(a) All livestock owned by a livestock dealer or held by a livestock dealer, pending sale, exchange, resale or shipment on premises owned, rented, leased or borrowed by such dealer may be subjected periodically to diagnostic tests for infectious diseases, including, but not limited to, tuberculin and brucellosis tests. Such tests shall be conducted, at no expense to the dealer, by the State Veterinarian or the commissioner‘s designated agent, a veterinarian employed by the United States Department of Agriculture, or a licensed accredited veterinarian. In the case of an animal or animals that test positive to such diagnostic tests, or if the commissioner has reason to believe that an infectious disease is present in such animal or animals, the commissioner, the commissioner’s designated agent or the State Veterinarian may issue a quarantine order pursuant to subsection (c) of this section.

(b) Any reactors to the brucellosis or tuberculin test shall be identified in a manner acceptable to the commissioner or the commissioner’s designated agent. Such reactors shall be disposed of in a manner acceptable to the commissioner or the commissioner’s designated agent. Indemnity shall be paid on all such reactors in the manner provided in § 22-288, provided such reactor shall have passed at least one negative test since entering the state and shall have been acquired by the dealer in compliance with existing state regulations on interstate and intrastate movements of cattle.

(c) If a quarantine, due to the presence of an infectious, communicable livestock disease, is imposed on livestock owned by a livestock dealer or held by a livestock dealer pending sale, exchange, resale or shipment on premises owned, rented, leased or borrowed by such dealer, such dealer shall not be prohibited from engaging in business as a dealer, provided such dealer shall comply with all quarantine restrictions and orders and any isolation, bio-security and sanitation requirements of the department in respect to quarantined livestock, including identifying quarantined livestock in a manner acceptable to the commissioner or the commissioner’s designated agent as prescribed on the quarantine form, or quarantine order issued by the commissioner or the commissioner’s designated agent.