February 25 2008 ~ "...unfounded
suspicion that somehow vaccination allows animals to be infectious whilst
concealing signs of clinical disease."
- In her talk on Friday, Dr Watkins spoke, with all the well founded frustration of the expert virologist, of "the redundant rule" that
vaccination is not allowed in the surveillance zone nor outside the surveillance zone in uninfected areas.
- "... Why should we be
afraid of using vaccination to prevent virus infection from spreading and
establishing itself in new areas? Is this because of an unfounded
suspicion that somehow vaccination allows animals to be infectious whilst
concealing signs of clinical disease? We are back in the mid 20th
century if we continue to act as though we are unable to diagnose virus
infection unless we wait for a clinical case to take samples to the
virology laboratory."
February 24/25 2008 ~ "Several export countries are playing politics with the Bluetongue virus, so says Veepro Holland Director, Johan van den Berg..."
- The Dutch appear to doubt that exported animals that tested negative in Holland could really have carried virus. The article in Agrarisch Dagblad continues, ".. In some countries, calves which in the Netherlands tested negative for the Bluetongue virus were slaughtered because these animals appeared to score positive for bluetongue abroad.
23 animals were put down recently in Northern Ireland because they were said to carry the Bluetongue virus or antibodies against the virus. In Spain too several Dutch calves were destroyed because of the presence of the virus.
According to van den Berg is it impossible that Dutch calves could carry the virus abroad when they tested negative in the Netherlands. Dutch tests are carried out by
CIDC in Lelystad.
- "This is a trusted and internationally recognized lab"
Last week in Wales a sheep was discovered carrying the Bluetongue virus. The Dutch test for the virus prior to the animals export was negative." (Our italics) It would indeed be interesting to know more about the actual tests that were carried out before and after export.
February 24/25 2008 ~ "these are the kind of things that add fuel to my rage.."
- The picture (it will need to be opened separately since it may be too upsetting for many people to choose to see) shows what Bluetongue can make out of a calf that was supposed to be a pure bred Simmental. And while the politicians and the non-involved take so long to decide, over our heads and for their own reasons, what is to be done about this disease, it is wreaking this sort of damage on the animals in our charge. It makes one weep to remember how far along Merial was at the time their licence was snatched away, how far politically motivated was the reason for its removal - and how desperately needed these Btv vaccines are now that were being developed then. That the research and development all ground to a halt because of the government and DEFRA's action may well mean that farmers are going to be faced more and more with what we see in this picture. It is not pretty.
February 24/25 2008 ~ Inadequate vaccine supply seems horribly likely
- The Dutch site agriholland.nl says (This is our own free translation. An improved version would be gratefully received):
- "The vaccine producer Intervet in Boxmeer cannot provide the required six millions vaccines against bluetongue in time. Intervet says the first million will be available from the 1 May; a month later the second million and remaining by August. As a result, there is a real possibility that animals vaccinated last may succumb. It is still not clear which region in the Netherlands will be vaccinated first..... According to a spokesman for the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, nothing has yet been decided. Minister Verburg will probably take two weeks to make a decision..."
that Intervet's vaccines for sheep can be first administered in April. This does not accord with the Dutch report and it is looking more and more unlikely that there will be sufficient vaccines for the whole of the affected regions of Europe to allow effective coverage. Germany, has not even ordered any vaccine yet. Belgium and Luxembourg do not seem to have either. Scotland is continuing to appear to be in denial of the inevitable. 2008 could well be a year of even greater catastrophe among Europe's livestock farmers.
February 24 2008 ~ "European regulations are not adequate in light of findings that blue tongue is not just transferred by the midge population."
- The Northern Ireland Agriculture Minister, Michelle Gildernew, is quoted on the BBC in a very brief report. It would appesr that Mrs Gildernew is convinced that vertical transmission is indeed taking place (see below) but we have yet to see any hard evidence for this. As always, informed comment would be very gratefully received.
February 24 2008 ~ "the virus will become active again from the middle of March - months before a new vaccine becomes available..."
- Prof Phillip Mellor from the Institute for Animal Research is quoted in the Sunday Telegraph today: "With the sort of increase in infection we've seen in northern Europe, we'd be expecting thousands of farms to be infected this year. This vaccine is supposed to arrive in May this year - so it's a race between the delivery of the vaccine and the transmission of the virus - it is going to be a very close race."
Sunday February 24 2008 ~ "Dr Dercksen stressed the importance of what he termed as 'loving care' and good animal husbandry..."
- warmwell.com is very grateful to Jane Barribal, editor of farmtalking.com, for her report of Friday night's Bluetongue meeting at Duns and which can be read on the farmtalking website. In addition, Dr Ruth Watkins' talk can be found there in full. Jane Barribal commented: "....describing and explaining the virus, antibodies and the differences between 'live' and 'killed' (inactivated) vaccines, in a lively and most entertaining way. Who would have thought 'the science of virology' could be so much fun?
Illustrating her talk with the use of a shimmering purple football and some hazel twigs, it was so easy to understand how the virus replicates, destroys cells and antibodies are produced etc. ..."
The valuable contributions of George Milne and Dr James Irvine are also briefly reported as is the map from Pirbright shown to the audience by Dr. Daan Dercksen.
February 24 2008 ~ The effect of Bluetongue in the Moselle region of North East France
- We have been sent a translation of a report in which we find that the first farm infected was on 31st August 2007; by 17th December, 2007 there were 1511 farms infected, consisting of 1334 herds of cattle, 176 herds of sheep, and 1 herd of goats. The dairy farms seem to have been more affected than those with suckling cattle: 51% of the herds affected were dairy, 40% beef cattle with calves at foot. Read in full. This report of one area of France is pretty typical of what we are seeing elsewhere in Northern Europe, including in Germany. Elimination of bluetongue by adequate vaccination coverage is vital for Britain - all of Britain, including Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
February 23 2008 ~ A report on the full BTV forum meeting
- has been posted by Nick Clayton on the . Goat Veterinary Society website
Extract:
- "Intervet have sent out forms to all veterinary practices...
Remember that only animals within a PZ can be vaccinated.
...if you are in a PZ and wish to move animals to either the SZ or a free area, or in the SZ and wish to move to the free area, it would be wise to do so NOW otherwise the window of opportunity will be lost until vaccination can take place. ...
The meeting was chaired by John Kittner who declared that the very low levels of viraemia found were unlikely to be sufficient to infect midges, but that view was contested by Chris Lewis who pointed out that it is thought that the virus may overwinter in T cells and then infect midges.....
...
There was considerable discussion re the merits of a voluntary scheme as against a compulsory one. .... it was made clear that there could be problems, especially where finance was tight due to livestock having been unsaleable last Autumn due to movement restrictions, and where animals were due in the normal course of events to be moved to summer grazing in a PZ from outside, which would create a great difficulty as they could not be vaccinated pre movement....
.... there may be different tiers of certification needed by farmers.
....BTV1 has now been disclosed near San Sebastian...
Vaccine manufacturers are being encouraged to produce a combined BTV1 and BTV8 vaccine. .."
February 23 2008 ~ Under the Vector Free Period rules, animal movement must be completed by midnight on March 15th, the end of the VFP.
After March 15, animals can move from free zones to anywhere - or from Surveillance Zones to Protection Zones. Even with a blood test, animals will not be allowed to move from PZ to anywhere else, nor from SZ to a free zone until it has been vaccinated, and then either kept for another 60 days, or certified not to be viraemic by a PCR.
The surveillance zone has now been extended to include Cornwall. See Defra website
February 23 2008 ~ Scottish Cabinet secretary for rural affairs was questioned on the subject of bluetongue disease by
James Irvine
Dr Irvine, quoted in the Scotsman said to Richard Lochhead: "In my experience the basic principle of disease control is to vaccinate before any disease arrives. You have not ordered any vaccine, which places Scotland in an extraordinarily vulnerable position." The Scotsman commented:
Lochhead simply prevaricated telling the questioner that all options were being considered and that decisions are likely to be reached over the next few days. The bluetongue issue is one that is set to exercise the Scottish Government very soon."
February 22 2008 ~ Bluetongue risk starts "in April" says DEFRA
- The BBC reports that
Researchers from the Institute for Animal Research have produced a map showing when farms in different parts of England and Wales are at most risk.
"They say midges that could spread the virus will become active from the middle of March, but could begin infecting livestock just weeks later.
.....
The head of the team feared that a vaccine would not be ready until after the first animals had become infected."
Meanwhile,
"In the UK in 2007, tDEFRA has announced the extension of the Bluetongue Surveillance Zone into Cornwall.
" Inclusion in the Surveillance Zone will allow Cornish farmers to continue to trade as normal within the South West and the rest of the Surveillance Zone."
Defra has also confirmed today that the current so-called Vector Free Period will end at midnight on 15 March 2008. DEFRA says, "This decision is based on an assessment of meteorological data and historic vector (midge) trapping, which provides evidence that the midge vectors for bluetongue will re-emerge at around this time."
From 15 March no animals will be permitted to move out of the Restricted Zone.
February 22 2008 ~ Tests are now being carried out on the foetuses of culled animals to check for cow to calf transmission across the placenta.
- The Farmers Guardian reports on the apparent development in Northern Ireland. See also our report yesterdaybelow and informed comment in the most recent communication to warmwell from Dr Ruth Watkins.
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