(hair-shaker disease, fuzzy lamb syndrome, BD)
Border disease is often seen in the newborn lamb which has a hairy coat and trembles uncontrollably. It is caused by a virus and causes a wide variety of symptoms depending upon the stage of pregnancy when the ewe becomes affected. Sheep affected by border disease are characterized by open ewes, abortion, weak and frail lambs, abnormal hair coat, and nervous symptoms that cause the lamb to shake.
The most common clinical symptom is abortion of macerated or mummified lambs. Border disease is usually brought into a flock by new additions that are carriers or when sheep are mixed with cattle that are shedding the Bovine viral disease virus. Bovine viral diarrhea vaccines for cattle cannot be recommended for use in sheep because border disease viruses most commonly isolated from sheep are antigenically distinct from bovine viral diarrhea viruses most common in cattle. There is no treatment and the disease will not respond to antibiotics.