April 2007, Volume 12, Issue 1
The Food Safety Division of Alberta Agriculture and Food publishes the
Animal Health Forum quarterly to inform readers of division activities and
bring attention to agri-food issues with food safety and market access
implications.
Editors:
Joan St. Amand, Food Safety Division, Airdrie AB
Phone: (403) 948-8575; E-mail: [email protected]
Jagdish Patel, Food Safety Division, Edmonton AB
Phone: (780) 644-5093; E-mail: [email protected]
Please direct all inquiries to Joan or Jagdish.
Chief Provincial
Veterinarian Update
other situation which would cause numerous livestock
mortalities. The project involves working with four pilot
municipalities to develop and implement a toolkit that will
provide guidelines for planning for emergency carcass
disposal.
Alberta’s Emergency Carcass Disposal Pilot Project
Lisa Morin, Office of the Chief Provincial Veterinarian,
Edmonton, AB
An inter-departmental team, led by the Office of the Chief
Provincial Veterinarian (OCPV) at Alberta Agriculture and
Food (AF), is implementing a pilot project that will help to
prepare the province for the safe disposal of large numbers
of livestock carcasses in cases of fire, disease, flood or any
A general mail-out to all of Alberta’s municipalities was sent
in late January and twenty two letters of interest were
received. Four municipalities (County of Lethbridge, County
of Lacombe, County of Vermilion River and County of
Barrhead No. 11) were selected by the Alberta Emergency
Carcass Disposal planning team. It was a difficult decision to
choose only four municipalities due to the interest and
support for this project.
The selection criteria used by the planning team included:
In This Issue
• The number and types of livestock present.
Alberta’s Emergency Carcass Disposal
Pilot Project .......................................................
1
Accidental Monensin Toxicity in Reindeer ..........
2
Zoonosis Update: Ovine Abortion ........................
3
Bovine Trichomoniasis ..........................................
4
Alberta Veterinary Surveillance Network:
Update on Livestock Pathology Consultation
Activities .............................................................
5
An Automated High Throughput Screening
Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay for
Johne’s Disease Antibodies in
Bovine Serum .....................................................
6
Continuing Education Opportunities ..................
7
Who’s Who in the Division ....................................
8
• The potential for identifying suitable land for burial
(based on the Natural Suitability Index, a geologicallybased document showing potentially suitable burial land
in Alberta).
• The human population present.
• The location in the province.
Municipalities with varied profiles were chosen so that the
toolkit will represent different ends of the spectrum. For
example, municipalities with a high likelihood of identifying
suitable burial land, and those with a poor likelihood were
selected. Similarly, municipalities with varied animal and
human population densities were chosen. Regional
representation was also a consideration.
Website: “Ropin’ the Web”: http://www.agric.gov.ab.ca/surveillance/
A consultant has been hired to work with the pilot
municipalities to develop the toolkit, which will include
processes and guidelines about:
Post mortems performed by an LPCP pathologist on 9 of the
females showed that the animals were in good nutritional
condition. There was no evidence of an infectious disease
process. Four of the reindeer had severe pulmonary
congestion and edema, which was compatible with death due
to acute heart failure. Histological examination of a
comprehensive set of formalin-fixed tissues collected from
the nine reindeer examined revealed the common lesion of
acute multi-focal myocardial degeneration and necrosis.
• How to include emergency carcass disposal in existing
Municipal Emergency Plans.
• How to identify carcass disposal needs and profile current
disposal capacities.
• How to secure available resources for an emergency
disposal situation, including how to identify suitable burial
sites.
During a farm visit, the owner realized that the wrong dairy
cattle premix might have been fed to the reindeer, during the
past month. The owner had been advised by a nutritionist to
feed a dairy dry-cow premix that did not contain Rumensin
free choice to the herd as a mineral supplement. The
producer had done so for several years without experiencing
problems.
Legal carcass disposal methods in Alberta include
composting, burial, rendering, incineration and natural
disposal. Burial site identification involves adhering to
provincial regulations such as the Destruction and Disposal of
Dead Animals Regulation and various environmental Codes
of Practice. The toolkit will also provide guidelines for
obtaining land if municipal land is unsuitable or unavailable.
During the farm visit, 5 more animals were found dead in
pastures. The carcasses were frozen and there was blood at
the nostrils and blood spray on the snow indicating terminal
epistaxis. There was no evidence of struggle at the sites of
death.
The primary outcome of this project is that Alberta will be
better prepared to deal with emergency carcass disposal, in
the event that it is necessary. Once the toolkit is complete, it
will be distributed to the remaining municipalities in Alberta
to assist them with establishing their own emergency carcass
disposal plans.
Samples of premix were collected at the farm for monensin
analysis from a bucket and two separate bins containing
lactating cow premix containing sodium monensin
(920 mg/kg) and dry cow premix containing no monensin.
The premix that was in the bucket was discarded and the
troughs in the animal pens used to feed the premix were
examined to ensure they were empty. The owner was advised
that more deaths might occur over the next few weeks,
depending on the amount of the premix that had been
offered to and consumed by the reindeer. One month after
the farm visit, the owner reported that no more deaths had
occurred.
The Emergency Carcass Disposal Pilot Project is being led by
the OCPV in the Food Safety Division of AF in partnership
with Alberta Environment (AE), Alberta Health and
Wellness (AHW), Emergency Management Alberta (EMA),
Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and the Alberta
Association of Municipal Districts and Counties (AAMDC).
Disease Impact
Analysis of the premix collected from the bucket for
monensin matched the monensin level detected in the
lactating cow premix collected from the bin (771 mg/kg). The
manufacturer’s instructions for the lactating cow premix
clearly indicated that the premix should not be fed undiluted.
Trace amounts of monensin were detected in liver samples
collected from the 9 reindeer necropsied.
Accidental Monensin Toxicity in Reindeer
Brian Miller, Veterinary Pathologist and Jagdish Patel,
Surveillance Veterinarian, Alberta Veterinary Surveillance
Network (AVSN), Food Safety Division, Edmonton, AB
Monensin is an antibiotic ionophore used to promote growth
and as a coccidiostat in target species. Increase use of
ionophores has led to occurrences of toxicosis in target and
non-target species. In dairy cattle, monensin is used to
prevent the development of ketosis.
At the cellular level, the biological activity of ionophores has
been associated with changes in concentration of primary
ions. Theses changes can directly or indirectly alter the
intracellular pH ultimately causing damage to cells or
cellular organelles, particularly within cardiac and smooth
muscle tissue. In a dosing study in cattle, evidence of QT
interval prolongation, QRS complex prolongation, first
degree heart block, infrequent premature atrial beats, and
increased T wave amplitude were noted in a few animals
after 2 to 7 days of exposure. The LD50 levels quoted in the
literature for various species are (mg/kg body weight): horse
3mg/kg , sheep 12 mg/kg, goat 26 mg/kg, and cattle 50 mg/kg.
A reindeer producer, who was experiencing an increase in
animals dying suddenly, was referred to the Livestock
Pathology Consultation Program (LPCP) of the AVSN.
Fourteen reindeer out of a herd of 70 (13 females and
1 male) had died suddenly.
April 2007
2
Cases of monensin intoxication in companion animals,
particularly in dogs that have eaten cattle feed, have also
been reported in the literature.
distinguish pathologically but there are a few tips that may
suggest which agent to consider most strongly until
laboratory confirmation is received.
To the authors knowledge, no cases of monensin intoxication
in reindeer have been reported and the LD50 level for
monensin in reindeer is unknown. This outbreak however,
suggests that reindeer may be highly sensitive to monensin
toxicity. Generally, monensin toxicity has been associated
with errors in feed mixing that result in non-target species
becoming exposed. This outbreak illustrates that feed related
toxicities should be considered during investigations of
sudden death in cattle, and other domestic species, when
signs of infectious disease are not apparent on post mortem
examinations.
If there is placentitis with:
• Necrotic, hemorrhagic cotyledons and intercotyledonary
(IC) areas of leathery thickening and edema, consider
Chlamydophila abortus.
• Intercotyledonary necrosis only, consider Coxiella burnetti.
• Several small, yellowish, necrotic foci spread over the
surface of cotyledons, consider Toxoplasma gondii.
If the placenta has been retained, the ewes have metritis and
there are necrotic foci in the fetal liver:
• If necrotic foci are large, consider Campylobacter spp.
For further information please contact Dr. Brian Miller at
(780) 427-8201,[email protected] or Dr. Jagdish Patel at
(780) 644-5093, [email protected]
• If necrotic foci are small and numerous, consider Listeria
monocytogenes or Salmonella spp.
Regardless of the above, there is much overlap in
pathological findings in ovine abortion and lack of grossly
visible lesions does not rule out any of the above agents. It is
difficult to confirm the cause of ovine abortion without
confirmatory laboratory tests. Sending one of more whole
fetuses with placenta to a laboratory is optimal. Serological
tests are also available for many of these agents at the herd
level. If you wish assistance with appropriate testing, contact
a laboratory diagnostician for advice.
Diagnostic Overview
Zoonosis Update: Ovine Abortion
Jan Bystrom, Veterinary Pathologist, Zoonoses Surveillance
Priority Team, Food Safety Division, Airdrie, AB
With respect to human health, it is prudent to advise clients
about the risk to human health when handling ewes that are
lambing. Warnings should include:
• Handle all uterine and fetal fluids and tissues including
the placenta with rubber gloves and avoid contamination
of clothing with fluids.
• All of the above agents transmit by the oral route so
frequent hand washing and avoidance of hand to mouth
contact should be emphasized.
• Destroy all fluids and tissues from lambing beds and do
not allow scavengers access.
This time of year there are requests for information
regarding diagnosis of ovine abortion. Questions typically
arise when abortions occur in clusters or “storms” that
concern producers sufficiently enough to call for veterinary
assistance. From the perspective of human health, it is
critical to remember that many of the pathogens involved
have potential to cause serious disease in humans.
• Humans in specific risk groups should not be in contact
with lambing ewes, including the old, the young, the
immunocompromised and pregnant women.
For further information regarding diagnosis of ovine
abortion or other diagnostic laboratory inquiries, please
contact Dr. Jan Bystrom at (403) 912-3309, jan.bystrom@
gov.ab.ca or Dr. Brian Miller at (780) 427-8201, brian.
[email protected].
There are several potentially zoonotic agents that can cause
ovine abortion. These include Chlamydophila abortus
(formerly Chlamydia psittici), Coxiella burnetti, Toxoplasma
gondii, Campylobacter jejuni and C. fetus, Listeria
monocytogenes, and Salmonella spp. These can be difficult to
3
April 2007
Bovine Trichomoniasis
end of the breeding period. When breeding period is not
closely supervised, the first indication of a problem is often
an increased number of cows that are cycling and not
pregnant at the end of the breeding period. In operations
with the infection, majority of calvings are in the later half of
the calving season. In contrast, in herds without infection,
80% of the cows will calve within the first two heat cycles of
the calving period provided that the cows are in good body
condition and there are no other problems.
Dr. Jagdish Patel, Surveillance Veterinarian, Food Safety
Division, Edmonton, AB
Diagnosis
Testing herd bulls rather than cows for trichomoniasis is
more rewarding and economical because there are fewer
bulls to test and the disease is self-limiting in cows. Collecting
and culturing and laboratory examination of the smegma
from bulls is the diagnostic technique for field use. Smegma
can be collected using a bovine uterine infusion pipette
attached to a 12 cc syringe. Pass the pipette to proximal
prepuce fornix area and with negative suction move the
pipette around the fornix area. Slight hemorrhage in
aspirated smegma is accepted to carry out an effective
sample collection.
Data submitted to Alberta Veterinary Surveillance Network
show that during fall of 2006 trichomoniasis was confirmed in
bulls from some farms in southern Alberta. Older bulls will
remain carriers and can carry the infection from one year to
the next. On rare occasions a pregnant cow can be a carrier
and be a source of infection. Impact on pregnancy rate and
calf crop in operations that use natural service in their
breeding programs can be devastating if the infection is
introduced to a naïve herd.
The collected sample should be placed immediately in tubes/
pouches (InPouchR) containing culture medium that is at
20 to 25oC. These tubes/pouches should be stored in
container away from direct sunlight and during transport to
the laboratory, these samples should not be allowed to cool
to single digit temperatures or freeze.
We are therefore recommending that in herds where a
potential for introduction of the disease exists, testing of
bulls and prevention measures mentioned below should be
undertaken prior to the breeding season.
The sensitivity of culture method is 80 to 90% based on three
tests done at weekly intervals. We highly recommend doing
three successive tests at weekly intervals just prior to the
breeding season. The chance of detecting the parasite is
increased if the bull is separated from cows for at least
2 weeks before testing.
Transmission
The parasite Tritrichomonas fetus is transmitted when an
infected bull breeds with a susceptible heifer or cow. Infected
cows can transmit the disease to virgin uninfected bulls
during breeding. Although young bulls (<3 years) may clear
the infection, infected bulls become long-term carriers and
thereby carry the infection from one breeding season to the
next. Some infected cows can deliver a normal calf (<1%).
Fortunately these carrier cows are rare but may present a
problem when trying to control the disease in a herd. Bulls
from multiple sources on community pastures, sharing of
bulls by multiple herds and purchasing and using untested
older bulls in emergency situations during the breeding
season pose the greatest threat of contracting the disease.
Prevention
Preventing introduction of this disease in the herd should be
the main emphasis in any management plan.
Prevention measures are effective in closed herds and are
important in reducing the risk of acquiring and spreading the
disease in community pastures. Many producers already
conduct some of the following measures:
• Only use virgin bulls and heifers as replacements; use as
many home-raised heifers as possible.
• Only buy confirmed pregnant heifers if outside
replacements are needed.
Clinical Presentation
The parasite usually causes death of the developing foetus
between 40 to 70 days of pregnancy with some cows
developing post-coital pyometra. Some cows may abort as
late as five months into pregnancy. Often the first indication
of a disease problem in a herd is when a producer notices the
cows he thought were pregnant resume cycling towards the
April 2007
• Maintain a limited tight breeding season.
• Keep the average bull age as young as possible.
• Test all mature bulls at least three times at weekly
intervals before introducing them into your herd.
• For community pastures test all bulls at least three times
before beginning of the breeding season.
4
• Monitor the breeding period to detect signs of excessive
repeat breeding.
• Veterinary practitioners have made appropriate diagnostic
efforts, generally having done a farm visit to clearly define
the problem and performed necropsies or other diagnostic
tests with samples submitted to private diagnostic
laboratories without a diagnosis or resolution of the
problem. If the problem is severe enough, this
requirement may be waived, e.g. suspicion of foreign
animal disease.
• Control other reproductive diseases like
campylobacteriosis with appropriate vaccinations and
perform breeding soundness exam of all bulls before
turnout.
• Cull open cows at pregnancy check and test cows that
have recently aborted.
• Necessary diagnostic services are not available otherwise.
• Do not purchase open cows from auction market.
• Suspected oilfield related concerns might qualify by
referral using a specific process.
• Avoid using and or sharing bulls from unknown herd
history.
• Maintain proper fencing of pastures to avoid mixing of
animals from herds with unknown status.
The following summary of LPCP cases from the past several
months are divided into two categories. Targeted surveillance
submissions are solicited under specific programs or projects.
Non-targeted submissions arise when practitioners contact a
member of the LPCP team or other AF veterinarians for
assistance.
If above recommendations cannot be adhered to, vaccinating
cows in the herd is an option however it is expensive and not
100% efficacious.
Treatment
Currently there are no approved treatments for
trichomoniasis in either the bull or cow.
Targeted surveillance submissions:
• Practitioners are encouraged to submit liver samples from
cases of suspect bovine bacillary hemoglobinuria (BH) as
part of a surveillance project designed to look at incidence
and distribution of BH and association between BH and
liver fluke infection in Alberta.
For further information please contact Dr. Jagdish Patel at
(780) 644-5093, [email protected]
• Practitioners are also encouraged to submit bovine brains
sent under Canada-Alberta BSE Surveillance Program
(CABSESP) for diagnostic workup further to the BSE
test. Cows showing neurological signs that are not BSE
are of particular interest.
Surveillance/Research
Update
• A surveillance veterinarian analyzes Veterinary Practice
Surveillance (VPS) data and clinical syndromes that
appear unusual in some way or that suggest diseases of
interest to AF, are flagged and practitioners may receive a
telephone call with an offer of assistance by AF
diagnosticians.
Alberta Veterinary Surveillance Network: Update on
Livestock Pathology Consultation Activities
Jan Bystrom, Veterinary Pathologist, Food Safety Division,
Airdrie, AB
Alberta Agriculture and Food’s (AF)
Livestock Pathology Consultation
Program (LPCP) assists veterinary
practitioners with disease diagnosis.
The program is not intended to take
the place of private diagnostic
laboratory services. It is an adjunct to
those services under certain
conditions described below.
Non-targeted submissions from practitioners:
• Goat kid from a herd with a problem the producer
suspected was due to sour gas exposure. Diagnosis of
severe malnutrition and anemia due to sucking lice and
coccidiosis was made.
• Unusual incidence of congenital cataracts in dairy calves.
This problem was referred to AF from a private
laboratory for more extensive workup. The problem has
not resolved and ongoing investigation involves the
Livestock Disease Investigation Network (LDIN) and
LPCP diagnostic services.
Gross necropsy and histology services are offered in cases
meeting the following criteria:
• Significant or unusual herd or flock problem.
• Unusually high mortality in calves due to neonatal
diarrhea investigated by LDIN/LPCP. Viral etiology was
confirmed with ongoing further diagnostic efforts referred
to Prairie Diagnostic Services (PDS).
• Signs suggesting a new syndrome, an emerging disease,
foreign/notifiable animal disease, or food safety, market
access or public health concerns.
• Unusually high mortality in adult cows on pasture;
confirmed as moldy sweet clover poisoning.
5
April 2007
• Unusual syndrome of P3 necrosis/lameness in feedlot
steers investigated by LDIN/LPCP. Diagnosis of systemic
vasculitis associated with Bovine Viral Diarrhea virus
(BVDv) by immunohistochemistry was made in these
particular steers.
Complexity of the working steps is kept to a minimum by
using one unique operation program. The complete robotic
workstation with its peripheral equipment is simple to
operate, robust and easily maintained. These characteristics
enable the elimination of forced downtime due to human
and/or machine failure. A 5 to 10 fold improvement in cost,
test capacity and productivity was achieved (Table 1). With
this system, one diagnostician is able to carry out over
1,000 antibody-screening tests a day. Based on the
automated nature of the test, there is ample walk away time
(WAT) between ELISA tests, enabling the technologist to
multitask – performing other important duties such as
sample receiving and preparation, test validation, result
interpretation, information dissemination and other related
LIM work.
• Unusually high mortality with sudden death due to
monensin toxicity in reindeer; see report elsewhere in this
issue.
• Unusual syndrome of recumbency, death and abortion in
adult beef cows investigated as possible emerging disease.
Diagnosis of severe selenium deficiency was made based
on serum mineral analysis.
Practitioners are encouraged to contact AF with questions or
concerns about diagnostic services. In certain instances, AF
may be able to provide the service or can assist with
obtaining service through private laboratories.
The performance characteristics – such as repeatability,
reproducibility, optimal cutoff values, identity score, test
sensitivity and specificity were evaluated. These test
validation results (Table 2) were based on data accumulated
in an 8-year proficiency testing with the US National
Veterinary Services Laboratory (NVSL). Our laboratory test
has received certification from the United States
Department of Agriculture to perform serologic testing for
Johne’s disease since 1998. In 2000-2001, the Standard
Council of Canada accredited this test scope and in 2004, this
a-ELISA was validated according to the requirements of the
ISO/IEC 17025 standard.
Please contact Dr. Jan Bystrom at (403) 912-3309,
[email protected] or Dr. Brian Miller at
(780) 427-8201,[email protected]
An Automated High Throughput Screening Enzyme
Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Johne’s Disease
Antibodies in Bovine Serum
John T. Y. Wu1*, Lester S. Y. Wong1 and Evelyn E. Bowlby1
A manual Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis
antibody enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
(IDEXX Inc.) was fully automated using an Automation
Workstation System (AWS). The IDEXX commercial kit is
used to screen for exposure to the Johne’s disease bacterium
in cattle on a herd basis. Due to the large number of sera
involved in this type of surveillance project, there is a need to
increase the cost effectiveness and decrease the turn around
time (TAT). The purpose of the work was to develop an
automated ELISA (a-ELISA) for Johne’s disease antibodies
screening and examine the productivity advantages, quality
assured performance characteristics, laboratory information
management (LIM) work and multi-tasking provisions under
this format.
Figure 1. Biomek FX workstation
Table 1. Comparison of manual and automated ELISA testing capacity per
technologist
The AWS was assembled using a modular approach design
(Figure 1). The high throughput screening configuration
consists of a Beckman Coulter hybrid Biomek® FX liquid
handling system integrated with a Molecular Devices
Spectramax® microplate reader, a Biotek® ELx405
microplate washer, a Kendro Cytomat® 6000 hotel and an
Axis PTZ Network camera. The integrated system function is
programmed with an IBM computer using SAMI® software.
Housed in a Class 2 Biosafety Cabinet, this fully automated
system provides flexibility to accommodate the multi-step
requirements of the immunoassay procedure.
April 2007
6
Manual
Automated
Specimen/project
No. of projects/year
9
55
5,000
No. of projects/year
4
28
10,000
No. of projects/year
3
18
15,000
Duration of project
5.56 weeks
0.93 weeks
5,000
Duration of project
11.11 weeks
1.85 weeks
10,000
Duration of project
16.67 weeks
2.78 weeks
15,000
Table 2. Testing Proficiency evaluation between AF laboratory and results from NVSL (1998 - 2004: Partially Automated; 2005: Fully Automated)
IDEXX JD ELISA
Biostatistics values
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
1998-2005
Kappa
0.71
1.00
0.91
1.00
1.00
1.00
0.86
1.00
0.95
Identity score
92.00%
100.00%
96.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
96.00%
100.00%
97.99%
Test sensitivity
90.91%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
98.56%
Test specificity
100.00%
100.00%
88.89%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
80.00%
100.00%
96.67%
Positive predictive value
100.00%
100.00%
94.12%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
95.24%
100.00%
98.56%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
100.00%
96.67%
25/25
24/25
24/24
25/25
25/25
25/25
195/199
Negative predictive value
1
60.000%
Identity
23/25
False neg/false pos
2 FN
1 FP
100.00
24/25
1 FP
2 FN, 2 FP
NVSL reference serum pos
20
20
17
18
16
17
21
10
139
NVSL reference serum neg
5
5
8
6
9
8
4
15
60
Immunology Virology Unit, Biology Section, Agri-Food Laboratories Branch, Food Safety Division, Alberta Agriculture and Food,
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
* Corresponding Author: John T. Y. Wu, Immunology and Virology Unit, Biology Section, Agri-Food Laboratories Branch,
Food Safety Division, Alberta Agriculture and Food. 6909 - 116 Street, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6H 4P2.
Phone: (780) 427-8324 Fax :(780) 415-4527 e-mail:[email protected]
Food Safety Division
Highlights
Continuing Education Opportunities
Jan Bystrom, Veterinary Pathologist, Food Safety Division,
Airdrie, AB
presentations and interactive discussion on swine diseases
from a pathological and diagnostic perspective. The session
built upon a similar session held in April 2006 that also
included a wet lab portion. The format for the day was very
practical and informal, allowing for a frank and excellent
information exchange. Extensive discussion occurred with
practitioners providing as much information regarding the
state of current swine practice and diagnostics as the
pathologists provided information to them.
These types of sessions are available on request for small to
large groups of practitioners within regions, groups in similar
practice types, groups with similar interests, etc.
On January 16, 2007, a continuing education (CE) session
was held at the Calgary Animal Referral and Emergency
(C.A.R.E.) Centre in Calgary at the request of specialty
swine practitioners in Alberta. Jointly presented by
Dr.’s Jan Bystrom and Ted Clark, this session consisted of
If you have ideas for CE sessions or particular formats you
would like, please contact Dr. Jan Bystrom at (403) 912-3309,
[email protected] or Dr. Brian Miller at
(780) 427-8201, [email protected].
7
April 2007
Who’s Who in the
Division
Delores Peters is a disease surveillance
veterinarian, currently working to adapt
the Alberta Veterinary Surveillance
Network (AVSN) beef model to the
unique needs of poultry industry. She
grew up on a mixed farm at Didsbury,
Alberta. After graduating from WCVM
she worked as a veterinarian in Pincher
Creek and managed clinical research
trials for beef cattle and pigs where she was the liaison to the
computer software developer for collecting chute side health
information for the feedlot. Delores completed her MSc
(Animal Biochemistry, University of Alberta) in 1994 and is
in the process of completing a Master’s Degree in Veterinary
Public Health Management through the University of
Sydney, Australia. After 11 years in China with family she is
thrilled to be back in Alberta.
E-mail: [email protected]
Sarah Turner received a BSc in
Agriculture, majoring in Animal Sciences
and specializing in swine nutrition from
the Nova Scotia Agricultural College
(NSAC) in 1998. After graduation, she
worked in a 500-sow farrow–finish PIC
multiplier unit in Nova Scotia. She then
worked for the NSAC for two years
before moving to Alberta and working six
years for Alberta Quality Pork. While with Alberta Quality
Pork, Sarah managed the delivery and administration of the
Canadian Quality Assurance (CQA®) Program and the
Animal Care Assessment (ACA) Tool for the Alberta pork
industry. She is currently working at Alberta Agriculture and
Food as the AVSN Coordinator.
E-mail: [email protected]
April 2007
8