Border Disease Virus

Hosts

• Sheep
• Goats

Pathogenesis

• Tropism: fetal lymphoid tissue, hair follicles, and CNS
• Causes abortion or weak lambs
• Hairy shaker lambs: born with hair instead of wool
  • Immunotolerant status when exposed in mid-third of gestation
  • Also associated with cerebellar hypoplasia

Epidemiology

• Can cause significant problems to a flock
• First reported on Welsh borders

Diagnosis

• Clinical: abortion and hairy shaker lambs
• Confirmation by serology: ELISA for virus antigen

Control

• No UK vaccine
• Vaccines available in USA and Europe
• Blood testing sheep can aid in culling seropositive ewes

A pestivirus causing abortion often of brown, anasarcous foetus which may be mistaken for scouring if early in pregnancy (ewe barren at lambing time). Live lambs are born early hairy shakers small, weak, hairy lambs with skeletal abnormalities.