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Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 10:10 pm
by Peter thornton
Well, it's now threatening the Lake District with a suspected outbreak in neaby Manchester.
I'm not being defeatist when I say that it seems to me that it is inevitable that the whole of the UK will be an infected area before long . (Which is not to say that we will all be infected with BT)
What happens then? Do we lose the BT movement restrictions on the basis that we are one big infected area, or do we get divided into regions with limited movement between.
Any thoughts Duncan?
Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 11:55 pm
by Duncan MacIntyre
I don't get too worried by "suspect cases" as there are likely to be many of these since many of the signs seen in blue tongue can be seen with many other diseases and in some cases tests will be needed to be certain of a diagnosis. Likewise some of the recent imports are probably not such a worry as appear as long as they are tested reliably and slaughtered if positive before local spread has occurred. It is always distressing to hear of imported cattle being brought in from blue tongue areas, and difficult to see why there is any need for it, but human nature being what it is there are always individuals prepared to put others livelihoods at risk for their own perceived gain. Hopefully the message will be getting through after the Middlesborough, Worcester and Kirkcudbright cases that slaughter without compensation is not very nice.
If the protection zone is extended or new protection zones are created, each will be surrounded by a surveillance zone. It may well be that at some stage the whole country will be included in the surveillance zone, and in some ways that will make life simpler, but only because then we will all be in the same messy boat.
My hope is that the infection can be restricted to the current protection zone till the vaccination programme gives some protection. I think it is a likely scenario that without vaccination around current infected areas we will see big increases in the number of affected stock and the severity of the infection. That sadly has been the experience in the rest of Europe. But if everyone takes as much care as possible and the vaccination gives protection soon enough we may be able to save the rest of the country from the same ravages.
I am probably not giving much cause for joy in the areas near to infection last year, but let us hope that the trouble can be contained and eventually eradicated. Experts on the subject with good reputations certainly think that there is still hope that the whole country will not suffer.
Duncan
Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 7:10 pm
by Jo Kemp
Scotland is trying to be treated as a separate country and therefore totally clear of BT .... hummm - we who live near the border know that if Cumberland is invaded then we shall be in a restricted zone so - I would like us to be able to get our mitts on the vaccination but at the moment we are not included!
Is it a live vaccine Duncan? that also worries me if everyone will not pay for it and therefore won't have it done.
Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 12:09 am
by Peter thornton
My query on blue tongue was leading to the thought that we should perhaps be expecting it to become more and more difficult to move animals around the UK. I would suggest that our steering committee begin to factor this into their thoughts in regard to future locations of sales. I'm not sure that it will be possible to have one sale in the North and one sale in the South, in the future.
We also need to be pressing DEFRA to think about abatoir services when dividing the UK up into regions.....but that's another story.
Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 9:46 am
by Martin
A report in the Farmers Weekly only last week stated that the EU had agreed to pick up the cost of the vacine, but not the cost of administering it. The article also went on to say that protection zones would be the first to be vacinated then moving out in ten km steps into the surveillence zones.
Protection of our stock comes down to when the vacine is available and how quickly it spreads outside the current protection zones. As we are expected to pick up the cost of administering the vacine I feel sorry for those larger sheep farmers with hundreds or maybe thousands of animals that they will have to vacinate. DEFRA had a good idea this was on the way but chose to do nothing until the **** hit the fan. Sounds familiar!
Martin. Medway Valley Dexters.
Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 2:46 pm
by Broomcroft
Can we administer vaccine ourselves or do we have to employ a vet?
Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2008 9:37 am
by Martin
First reports in FW said that ministry teams where expected to carry out vacination, not vets! I have read nothing since then that indicates that vets will be allowed to carry out the vacinations. The report was sure that farmers where not being allowed to do it.
Martin.
Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2008 2:51 pm
by Broomcroft
The Ministry Teams will be busy then!
Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2008 4:54 pm
by Ryan
'Latest' info from the Veterinary Times (4th Feb edition): Intervet's regional veterinary advisor - Intervet being the company that's won the tender to supply DEFRA with 22.5 million doses of the Bluetongue vaccine - has said that he is 99% certain that the vaccine would be prescribed by vets and administered (by subcutaneous injection) by farmers; cattle will need two doses and sheep one. He goes on to say that there will be "an annual vaccination", which I assume probably means an annual booster. No mention of other susceptible species though...
And there's still that niggling 1%!!!
Edited By Ryan on 1201794885
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 1:45 pm
by redhill
I see from our NFU online bulletin an old case of b tongue has been identified at Poole in Dorset during a pre movement blood test,so perhaps its been in this country longer than we think,this leaves just Cornwall and South west Wales in the clear area and Scotland of course. Sue
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 8:30 pm
by Inger
I guess that means our MAF won't let us import semen from the UK for ages now. 
These deseases are such a pain aren't they. No sooner do you tackle one, than another pops its ugly head up.
Australia has Blue Tongue and we in NZ aren't allowed to import any animals that have been vaccinated for the desease either. In case it is hiding a possible infection. If the blood tests show any antibodies, that's it. Our MAF won't permit an import.
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 10:44 pm
by ann
I'm in north yorkshire and we still have a large area free, for how long who knows
Posted: Tue Feb 19, 2008 10:19 am
by Broomcroft
Details of the UK’s Bluetongue vaccination plan have been set out by Hilary Benn in a speech to the NFU...
For more details visit: http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh....lan.pdf
Quotes:
AREA / PRIORITIES IN WHICH VACCINATION WILL BE CARRIED OUT
As set out in A.6 above, vaccination cannot be carried out in the Surveillance Zone and, if it is carried out in a disease-free area, then that area must be declared a Protection Zone. Vaccination must therefore be limited to the Protection Zone.
SUPERVISION AND UNDERTAKING THE VACCINATION PROGRAMME
The vaccines are expected to be issued with a prescription only medicine (POMv) licence so private vets will be responsible for prescribing vaccine. Livestock keepers will be allowed to administer the vaccine to their animals, under the authority of private vets, which is consistent with vaccination for other diseases, such as clostridial diseases. However, if the animals are vaccinated in order to be moved out of the Protection Zone for the purposes of domestic or intra-community trade then a level of certification (and therefore, potentially, supervision) from private or official vets may be required. Defra is urgently working with veterinary organisations to develop guidance on the potential requirements for veterinary certification.
MOVEMENT RESTRICTIONS
Vaccinated animals will not be able to move out of a Protection Zone unless they are being moved direct to slaughter, or they can be certified as vaccinated.
FINANCE
The UK seeks any available funding from the Commission for this programme. The farming industry, which will benefit from vaccination, will be responsible for any costs that are remaining. The vaccine ordered so far by Defra will cost approximately £11 million. The costs of implementation of this programme will be kept to the necessary minimum by distributing vaccine through the private veterinary wholesale route so that individual, vaccinating livestock keepers cover those costs directly.
No compensation will be available for any losses due to vaccination. Compensation is only available for the compulsory slaughter of animals infected with Bluetongue but such slaughter would not normally be carried out.
VACCINATION FREQUENCY
In sheep, it is expected that the primary course of vaccination will consist of one doses. In cattle, it is expected that the primary course of vaccination to consist of two doses given three to four weeks apart. Full efficacy of vaccine protection should be established a certain period after completion of the primary course of vaccination, depending on the results from ongoing trials. Protection is expected to be provided for up to 12 months after the primary course of vaccination. Thereafter, single, annual booster vaccinations would be required, provided a risk assessment states that the vaccination programme should continue.
Edited By Broomcroft on 1203413844
Posted: Tue Feb 19, 2008 11:11 am
by Sylvia
And all this because our useless government cannot keep control of what is being imported into this country. How many cases of infection have there been so far? Once vaccination is started it seems that it will have to be continued for the forseeable future. I do hope people are not going to insist on vaccinating their stock outside the known infected areas, thus turning them into Protection Zones and presumably forcing all their neighbours to vaccinate as well. I see one very serious fiasco looming which is once again going to disrupt the already difficult task of farming in this blighted country.
Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 3:23 pm
by ann
I saw a bit on the tel last night about blue tongue, they are expecting blue tongue to hit the Kent coast around the middle of March and slowly work its way up the country arriving in the north about the same time as the vaccine is suppose to be available, this does not bode well for a trouble free 2008. Is this the seventh year of disasters, will 2009 start the 7 good years:(
We can only live in hope