Texas pet adoptions pause as New World screwworm concerns spread
- Adoptions are on hold for thousands of dogs and cats in Texas as officials try to slow the spread of New World screwworm, which has reached the U.S. from Mexico for the first time in 60 years.
- The parasite can infect mammals, including pets, and has already been detected in several dogs in southern Texas and southeastern New Mexico.
- Forty-four states have restricted movement of pets from infested areas, disrupting the usual transfer of shelter animals from Texas to other parts of the country.
- Shelters say the restrictions are crowding facilities and could force more euthanizations if animals cannot be moved out.
- The outbreak has broader economic implications as well, including pressure on the $113 billion beef industry and a potential negative effect on livestock-related markets.
Texas shelters are holding up adoptions and transfers for thousands of dogs and cats as officials respond to the spread of New World screwworm. The parasite has moved into the United States from Mexico for the first time in six decades, prompting animal movement restrictions across much of the country.
The insect can lay eggs in wounds or mucus, and the resulting larvae feed on living tissue. The article says several animal infections have already been found in southern Texas and southeastern New Mexico, including cases in dogs.
Because 44 states have limited the movement of pets from affected areas, Texas shelters that usually send animals elsewhere are facing crowding. In Corpus Christi, one shelter said its animal population rose sharply when it could not move dogs to New York for weeks.
Shelter operators said the restrictions make it harder to take in new animals from municipal shelters and increase the risk that more animals will have to be euthanized. The outbreak also matters beyond animal rescue, because federal officials have already closed the border to cattle movements to protect the beef industry.
因新大陆螺旋蝇担忧，德州宠物领养一度停摆
在新大陆螺旋蝇扩散之际，得州多家收容所暂停了成千上万只狗和猫的领养与转运。该寄生虫是60年来首次从墨西哥进入美国，因而引发了全美范围内的动物流动限制。
报道说，这种昆虫会在伤口或黏膜处产卵，孵化后的幼虫会取食活体组织。南得克萨斯和新墨西哥东南部已经出现多起动物感染案例，其中包括狗。
由于44个州限制来自受影响地区的宠物流动，通常向外州输送动物的得州收容所承受了更大压力。科珀斯克里斯蒂的一家收容所表示，在一段时间无法将狗送往纽约后，收容所内动物数量明显上升。
收容所工作人员说，这些限制让他们更难接收市政收容所转来的新动物，也增加了不得不实施安乐死的风险。此次疫情还超出动物救助领域，联邦政府已为保护牛肉产业而关闭牛只跨境流动。