Biosecurity practices and travel history of individuals exhibiting livestock at the 2005 California State Fair

OBJECTIVE: To determine biosecurity practices and travel history of individuals exhibiting livestock at the 2005 California State Fair. DESIGN: Survey. STUDY POPULATION: 137 individuals exhibiting livestock at the fair. PROCEDURES: Exhibitors were asked to complete a survey to gather information about the animals they exhibited, the biosecurity practices they used, and the distances they traveled to exhibit their animals. RESULTS: 132 of the 137 (96%) respondents came from California, with respondents representing 40 of California's 58 counties. Median number of livestock exhibitions attended by respondents during the past 12 months was 3 (range, 1 to 7). Respondents indicated that 787 of the 812 (97%) animals they exhibited would be returned home after the fair. Nine (7%) respondents indicated that they did not take any particular biosecurity precautions before arriving at the fair, and 14 (10%) indicated that they did not take any particular biosecurity precautions while at the fair. Only 36 (26%) respondents indicated that they quarantined their animals when returning to their farm of residence after the fair. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results indicated that there was extensive movement of livestock among exhibitions in California, posing a potential threat for widespread dispersion of disease throughout the state and beyond, particularly given the low percentages of exhibitors who used various biosecurity measures.