In rodent facilities, what action is often necessary to stop an outbreak when infection is widespread?

• A. Quarantine
• B. Depopulation
• C. Disinfection
• D. Vaccination

Answer: (B)

When infection is widespread in a rodent facility, removing the entire population to eliminate the infectious reservoir is the most effective and fastest way to halt transmission. This approach, depopulation, directly stops the spread by ensuring there are no remaining animals that can be infected, shed the pathogen, or pass it to others. Quarantine may slow spread but isn’t sufficient once a large number of animals are already infected or exposed. Disinfection helps the environment but doesn’t remove the infected animals themselves, and vaccination is often impractical or unavailable for many rodent pathogens and wouldn’t provide immediate control in a rapidly spreading outbreak. After depopulation, thorough cleaning and decontamination allow the facility to be restocked with disease-free stock or rederived animals.