(a) Any livestock which, on ante-mortem inspection, do not clearly show, but are suspected of being affected with any disease or condition that, under part 311 of this subchapter, may cause condemnation of the carcass on post-mortem inspection, and any livestock which show, on ante-mortem inspection, any disease or condition that, under part 311 of this subchapter would cause condemnation of only part of the carcass on post-mortem inspection, shall be so handled as to retain its identity as a suspect until it is given final post-mortem inspection, when the carcass shall be marked and disposed of as provided in parts 310 and 311 of this subchapter, or until it is disposed of as otherwise provided in this part.

(b) All seriously crippled animals and non-ambulatory disabled livestock shall be identified as U.S. Suspects and disposed of as provided in §311.1 of this subchapter unless they are required to be classed as condemned under §309.3. Non-ambulatory disabled livestock are livestock that cannot rise from a recumbent position or that cannot walk, including, but not limited to, those with broken appendages, severed tendons or ligaments, nerve paralysis, fractured vertebral column, or metabolic conditions.

(c) Livestock which have reacted to a test for leptospirosis, or anaplasmosis, but which show no symptoms of the disease, shall be identified as U.S. Suspects and disposed of as provided in §311.10 of this subchapter.

(d) Livestock which are known to have reacted to the tuberculin test shall be identified as U.S. Suspects and disposed of as provided in §311.2 of this subchapter, except that livestock bearing an official “USDA Reactor” or similar State reactor tag shall not be tagged as U.S. Suspects.

(e) Any cattle found on ante-mortem inspection to be affected with epithelioma of the eye or of the orbital region to a lesser extent than as described in §309.6 shall be identified as a U.S. Suspect and disposed of as provided in §311.12 of this subchapter.

(f) Cattle found on ante-mortem inspection to be affected with anasarca to a lesser extent than as described in §309.8 shall be identified as U.S. Suspects and disposed of as provided in §311.8 of this subchapter or paragraph (g) of this section.

(g) Any livestock suspected of being affected with anasarca may be set apart and held for treatment under Program or other responsible official supervision approved by the area supervisor. If at the expiration of the treatment period the livestock upon examination is found to be free from disease, it may be released for any purpose. Otherwise, it shall be identified as U.S. Suspect and disposed of as provided in §311.8 of this subchapter or condemned and disposed of as provided in §309.8, whichever is appropriate.

(h) All hogs suspected on ante-mortem inspection of being affected with swine erysipelas shall be identified as U.S. Suspects and disposed of as provided in §311.5 of this subchapter or paragraph (i) of this section.

(i) A hog suspected of being affected with swine erysipelas may be set apart and held for treatment under Program or other responsible official supervision approved by the area supervisor. If at the expiration of the treatment period the animal upon examination is found to be free from disease, it may be released for any purpose. Otherwise, it shall be identified as U.S. Suspect and disposed of as provided in §311.5 of this subchapter, or condemned and disposed of as provided in §309.13, whichever is appropriate.

(j) Any livestock which is affected with vesicular exanthema or vesicular stomatitis, but which has recovered to the extent that the lesions are in process of healing, the temperature is within normal range, and the livestock shows a return to normal appetite and activity, shall be identified as U.S. Suspect and disposed of as provided in §311.32 of this subchapter, except that if desired, such livestock may be set apart and held under supervision of a Program employee or other official designated by the area supervisor for treatment. If the livestock is set aside for treatment, the U.S. Suspect identification device will be removed by a Program employee, following such treatment, if the livestock is found to be free from any such disease. Such livestock found to be free from any such disease may be released for slaughter or for purposes other than slaughter, provided that in the latter instance, the operator of the official establishment or the owner of the animal shall first obtain permission from the local, State, or Federal livestock sanitary official having jurisdiction over the movement of such livestock.

(k) Livestock which are offered for ante-mortem inspection under this part, and which are regarded by the inspector as immature, shall be identified as U.S. Suspects and, if slaughtered, the disposition of their carcasses shall be determined by the post-mortem findings in connection with the ante-mortem conditions. If not slaughtered as suspects, such livestock shall be held under supervision of a Program employee or other official designated by the area supervisor, and after sufficient development may be released for slaughter or may be released for any other purpose, provided they have not been exposed to any infectious or contagious disease. If such exposure occurs, permission should be obtained from the nearest Veterinary Services unit of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service prior to release of such livestock.

(l) Livestock previously condemned for listeriosis, if released for slaughter under §309.13(b) shall be identified as a U.S. Suspect in accordance with §309.13(c).

(m) Each animal required by this part to be treated as a U.S. Suspect shall be identified as such by or under the supervision of a Program employee with an official device in accordance with §309.18. No such device shall be removed except by a Program employee.

(n) Each animal identified as a U.S. Suspect on ante-mortem inspection shall be set apart and shall be slaughtered separately from other livestock at that establishment unless disposed of as otherwise provided in this part.

(o) Each animal identified as a U.S. Suspect on ante-mortem inspection, when presented for slaughter shall be accompanied with a form MP 402-2 on which the inspector at the establishment shall record the U.S. Suspect identification number and any other identifying tag numbers present and a brief description of the animal and of the disease or condition for which the animal was classed as a suspect, including its temperature when the temperature of such animal might have a bearing on the disposition of the carcass on post-mortem inspection.

(p) When any animal identified as a U.S. Suspect is released for any purpose or reason, as provided in this part, the official identification device shall be removed only by a Program employee and he shall report his action to the area supervisor. When a suspect is to be released under the provisions of this part for a purpose other than slaughter, the operator of the official establishment or the owner of the animal shall first obtain permission for the removal of such animal from the local, State or Federal livestock sanitary official having jurisdiction.

[35 FR 15563, Oct. 3, 1970, as amended at 38 FR 29214, Oct. 23, 1973; 39 FR 36000, Oct. 17, 1974; 69 FR 1873, Jan. 12, 2004]