The potential risk of international spread of Mycobacterium bovis associated with movement of alpacas

Abstract

The study highlights the transboundary nature of tuberculosis (TB) in alpacas and the failure of current ante-mortem testing protocols (the tuberculin skin and Enferplex Camelid TB tests) to identify TB-free alpaca herds and individuals for export. Our research and the available literature indicate that the alpaca (Vicugna pacos) is extremely susceptible to Mycobacterium bovis infection, and that testing periodicity fails to take into account that animals do not manifest disease symptoms for a long time. The skin test failed to identify Mycobacterium bovis infection in two alpacas prior to their movement from the UK to Poland. The animals were purchased by a breeding centre in Poland, and were then shown at an international animal exhibition. The last owner of the alpacas before their deaths from TB bought the infected animals unwittingly in order to run rehabilitation activities with disabled children on his farm.

Keywords

• alpaca
• tuberculin skin test
• enferplex camelid tb test
• mycobacterium bovis