FEBRUARY 12, 2025|
Photo – Representative Bob Davis speaks at legislative session – Courtesy Wyoming Legislature Zoom Meeting
The Wyoming Legislature moves closer to creating an official protocol for anthrax outbreaks.
On Monday, the Wyoming House Committee of the Whole passed House Bill 90, titled Anthrax Outbreak Protocol. Introduced by District 47 Representative Bob Davis, the bill requires the Wyoming Livestock Board to create a standard notification protocol to inform livestock producers, veterinarians, brand inspectors, and other agencies about anthrax outbreaks in a designated surveillance area within a county.
Speaking during Monday’s Wyoming House floor session, Representative Davis explained that for the first time in 70 years, anthrax was discovered in Wyoming. Last Labor Day weekend, a dead moose was discovered in Elk Mountain. Testing done by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department revealed that the animal died of anthrax contamination.
Anthrax is a naturally occurring bacterial disease commonly seen in herbivores, including cattle, deer, moose, and pronghorn. Anthrax spores can persist underground for decades, only emerging when the ground is disturbed or flooded.
Once the spores are released from the contaminated soil, they can be ingested by livestock or wildlife. The infected animal typically dies within a matter of hours or days.
Representative Davis said House Bill 90 takes the protocol established by the Wyoming Livestock Board following September’s Elk Mountain anthrax outbreak and improves upon it.
House District 45 Representative Karlee Provenza said the Wyoming Livestock Board developed its own policies for dealing with anthrax following the Elk Mountain outbreak. The Livestock Board admitted that the unexpected timing and novelty of the anthrax discovery led to delays in both communication and response. Representative Provenza asked if House Bill 90 will limit the Board’s ability to handle future anthrax outbreaks.
Representative Davis responded by saying that the Livestock Board’s protocol does not adequately protect people from anthrax exposure. The representative said two people contracted anthrax during the Elk Mountain outbreak. Participating agencies and the public must be made aware of the dangers of the bacterial disease.
Following Representative Davis’s remarks, the House Committee of the Whole voted to advance House Bill 90 for consideration by the full legislature at a future date.
