that survive, however, are often debilitated and suffer chronic lameness, aborted pregnancies, chronic inflammation of the mammary glands or udder in female cows and possible sterility.
While there is no cure for FMD, the virus can be killed by heat, low humidity and some disinfectants.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency (APHIS) developed a fact sheet about the disease that is available online at: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/content/printable_version/fs_foot_mouth_disease07.pdf.
Foot-and-mouth disease and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, sometimes referred to as "mad cow disease"), are not the same disease and are not related. FMD is completely different and does not affect humans.
FMD is a fast-moving virus and is highly contagious for animals with cloven (divided) hooves, including cattle, swine, sheep, goats and deer. Animals can be infected within hours of exposure to the virus. On the other hand, BSE is a slow-acting cattle disease with an incubation period of 24 months or longer. It is believed to be caused by cattle eating feed containing brain and spinal cord from infected cattle.
There has not been a case of FMD in this country since 1929. USDA implemented its one-time, enhanced BSE surveillance program in June 2004. Tests on more than 759,000 targeted animals at highest risk for BSE identified only two positive cases - evidence that the prevalence of this disease in the United States is extremely low. The livestock industry and the U.S. government have taken many strict measures to keep both diseases out of this country. For example, active prevention measures are quickly put into place by USDA whenever an FMD outbreak occurs in another country.
To protect livestock in this country from contracting FMD, it is very important that travelers returning from countries with FMD follow U.S. Customs regulations. These include notification of farm visits while abroad and not bringing prohibited agricultural products into the United States.
Preventive measures going back to 1989 ensured that BSE would not become a serious animal or human health issue in this country:
- Beginning in 1989, a series of import bans were established to keep out all live cattle and cattle products from BSE-affected countires; that ban currently includes all European countries.
- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned at-risk animal protein in cattle feed in 1997 to protect against the spread of BSE in the U.S. herd. An effective feed ban breaks the cycle of BSE.
- An on-going government surveillance program established in 1990 has found only three positive cases to-date (one imported and two domestic) - evidence that the prevalence of this disease in the United States is extremely low.
- USDA mandates removal from the food supply material that would most likely carry the BSE agent (such as brain and spinal cord). This process happens every day with every animal to ensure this diminishing disease has no affect on public health.
- USDA Public Health Veterinarians examine every single animal before processing and condemn those with any signs of illness. Animals most likely to have BSE are older animals either unable to walk or showing signs of neurological disease. Such animals are banned from the human food supply.
Additional information about BSE is available at www.BSEInfo.org or on the APHIS Web site at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/newsroom/hot_issues/bse/index.shtml.
The most obvious signs of Foot and Mouth Disease are excessive slobbering, a lack of appetite and lameness. Affected animals may experience a sudden rise in temperature, followed by blisters in the mouth or other areas of tender skin (e.g., udders in females, nostrils, on the feet). Soft tissues under the hoof are often inflamed and the animal can become lame and may even shed its hooves. Eating becomes painful, and many animals often go off feed, which results in weight loss, declined milk production for dairy cattle and goats, and declined meat production. For more information on the clinical signs of FMD, please see the APHIS fact sheet online at: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/content/printable_version/fs_foot_mouth_disease07.pdf.
FMD is a highly contagious virus that can be spread by movement of infected animals; contaminated vehicles, facilities, hay or feedstuffs; and if susceptible animals drink from a common water source. Wind also can spread the virus through the air.
Additionally, while humans do not contract FMD, they may spread the virus after coming in contact with infected animals. The virus may stay alive on clothing, footwear or other equipment/materials for several weeks; the virus also can stay alive in human nasal passages for as long as 28 hours. As a result, it can be transmitted to healthy animals.
For more than 100 years, cattlemen - working with state and federal governments, scientists and veterinarians - have dedicated their lives to protecting the health and safety of their animals. The United States has set the gold standard for animal health. Working with the federal government and the best-available science, we continue to keep the U.S. beef herd free of FMD.
Beef producers protect their herds and prevent FMD by:
- Knowing who is on their property at all times.
- Immediately reporting any unusual or suspicious signs of disease to their veterinarian, state or federal animal disease control officials, or their county agricultural agent.
- Ensuring that people wash their clothes and footwear before traveling to another farm, ranch or property.
Producers also watch for excessive salivating, lameness and other signs of FMD in their livestock herds. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service conducts surveillance for FMD and other foreign animal diseases every day. For more information, see the APHIS fact sheet on "Protecting America from Food and Mouth Disease and other High-Consequence Livestock Diseases," online at: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/content/printable_version/fs_fmd_con_07.pdf.
There is no universal vaccine for FMD, since there are seven different types and 60 different subtypes of FMD. FMD vaccines must match the type and subtype present. While, current vaccination technology does protect animals from the clinical symptoms of FMD, a vaccinated animal can still carry and spread the disease to healthy animals.
Vaccination, however, could play an important role in controlling an FMD outbreak, if it is used to create a barrier between infected and disease-free zones. More information about FMD vaccines is available from APHIS online at: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/content/printable_version/fs_fmd_vaccine_07.pdf.
Because of the potential for rapid spread, with nearly 100 percent of exposed animals ultimately becoming infected, FMD could result in sizeable economic consequences. These consequences would be suffered by many sectors of the U.S. economy, not just cattle production. The degree of economic impact would depend on how quickly the disease was identified and effective control measures put in place. If the outbreak was controlled quickly and eliminated - as with the last outbreak in the United States in 1929 - the damage might be small. However, if the disease became widespread, the economic loss could easily reach billions of dollars.
The most serious effects would result from the necessity of destroying animals in order to eliminate the disease. In addition, U.S. exports would be severely restricted for a set period of time.
While the FMD virus may be present in the uncooked meat and some types of milk products from contaminated animals, it would be destroyed when these products are cooked. The virus does not affect humans and the primary risk of raw products is transmission of the virus to susceptible animals.
Industry and government work vigorously to control the factors that could lead to an FMD outbreak, both on the farm and through strict border surveillance. For more than 100 years, cattlemen - working with state and federal governments, scientists and veterinarians - have dedicated their lives to protecting the health and safety of their animals. The United States has set the gold standard for animal health, and as a result, there has not been a case of FMD in the United States since 1929.
Working with the federal government and the best available science, the livestock industry in the United States continues to keep its herds free of FMD. Livestock producers protect their herds and prevent FMD by:
- Knowing who is on their property at all times.
- Immediately reporting any unusual or suspicious signs of disease to their veterinarian, state or federal animal disease control officials, or their county agricultural agent.
- Ensuring that people wash their clothes and footwear before traveling to another farm, ranch or property.
- Fully cooking food waste that is used as feed stuffs for hogs.
Additionally, livestock producers watch for excessive salivating, lameness and other signs of FMD in their herd.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) monitors for any disease among U.S. livestock every day. APHIS routinely conducts foreign animal disease tests; last year, veterinary officials conducted 837 investigations - averaging more than two tests per day. Throughout the United States, APHIS teams are specially trained to identify and diagnose animal diseases. APHIS foreign animal disease specialists are located within a four-hour drive of any farm within the continental United States.
USDA also takes aggressive steps to prevent FMD from spreading to our country whenever there is an outbreak in other countries. USDA prohibits importing live cloven-hoofed animals and many animal products from FMD-affected countries.
- As part of its ongoing surveillance program, the USDA conducts hundreds of field inquiries each year in an effort to detect any foreign animal diseases.
- A team of federal, state and university experts is available if officials believe they need to be dispatched to a country with an FMD outbreak. While there, these U.S. experts monitor, evaluate and assist with that country's containment efforts.
- Ports of entry and airports ensure passengers, luggage and cargo are checked as appropriate. This includes placing additional inspectors and dog teams at airports to check incoming flights and passengers as needed.
- Travelers are prohibited from bringing certain agriculture products into the United States, particularly animal products that could spread FMD. Passengers are required to declare any farm visits or other animal contact to Department of Homeland Security Customs and Border Protection Bureau officials, and all international baggage is subject to inspection. Violations can result in substantial fines.
- USDA International Services officials are stationed around the globe to monitor and coordinate with foreign governments on animal health issues.
- USDA conducted an aggressive public education campaign during the UK outbreak in 2001 that included additional signage in airports, public service announcements, website and other tools to inform the public about how to prevent FMD from entering the United States.
All imported animals are monitored prior to and upon entering the United States.
The U.S. government has a national emergency response plan to handle a highly contagious animal disease, including FMD. U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) closely monitors and has a strong system in place for detecting and responding to such diseases as FMD. Once APHIS is alerted to a possible FMD case, it quickly sends a team to the site to collect samples and establish an initial preventive quarantine of the area.
Once confirmed, the goal is to eliminate the virus as quickly as possible. Officials immediately begin to investigate the source, trace all animals that may have come into contact with the disease and initiate emergency response efforts at the state and local level. This may include:
- Notifying state agriculture and public health officials (if necessary).
- Securing the affected site.
- Establishing quarantines where necessary, including the farm where the case was found.
- Tracing all contacts with the farm.
- Establishing a "movement control zone" around the farm or entire state, whereby animals cannot be transported into or out of the area.
If necessary, a quarantine may be placed on all interstate commerce for the affected and all adjoining states. Additionally, APHIS and the state veterinarian will determine whether to depopulate the infected herd (this is done as humanely as possible, through euthanasia).
APHIS also may order and have available a supply of FMD vaccine. The agency would not necessarily start immediate vaccination of all animals, but it could help prevent a more severe outbreak, insulate disease-free areas and help enhance other efforts to eliminate the disease.
Once the disease is under control, APHIS will help producers get their farms operational as quickly as possible and work with areas of the country to be declared disease-free.