CAE - Tell me. . .

[Creamers]

Anyone ever have goats from CAE neg herds. . .with negative CAE results one year retest to find positive results?

I just mailed in our samples today, and although the herd was negative last year (numbers from biotracking ranged from 2-12 on the scale), I am still nervous!

Is a negative a NEGATIVE in adult animals not exposed to new untested animals?

I hate that biotracking gives a % on the negative animals. . .makes me worry, too. . . even though those are NEGATIVE numbers. . .

[Creamers]

anyone ? ? ?

[Alice In TX/MO]

Stop worrying until you get the results.

[copperpennykids]

Originally Posted by Creamers

Anyone ever have goats from CAE neg herds. . .with negative CAE results one year retest to find positive results?

Never.

If their herd is/was truly negative, as was your own, once a negative, always a negative.

We like the titres. If you were to talk to Dr. Evermann at WADDL (WSU) or with Chuck at Biotracking, they will tell you that the test measures proteins in the blood - CAE creates a certain effect in the blood. However, if the goat has recently been vaccinated, been ill, had antibiotics etc. this may cause the percentage to show up higher than 0%.

I wouldn't get excited by scores ranging from 2-12%.

BTW: You are supposed to be nervous about getting your test results back... Misery loves company and if the rest of us hold our breath opening that e-mail, you should have to as well! LOL

[Oat Bucket Farm]

Originally Posted by copperpennykids

BTW: You are supposed to be nervous about getting your test results back... Misery loves company and if the rest of us hold our breath opening that e-mail, you should have to as well! LOL

I agree completely I KNEW Hershey and Tally were negative but I still got completely consumed with the "what if they aren't?" nerves. I swear it was one of the longest weeks of my life. They both came back with a 0%.

[Creamers]

I've talked to a lot of folks who claim to have had negatives and then gotten positives. . .I only have one series of adult negatives on all these guys to go on. . .but they were all negative. lol.

Since 3 herds I know of had what they claim were negatives and waited a few years and ended up with positives. . .it freaks me out.



Of course, yes. . .they could be dishonest, likely are. . .but Ekkk!

I've read all the info as to why the titer levels aren't 0, but it still freaks me - lol.
None of mine were 0 - all were between 2 and 12.

[julieq]

We had one false positive CAE, the only time we didn't use WADDL. Vet sent our tests to Idaho State lab. Fortunately she had just tested negative before we shipped her in from Canada (prior to our whole herd test that year). We retested at WADDL and of course she was negative. It was stressful though. And, yes, I sweat it out every time we test although I've never had one convert to positive!

[Creamers]

Shew, makes me feel some better !

[saanengirl]

We had one test positive a year after she had gone to the National show. No one else that went to Nationals tested positive, but we repeated the test (WSU both times) to confirm. We kept her long enough to get one more set of kids out of her which we raised on CAE prevention, and then sold her to someone who wasn't too concerned about CAE in the herd, and really wanted that goat.

[saanengirl]

I have a friend who went to the '99 National Show and every goat in his herd that went to the show later tested CAE Positive, even though they had been negative every previous year. He suspected someone of intentionally infecting his herd.

[Creamers]

Wow - how sad.

There are two doelings I bought from a herd that showed at Nationals, and one of them had a dam that showed in 2008, 2009, I believe. . . raised on cae prevention. . .dam had prior neg tests, but see. . .now that above freaks me out.
These kids haven't been tested before since they are just 10 months old. . .just raise on prevention and from dams who have been neg. in the past.

[RoaminRoanAcres]

CAE can be passed from positive to negative adults and goats CAN seroconvert.


"CAE virus infects goats primarily by horizontal transmission via ingestion of infected colostrum or infected milk. The virus is absorbed across the small intestine and infects the mononuclear cells.3,16 There is also transmission of CAE virus by direct contact between goats via shedding of the virus in the saliva, the urogenital secretions, and the feces. Contact with the blood of an infected animal can also transmit the disease.9 Some sources speculate in utero or vertical transmission; however, studies to date have not documented this form of viral transmission."

http://www.vet.uga.edu/VPP/clerk/logan/index.php

Also, regarding seroconversion:

"In some goats, seroconversion may be delayed for months after exposure. These "silently" infected animals test negative for antibody until the viral infection is activated by stress or other factors. It has not been determined whether these goats were infectious to other goats during the time they harbored the virus but remained seronegative."

http://www.goatworld.com/articles/cae/cae-waddl.shtml

Hope this helps.

[Creamers]

I've read the above before, and then I've read the opposite on other sites. . .that is why I posted - - - to see in actually practice if anyone had really had it happen

[copperpennykids]

We have not had that experience (the whole herd is negative so no goats to pass it on to the negatives). Thank you God.

However, we know several breeders who use CAE prevention - pasteurization of milk etc, and they really know how to do it right. But they run their mature does together - both positive and negatives. Seems that their does convert at 2-3 years of age. Not all, but some.

Not to freak anyone out - but their does are all asymptomatic, so they do not stress about it much.

For me, the question is, was their a mistake in the pasteurization, or was it through contact only? Only way to tell, would be to add a mature goat from a totally negative herd into the herd with positives and see if there was a conversion.

But I will stand by my statement - if it is truly a long standing negative herd, then no, there will not be a conversion.

Add yes, there is such a thing as sabotage - feeding positive milk to someone else's animal in order to screw up the competition. Pretty sad statement about people....

[Creamers]

Add yes, there is such a thing as sabotage - feeding positive milk to someone else's animal in order to screw up the competition. Pretty sad statement about people....

Very sad, indeed

[ahahahni1]

Wow, I had no idea they can catch it from feces. Thank God no goats had been on the property before we moved here. I bought mine from a negetive herd and like to keep mine that way. Also, I hate the sabotage idea. I don't go to shows or clinics but makes me not want to more so.