1. Southern Arizona sees first case of New World screwworm [edited]
By Lauren De Young
Arizona Republic
October 28, 2026
A dog in southern Arizona was infected with a flesh-eating parasite that has been popping up in states along the U.S.-Mexico border, the Arizona Department of Agriculture confirmed Oct. 28.
It is the first case of New World screwworm in Arizona since the 1960s.
A dog in southern Arizona was infected with a flesh-eating parasite that has been popping up in states along the U.S.-Mexico border, the Arizona Department of Agriculture confirmed Oct. 28.
It is the first case of New World screwworm in Arizona since the 1960s.
2. Lab Protocol Amplifies Prions from Deer and Other Animals to Detect Chronic Wasting Disease
Bioengineer.org
October 28, 2026
Chronic wasting disease continues to spread through deer, elk and moose populations in North America, and one of the most sensitive tools for tracking the infectious prions behind it now has a fully updated laboratory playbook. In a protocol article published in BMC Methods, researchers describe step-by-step procedures for replicating chronic wasting disease prions in vitro using protein misfolding cyclic amplification, a cell-free technique that mimics the conversion of the normal cellular prion protein into its pathogenic, misfolded form. The protocol covers amplification from animal-derived samples and environmental fomites, newly optimized conditions for detecting the prions in non-cervid sympatric hosts, and a modified high-throughput format aimed at screening small molecule libraries for anti-prion activity.
Protein misfolding cyclic amplification, or PMCA, works in a way that its developers have likened to the polymerase chain reaction used to copy DNA. Instead of nucleic acids, the technique amplifies misfolded prion protein. Samples suspected of containing disease-associated prions are mixed with an excess of normally folded prion protein, which serves as the reaction substrate. The mixture then undergoes repeated cycles of incubation and sonication. During incubation periods, any pathogenic prion protein present acts as a seed, templating its own misfolded structure onto the normal protein. During sonication, the growing aggregates are broken into smaller fragments, each of which becomes a new seed capable of recruiting and converting additional normal protein. After each round, the number of seeds increases exponentially, and the products can be visualized with conventional methods such as western blots or dot blots.
3. New York Horse Tests Positive for EHV-1
The horse lived in Suffolk County and was euthanized.
EDCC Health Watch
Equus Magazine
October 28, 2026
According to the State Animal Health Official, a mare in Suffolk County, New York, tested positive for equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) after developing clinical signs on Oct. 16. The mare was euthanized. Forty additional horses have been exposed.
Full text: https://equusmagazine.com/news/edcc-health-watch/new-york-horse-tests-positive-for-ehv-1
4. Updated infection prevention and control resource highlights role of management in zoonotic disease transmission prevention
By Emily Singler, VMD
AAHA.org
October 16, 2026
The Veterinary Infection Prevention and Control Committee of the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians (NASPHV) have recently released an updated version of their Compendium of Zoonotic Disease Infection Prevention and Control in Veterinary Personnel*. The original version of the compendium, then called the Compendium of Veterinary Standard Precautions for Zoonotic Disease Prevention in Veterinary Personnel, was published in 2008 and was previously updated in 2010 and 2015.
[*See: https://nasphv.org/site_page.cfm?pk_association_webpage_menu=12517&pk_association_webpage=28176 ]
Karen Alroy, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, Medical Epidemiologist for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and Emily Curren, DVM, MPH, Wyoming State Public Health Veterinarian, co-chaired the committee to revise the compendium. Alroy said that while the updates to the compendium were not inspired by any specific zoonotic disease outbreaks, they are rooted in an understanding of the risk of zoonotic disease transmission during the practice of veterinary medicine and the evidence in both human and veterinary medicine of the importance of infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in healthcare settings.
About the compendium
The compendium is a free document produced by the NASPHV supported by grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Its stated goals are to "serve as a technical guide for prevention zoonotic transmission through the implementation of IPC during the practice of veterinary medicine" and to "provide a model IPC plan for use in a wide range of veterinary settings."
According to Alroy, "The compendium describes the theory of zoonotic disease transmission and the foundations of how to prevent transmission during the practice of veterinary medicine." She added that the intended audience for the compendium includes veterinary and human clinicians, veterinary technicians, veterinary practice administrators, veterinary educational institutions, animal health students and trainees, public health practitioners, and other veterinary, livestock, and animal health organizations and professional societies.
5. MSU receives $900K to expand rural veterinary opportunities [MI]
By: Shajaka Shelton
WLNS.com
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) - A $900,000 grant from the state will help Michigan State Univeristy's veterinary school expand opportunities for students to experience rural practice in hopes of creating a more robust veterinary workforce statewide.
Supported by funding from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, MSU plans to implement the "Michigan Rural Veterinary Workforce Model," an initiative designed by MSU in consultation with veterinary practices statewide.
"These new programs will help protect animal health and the future of Michigan's food supply by giving students more exposure to veterinary medicine, equipping more teachers to provide instruction in veterinary science and helping early-career veterinary professionals overcome the challenges of practicing in rural areas," MDARD Director Tim Boring said in a release.
The university says the model breaks down into three major priorities: building connections with rural communities, reducing financial barriers and supporting long-term retention.
Full text: https://www.wlns.com/msu-news/msu-receives-900k-to-expand-rural-veterinary-opportunites/
6. Bird flu keeps spreading on a Utah mink farm as officials hold off on culling or vaccinating
Seven mink have tested positive on C&T Fenn Farms, and no federal rules cover sick mink, ProPublica reports; Utah has issued a verbal hold instead of a formal quarantine.
By Ruth Milka
NationofChange.org
October 26, 2026
Bird flu has been spreading for more than two months on a Utah mink farm, and federal and state officials have not culled the animals, vaccinated them or put the farm under a formal quarantine, according to ProPublica reporting published October 23. It is the first documented outbreak of its kind in the United States, according to the Animal Welfare Institute.
ProPublica reported that Utah agriculture officials learned of the deaths in mid-August and that the U.S. Department of Agriculture's dashboard showed seven captive mink had tested positive. The outbreak is on C&T Fenn Farms, a mink fur farm west of Provo, ProPublica reported. Sick mink carry the same strain that has spread through dairy herds, and officials told ProPublica they did not know whether contaminated beef caused the infections.
Records from the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food show seven avian influenza cases among captive mink, according to a Utah News Dispatch report carried by KSL on October 3. The department said its data may be incomplete. A public records request by the Animal Welfare Institute found the farm expected to lose about 80% of its mink, KSL reported.
7. Electronic ID improves traceability for Mexican cattle imports
By Dustin Hoffmann
Iowa AgriBusiness
October 27, 2026
With cattle imports from Mexico underway again, new identification and documentation procedures are improving the ability of animal health officials to track livestock entering the United States. Electronic identification is playing a larger role in that process, providing more detailed records of individual animals as they move through U.S. ports of entry.
New Mexico State Veterinarian Samantha Holeck works directly with border inspectors overseeing cattle imports from Mexico. She says one of the biggest changes involves how cattle are documented after they are sorted into new groups on the American side of the border.
Previously, inspectors relied on international import paperwork that identified ranges of animal identification numbers. While cattle were individually identified, those numbers were not always recorded separately on the health certificates accompanying shipments. Holeck says electronic identification now allows officials to document every animal moving to its next destination.