Excerpts from the report Foreword: Welcome to the second annual report on the status of animal health in the United States. As you may know, last year’s United States Animal Health Report was our first effort to provide a comprehensive overview of the health of our Nation’s vast domestic animal resources. In 2005, as in years past, we sought new ways to strengthen and amplify efforts aimed at ensuring that the United States maintains healthy livestock and poultry populations. For example, the National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) was developed recently to screen routine and specific-risk samples for foreign animal diseases (FADs). The newly formed National Animal Health Surveillance System (NAHSS) works to improve early detection and global risk surveillance of FADs. Objectives of the NAHSS 2005 strategic plan include enhancing domestic and global surveillance to identify elevated risks and encouraging the development and application of new technologies for early and rapid disease detection.