STATUS OF BOVINE TUBERCULOSIS IN NORTH-AMERICA

The eradication of bovine tuberculosis from North America is in the ad vanced stages as Canada and the United States struggle to remove the l ast vestiges of the disease from the domestic livestock population. Ca nada realistically anticipates total eradication from the national cat tle herd within the next few years. The United States must yet effecti vely deal with the increased tuberculosis exposure potential from impa rted steers and from bovine tuberculosis newly discovered in its capti ve cervid industry. This paper reviews the history and development of tuberculosis eradication programs in North America. The basic evolutio n is described from area testing to slaughter surveillance with follow -up epidemiological investigations as the program foundation. The curr ent status of both countries is described and recognized deterrents to final eradication are discussed.