Reporting animal disease
Suspected animal diseases must be reported immediately to one of the following:
- Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline
- your private veterinarian
- the nearest animal health adviser or government veterinarian officer.
Quick reporting can prevent a major outbreak. We will determine whether a significant or notifiable disease is occurring.
Failure to report an emergency animal disease (EAD) is illegal and may result in a fine or prosecution.
Notifiable diseases
Animal diseases that are a national threat are known as notifiable diseases. These include:
- South Australian notifiable diseases published in the SA Government Gazette No. 83, 1 December 2022
- National notifiable diseases listed by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
- Aquatic animal diseases (including symptoms).
Learn about the most significant diseases, infections, and infestations to look out for below.
South Australian notifiable diseases
South Australian notifiable diseases
Bees with:
- Melissococcus pluten (European foulbrood)
- Paenibacillus larvae (American foulbrood)
Aquatic species with:
- Aeromonas salmonicida - atypical strains
- Aphanomyces invadans (epizootic ulcerative syndrome)
- Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis
- Bonamia exitiosa
- Epizootic haematopoietic necrosis virus
- Ostreid herpesvirus-1
- Perkinsus olseni
- Viral encephalopathy and retinopathy
Other species with:
- Aino virus
- Akabane virus
- Anaplasma marginale (bovine anaplasmosis)
- Babesia bovis, B. bigemina or B. divergens (bovine babesiosis)
- Bovine ephemeral fever
- Bovine leukaemia virus (enzootic bovine leucosis)
- Brucella suis
- Burkholderia pseudomallei (melioidosis)
- Chlamydophilia pecorum (sporadic bovine encephalomyelitis)
- Cysticercus bovis caused by Taenia saginata (bovine cysticercosis)
- Ehrlichia canis (ehrlichiosis)
- Escherichia coli (verotoxigenic strains)
- Equine herpes virus-1 (abortigenic and neurological strains)
- Equine infectious anaemia virus
- Equine arteritis virus
- Footrot (in sheep and in goats only)
- Infectious laryngotracheitis virus
- Listeria monocytogenes (listeriosis)
- Mycobacterium avian (avian tuberculosis)
- Salmonella pullorum (pullorum disease)
Exotic diseases
Bees with:
- Acarapis woodi (acariasis tracheal mite)
- Acute bee paralysis virus
- Braula coeca (bee louse)
- Tropilaelaps clareae or T. mercedesae (tropilaelaps mite)
- Varroa destructor or V. jacobsoni (varroosis)
Aquatic species with:
- Abalone herpesvirus (Haliotid herpesvirus-1)
- Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease
- Aeromonas salmonicida subsp. salmonicida (furunculosis)
- Aphanomyces astaci (crayfish plague)
- Baculoviral midgut gland necrosis virus
- Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans
- Boccardia knoxi
- Bonamia ostreae
- Decapod iridescent virus 1
- Edwardsiella ictaluri (enteric septicaemia of catfish)
- Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei
- European catfish virus / European sheatfish virus
- Gill-associated virus
- Gyrodactylus salaris
- Haplosporidium costale or H. nelsoni (haplosporidiosis)
- Hepatobacter penaei (necrotising hepatopancreatitis)
- HPR salmon anaemia virus
- Infectious haematopoietic necrosis virus
- Infectious hypodermal and haematopoietic necrosis virus
- Infectious myonecrosis virus
- Infectious pancreatic necrosis virus
- Infectious spleen and kidney necrosis virus
- Koi herpesvirus (Cyprinid herpesvirus 3)
- Macrobrachium rosenbergii nodavirus (white tail disease)
- Marteilia refringens
- Marteilia sydneyi
- Marteilioides chungmuensis
- Mikrocytos mackini
- Mollusc iridoviroses
- Monodon slow growth syndrome
- Myxobolus cerebralis (whirling disease)
- Oncorhynchus masou virus disease
- Perkinsus marinus
- Piscirickettsia salmonis (piscirickettsiosis)
- Ranavirus species
- Red sea bream iridovirus
- Renibacterium salmoninarum (bacterial kidney disease)
- Salmonid alphavirus
- Scale drop disease virus
- Singapore grouper iridovirus (ranavirus)
- Spawner-isolated mortality virus
- Spring viraemia of carp virus
- Taura syndrome virus
- Tilapia lake virus (TiLV) disease
- Turbot reddish body iridovirus
- Viral haemorrhagic septicaemia virus
- White spot syndrome virus
- White sturgeon iridoviral disease
- Xenohaliotis californiensis
- Yellow head virus genotype 1
- Yersinia ruckeri – Hagerman strain (enteric redmouth disease)
Other livestock species with:
- African horse sickness virus
- African swine fever virus
- Alcelaphine herpesvirus-1 (malignant catarrhal fever, wildebeest-associated)
- Aujeszky’s disease virus (pseudorabies virus)
- Australian bat lyssavirus
- Avian bornavirus (proventricular dilatation syndrome)
- Avian metapneumovirus (turkey rhinotracheitis)
- Babesia caballi, B. equi or Theileria equi (equine piroplasmosis)
- Bacillus anthracis (anthrax)
- Bluetongue virus
- Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme disease)
- Borna disease virus
- Bovine virus diarrhoea virus (type 2)
- Brucella abortus
- Brucella canis
- Brucella melitensis
- Bungowannah virus (porcine myocarditis virus or atypical porcine pestivirus)
- Burkholderia mallei (glanders)
- Camelpox virus
- Chlamydophila abortus (enzootic abortion of ewes / ovine chlamydiosis)
- Classical swine fever virus
- Chrysomya bezziana (Old World screwworm fly)
- Cochliomyia hominivorax (New World screwworm fly)
- Contagious agalactia
- Cowpox virus
- Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus
- Devil facial tumour disease
- Duck herpes virus 1 (duck viral enteritis / duck plague)
- Duck virus hepatitis
- Echinococcus multilocularis Ehrlichia ruminantium (heartwater)
- Elaphostrongylus cervi
- Encephalitides (tick borne)
- Epizootic haemorrhagic disease virus
- Equine encephalomyelitis viruses (Eastern, Western or Venezuelan)
- Equine encephalosis virus
- Equine influenza virus
- Fasciola gigantica
- Foot and mouth disease virus
- Francisella tularensis (tularaemia)
- Getah virus
- Haematobia irritans exigua (buffalo fly)
- Hantaan river virus
- Hendra viruses
- Histoplasma farciminosum (epizootic lymphangitis)
- Infectious bursal disease virus (very virulent and exotic antigenic variant forms)
- Influenza A viruses in birds and swine
- Jembrana disease virus
- Leptospirosis interrogans serovar Canicola
- Louping ill virus
- Lumpy skin disease virus
- Leishmania spp.
- Maedi-visna
- Menangle virus
- Mycobacterium bovis
- Mycobacterium caprae
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Mycoplasma capricolum subsp. capripneumoniae (contagious caprine pleuropneumonia)
- Mycoplasma iowae
- Mycoplasma mycoides subsp. mycoides SC (contagious bovine pleuropneumonia)
- Nairobi sheep disease virus
- Neoricketsia risticii (Potomac fever)
- Newcastle disease virus (virulent)
- Nipah virus
- Pasturella multocida serotypes 6:b and 6:e (haemorrhagic septicaemia)
- Peste des petits ruminants virus
- Pseudogymnoascus destructans in bats (white nose syndrome)
- Porcine cysticercosis (Cysticercus cellulosae infestation caused by Taenia solium or T. asiatica)
- Porcine epidemic diarrhoea virus
- Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus
- Post-weaning multi-centric wasting syndrome
- Psoroptes ovis (sheep scab)
- Pulmonary adenomatosis (Jaagsiekte)
- Rabies virus
- Rhipicephalus microplusm (cattle tick)
- Rift Valley fever virus
- Rinderpest virus
- Salmonella abortus-equi
- Salmonella abortus-ovis
- Salmonella enteritidis
- Salmonella gallinarum (fowl typhoid)
- Senecavirus A (Seneca Valley virus)
- Sheep pox virus or goat pox virus
- Shope’s fibroma virus
- Swine vesicular disease virus
- Taylorella equigenitalis (contagious equine metritis)
- Taenia multiceps, T. serialis, T. brauni, and T. glomeratus (causing infestation with Coenurus cerebralis)
- Teschovirus A (porcine enterovirus encephalomyelitis)
- Theileria annulata (Mediterranean theilerosis)
- Theileria parva (East Coast fever)
- Transmissible gastroenteritis coronavirus
- Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (bovine spongiform encephalopathy, chronic wasting disease of deer, feline spongiform encephalopathy, scrapie)
- Trichinella spp.
- Trypanosomosis cruzi (Chagas disease)
- Trypanosoma equiperdum (dourine)
- Trypanosomosis evansi (surra)
- Trypanosomosis (tsetse fly associated)
- Vesicular exanthema of swine virus
- Vesicular stomatitis virus
- Warble-fly (warble-fly myiasis)
- Wesselsbron virus
- West Nile Virus
Report only diseases
Diseases, infections, and infestations with:
- Japanese encephalitis virus
- Paratuberculosis (Johne’s disease)
- Streptococcus equi equi (strangles)
- Virulent avian paramyxovirus
Save or print the South Australian notifiable diseases list ()
Symptoms to report
Any of the following symptoms in livestock or birds could be a notifiable, serious, or unusual disease. These must be reported:
- a large number of sick or dead animals
- lameness, drooling or salivating excessively
- ulcers, erosions, or blisters around the:
- feet
- muzzle
- udder
- mouth
- discharge, including:
- diarrhoea, especially if there is blood in it
- excessive nasal discharge
- unusual nervous behaviour
- production drop in:
- milk yield from livestock
- eggs from birds
- fast spread of disease through a herd or flock
- sudden illness with rapid deterioration or death in horses
- birds with dullness, swollen heads, respiratory distress, or increase of thin-shelled eggs.
Watch for any unfamiliar disease symptoms in animals or birds, including less serious signs. Animals not eating properly or showing depressed behaviour may be a cause of disease.
How to report diseases
Provide the following information when notifying your vet or animal health adviser of suspected illness:
- which pest or disease is suspected
- name of the owner or farm manager
- property contact details:
- street address
- telephone number
- Property Identification Code
- number of animals on the property, including wild animals
- the livestock species or type of animals affected
- a description of clinical signs of the illness
- the date symptoms were first noticed
- approximate number of sick or dead animals
- whether animals that could carry disease were brought to the property, or removed from it
- any overseas travel by people on the property.
More information
See the Australian Veterinary Emergency Plan (AUSVETPLAN) managed by Animal Health Australia.