Schmallenberg Disease. What's the agenda?

greysides

I don't like conspiracy theories because once you start thinking that way all of a sudden there are 'Reds under the bed' in every case. However pragmatically it does seem (and has been seen to be the case) as though all vested interests keep their secrets and have a public face they like to wear........ and after a while you learn you have to go some journey down the 'conspiracy road' or you're just naive.

Our Regional Post Mortem labs are only testing aborted calves sent in for SBV where there is a reason to suspect that SBV may be involved, unless requested specifically to do so. This is the policy handed down from 'on-high'.

You could look on this and say it is sensible. Aborted calves are hardly new samples to be sent to labs, they have experience of them and the many ways they present. Why spend scarce resources doing unnecessary tests? Quite reasonable thinking.


SBV causes pathology that is nothing new. Prior to this these characterisitic deformities were rare but they certainly occurred and SBV was no where to be seen. Several other diseases, BVD, Border Disease, Toxoplasmosis, Hereditory Disease, Genetic abnormalities, Plant toxicity, etc, all cause similar signalment to what we know or suspect Schmallenberg virus does.

So it does pose a problem as to at what point should the labs decide when to to test and when not to test?

BUT....

However, if we only look for SBV based on what we know of Akabane virus we are doing 'poor old' SBV a disservice. We are limiting ourselves to the answers we already think we have and not allowing for the possibility of there being more to it.

There have been experience-based opinions given that it seems as though sheep were proportionally affected more by the deformity problems while cattle were affected more by infertility than by deformity. Time will give the only true answer but only if figures are collected correctly. Under reporting is going to grossly skew the conclusions to be drawn. Most suspected cases will go unreported and undiagnosed as they occur in the middle of a hectic time on-farm, the lamb/calf is dead and there is no vaccine/treatment/preventative measure that can be taken even if you do investigate it and find it to Schmallenberg-related.

We've had a bad summer and bad winter forage, lots of fluke problems, also it's hard to separate all the causes and effects, but it does appear to me that there are a lot more empty cows, stillborn calves, emphysematous calving and general 'funny business' going on than normal at calving time. If we don't widen the net to check out all of these incidents and allow the full investigation of all abnormal calvings we are not going to end up with a true picture of what's going on or a true baseline on which to base advice or make plans for the future.

And make no mistake, this disease is with us for the long-haul.

If nothing else (i.e. 'funny business' is found not due to SBV), it's a chance to investigate the effects of the current feeding/previous weather situation, also for use in the future.

No one can make proper conclusions or decisions based on skewed information, we will regret this lost opportunity. Who says the first year is the worst year? It could be the second year! We don't know because this disease is totally new and our assumptions of similarity to Akabane Disease may be totally misplaced.

At the moment, it is my opinion that the 'dogs on the street' know more about the effects of this disease than those whose job it is to find out- because the disease is totally new and the information hasn't been collected, collated and dispersed.

If proper investigation were to show Schmallenberg is not a 'low impact disease', do our governments (EU) have the resources to do what's necessary?

I'm sure you could find a conspiracy theory there without much effort!

Lastin

Well said Greysides, we are not trying to find any answers to the problems this virus causes, I attended a meeting in Enniscorthy (3 months too late ) and left early,because the guest speakers knew very little of this disease. The biggest problem that I have with sending anything to the RVL in Kilkenny is the fax report only goes to your vets practice surely and email could also be copied to the farmer,vets never have time to ring a client about a report in springtime but at least I would have the report.

greysides

Lastin, I think you just need to chase your vets. The reports don't give that straight-forward an answer in most cases and there is some interpretation to be done. I often find myself ringing the lab to get their help too. Within the realms of what they know and can do, I find the Kilkenny lab personnel very helpful and friendly. There has been a 'changing of the guard' there recently and I was wondering how the new incumbents would measure up to the standard set by the old. I am happy to report that bar the accents you wouldn't know the change had occurred.
My comments above are no reflection on the lab personnel, they have their instructions to follow and they don't set policy. I know that with the country broke, decisions have to be made regarding where the money goes but we need a veterinary lab service that is free to fulfil its' purpose. It's times like this that their role is important (easy to forget when things are tipping along smoothly) but the figures they generate are used to formulate government policy. Whatever effect this disease is having needs to be accounted for so it can be given its' true importance and not the importance that wishful thinking would assign it.

Lastin

No I am sorry greysides I am critical of the reporting process not the staff involved I used KK as a reference as it is the lab I deal with

greysides

Lastin wrote: »

No I am sorry greysides I am critical of the reporting process not the staff involved I used KK as a reference as it is the lab I deal with

Lastin, the staff comments in my last post were not in relation to your reply, more to qualify mine.