Scrapie is a fatal disease affecting the central nervous system of sheep and goats. APHIS classifies it as a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that leads to “significant production losses” in infected flocks. Currently, the United States is not scrapie free according to World Organization for Animal Health standards. “Essentially, what it {scrapie} is, is mad cow disease for sheep,” Chris Posbergh, assistant professor of sheep production at Montana State University, described. The disease is caused by prions that cause proteins to fold incorrectly, and “once it’s misfolded, then it starts causing havoc, especially in the nervous system,” Posbergh said. “The presence...

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