APHIS Confirms US Scrapie Case, Setting Back Eradication

The US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed a case of classical scrapie in an Oregon sheep at slaughter, pushing back the earliest possible date for US national scrapie-free status by approximately five years. Confirmed on 31 July 2026 and reported by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) on 7 August 2026, the detection is a substantial setback to a 79-year eradication effort.

Scrapie is a fatal, degenerative prion disease affecting the central nervous system of sheep and goats, with no cure or treatment. The disease costs US sheep and goat industries an estimated $10 to $20 million annually through production losses, lost exports and disposal costs. First discovered in US sheep in 1947, scrapie had been nearly eliminated through the National Scrapie Eradication Program launched in 2002, which reduced prevalence by more than 99%. The affected Oregon sheep had no ear tag, which USDA said may limit traceability, and NVSL will conduct tissue-matching and parentage testing.

Prior to this detection, the US had been in year six of the seven years required to be declared scrapie-free by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). Because scrapie has an incubation period of approximately five years, the required seven-year wait window from the last case now resets, pushing the earliest possible date for US scrapie-free status to approximately 2033. APHIS and the Oregon Department of Agriculture are conducting an epidemiological investigation to determine the flock of origin, though the absence of ear tag ID may complicate that traceback.

The commercial signal is a US sheep and goat industry facing five additional years of eradication effort, elevated surveillance costs and probable trade disruption. The traceability gap exposed by the untagged Oregon sheep will drive renewed emphasis on animal identification systems. Expect Allflex Livestock Intelligence (MSD Animal Health), Datamars, IDEXX and Zoetis to sharpen their traceability and scrapie testing positioning.

For the latest updates and in-depth insights into the world of Animal Health, including breakthrough treatments, industry trends, and regulatory news, contact Albert Baines today!