# CAE positive buck question



## NWgoats (Jul 17, 2008)

Another thread on here got me to thinking. I have seen all the recommendations
for someone who has CAE positive does. Separation, pull at birth, etc... But, what
no one has mentioned is what you would do if you had a CAE + buck.
Since it is my understanding that CAE is passed through milk and perhaps saliva
by sharing water buckets and feeders, does that mean the likelihood of passing
it through semen is very small? And since the buck is housed separately from the
does, there would be no chance of infection through other ways? Especially if
hand breeding (which would mean no prolonged contact anyway). 
Am I wrong? Would it be possible to have a CAE + buck and not have it in
the rest of your herd?


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

From personal experience I can tell you that CAE is not passed casually, I also know from my own herd that CAE is not transmitted with normal breeding, not even pen breeding. We have never had an animal convert to CAE positive even living in the common herd. CAE is passed first and foremost with colostrum, likeling 99.99% of it...the other .01% is from milk and blood. My senior buck Eric who was born in 1990 bred CAE positive does his whole life while we dairied, at 10 he was used by a local vet who tested him again in 2000 at her place, he was still negative. If CAE passed as casually as most state, we would never have gotten rid of CAE in our herds during the 80's. Vicki


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## mill-valley (Feb 22, 2008)

The only times I've had CAE transfer it was from an adult doe drinking positive milk...one of those fluke things that has you kicking yourself for a long long time. :sigh 

If CAE spread as easy as some folks think...my whole herd would be positive instead of one lone doe who was purchased positive 5 years ago and has never been isolated...shared feeders/waterers and all.


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## jillig (Jul 21, 2009)

That is a great question Michele-and great answers Beth and Vicki!
Reading can make one quite paranoid without any experience calm the anxiety.


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## DostThouHaveMilk (Oct 25, 2007)

We used a CAE positive Boer buck (who had been "raised on CAE Prevention") for three seasons. We never had any of the does that he bred convert. He bred some positive does, but none of the test negative does converted after being bred to him. Nor did the bucks he lived with.


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## Tracy in Idaho (Oct 26, 2007)

And we all know darn well that a lot of the old bucks we use via AI were CAE positive. 

Tracy


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## Guest (Oct 19, 2009)

Michele

I realize that your question originates from the post I made in the other thread. Because Cathy is kinda stuck in a catch 22 this year with trying to find a boy friend for her girls at this late hour, I suggested that she consider this option of breeding to a CAE positive buck for this year. As a stated, this risk of transmission of CAE is low if any at all.
That said, I think that buying known CAE bucks from breeders who don't care what/how they raise, contributes to the ongoing problem of trying to eliminate CAE from the dairy goat population. As long as these "breeders" can sell these CAE positive goats, there is very little incentive for them to try to do better. 

CAE can effect much more than just knees, and IMO investing much in a positive animal for long term use is really a poor investment. As I suggested to Cathy......let this thing be very short term at her place, if any at all. 

As I stated on this forum before, it is most impressive to go to a dairy goat farm to purchase animals, and the owner proudly whoops out a lab report on the whole herd (bucks, doe's, all) that list every animal by name, and that they all tested negative. Even more impressive is when they pull out the reports on their herd from years gone by, and there were no positive test then either. This should be a goal of anyone wanting to be "respectable" in this trade.

Whim


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## NWgoats (Jul 17, 2008)

Actually, that thread was just what made me decide to go ahead and bring it up. I 
have always wondered because there is so much advice on how to handle it if does
are +, but no one mentions the bucks. 
Not planning on running out and buying a + buck, but this information is good to have.


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## dragonlair (Mar 24, 2009)

When I got my buck, I was told he was CAE negative, they had paperwork to prove his sire and dam were. Now I am wondering because he has the big creeky knees and gets lame when the weather changes. (the same time I do!) I am planning to get him tested when I send blood in on the girls for their preggo check. I'm thinking I will have the girls done again too, it's been a while.


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## Bernice (Apr 2, 2009)

Dag,,,,,I hate getting old and having, "brain burps!" :yeahthat
I remember reading yrs ago in one of the old DGJ's an article on research with bucks and CAE and AI was included. If my memory serves me correct that article from back in the day said that there was not any significant transmissions or something to that effect. 

Tracy, I had to shudder when I read your post.......I have a tankful of the old boys I haven't used yet.


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