Arkansas Administrative Code
Agency 209 - Arkansas Agriculture Department
Division 01 - Livestock And Poultry Commission
Rule 209.01.07-001 - EIA Regulations Regarding Act 1306 of 1997

1. Testing of equidae done at approved markets may be done by licensed, accredited, practicing veterinarians or by Commission authorized personnel. If blood is collected by Commission personnel, the cost will be $25.00 per animal, payable to the market by the owner. The market shall pay the Livestock and Poultry Commission $25.00 per animal tested by the Commission personnel by the 10th of the next month following the sale. If blood is collected by practicing veterinarian, fees will be by private treaty.

2. There will be a $3.00 fee assessed to Arkansas licensed, practicing veterinarians for each Arkansas domiciled equidae tested for EIA. An equine is considered domiciled within the state when it has been pastured, stabled, housed, or kept in any fashion in the state more than thirty consecutive or inconsecutive days. The $3.00 fee will also be assessed on any out-of-state equidae that is being tested at a market to be sold in Arkansas. This fee is in addition to laboratory fees for running the test. Failure to submit fees according to provisions of regulation will cause test papers to be rendered invalid and in case of reactor or adjacent herd testing the continuance of quarantine until fees are received by the Commission. Arkansas licensed, practicing veterinarians who wish to use the Commission's EIA ID test card for equidae owners that contains all pertinent and necessary information may access and submit digital photographs of horse(s) to the Commission's website. A $5 fee will be assessed for each EIA test card issued. This is in addition to the laboratory testing fees and EIA regulatory fee.

3. Accredited laboratories conducting tests on samples from Arkansas equidae or samples from sales in Arkansas shall send Part 4 of the VS Form 10-11 (or other form approved by the Commission), or a legible copy of this form to the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission, P. O. Box 8505, Little Rock, AR 72215 by the 10th of the month following the month the test was run. (Positive samples must still be reported within 24 hours of classification.)

4. Livestock markets must be approved by the Commission for selling equidae. Markets that accept reactor or exposed animals for sale, and markets that allow horses to be tested on site must have a quarantine pen that is clearly marked with a sign or paint to keep reactors and exposed horses in, as well as any equidae that test positive at the market. They also must have a fly control program as described in the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 75: "The stockyard shall have in effect a fly control program utilizing at least one of the following; baits, fly strips, electric bug killers ("Fly Zappers, " "Fly Snappers, " or similar equipment), application of a pesticide effective against flies, applied according to the schedule and dosage recommended by the manufacturer for fly control.'")

The quarantine pen must be far enough from the area where negative tested animals are kept that, in the opinion of the inspector, the negative tested equidae will not be exposed.

Markets that handle only equidae with current tests (conducted within the last six (6) months) are not required to have a quarantine pen or fly control program.

5. Owners of horses (all equidae) domiciled within the state of Arkansas shall be responsible for maintaining a negative current official EIA (equine infectious anemia) test on all horses (equidae) that they own. When an owner/agent of any equine in the state of Arkansas has been found to be in violation of this requirement, the owner will have no more than 14 (fourteen) days from receiving a quarantine notice and warning letter to have all of his/her equine tested for EIA. At the discretion of ARLPC officials, the fourteen day period could be extended. The penalty for violation of this regulation is a Class A misdemeanor under state law.

6. When a private laboratory obtains a positive ELISA test for EIA, the horse will be quarantined and permitted back to the farm of origin and all horses on that premises will be quarantined while waiting on a final confirmation test (AGID). Also, exposed or adjacent equine shall be quarantined if necessary. It will be the responsibility of the testing veterinarian to notify Arkansas Livestock & Poultry Commission officials of a positive ELISA test. If the final AGID test is negative, then the quarantine will be released. If the final AGID test is positive, then part seven of this regulation will go into effect.

7. When a reactor equidae is detected, all equidae within the affected and adjacent herds will be quarantined by an authorized agent of the Commission. All equidae in affected and adjacent herds will remain quarantined until all are tested negative at least 60 days and no more than 80 days after the removal of the reactor.

8. Deviations in testing and quarantines are acceptable when they are made by the designated epidemiologist.

Issued in Little Rock, Arkansas on December 7, 2006.