Spread of scrapie by contact to goats and sheep

Abstract

In two contact experiments where 17 goats were kept for long periods in the same pen as sheep affected with natural scrapie 10 cases of scrapie occurred in the goats. Contact infection did not occur within the same time limit when sheep with experimental scrapie were used as the source of infection. Goats from the same population maintained out of contact also remained normal. Three cases of scrapie occurred in Blackface sheep kept in continuous contact from birth with naturally-affected sheep of various breeds for periods of 3 years 9 months to 4 years 4 months.