The Colorado Department of Agriculture’s State Veterinarian’s Office has issued a travel requirement for horses, mules, cattle, bison, sheep, goats, swine, and camelids entering the state from states with confirmed cases of VS.

This requirement states that health certificates should include the following statement from the issuing veterinarian, “I have examined the animal(s) represented on this Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) and have found no signs of vesicular stomatitis and they have not originated from a premises under quarantine for vesicular stomatitis."

“The purpose of this requirement is to ensure that veterinarians issuing health certificates are aware of the spread of Vesicular Stomatitis and are vigilant in looking for signs of the virus. VS can be painful for the animals and costly to their owners,“ said State Veterinarian, Dr Keith Roehr.

“While this virus does not typically cause death, the animal can suffer from painful sores so it is important to monitor herds for symptoms.“

Tips for Livestock Owners

• Strict fly control is an important factor to inhibit the transmission of the disease.
• Avoid transferring feeding equipment, cleaning tools or health care equipment from other herds.