From:
dr_bruce_williams
Date: 2002-02-07 22:43:00 UTC
Subject: ADV and Marshall Farms - this thread comes to an end on the
FHL
Without belaboring this point any longer, I am putting an end to the
thread which speculates on a connection between MF and several
ferrets which recently came up positive on the Avecon ELISA for ADV
antibodies.
These animals have already been classified as having Aleutian Disease
based solely on the fact that they apparently have antibodies to the
virus, without any other confirmatory data. As we all know, there
are other tests which may confirm Aleutian disease - tests for high
levels of protein, PCR tests on blood, tissue, urine, or feces (which
are available at the University of GA) and the CIEP test available
through United Vaccines. To my knowledge, these tests have not been
performed, so any conclusions are premature at best.
While I am strongly in favor of widespread testing for this disease,
and believe that the Avecon test is a good cost-effective screen, I
also believe that it needs to be confirmed by the use of one or more
of these other tests before you can conclude that an animal truly has
ADV.
My contention is not with informative posts that discuss the topic of
ADV and the need for widespread testing in an dispassionate,
objective manner, but only with those that make unproven claims about
where the infection originated.
The subject of ADV will continue to be actively discussed on the FHL,
but pointing fingers at breeders, distributors, pet stores, or
individuals as a source of infection, especially without concrete
evidence is not what the FHL is all about.
With kindest regards,
Bruce Williams, dVM