Dr. David Rustebakke is a large-animal
veterinarian in far-away Clarkston, Washington. He’s been practicing for over
40 years and he knows quite a bit about “horse sense,” because almost every
patient he has is really a horse.
Clarkston lives in southwest Washington and
is where the Snake and Clearwater Rivers meld.
A card from the Illuminati card game |
As a veterinarian, he also understands viruses better than most, so not long ago he wrote a “Letter to the Editor” that appeared in the nearest newspaper, the Lewiston (Idaho) Tribune.
To The Editor:
If I wish to
import a horse into the United States from Liberia or any African country other
than Morocco, the horse needs to undergo a 60 day quarantine period at a USDA
approved quarantine facility prior to mingling with the general population of
horses in this country.
Africa has a
disease called African Horse Sickness that does not exist in the US; this is
the way we have kept it out of this country. African Horse Sickness does not
cause disease in people, only horses; our government has determined that it
would be devastating to the US horse industry if it were to come here.
The United
States (and virtually all other countries) require a myriad of tests and often
quarantine prior to bringing in a foreign animal.
I can’t legally
cross state lines in the United States with a horse or cow without a health
certificate signed by a USDA accredited veterinarian stating that the animal
has been inspected and found free of infectious disease. In most cases blood
tests are also required. In fact I can’t legally cross the Snake River and ride
my horse in Washington without a health certificate and a negative blood test
for Equine Infectious Anemia.
I’m not
complaining; the United States of America, the States of Idaho and Washington,
as well as the other 48 states take the health of our livestock very seriously,
and we have a very good record at keeping foreign animal diseases out of our
country. I am happy to do my part to maintain biosecurity in our animal
population.
If I am a
resident of Liberia incubating Ebola, to enter the United States all I need to
do is present a valid visa, and lie when asked if I have been exposed to Ebola.
Within hours (no quarantine required) I can be walking the streets of any city
in the United States.
I feel very
fortunate to live in a country that values our animals so highly.
David A.
Rustebakke, DVM
* * *
Dr. Rustebakke’s
point is well made. While a 60-day quarantine may be a reach, it stands to
reason that a self-imposed safe-guard/quarantine of some type by those who
treat Ebola would be most beneficial in a country where a vaccine is not yet
plentiful.
It might
be that a waiting period between the time a passenger in an Ebola-stricken
country buys an airplane ticket and boards a plane to the United States might
also help but one thing is for certain: there has never been a horse in America
with African Horse Sickness because – never forget this -- we are smarter than
that.
No comments:
Post a Comment