Avian Influenza:
Read further updates here
AMR: antibiotic reduction in cattle…
British Cattle Veterinary Association (BCVA) recommends reducing the overall amount of antibiotics used in cattle practice. Work still needs to be done to establish the current levels of antibiotics being used so that targets can be set, but there are measures which can be immediately adopted. BCVA continues to recommend that every farm should have a herd health plan which embraces all of the disease control strategies appropriate for disease reduction on each farm. In addition best practice with regards farm management should be followed – suitable examples are the Red Tractor guidelines.
Read the full BCVA statement here
Bovine TB: England set for early OTF status…
England is set to apply for Officially TB-Free (OTF) status for more than half of the country next year - two years ahead of schedule - as the Government’s strategy to tackle bovine TB (bTB) continues to deliver results.
Read the NFU response here
BVDFree: Join the voluntary scheme…
The BVD voluntary scheme for farmers to join aims to eliminate BVD from all cattle by 2022. The scheme needs at least 60% of cattle registered within the first 2 years so that government support can be sort for the implementation of compulsory measures.
Join the scheme here
BVD England is urging all farmers who join the scheme, to find out the BVD status of their soon as possible. Blood, milk and tissue samples can be taken and vets can advise on the most appropriate test for the herd. Persistently infected (PI) cattle, if present, are a major source of infection and once identified, steps must be taken to eliminate them from the herd. One method of identifying the BVD status is to use the tag and test process.
Find more information on the tag and test process here