The Bluetongue Virus
A new strain could be heading towards the UK…
The National Farmers Union has issued a stark warning to British farmers that they should stop sourcing livestock from those European countries where the bluetongue virus is prevelent. The South of France is one such area which has been affected by the virus and the fear is that a strain of the disease could find its way into British livestock.
The main concern is that the UK livestock becomes affected by a different strain of the virus to the one currently being vaccinated against; Bluetounge Virus Eight or BTv8. Last week the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed reports that cattle in a County Durham farm which had been imported from Germany had contracted BTv8.
Not every farmer has had their cattle vaccinated and this is a real problem in the North West in particular where farmers have been less than willing to forefit good genetics in the cattle for the sake of the greater good. What concerns me is that if the farmers are stubborn in their approach then a serious outbreak is a distinct possibility and what happens then? We, the tax payer will end up footing the bill again, one way or another.
Sort it out farmers, get your cattle vaccinated.
Worse than that Miles, is that it seems the virus is adapting nicely to colder climes by finding a new Northern host and being able to overwinter in fetal animals.
I’m not a veterinarian, but I wonder if there’s more farmers can’t do (in addition to getting the latest BTv8 vaccine) while waiting for the new generation of broader-based vaccines to be approved - like better insect control and possibly raising the acid content of feed (citric acid) to make their animals less homey to the virus.
Since it just hit the UK in 2007, the problem is still potentially containable.
September 24, 2008 @ 12:59 pm
Laura,
You’re quite right and you make some very interesting observations. What concerns me is that given our (England’s) history with BSE, Foot and Mouth etc that both the government and the farming industry as a whole would be united in wanting to stamp this out before it spirals out of control. Who would want to see those huge bonfires of burning cattle carcasses again? Not me.
Thanks Laura, a very worthwhile comment.
Miles
September 24, 2008 @ 4:53 pm