[Jacob-list] OPP - Optional Pain Process

[Higgins]

Heel low:

I think the worst hit was the hit to my ego.  I studied about
biosecurity, I knew what to do and still here I was, balling my eyes out
after taking what was to be eleven years in the making...taking my first
sheep in to have her put down.

"I KNOW BETTER!!!"

That is the trouble with OPP and one of the reasons I will not casually
accept the indifference by vets and producers to the existance of this
disease.  OPP is a real threat, OPP causes economic, physical and
emotional harm.  OPP exists and reeks havoc...OPP should be confronted
and dealt with, swiftly, accurately, and as sure as we love our
Jacobs...it should be eliminated!

"Betty Berlenbach" <lambfarm at sover.net> wrote:

> I've resisted testing because I'm still not convinced OPP is really a
problem, if it
> doesn't effect any sheep under 10 years of age...

Please quote your source for this statement.  I am quoting the OPP
Concerned Sheep Breeders Society brochure, which on the back states:

"DESCRIPTION OF A TYPICAL OPP EWE
"Let's suppose that I have a good ewe lamb that I breed to lamb at two
years of age.  She gives me a single, a lovely strong lamb.  I forgive
her for giving me a single since it is her first and she is a twin
herself.  Next year I get twins from her.  Those are also nice but not
quite as good as the previous one.  That is assumed natural since they
are twins.  Mother is now three and since she raised twins she is not in
as good a condtion going into breeding as she was the previous year.  In
the next lambing--she is now four--she twins again and this time the
twins are born a good size but fail to thrive.  And mother is positively
thin after rasing these two. At this time many would decide to sell the
ewe, either (hopefully) to slaughter or to someone looking for cheap
breeding stock.  After all, the ewe is only 41/2 years old.  If she has
been sold for breeding, (good buy, she is a twinner and should have a
few years left) she will probably be dead two years later.  This would
be a typical OPP ewe."
- Stefania Dignum, Ontario Producer, The Shepherd Magazine, Sept. 1989

I've lived this story first hand...I purchased a 4.5 year old Jacob ewe
(beautiful horns, magnificent conformation) and was told she was thin
because she was grazing on a stubble field and because I had asked the
owner not to breed her (no Jacob rams available), she had been walking
the fence line and walked herself thin.  When I had first seen her six
months prior, she had been a healthy looking sheep.  I should have run
screaming out the door...considered the three hour drive to the farm a
lovely outing and run...run away.  But I had drug my spouse with me...we
had worked 11 years for this moment...I was about to acquire my first
sheep, and learn my first hard, hit in the stomach lesson about sheep.

DO NOT BUY THIN SHEEP...PERIOD!!!!!

"Betty Berlenbach" <lambfarm at sover.net> wrote:

> I've heard it said that if there weren't a test, the disease wouldn't
be a problem.

I've heard different and experienced the disease first hand...OPP IS a
problem.  Until we face the problem and deal with it, it continues to
grow, like a very bad mold neglected in the dark.  Where is that light
we shine to guide the way?

"General
"Ovine Progressive Pneumonia is a viral disease of sheep in North
America.  Common synonyms for this disease are Progressive Pneumonia and
OPP.  The OPP virus closely resembles Maedi-Visna which is a similar
slow or retrovirus found in other parts of the world.  The OPP virus can
cause disease with any of the following signs:  severe and progressive
weight loss, laboured breathing or pneumonia, paralysis, swollen joints
associated with lameness, and palpably hard, unproductive udders.
However most infected sheep never show clinical signs of the disease.
Once a sheep is infected with the virus, that animal stays infected for
its lifetime and serves as a carrier even in the presence of high levels
of circulating antibodies.  Unlike some viral diseases, the presence of
antibodies is not indicative of immunity."

"Prevalence
"A recent study found that 26% of the sheep in the United States are
infected with the OPP virus.
<snip>
The percent of infected sheep that develop clinical disease is variable
and is "possibly" dependent on flock management, strain and dose of
virus, and genetics of sheep. "
- OPP Concerned Sheep Breeders' informational booklet, General Fact
sheep on Ovine Progressive Pneumonia.

"Thoroughly convinced of the benefits of eradication (of OPP) (the
Seavey flock required only a partial bag of milk replacer this year, 9
bags less than in a recent lambing), Janet says she will continue to
test even after her flock reaches 100% negative status."
- Testing for OPP - ELISA or AGID?  By Judy Lewman, published in Sept
1996 The Shepherd Magazine

"Many who contact us (OPP Concerned Sheep Breeders) have been told - by
other producers, extension agents, and even veterinarians - that OPP is
nothing to worry about," says Lewman.  "By the time they get to us
they're often at the end of their rope, having exhausted all known local
contacts."
-The Wisconsin Shepherd, Winter 1999

Why is OPP  not a problem...most people ship it!  A 4 or 5 year old
unthrifty sheep gets culled.  How many 18 year old Jacobs do you
know...our sheep should be living alot longer than they are.  An OPP
affected ewe begins to develop mastitis and the shepherd tops up the
hungry lambs, thinking this is how one is a good shepherd...lambing
percentages of 110 to 120% are thought to be normal when one should
actually be looking at 170%.  Twenty percent attrition due to lung
disease is normal...OPP can be the culprit and the producer doesn't even
realize the lost revenues and extra work loads are due to a problem.

"Betty Berlenbach" <lambfarm at sover.net> wrote:

> I also know that these sorts of tests get such a high degree of false
positives and
> false negatives (depending on which test) that I'm not certain that
the results mean
> a whole lot.

They meant alot to me and Roo...even five months later I find it very
difficult reliving what happened.  I agree that the testing is not 100%,
that you have to be patient and re-test your flock until you have a
couple years under your belt with all negative results to state with any
certainty you have an OPP negative status.  I do know one thing, if the
AGID (agar gel immunodiffusion) tests says you have a positive...IT IS
POSITIVE!!!!  A negative AGID test, on the other hand, is not
necessarily reassurance that the sheep is negative for OPP...it just
means there are no antibodies detected by the AGID test...meaning you
can have false negatives, but not false positives with the AGID test.
ELISAs (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay) are more sensitive but when
used alone, not 100% foolproof.  They will detect a positive earlier
than AGID, but can be more expensive and will give both false positives
and negatives.

"SO WHICH TEST IS BEST, AGID OR ELISA?
"From our very limited comparisons between AGID and ELISA tests, it
appears that we are able to at least partially offset the lower
sensitivity of the AGID with more frequent testing.  Most of our ELISA
positives have been detected by the AGID within 3 months  (the longest
lag time was 9 months against a very early p25 ELISA).  Both test, when
done correctly, are excellent."
- Testing for OPP - ELISA or AGID?  By Judy Lewman, published in Sept
1996 The Shepherd Magazine

In July 2002, I attended a herding evaluation for my Australian Cattle
Dogs.  While there, I asked the herding evaluator which breed of sheep
she would use if she wanted sheep for herding with dogs.  She
immediately said, Jacob Sheep...for so many reasons like they were
hardy, quick, easy keepers, would keep a good dog challenged, etc.  I
had been planning the acquisition of sheep for 11 years.  I have studied
biosecurity, attended more sheep seminars than I care to list, purchased
sheep meds and equipment for years (my sheep vets laughed out loud that
I was more ready for sheep than some of their biggest producers)...long
story short after years of preparation, I had the land, it was
fenced...we were working on the facilities...I was FINALLY ready to get
SHEEP!!!!!!!!!!  Eeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!

Because these were Jacob Sheep, I did not expect the same degree of
biosecurity one would expect to see in highly commercial outfits.  The
sheep producers I had been perusing were biosecure facilities, c-section
started, you dressed up in their coveralls and boots, washed up and
disinfected...the whole nine yards.  I did not expect the Jacob
producers to be at this level, so I allotted room for the fact that this
uncommon breed would not be as well protected.  Besides....I wasn't even
sure I was going to LIKE owning sheep...you know, how they smell, act,
burp, poop...the real getting to know them kinda stuff.  I would not
have gone to the lengths or efforts to find biosecure stock for animals
I was not positive I was going to enjoy keeping...well I guess I could
have gone the gauntlet...cause I sure know I love my Jacobs now!

> My theory is if you have older sheep than 8 on your property and they
are good
> and healthy, it's not likely you have OPP.  I have a few eleven year
olds, and
> down, and no symptoms that could be construed to be OPP; in fact, no
> symptoms at all.

Agreed, and from the sounds of it, I would be "pretty" sure you do
not...thank heavens!

> I lose the occasional sheep, but none have died with chronic wasting,
respiratory
> pneumonia things, etc...I know some people have sheep which are 16, so
I know
> they live longer than 10, but it has been suggested that at least
among jacobs,
> symptoms don't appear til between 8-10 years,

Roo died at under 5 years of age...just as the OPP brochure story
unravels...Roo was a Jacob Sheep and her symptoms were apparent at 4+
years of age.

> and if there's no symptoms and you have sheep over that age, then...

Yes, for the most part, you can "assume" your flock may well be OPP
free...assuming you have not had the misfortune such as I to have been
unlucky enough to acquire your first sheep as an OPP
candidate...surprise!  You win the greenhorn, wet behind the ears,
newbie award...how's that fur yah??  Kick, kick, kick...

Roo died a thin, lack lustered fleeced, coughing, exercise intolerant
ewe...she died because I could not see me allowing her to continue to
suffer.  When we administered the steroids and antibiotics, the first
week, it seemed like she improved some...no rasping heavy coughing fits
near dusk when she should have been calmly chewing her cud...but about
the time I received the AGID results back ($200 for the test and meds),
she was back on a steady decline.  My husband and I sat back that summer
evening as the sun went down, watching the flock as we always do.  There
was Roo, head stretched out, hacking, then calmly chewing her cud with
her head laying down in the grass, breathing at times laboured...damn I
hated this...still blastedly chokes me up.  My dream of owning sheep and
watching them die of old age was going full tilt into nightmare garbage
mode.

We got our Jacobs because this was a time in our lives where we are able
to add the crowning glory to a long stint of hard work...when does one
get to enjoy their lives and share that good fortune...we are nowhere
near ready to retire, but the acquisition of sheep, for us was something
for us...something like the cream you savour and relish in.  Not a
journey down a path where you have to put down your first animal...drive
her in knowing this is the last time she will live...yeh, I let her eat
grain all that whole trip, I sang and chatted it up to her so she would
not be scared in the vehicle...she gazed out the window and munched her
grain...yes, I haltered her and bravely led her down that alley way to
her final moments here on Earth...I looked into her eyes, prayed she
understood I had not chosen this end for her, Roo did trust me to care
for her, right to the bitter end.  And yes, I eat meat, I eat lamb...but
this is not why I got my own Jacob sheep!

> Perhaps if I ever have the money to have them tested, I'll consider
it, and if I had
> a sheep get ill which looked like it MIGHT be OPP, I would certainly
have them
> tested.

I repeat the quote from above, "However most infected sheep never show
clinical signs of the disease."  Betty, you may be the luckiest person
on this Earth and not have a single occurence of OPP...or not.  I do not
wish this upon anyone, but I cannot stay silent and let others stumble
in and discover this by themselves...it is not fair to the people nor to
the Jacobs.

> In fact, I did have one tested twice, 6 months apart, several years
ago, and both
> tests indicated the sheep did not have OPP.  I think she just died of
old age at
> around 12 or 13.

Congratulations!  I envy you in the nicest way possible and truly hope
against hopes, you are completely and totally correct...your flock does
not have OPP...but even with full flock testing...we are told until the
second or third year of no positives...then one may begin to assume that
you do not have OPP in the flock.

Sound like what's the use of testing...not to me!  I want my Jacobs to
live to be 18+ years...I hate saying goodbye to dearly loved pets.  Yes,
I am the one who has to doctor and take any of the animals to be
euthanized...my spouse cannot handle this...I get to do the tough love
stuff.  I do not want to put down any more sheep than I absolutely have
to.  I hate doing it, I avoid doing it, but when the quality of their
lives is compromised, it must be done!

Anyone wanting more info on OPP, I highly recommend you contact the OPP
Concerned Sheep Breeders Association, Holly Neaton, DVM,
Secretary/Treasurer, 11549 Hwy 25 SW, Watertown MN, 55388, USA,
952-955-2596 E-mail hollyneat at juno.com Website www.interrain.com/opp

For a mere $10 USD, you may join and receive some very useful
informational brochures and newsletters and help support a very worthy
cause--erradication of OPP.  For $15, there is a video on how to draw
blood for sampling...I have become a member and have a copy of this
video.  I begin my first flock testing now (OPP, Caseous, Johnnes) and
while I look forward to this...I also waiver over what kind of results I
am going to reveal.  Maybe I was doomed all along...I may find that all
my entire flock is affected, this would then tell me that I was set up
right from the start...this one ewe, Roo, had a 2 percent chance of
passing this disease on to the other members of my flock.  Most OPP is
transferred from ewe to lamb via milk ingestion.  A small percentage may
also be infected during breeding by rams with lesions on their
reproductive parts.  Roo may just have been a very early wake up call
for me, giving me the literal horn in the butt to get cracking and
ensure the Jacob Sheep I raise are OPP negative.  Scientists ARE working
on a vaccine for OPP, it is very expensive and not completely proven to
control OPP, but it certainly gives us some hope.

Those who do not OPP test NEVER have OPP, those who OPP test don't OR
can have OPP...we may have OPP because we TEST.  If you get nothing out
of this post, get one item....please understand the difference in
proving you do not have diseases and guessing.  And heaven forbid
someone should overreact that I had an OPP positive (oh poop on
me!)...the key here is that I did and now I am doing something positive
to fix it so I never have this in my flock...ever again!

Doggone hoping to work steadily towards an OPP negative Jacob Sheep
flock!

Tara
--
     ____(\                Tara Lee Higgins                  /)____
    (_____~>        Rat Ranch - An ACD is for LIFE          <~_____)
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    \                      Alberta Canada                          /
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