Isolation with Intelligence

Quarantine isolates animals from healthy populations preventing disease spread. But effective quarantine requires more than physical separation.

How long should quarantine last? When should health checks occur? When is it safe to release animals?

Kora transforms quarantine from guesswork into science-based systematic isolation. Automatic duration calculation, scheduled health monitoring, and evidence-based release protocols.

When and Why to Quarantine

Quarantine serves multiple biosecurity purposes beyond disease outbreak response.

New Arrivals: Animals from external sources quarantine before mixing with resident population. This prevents introducing diseases from other facilities.

Disease Exposure: Animals contacting sick animals or sharing locations with diagnosed cases quarantine to prevent transmission. This contains potential spread before symptoms appear.

Show Returns: Animals returning from shows, exhibitions, or events quarantine due to multi-property exposure risk. Livestock shows gather animals from diverse sources creating transmission opportunity.

Import Requirements: Regulatory authorities require quarantine for international or interstate animal movements. Compliance with government biosecurity mandates.

Health Concerns: Animals showing symptoms without confirmed diagnosis quarantine while diagnostic testing proceeds. Precautionary isolation until health status clarified.

Protocol Requirements: Certain operations require standard quarantine periods regardless of specific risk. Systematic biosecurity practice.

Outbreak Response: When disease outbreaks are detected, multiple animals may enter quarantine simultaneously as containment measure.

Each quarantine reason has different implications for duration, health monitoring frequency, and release criteria.

Automatic Quarantine Duration Calculation

One of Kora's most powerful quarantine features is automatic duration calculation based on disease characteristics.

Instead of manually determining how long animals should remain quarantined, the system calculates appropriate duration using disease-specific data.

How Automatic Calculation Works

When a disease is diagnosed (through veterinarian observation documenting specific disease), Kora:

1. Looks up disease profile from knowledge database (Chapter 4 Knowledge API)
2. Retrieves incubation period (days from exposure to becoming contagious)
3. Retrieves contagious period (days animal can transmit disease)
4. Calculates total quarantine duration: Incubation days plus Contagious days
5. Sets planned release date automatically

Example: Foot and Mouth Disease

• Incubation period: 7 days
• Contagious period: 14 days
• Total quarantine: 21 days
• Animal exposed on Jan 1, Automatic release date: Jan 22

Example: Bovine Viral Diarrhoea

• Incubation period: 5 days
• Contagious period: 10 days
• Total quarantine: 15 days
• Animal exposed on Jan 1, Automatic release date: Jan 16

This calculation ensures quarantine duration is neither too short nor unnecessarily long. Not releasing animals still potentially contagious. Not keeping healthy animals isolated longer than needed.

Manual Quarantine Durations

Not all quarantines are disease-driven. Some have regulatory or protocol-based durations.

New Arrival Quarantine:

• Typically 21 to 30 days (depending on regulatory requirements)
• Set manually when initiating quarantine
• Not disease-specific, so no automatic calculation

Show Return Quarantine:

• Often 14 days (monitoring period for show exposure)
• Manual duration specification
• Precautionary rather than disease-confirmed

When disease is unknown or quarantine is preventive, you specify duration manually. When disease is diagnosed, automatic calculation provides evidence-based duration.

Disease Profile Integration

The automatic calculation relies on disease profiles in Kora's knowledge database. These profiles contain:

• Incubation period (species-specific when available)
• Contagious period (how long animal sheds pathogen)
• Transmission rate (how easily disease spreads)
• Zoonotic risk (can humans contract it?)
• Regulatory notification requirements

When a veterinarian diagnoses "Foot and Mouth Disease" and links that observation to an animal, Kora automatically applies FMD's 21-day quarantine duration. This applies to any animal exposed to the diagnosed case through contact tracing (covered in 11.3).

This integration means you do not need to remember parameters for hundreds of diseases. The system provides evidence-based recommendations instantly.

Initiating Quarantine

Quarantine can be initiated through multiple pathways.

Manual quarantine initiation:

1. Navigate to animal profile
2. Select "Initiate Quarantine"
3. Choose quarantine reason (dropdown: New Arrival, Disease Exposure, Show Return, etc.)
4. If disease-related: Select disease (automatic duration calculated)
5. If not disease-related: Enter manual duration
6. Assign to biosecurity zone (optional but recommended)
7. Add quarantine notes
8. Save

Automatic quarantine recommendation (from contact tracing):

• When disease is diagnosed, contact tracing identifies exposed animals
• System recommends quarantine for high-risk contacts (risk score more than 60 out of 100)
• One-click acceptance: "Quarantine 3 high-risk contacts" button
• All contacts quarantined with appropriate duration automatically

Outbreak-based quarantine:

• When OutbreakEvent is created (three or more related exposures), multiple animals may enter quarantine
• Outbreak management coordinates quarantine across all exposed animals
• Unified quarantine duration based on outbreak disease

Quarantine Zones

While not required, linking quarantine to biosecurity zones (Chapter 9.4) provides spatial enforcement.

Zone-based quarantine benefits:

• Visual map display showing quarantine area boundaries
• Access control preventing unauthorised entry
• Required biosecurity protocols enforced (PPE, sanitisation, check-in)
• Visitor restrictions applied automatically
• Movement alerts if animal moved out of quarantine zone

When initiating quarantine, you can:

• Create new quarantine zone (draws zone boundary on map at animal's current location)
• Assign to existing zone (animal moved to pre-defined quarantine area)
• No zone assignment (quarantine tracked without spatial enforcement)

Zone assignment depends on your facility. Farms with dedicated quarantine pens benefit from zone integration. Mobile wildlife operations may quarantine without zones.

Health Check Scheduling

Quarantined animals require systematic health monitoring. This ensures disease detection and documents health status throughout isolation period.

Automatic Health Check Scheduling

When quarantine is initiated, Kora can automatically schedule health checks based on disease severity and risk level.

Daily health checks (high-risk quarantines):

• Disease with high transmission rate
• Critical severity classification
• Zoonotic disease concerns
• Outbreak response protocols

Weekly health checks (standard quarantines):

• New arrival monitoring
• Show return observation
• Moderate-risk disease exposures

Custom frequency (specific requirements):

• Regulatory mandates (e.g., "Day 1, Day 7, Day 14, Day 21")
• Disease-specific protocols
• Veterinarian recommendations

Example scheduled health checks:

Quarantine: Bull A456, FMD Exposure
Duration: 21 days (Jan 1 to Jan 22)
Health Checks Scheduled:
- Day 1 (Jan 1): Initial health assessment
- Day 7 (Jan 7): Weekly check number 1
- Day 14 (Jan 14): Weekly check number 2
- Day 21 (Jan 21): Final pre-release check

Health check dates appear on Biosecurity Dashboard (11.1) under "Upcoming Health Checks". They auto-generate task reminders as check dates approach.

Recording Quarantine Health Checks

When health check is due:

1. Navigate to quarantined animal
2. View scheduled health checks
3. Select check due today
4. Record health check observation:
   • General condition
   • Specific symptoms monitored (relevant to quarantine disease)
   • Temperature, appetite, behaviour
   • Abnormalities found (yes or no)
   • Follow-up required (yes or no)
   • Photos documenting condition
5. Save health check

Completed health checks mark off scheduled check. They update compliance tracking. They create permanent quarantine health record.

Health check history shows complete monitoring timeline. This documents animal's health throughout quarantine period. Critical for release decisions and regulatory compliance.

Quarantine Extensions

Sometimes animals cannot be released on the planned date. Health concerns emerge. Symptoms appear late. Test results come back positive. Quarantine extensions lengthen isolation systematically.

When to Extend Quarantine

Health concerns detected:

• Abnormalities found during health check
• Symptoms appearing late in quarantine period
• "Day 18 health check: elevated temperature, extending quarantine 7 days"

Positive test results:

• Diagnostic test confirms disease
• Quarantine extended for full treatment and recovery period
• "FMD test positive Day 14: extending quarantine 21 days from positive date"

Regulatory requirements:

• Authority mandates extension due to outbreak situation
• Regulatory inspector identifies concerns requiring extended monitoring

Veterinarian recommendation:

• Professional judgement suggests additional monitoring period
• Precautionary extension for high-value or vulnerable animals

Recording Quarantine Extension

To extend quarantine:

1. Navigate to active quarantine record
2. Select "Extend Quarantine"
3. Enter extension reason (required documentation)
4. Specify additional days (or new end date)
5. System calculates new planned release date
6. Extension automatically documented in quarantine history
7. Health check schedule adjusted if needed
8. Save extension

Example extension:

Original Quarantine:
Start: Jan 1, Planned End: Jan 22 (21 days)
Reason: FMD Exposure

Extension number 1 (Recorded Jan 18):
Reason: "Elevated temperature on Day 18 health check"
Additional Days: 7
New Planned End: Jan 29

Extension number 2 (Recorded Jan 25):
Reason: "Test confirmed FMD positive, full treatment protocol"
Additional Days: 21
Final Planned End: Feb 19

Multiple extensions are supported. Each documented separately creating complete audit trail of quarantine decision-making.

Extension history visible on quarantine record showing all extensions, reasons, dates, and authorising users. Transparency in quarantine management decisions.

Quarantine Status Tracking

Throughout quarantine period, status is tracked systematically.

In Quarantine: Active quarantine, animal isolated, health checks ongoing.

Extended: Quarantine period lengthened beyond original planned date (one or more extensions recorded).

Released: Quarantine successfully completed, animal released to general population.

Failed: Quarantine unsuccessful (animal died, euthanised, or remained sick beyond viable treatment).

Status appears on:

• Animal profile (Quarantine Smart Badge)
• Biosecurity Dashboard quarantine summary
• Quarantine list views
• Movement records (quarantine status prevents certain movements)

Release Protocols

Safe quarantine release requires systematic verification. Ensuring animals are healthy and non-contagious before returning to general population.

Pre-Release Requirements

Final health check (typically day of release or 1 day prior):

• Comprehensive health assessment
• Verification no symptoms present
• Temperature, appetite, behaviour normal
• Specific symptoms monitored based on quarantine reason
• Veterinarian review for disease-related quarantines

Negative test results (when required):

• Diagnostic test confirms disease no longer present
• For regulatory quarantines or serious diseases
• "FMD test negative" before release

Time requirement met:

• Full quarantine duration completed
• All extensions honoured
• No early release (except authorised veterinarian override)

Documentation complete:

• All scheduled health checks recorded
• Any abnormalities investigated and resolved
• Quarantine notes updated
• Release approval noted

Releasing Animals from Quarantine

To release from quarantine:

1. Navigate to quarantine record
2. Verify all release requirements met:
   • Planned end date reached or passed
   • Final health check completed with no abnormalities
   • All scheduled health checks recorded
   • No unresolved health concerns
3. Select "Release from Quarantine"
4. Record release details:
   • Release date and time
   • Final health status summary
   • Releasing user (authorisation)
   • Release notes (any post-quarantine monitoring recommendations)
5. Optionally deactivate quarantine zone (if zone no longer needed)
6. Save release

Post-release:

• Quarantine status changes to "Released"
• Quarantine Smart Badge removed from animal profile
• Animal can be moved freely (quarantine movement restrictions lifted)
• Quarantine record archived for historical reference
• Quarantine zone can be deactivated (if no other animals quarantined there)

Release notifications can alert relevant staff (farm manager, veterinarian) when animals complete quarantine successfully.

Conditional Release

Some situations allow conditional release with ongoing monitoring.

Post-quarantine observation period:

• Animal released from strict isolation but monitored closely for 7 to 14 days
• Not fully integrated into general population immediately
• Precautionary approach for high-value animals or uncertain diagnoses

Restricted movement release:

• Released from quarantine zone but movement limited to specific areas
• Not allowed into breeding stock or high-value population immediately
• Gradual reintegration approach

While Kora's flexible design does not enforce specific release protocols, you can document conditional release requirements in release notes. Configure appropriate biosecurity zones for transitional areas.

Quarantine for Animal Groups (Mobs)

Mob quarantine works similarly to individual quarantine but applies to entire animal groups.

Mob quarantine features:

• Single quarantine record for entire mob
• Health checks conducted on group basis (sample animals monitored)
• Release applies to whole mob simultaneously
• Number of animals in mob tracked
• Demographics tracked (males and females, age ranges)

When to use mob quarantine:

• All animals exposed simultaneously (shared location with diagnosed case)
• New mob arrivals from external source
• Entire group returning from show or event

Example mob quarantine:

Quarantine: Spring Lambs 2024 (Sheep Mob)
Number Animals: 50 lambs
Reason: Show Return, Regional Livestock Exhibition
Duration: 14 days (Jan 10 to Jan 24)
Health Checks: Day 1, Day 7, Day 14 (sample monitoring: 10 lambs each check)
Status: In Quarantine (Day 5 of 14)

Mob quarantine provides efficiency for large groups. It maintains systematic health monitoring and biosecurity compliance.

Quarantine History and Compliance

Every quarantine creates permanent record supporting:

Regulatory compliance:

• Complete quarantine audit trail (start date, duration, health checks, extensions, release)
• Documented biosecurity procedures
• Evidence of systematic disease prevention

Outbreak investigation:

• Contact tracing history (which animals were exposed when)
• Quarantine effectiveness assessment (did isolation prevent spread?)
• Outbreak analysis (transmission patterns, containment success)

Operational analysis:

• Quarantine frequency tracking (are we quarantining more often this year?)
• Disease pattern identification (seasonal health trends)
• Cost tracking (quarantine expenses, treatment costs, productivity loss)

Quarantine history accessible through:

• Individual animal profiles (lifetime quarantine history)
• Biosecurity Dashboard (recent quarantines)
• Compliance reports (regulatory documentation)
• Traceability records (Chapter 12)

Best Practices for Quarantine Management

Use automatic duration calculation: When disease is diagnosed, let the system calculate quarantine duration using disease-specific data. Do not guess.

Integrate with biosecurity zones: Link quarantine to zones for spatial enforcement, access control, and visual map display.

Schedule health checks systematically: Do not rely on memory. Schedule checks when quarantine starts and execute on schedule.

Document extensions thoroughly: When extending quarantine, document specific reasons. Create transparent decision-making audit trail.

Do not release early: Complete full quarantine duration even if animal appears healthy early. Incubation periods exist for a reason.

Conduct thorough final health checks: Pre-release health checks are critical. Verify animal is truly healthy before releasing to general population.

Use quarantine for all risk scenarios: Do not skip quarantine for "low-risk" situations. Systematic quarantine prevents unexpected disease introduction.

Review quarantine patterns: If quarantining frequently for same reason, investigate root cause. Address underlying biosecurity gaps.

Integration with Other Features

Quarantine connects deeply with other Kora features.

Animal Profiles (Chapter 8): Quarantine Smart Badge appears on profiles. Quarantine status prevents certain operations (breeding, sale, show entry).

Biosecurity Zones (Chapter 9.4): Quarantine zones provide spatial enforcement. Zone access control prevents unauthorised entry to quarantine areas.

Health Observations (Chapter 10.1): Quarantine health checks are observations documenting animal condition. Observations triggering quarantine are linked.

Veterinarian Observations (Chapter 10.1): Disease diagnoses from veterinarians automatically trigger quarantine recommendations via contact tracing.

Contact Tracing (Chapter 11.3): Contact tracing identifies which animals need quarantine. Quarantine records link back to exposure events.

Outbreak Management: Outbreaks coordinate quarantine across multiple exposed animals. Outbreak timeline documents quarantine milestones.

Traceability (Chapter 12): Quarantine events create traceability records. Movement history during quarantine period documented permanently.