Georgia Livestock Disease Reporting: Rules, Requirements, and Deadlines Every Producer Should Know

Livestock disease outbreaks can spread across a county — or across state lines — within days. Georgia’s reporting system exists precisely to stop that from happening, and the law places the responsibility squarely on you, whether you are a farmer, a veterinarian, or anyone else who works with animals.

Understanding which diseases must be reported, who is legally required to report them, and how quickly you must act can protect your herd, your neighbors’ herds, and Georgia’s agricultural economy. It can also protect you from serious legal consequences. This guide walks you through every step of the process under Georgia’s Reportable Animal Disease (RAD) framework.

Reportable Livestock Diseases in Georgia

Cases of many specific animal diseases must be reported to the proper authorities, as defined by State law (O.C.G.A. § 4-4-6). These are known as “Reportable Animal Diseases” (RADS). The State Veterinarian’s Office and GDA’s Animal Industry team are responsible for monitoring, detecting, and controlling over 100 animal diseases that can have a significant impact on the agricultural economy and trade, or that can be contagious to both animals and people.

Georgia’s RADS are divided into two primary tiers based on how quickly they must be reported. The tier a disease falls into determines your legal deadline.

Diseases Requiring Immediate Reporting

Clinical diagnosis, laboratory confirmation, or reasonable suspicion of the following diseases must be reported immediately. The list includes some of the most dangerous livestock pathogens known:

• Foot-and-Mouth Disease
• Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI)
• Exotic Newcastle Disease
• Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE / Mad Cow Disease)
• African Swine Fever
• Classical Swine Fever (Hog Cholera)
• Anthrax
• Brucellosis
• Tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis, M. tuberculosis)
• Vesicular Stomatitis (any type)
• Screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax, C. bezziana)
• Scrapie
• Salmonellosis in equine (clinical disease)
• Mange in livestock (Sarcoptes scabiei var bovis and ovis, Psoroptes ovis, Chorioptes bovis)
• Theileriosis (Theileria annulata, T. parva)
• Trypanosomiasis

You must also report immediately any unusual number of acute deaths in livestock, as well as suspicious disease conditions that do not fit a known diagnosis.

Diseases Requiring Next-Business-Day Reporting

Laboratory confirmation of certain diseases must be reported by the laboratory within 24 hours or by the close of the next business day to the State Veterinarian or the United States Department of Agriculture Area Veterinarian in Charge. This category includes:

• Brucellosis (Brucella abortus, B. ovis, B. suis, B. mellitensis)
• Contagious Agalactia
• Contagious Caprine Pleuropneumonia
• Contagious Equine Metritis (Taylorella equigenitalis)
• Equine Piroplasmosis (Babesiosis)
• Botulism (Clostridium botulinum toxin) — clinical diagnosis or lab confirmation
• Equine Strangles (Streptococcus equi) — clinical diagnosis or lab confirmation

Anthrax, Avian Chlamydiosis (Psittacosis), Botulism, Brucellosis, Equine Encephalomyelitis, Q Fever, Ricin Toxicosis, Salmonellosis, Shiga toxin, Tuberculosis, and Tularemia should be reported if found in either animals or humans, as they are potential agents of bioterrorism.

Georgia also monitors diseases endemic to the region. The GDA monitors animal diseases endemic to the area, such as Johne’s disease in ruminants, equine infectious anemia in equine, and scrapie in sheep and goats. For more on bovine diseases that can affect your herd, including those with reportable status, reviewing current disease profiles is a sound practice for any cattle producer.

Who Is Required to Report a Livestock Disease in Georgia

Georgia’s reporting obligation is intentionally broad. The law does not limit responsibility to licensed veterinarians alone — it extends to virtually anyone who encounters a sick or suspicious animal in a professional or ownership capacity.

Any person, including but not limited to veterinarians, veterinary practice personnel, veterinary diagnostic laboratory personnel, persons associated with any livestock or poultry farm, ranch, sales establishment, transportation, or slaughter facility, as well as any person associated with a facility licensed under the Animal Protection Act or Bird Dealers Act, is required to report.

Veterinarians, veterinary technicians, lab technicians, wildlife biologists, and animal owners must report if a clinical or laboratory diagnosis shows that a disease is present. You should also report based on a reasonable suspicion.

In practical terms, this means the following people all carry a legal duty to report:

• Livestock farmers and ranch owners
• Licensed veterinarians and veterinary technicians
• Veterinary diagnostic laboratory staff
• Wildlife biologists
• Employees at livestock sales barns, auction facilities, and markets
• Transportation and slaughter facility workers
• Staff at GDA-licensed kennels, shelters, and stables

One important exception exists. This Code section does not prohibit the conduct of any bona fide research activities by or on behalf of any accredited public or private college or university in this state, nor do the reporting requirements apply to persons performing such research activities.

Georgia law also provides protection for those who report in good faith. Any person submitting reports or data in good faith in compliance with this Code section shall not be liable for any civil damages therefor. Reporting honestly, even if the suspicion turns out to be incorrect, will not expose you to a civil lawsuit.

Signs and Symptoms That Trigger a Report in Georgia

You do not need a confirmed laboratory diagnosis to be required to report. Georgia law is explicit: a reasonable suspicion is enough to trigger the obligation. Knowing which clinical signs should raise your concern is therefore as important as knowing the disease list itself.

Any person who reasonably suspects the presence or occurrence of vesicular diseases, mucosal diseases, or abortion storms of unknown etiology in livestock; undiagnosed bovine central nervous system conditions; unusual number of acute deaths in livestock; unusual myiasis or acariasis (flies, mites, ticks, etc.) in animals; or any apparently highly infectious or contagious animal condition of unknown etiology must report immediately to the state veterinarian or the USDA area veterinarian in charge.

The following clinical presentations should put you on immediate alert:

• Neurological signs — circling, seizures, head pressing, blindness, or sudden behavioral changes in cattle or horses
• Vesicular or blister-like lesions — sores around the mouth, hooves, teats, or snout, especially in cattle, pigs, or sheep
• Respiratory distress — rapid, labored breathing or unusual coughing spreading through a flock or herd
• Sudden unexplained deaths — multiple animals dying acutely with no clear cause
• Abortion storms — an unusual cluster of abortions or stillbirths across your herd in a short period
• Severe skin or coat abnormalities — intense mange, unusual fly strike (myiasis), or heavy tick infestation of unknown origin
• Severe diarrhea or wasting — progressive weight loss, bottle jaw, or bloody scours not responding to standard treatment

Inspect livestock daily for symptoms of disease. Most disease problems are brought onto the farm through new additions and contact with other livestock; therefore, their isolation and observation are integral to disease containment. Understanding zoonotic diseases is also important, since several reportable livestock conditions can transmit to humans, making early identification a public health matter as well.

How to Report a Livestock Disease in Georgia

Georgia gives you three official channels for submitting a report, and the right channel depends on the urgency of the situation. For immediately reportable diseases, telephone is the required method. For next-business-day reports, you have more flexibility.

Reporting Methods

You can also call the Office of the State Veterinarian or the USDA Area Veterinarian in Charge to report a disease or if you have any questions about whether a disease should be reported. The Office of the Georgia State Veterinarian can be reached by email at AnimalHealth@agr.georgia.gov, by phone at (404) 656-3667, and is available Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM.

What Information to Have Ready

When you call or submit a report, gather the following details in advance to make the process faster and more accurate:

1. Your name, address, and phone number
2. The species and number of affected animals
3. A description of clinical signs and when they first appeared
4. The name and address of the farm or facility where the animals are located
5. The name, address, and phone of the kennel, pet shop, aviary, shelter, stable, farm, or sale barn where the animal(s) came from
6. Any recent animal movements, purchases, or exhibition attendance
7. Your veterinarian’s contact information, if one has already examined the animals

Producers dealing with Newcastle disease in poultry should be aware that exotic Newcastle disease is on Georgia’s immediate-report list and requires a phone call to the State Veterinarian without delay. Similarly, those managing cattle should review Florida’s livestock reporting rules and California’s livestock reporting requirements if animals regularly move across state lines.

Reporting Deadlines and Timeframes in Georgia

The timeframe for reporting varies based on the individual disease. Georgia’s framework establishes three distinct timing tiers, and understanding which tier applies to a given situation is a core compliance requirement.

Tier 1: Immediate Reporting by Telephone

This is the most urgent category. Clinical diagnosis, laboratory confirmation, or suspicion of the most dangerous diseases must be reported immediately by telephone to the State Veterinarian. “Immediately” means as soon as you observe the condition or receive the diagnosis — not at the end of the workday, not the following morning.

Reports of any of the diseases in the immediate-report category will result in immediate quarantine of the premises. This tier covers foreign animal diseases, most federally listed diseases, and any unexplained condition that meets the suspicious-presentation criteria described in O.C.G.A. § 4-4-6.

Tier 2: Within 24 Hours or by Close of the Next Business Day

Any person who makes a laboratory confirmation of certain diseases in animals must report within 24 hours or by the close of the next business day, whichever last occurs, to the State Veterinarian or the USDA Area Veterinarian in Charge. This tier primarily applies to laboratory personnel who confirm a diagnosis after a sample has been processed.

Clinical diagnosis or laboratory confirmation of Botulism and Equine Strangles must be reported by the close of the next business day.

Tier 3: Next-Business-Day Reporting for GDA-Licensed Facilities

Clinical diagnosis, laboratory confirmation, or clinical illness of any of the listed diseases in animals residing in or recently purchased from a Georgia Department of Agriculture-licensed facility — such as an animal shelter, kennel, pet dealer, or stable — must be reported by the close of the next business day to the State Veterinarian.

Producers in neighboring states should also be familiar with local requirements. See the guides for Colorado livestock disease reporting, Illinois livestock disease reporting, and Michigan livestock disease reporting if your operations or animal movements cross state lines.

What Happens After You Report in Georgia

Filing a report does not simply generate a paper trail. It triggers a structured government response, and you should be prepared for that response to begin quickly — sometimes within hours of your call.

Departmental action on a reported disease will be dependent upon the potential for rapid spread, severe negative economic, or public health consequences. Departmental actions may include, but are not limited to, recording information, issuing a quarantine, conducting an animal disease investigation, collection of samples, requiring cleaning and disinfecting, and distributing animal disease alerts.

Here is a general sequence of what you can expect after your report is received:

1. Initial assessment — GDA staff review the report and classify the urgency level based on the disease and clinical presentation described.
2. Field investigation — A state or federal veterinarian may visit your premises to examine affected animals, review records, and collect diagnostic samples.
3. Quarantine decision — If the disease warrants it, a quarantine order may be issued for your premises, restricting animal movement in or out until the situation is resolved.
4. Laboratory testing — Samples are submitted to a diagnostic lab for confirmation. Results guide the next steps.
5. Cleaning and disinfection requirements — You may be required to decontaminate facilities, equipment, and transport vehicles.
6. Disease alerts — GDA may distribute alerts to neighboring producers, veterinarians, and relevant state agencies.

Animal Disease Traceability is a federal-state-industry partnership designed to help livestock producers respond to and minimize the impact of an animal disease outbreak. When a disease outbreak occurs, animal health officials need to know what other animals might have been exposed to the disease.

Critically, your report is protected. All reports and data submitted to the State Veterinarian or the department are deemed confidential and are not open to inspection by the public; however, the Commissioner may release such reports and data in statistical form, for valid research purposes, and for other purposes as deemed appropriate.

Reporting helps to identify outbreaks and prevent human transmission in cases of zoonotic disease. For livestock producers who also keep companion animals, understanding how Lyme disease affects dogs and other animals on the same property is part of a complete biosecurity picture, since tick-borne pathogens can move between species.

Penalties for Failing to Report in Georgia

Georgia treats non-reporting as a serious offense — not an administrative oversight. The law establishes both criminal and civil enforcement pathways, and the consequences can be significant for individuals, businesses, and entire operations.

Criminal Liability

It is a crime, punishable in a court of law, to willfully introduce one of these animal diseases or fail to notify officials of a disease once you have observed it. This language applies to anyone within the broad class of persons required to report under O.C.G.A. § 4-4-6.

Any person, firm, partnership, or corporation which violates any quarantine provision, rule, or regulation established by the Commissioner under the authority of law for the protection of the livestock and domestic animals of this state shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. A misdemeanor conviction in Georgia can carry fines and, in some circumstances, jail time.

Administrative Penalties

The Commissioner, in order to enforce this article or any orders, rules, or regulations promulgated pursuant thereto, may issue an administrative order imposing a penalty not to exceed $1,000.00 for each violation whenever the Commissioner, after a hearing, determines that any person has violated any provision of this article or any quarantines, orders, rules, or regulations promulgated thereunder.

Each day of a continuing violation — or each animal involved in an unreported outbreak — can potentially constitute a separate violation, meaning fines can accumulate rapidly across a large herd event.

Injunctive Relief

In addition to the remedies provided in this article, the Commissioner is authorized to apply to the superior court for an injunction. Such court shall have jurisdiction, upon hearing and for cause shown, to grant a temporary or permanent injunction restraining any person from violating or continuing to violate any of the provisions of this article or for failing or refusing to comply with the requirements of this article.

Penalty Summary at a Glance

Georgia’s biosecurity framework is designed to protect every producer in the state. While local, state, and federal officials have regulatory responsibilities for agricultural and food emergencies, livestock producers and their veterinary practitioners have the primary role in preventing and minimizing the consequences of agricultural or food emergencies on their farm. Prompt, accurate reporting is the foundation of that role.

If you manage poultry alongside other livestock, review Georgia’s rules for common bird diseases as well, since avian diseases like HPAI and exotic Newcastle disease carry some of the most urgent reporting deadlines in the entire RADS framework. For a broader view of how other states structure their programs, the guides for Florida and California offer useful points of comparison.