Compulsary BVD testing for Scotland soon.

greysides

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home/livestock/livestock-news/compulsory-bvd-testing-on-track/39768.article


How soon before we join them?

5live

There is an optional scheme starting next year with samples taken from calves when tagging and sent for testing AFAIK.
The following spring is supposed to be the start of compulsory testing

So 2013;)

pakalasa

That's great news! For a small island, so dependant on cattle, it makes much more sense to do it at a national level....and it will return value to the exchequer, if partially funded.
What's the point on individual farmers vaccinating and culling when the guy next door doesnt even know he has PI's.
If we have a national programme, a few years from now we could be like Scandanavia with BVD free status. It wouldn't do our exports any harm either.

jeff greene

pakalasa wrote: »

That's great news! For a small island, so dependant on cattle, it makes much more sense to do it at a national level....and it will return value to the exchequer, if partially funded.
What's the point on individual farmers vaccinating and culling when the guy next door doesnt even know he has PI's.

Worst still, sells off the PI knowingly. Heard a rumor to that effect recently, I'm sure that all it was.

This is good news but we should of had it yesterday.

bogman_bass

What Jeff said is right. We need the vets to hold onto cards to stop lads shipping off PI's otherwise it becomes a pointless exercise

LostCovey

bogman_bass wrote: »

What Jeff said is right. We need the vets to hold onto cards to stop lads shipping off PI's otherwise it becomes a pointless exercise

What will happen to PIs under the voluntary scheme?

Come to think of it, what will happen to them under the compulsory one?

LC

Min

LostCovey wrote: »

What will happen to PIs under the voluntary scheme?

Come to think of it, what will happen to them under the compulsory one?

LC

Sent off to be slaughtered hopefully.

5live

I was a bit late for the IFA meeting i heard it at but afaik any pi's wont be given a card. How the cull is carried out after that i dont know.
Possibly vets to cull and knackerys to collect would be the simplest but how bio secure the collection would be is debateable.
Carrying to factories would have the same risks.

Good question though. There is another meeting next week so if i make it i will ask

blue5000

accurate tagging will be vital so if pi families are going to be taken out. Started vaccinating this year, still have to identify pi animals, just antibodies found so far in empty cows.

5live

blue5000 wrote: »

accurate tagging will be vital so if pi families are going to be taken out. Started vaccinating this year, still have to identify pi animals, just antibodies found so far in empty cows.

You can take pooled samples when you are doing your blood test to test for BVD. I did it 3 years ago. The vet can pool 10 samples and each bottle can be tested for BVD. If a positive sample is found, the 10 from that pooled bottle are tested to find the positive one and she can be culled. It cuts the cost down but it still is pricey.

Thankfully no PIs:)

LostCovey

Min wrote: »

Sent off to be slaughtered hopefully.

Who will slaughter week-old calves????

Am I missing something here?

LC

jeff greene

LostCovey wrote: »

Who will slaughter week-old calves????

Am I missing something here?

LC

Put down so, can't older PI be slaughter anyway?

Jeff Greene

Min

I had cows tested that lost calves, only a few but they had no sign of being exposed to BVD, then I got the milk test sampling done with Glanbia and the first result says high positive.
So that's not great...

IBR free which is great.

LostCovey

Min wrote: »

I had cows tested that lost calves, only a few but they had no sign of being exposed to BVD, then I got the milk test sampling done with Glanbia and the first result says high positive.
So that's not great...

Hi Min,

That probably means that some animals in your herd have been exposed to BVD, but not all - puts you in exactly the same category as most herds in the country.

It does mean that some animals are vulnerable to infection (and would be in trouble if they contracted it while pregnant, but if you got a good high positive milk antibody test it suggests that there is good overall herd immunity.

LostCovey

dar31

from the best i can make of it. vaccinating is not all that necessary for bvd, it has a place but is not the be all and end all.
the main concern is the identification and removal of all pi's and any of their progeny if there happens to be any.

the sooner the better there is a national bvd test, a national bvd free herd will carry a lot of weigh going forward..

LostCovey

dar31 wrote: »

the sooner the better there is a national bvd test, a national bvd free herd will carry a lot of weigh going forward..

I fully agree, but will enough people agree?

keep going

if you can promise that it would be all sorted in 3 years or less.yes.afraid it would become a long drawn out and ex pensive saga

5live

LostCovey wrote: »

I fully agree, but will enough people agree?

I think anyone that had a BVD exposure would snap your hand off to get a country free of it. When my herd got it the vet compared it to aids in cattle. Everything they were exposed to would be deadly as their immune response was almost non existent. Horrible horrible disease

3 years should be enough to do it if the will of the dept and farmers is there.

And then we have IBR, Johnes etc etc to do. An endless cycle:(

LostCovey

5live wrote: »

I think anyone that had a BVD exposure would snap your hand off to get a country free of it. When my herd got it the vet compared it to aids in cattle. Everything they were exposed to would be deadly as their immune response was almost non existent. Horrible horrible disease

3 years should be enough to do it if the will of the dept and farmers is there.

And then we have IBR, Johnes etc etc to do. An endless cycle:(

How are the Dept involved? Isn't this an industry initiative?

LC

5live

LostCovey wrote: »

How are the Dept involved? Isn't this an industry initiative?

LC

If the dept arent involved then who is going to run it?

LostCovey

5live wrote: »

If the dept arent involved then who is going to run it?

http://www.animalhealthireland.ie/

5live

LostCovey wrote: »

http://www.animalhealthireland.ie/

All well and good but if there is going to be compulsory culling then i dont think a strongly worded letter from AHI is going to carry the same sense of importance as a letter from the Dept of agriculture. As has been suggested in other threads, there will be a minority (hopefully small) who will do all in their power to subvert the scheme and sell PIs as 'normal' cattle. How would AHI deal with those?

Believe me, i would like the Dept to have as little to do with this as possible as their first thought is to make it as complex as possible. But unless there is (a lot of) statutory power given to those running the scheme, it wont work imo. However in the Dept there is already a framework and experienced people in place to do the job and the relevant powers already in place.

Or are you looking for another quango:eek:

LostCovey

5live wrote: »

All well and good but if there is going to be compulsory culling then i dont think a strongly worded letter from AHI is going to carry the same sense of importance as a letter from the Dept of agriculture. As has been suggested in other threads, there will be a minority (hopefully small) who will do all in their power to subvert the scheme and sell PIs as 'normal' cattle. How would AHI deal with those?

Believe me, i would like the Dept to have as little to do with this as possible as their first thought is to make it as complex as possible. But unless there is (a lot of) statutory power given to those running the scheme, it wont work imo. However in the Dept there is already a framework and experienced people in place to do the job and the relevant powers already in place.

Or are you looking for another quango:eek:

Nope, not looking for anything, but there has not been the slightest hint of Dept involvement in this.

5live

LostCovey wrote: »

Nope, not looking for anything, but there has not been the slightest hint of Dept involvement in this.

Never said there was but there should be imo;)