Dairy Chitchat 4, an udder new thread.

I don't think you have lost many young cows to TB, when you come out with a statement like that. The department should be finding the source of the problem ie. Vaccination of cows, or badgers or culling of wildlife

A test that’s not fit for purpose is the problem.

Agreed that in and of itself the tuberculin skin test leaves too many infected cattle behind due to its low sensitivity. As farmers we are annoyed about the idea of false positives (extremely rare) when the real issue is infected animals left behind.

Sloppy testing, pressure applied to vets to pass dodgy animals, lax trading rules for high risk animals, and of course under staffed wildlife units are huge contributors too.

Those things however don't change the fact that if your cows has lumps she is 99% certain to have TB.

thats a interesting point about the double sided crush. just thinking its a multi vet practice i use for testing and always tested on one side. a couple of new vets tested the other side. i remember because they were in eye shot of the cows and they wouldnt have been used to seeing someone stand there and they were abit spooked. there was no lumps there at all. last vet commented that i have alot of skin tb he called it. basically just random lumps on the cows necks. but clean as a whistle where he clipped and jabbed

You say get rid of any animals with lumps, sher every one would be locked up every year if that's the case. And if they don't find the source, then it will be the same every year. It's a case of trapping and testing every badger, wild deer, or anything else that carries bovine TB

100% get rid of any animals with lumps, because they have TB.

Wildlife a reservoir of infection too obviously, but cut out the cow to cow transmission too.

Trying to "eradicate" TB is an absolute nonsense! Its the equivalent of trying to stop the tide with a saucepan. Or eliminate Ash Dieback. Or covid, remember when they wanted to "zero" that too? 🤔

It's in pretty much every mammal in the environment.

You talk about wildlife. Ever hear of sheep? They spread it too.

But I better not say too much about that, or some of the geniuses on here will be looking for the Department to set a TB scheme up for them too... 🤫

Let farmers control it themselves if a farmer wants tb let him have it. if he doesnt test and cull and have closed herd simple same with bvd and other diseases they can divide all the money they spend out among all farmers

Calf exports will be shut in next few years there probably wont be many farmers or animal left to export anyway so i wudnt be to worried

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32023R0361

Page 3. It is not an Irish reg that DAFM can change of their own accord.

That's where we're at. Spun 2 reasons

No means of distinguishing between infected and vaccinated animals, yet other vaccines have been developed to the pont that markers can be added.

We'll loose our markets...TB infected animals are put into the food chain. TB will not pass pasturisation. Other vaccination no longer cause market issues. I've no doubt that market access can be renegotiated and that buyers will see reason to the need to protect their access to beef and milk derived from animals living outside in natural surroundings and with wildlife contact.

We have regulation around this disease that stem back to the stone age, and the resistance to follow a proper scientific approach to find a solution can be seen even here.

https://www.independent.ie/farming/dairy/henry-walsh-greedy-moody-demanding-not-great-at-sharing-clover-has-plenty-of-downsides/a721450983.html

Sunday new moon today. A few wet weeks ahead