Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production.
1987, 47: 53-56
Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production.
1987, 47: 53-56
Prior to the development of the programme, surveys of the New Zealand goat population indicated that the disease was present in few flocks, largely those containing imported goats of superior genetic merit. The scheme was instituted in 1984 to limit the dissemination of the infected goats throughout the national flock.
Testing was initially performed using the agar gel immunodiffusion test (AGID) but some doubts over its sensitivity lead to the development of an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). This test has proved to be both highly sensitive and highly specific and has continued to be used until the present time.
As a national scheme it involves some degree of co-operation between practising veterinarians, the various goat breeders' groups and goat farmers as well as the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries who are responsible for administering the scheme.
Results to date indicate that a large number of flocks have gained accreditation but a number of people who may be regarded as commercial growers are seeking a second tier scheme to limit the disease within their flocks without achieving accreditation.
Keywords: NZSAPAB; Goats; CAE; retrovirus; national control scheme
