August 1st 2011 ~ "This approach could allow us to make safer and more effective vaccines against a range of viral diseases."

At present, Bluetongue vaccines are produced by chemical treatment of virulent viruses to inactivate them. Professor Polly Roy's team at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has now developed "the tools and provided the instruction manual for developing new, more effective Bluetongue vaccines" by assembling the virus in a test tube. "No one had been able to get such a complicated virus to assemble outside a cell before." Professor Douglas Kell, BBSRC Chief Executive, is also quoted by www.farminguk.com
"This is an exciting development and offers great potential for future vaccine development. Using the tools of synthetic biology, we are now able to assemble viruses piece by piece in a way that gives us far greater understanding of how they work. This approach could allow us to make safer and more effective vaccines against a range of viral diseases."
From the abstract of Professor Polly Roy's paper J. Virol. doi:10.1128/JVI.05412-11 Generation of replication-defective virus-based vaccines that confer full protection in sheep against virulent BTV challenge
".... The protective capabilities of BTV-1 and BTV-8 DISC viruses were assessed in sheep by challenge with specific virulent strains using several assay systems. Data obtained from these studies demonstrated that the DISC viruses are highly protective and could offer a promising alternative to the currently available attenuated and killed virus vaccines, and are also compliant as DIVA (differentiating infected from vaccinated animals) vaccines."

March 21 2011 ~ "...We must learn to put aside deep-seated prejudice and embrace vaccination. It fully deserves to be regarded as a method of first use, not of last resort.."

Alan Beat, the Smallholding expert, has written about Bluetongue in this article "Controlling Disease" published in Country Smallholding magazine. In addition to chronicling the progress of Bluetongue in the EU, it also points out how the control of Bluetongue put to shame distorted perceptions about vaccination, particularly in connection to foot and mouth disease. Vaccination against Bluetongue in Europe demonstrated how the status of ‘disease free without vaccination’" is an entirely artificial construct.
"Despite the fast-track deployment of an unproven vaccine; despite the relative inefficiency of bluetongue vaccine which confers immunity for only one year; despite wide differences of implementation between neighbouring states; despite countless animals remaining unvaccinated; despite the continued movement of infected animals into disease-free regions; in fact, despite every obstacle placed in its path, vaccination nevertheless succeeded in spectacular fashion by rapidly containing and then eliminating the disease." Read article(pdf)
Indeed, as we say below, the fact that French farmers, for example, vaccinated all their flocks certainly gave protection to those across the Channel. In England, where only farmers who believed in vaccination bothered to vaccinate. This did not stop DEFRA claiming victory for its own piecemeal "voluntary"campaign.

November 2010 ~ BLUETONGUE has been virtually eradicated from mainland Europe

The use of vaccination has virtually eradicated bluetongue. See Farmers Guardian for November 2nd: "... figures released by the European Commission.... Tens of thousands of cases of bluetongue, predominantly the BTV8 strain, were identified across Europe in 2007 and 2008, including 32,000 in France in 2008 alone. The numbers dropped significantly in 2009 and are on course for a further significant decline this year...."

June 4th 2010 ~ "..good news that we are to be in a low risk blue tongue zone with stricter rules ...but..."

"It is not good enough that the breed societies are urging all farmers to continue vaccination against BTV8 so pregnant animals can be imported.... The fact is that no one around here, including the vet, are vaccinating their animals against BTV8..." Ruth Watkins, herself a farmer as well as a recently retired virologist, comments in this email:
"It is good news that we are to be in a low risk blue tongue zone with stricter rules about ensuring imported animals are not infected with BTV8. However, there is no need to import pregnant animals; the (big) dairy farmers want to do this for their own advantage. Why should all we small poorer farmers continue to vaccinate our animals at our own expense in order to facilitate this privilege for the wealthy few? .... The rule I would like to see is that if pregnant animals are to be imported then they must be certified immune to BTV8 and not infected with BTV8 before they conceive the pregnancy during the course of which it is intended they will be imported. Otherwise they must be certified non-pregnant at the time of importing and follow the current rules for this low risk zone we are being allowed to assume. ."
Read email

April 30th 2010 ~ The greatest risk of Bluetongue incursion is now posed by imports, says BVA and Experts Group

The British Veterinary Association (BVA) and its specialist divisions the British Cattle Veterinary Association (BCVA), Sheep Veterinary Society (SVS) and Goat Veterinary Society (GVS) are calling on farmers to vaccinate and revaccinate their stock and to make a very careful risk assessment of the need to import animals. See BVA press release:
"... in the first quarter of 2010 (Jan-Mar) nearly 5000 animals were imported to Britain. This is more than in the whole of 2008 ...
The Bluetongue Experts Group ... concluded that importation is a greater risk than wind-borne spread...
Vets are also warning that the infection could arrive through infected foetuses. ..pregnant animals could be carrying a BTV-infected foetus and still be negative to any blood test. ..Commenting, Nicky Paull, Past President of the BVA and member of Defra's Bluetongue Core Group, said:
"Now is not the time to become complacent on Bluetongue and it is essential to continue vaccinating against the disease. Previously the main threat to the UK was wind-borne midge incursion, but we are now being told by a panel of experts that import carries the greatest risk.
"We understand that farmers are desperate to replace culled TB reactors in cattle herds, but we would urge extreme caution when importing stock from areas where BTV8 has been circulating."
Gareth Hateley, Chair of the BCVA Exotic Disease Working Group, said:
"Cattle that are up to date with vaccination from last year will only require one booster. If this is allowed to lapse then farmers will have to double vaccinate creating both cost and handling implications."
Paul Roger, Bluetongue Stakeholder representative for the SVS, said:
"Although only one dose of the vaccine is usually required for sheep we are concerned that if re-incursion occurs the lag in immunity means a risk of the disease breaking through. In an outbreak situation the scramble for vaccine could leave flocks exposed."
Nick Clayton, Hon Secretary of GVS, said:
"We have all been concerned about imports from affected countries and people will need to make a careful assessment of the risk of importing strains of BTV into their herds." Read in full

Monday 29th March 2010 ~ BTV-8: Still out - let's keep it out

Vigilance and vaccination remains the key to keeping British livestock free from Bluetongue, is the message from the national JAB campaign group reminding farmers to protect their animals against disease in 2010.
JAB is issuing a reminder to farmers and livestock keepers to vaccinate their animals against the disease. A second year free from Bluetongue outbreaks is needed to see the UK declared disease-free. Farmers are being urged to keep up their guard and continue with vaccination as part of their regular flock or herd plan. New research from the Institute for Animal Health shows that for the first time lambs born to ewes that have been vaccinated twice against BT8 (the 2nd shot being a booster one month before lambing) are protected against the disease for at least 14 weeks. More at Smallholder.co.uk

January 7 2010 ~ an early-warning system to help defend cattle against the spread of bluetongue

Scientists from the Institute for Animal Health, Pirbright, the UK Met Office and the Jersey State Veterinary Service and Jersey's own Meteorological Department, are working together on an early-warning system which will fuse meteorological data with ecological information to anticipate when disease carrying midges are likely to be carried on the wind from the continent to the UK and Channel Islands. Detail at Science Daily

December 18 2009 ~ Next year (2010) vaccination will be voluntary in Scotland

Alistair Driver in the Farmers Guardian reports
"....Compliance with the 2009 compulsory vaccination campaign, which was funded in part by Scottish Government, was estimated at around 94 per cent. Making the announcement during a visit to a farm on Thursday, Mr Lochhead stressed that vaccination was 'still encouraged', especially for breeding animals which may be exposed to infection in future years. "Farmers should take the advice of their own vet when deciding whether and when to vaccinate," he said..."
Mr Lochhead spoke of the success of the compulsory campaign in 2009 - and the fact that the UK has remained free of the disease is also in no little measure due to the compulsory vaccination campaign in France- a compulsory campaign that will be continued there.

Oct 30 2009 ~ "The results of the survey will be used to plan our future policy and any additional surveillance in 2010..."

As we reported on October 23rd below DEFRA's winter surveillance into bluetongue begins shortly. If it shows that there is no circulating virus, it will also take us a step closer to being able to consider officially declaring freedom from disease at some point in the future. Read statement and Q and As in full

October 23 2009 ~ Bluetongue Winter Surveillance 2009

"GB has successfully halted the spread of Bluetongue", claims DEFRA forgetting perhaps that the compulsory vaccination campaign in France has reduced the disease across the Channel from 32 thousand premises affected by Bluetongue in 2008 to this year's total of 67. The sacrifice made by French farmers has undoubtedly made things a great deal safer for England - where vaccination has hardly been embraced in spite of the best efforts of JAB.
Now Defra and the Devolved Administrations are going to carry out a month long survey across the whole of the country, starting on 1 November 2009. The idea is to get a clearer idea of the current BTV8 disease situation, and detect any incursion of other serotypes. DEFRA says it considers it "crucial" to continue to vaccinate against BTV8.
Samples will be taken from over 4500 cattle (not sheep), included those vaccinated: approximately 17 cows from each of about 16 chosen herds in the West Midlands, North of England, Wales and Scotland Regions. In the South and South East of England Region, which is considered to be at greater risk, a similar number of animals and herds will be tested in each Animal Health Office area.
The costs of sampling and laboratory testing will be borne by Government but the costs in participating in the survey must be paid for by the farmers.

October 9 2009 ~ Last year in France there were 32 thousand premises affected by Bluetongue. This year there are 67.

The French Agriculture Minister, Bruno Le Maire, has decided to make vaccination compulsory again next year. It will be carried out by veterinary surgeons and it will be free for the stockbreeders. He said, "This vaccination will not be the responsibility of the stockbreeders. 98 million euros have been granted for that. This financial effort takes account of your current economic difficulties. The State will assume the cost of the vaccines and the vets' fees until March 30, 2010." (Press Statement in french from the Ministry)

October 8 2009 ~ Free vaccination against bluetongue for French farmers next year

The French Agriculture Minister, Bruno Le Maire, has announced free vaccination against Bluetongue with a grant next year of 98 million euros. During a fraught meeting with farmers in Clermont-Ferrand when he was pelted with minced beef and eggs by farmers angry about the EU stance on milk and beef prices, he declared that he was totally committed to helping agriculture in France. He was applauded during his speech when he announced that next year's Bluetongue vaccination campaign would be supported by a grant of 98 million euros from the French Treasury which will mean free vaccination for producers. See Le Figaro (french)

Oct 2 2009 ~ This page will be moved very soon.

Its new address is http://www.warmwell.com/bluetongueall.html If the situation changes, it will be returned to this position on the front page.

Sept 25 2009 ~ Richard Lochhead: The requirement in Scotland to vaccinate cattle and sheep will remain in place until it is suspended on 25 October.

"After that," he told the Scottish Parliament on September 24, "there is a lower risk of bluetongue infection because lower air temperatures mean that we will be in a transmission-free period. The Scottish Government and stakeholders will meet towards the end of 2009 to discuss vaccination arrangements for 2010."
Jamie McGrigor then asked, "Is the minister saying that vaccination will not be compulsory after 25 October? If that is so, will he agree that it is far more convenient for the jab to take place in the months that precede winter-September, October or November - rather than waiting until January, when the ewes will be in lamb and there will be extra stress?"
If the sector wants to propose any changes to the arrangements, we will listen closely, said Mr Lochhead

Sept 22 2009 ~ Images of bluetongue in sheep

The Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) has uploaded images showing post-mortem images of confirmed bluetongue in Texel rams. Photos of cattle here. And a page on ELISA & PCR tests.
(Since January 2009, all bluetongue testing has been transferred to the Institute for Animal Health at Pirbright.)

Sept 9 2009 ~ The latest official report on the UK situation from Dr Nigel Gibbens

Follow-up report 39 received by the OIE on September 4th 2009 again shows no change.

September 8 2009 ~ Another postive BTV1 result close to the English Channel...

France's Zone Map has changed again following the positive test result for BTV1 in a bovine at Mesnil-Mauger in the Calvados region of Northern France (see map). It was found as a result of sentinel surveillance. With the new case of BTV8 found since Sept 4th, this brings the total in France for 2009 to 61 premises, of which 5 have tested positive for BTV1, 3 for both BTV1 and BTV8, and 53 for BTV8. The pdf file of the modified map can be found here: gds18.org (in French)

Sept 6 2009 ~ France: Blue Tongue serotype 1 in the Department of Allier

Sept 1 2009 ~ Scotland. Random testing will be carried out by staff from the Government's five Animal Health Area offices

See www.scotland.gov.uk "...Surveillance will be carried out in November to provide a clearer picture of the disease situation. This will inform discussions between the Scottish Government and stakeholders with the aim of agreeing the vaccination arrangements for 2010 by the end of 2009. If a further compulsory campaign is required in 2010, full vaccination of stock will again be required by the end of April 2010, in the same way as it was in 2009."

August 28 2009 ~ Sessions on Bluetongue at the BVA Congress in September

The BVA Congress in Cardiff will include a session sponsored by Merial:
"Bluetongue: the current control policy within the UK and across the devolved administrations"
Two sessions sponsored by Fort Dodge will
"consider the experience and lessons learnt from bluetongue vaccination. It will also examine future threats and the measures available to diminish their impact on the industry"
and
"Stakeholders' experiences and the way forward. This session will look at this year's experience of bluetongue and some of the difficulties faced, in particular, maintaining vaccine take-up and improving knowledge of vaccine capability."
See programme in full (pdf file)

August 17 2009 ~ real-time RT-PCR-based molecular assays for the identification and typing of bluetongue viruses

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council website: "The 'TaqVet BTV European Typing Kit' allows detection of BTV 1,2,6,8, 9, 11 and 16 (types that are in Europe), fulfilling a growing demand for fast and reliable laboratory tests to identify and differentiate BTV types.... The kit is now available."
Peter Mertens is quoted:
"The real-time technology used can be used on blood samples making it much faster and more reliable than conventional serological typing methods, generating results in a matter of hours rather than weeks. Personally I regard this form of molecular assay as the current 'standard' for initial typing of the bluetongue virus in either blood or tissue culture samples."

August 11 2009 ~ 53 premises in France now affected by Bluetongue this year

Another case of BTV1 was identified today in the department of Aude in Chalabre, a town near Carcassonne not far from the Spanish border (source). 2 other cases of BTV 1 and 8 have been discovered during surveillance testing in the department of Eure at Epaignes (1 sheep) and at Lieurey (1 bovine) (The Eure is a department in the north of France named after its river close to Normandy). This has meant further modification of the French Zone Map. See (in french) gds18.org for link to pdf file.

August 11 2009 ~ BTV1 Protection Zones in France close to the Channel

So far in France this year there have been 4 cases of BTV1 and 31 of BTV8 The most recent map of zones in France shows two of the protection zones (green) for BTV1 close to the Channel. The French vaccination campaign against both strains is being considered a success. At this time last year, France had identified more than 3 thousand cases of BTV8 due to virus circulating in 2008 and 15 of BTV1. Failure to vaccinate in France can result in a fine of 750 euros per animal not vaccinated. There are no Protection Zones for BTV1 nor vaccination against this strain in England (see below). (Larger map of France new window)

August 6/7 2009 ~ "I think that the core Stakeholder Group is a positive step forward from 2001, hopefully something we can and will build on."

Chris Stockdale, farmer and member of the DEFRA stakeholder group (the main group not the core group as wrongly reported last night. Apologies) writes to warmwell.com about DEFRA's latest update (pdf) on bluetongue and the news that there will be no BTV1 protection zone vaccinated in advance of any incursion into the UK of this strain. We are grateful for the clarification, given from his standpoint, about:
" ... the problems involved in rolling out the Protection Zone across England with the practical disruptions to trade that follow from that - abattoirs, pedigree sales, shows, ordinary sales, farmers straddling boundaries, group operations, plus doubtless many other wrinkles I haven't thought of such as AI stations, research facilities, zoos, etc. They all get disrupted, all have questions needing answers. Lots of bureacrats get drawn in to be trained in drawing up and administering the new system (Trading Standards, Meat Hygiene Service etc)
It is very expensive and involves a lot of hassle. Don't forget that this was drawn up by the Stakeholders Core Group rather than DEFRA. They did a good job with BTV8 so I have no reason to think they have gone off the rails now - but then I am always an optimist."

Tuesday 4th August ~ No preventative action to be taken against BTV1 before its arrival

Although, according to DEFRA, BTV8 vaccine "played a role in keeping us free from circulating disease last year", pre-emptive vaccination against BTV1 is not going to happen. Across the Channel in France, farmers have been obliged to vaccinate against both strains. DEFRA's update (pdf) on bluetongue asserts that "there is great uncertainty" with regard to BTV-1 incursions and yet, in spite of this uncertainty, concludes that the threat "remains low".
Discussions are continuing with vaccine manufacturers about authorising BTV1 vaccines "so that we are prepared should BTV1 arrive in the UK" but DEFRA's "economic cost / benefit analysis, underpinned by epidemiological modelling" is used to justify the decision to put no 'Blue Zone' protection zone in place. The EU's stance on vaccination makes "vaccination for BTV1 currently illegal in the UK" unless within a protection zone for that vaccine's serotype so there can be no pre-emptive protection against strain 1.
BTV8 is a very different story. As far as BTV8 is concerned, it "is vital that livestock keepers continue to vaccinate to protect their stock".
The logic might seem unclear but DEFRA considers the cost of protecting livestock against BTV1 with vaccination would "far outweigh the benefits".

Tuesday July 28 2009 ~ JAB is concerned that vaccination rates are dropping

"JAB" (see below) has issued a warning that livestock producers need to be inspecting their animals on a regular basis by paying particular focus to the mucous linings of the mouth and nose. The Farmers Guardian today quotes from their statement:
"We are concerned that there has been a drop in the number of suspect cases being reported compared to this time last year. It is imperative that livestock keepers monitor their stock closely and are aware of the symptoms of bluetongue. If there's any doubt at all farmers should inform their local animal health office or call the Defra helpline. The clinical signs can vary although the symptoms are generally more severe in sheep - eye and nasal discharge, swelling of the mouth, head and neck, respiratory problems and lameness. Cattle sometimes show no signs of the illness but symptoms can include conjunctivitis, swollen teats, tiredness and saliva drooling from the mouth. If livestock keepers aren't sure about the symptoms they can get advice from the local animal health office, local vet or the Defra website. It is essential that any suspect cases are reported and livestock keepers should remember that the vaccine is still available and can be ordered from their local vet. It's vital we protect our industry from this disease, so the message remains very clear - don't hesitate, vaccinate."
The DEFRA helpline, available 9am - 5pm, 5 days a week, is 08459 33 55 77

Tuesday July 21 2009 ~ Bluetongue in Holland - it was a false alarm

We are very grateful to hear from a Dutch colleague: "News from the Ministry: false alarm. The positive test result was false. In other words, no BTV in the Netherlands." She sends this translation of the Ministry's press release:
"The outcome of the BTV-test of a Young bull on a farm in Aalten (Gelderland) appears to have been falsely positive. This means that in 2009 yet no bluetongue has been found in the Netherlands. Last week the Ministry of Agriculture, nature and Food safety (LNV) announced that BTV was found in Aalten. Only the serotype had yet to be established by the Centraal Veterinair Instituut (CVI).
The research for the serotype showed no presence of BT-virus. Last week new samples had been taken of the bull as well as of the mother. Both animals have been tested for bluetongue and both were free of bluetongue.
A false positive result is rare but it happens and cannot be ruled out. "

July 16 2009 ~ This year's first case of Bluetongue in Holland

Our unofficial summary of the article by Mariska Vermaas in the Dutch newspaper www.agd.nl is that the first case of Bluetongue has been found in a young bull on a farm in Achterhoekse (a region in the east Netherlands). The animal has shown no clinical symptoms. The serotype hasn't yet been determined and results are expected next week. Dutch Agriculture Minister, Gerda Verburg, is calling on all stock owners to make sure their animals are protected by vaccination - but so far in 2009, far fewer animals have been vaccinated than in 2008.
In Northern France and Belgium the BTv season seems to be later than last year. No cases have yet been found in Belgium. In France in May an alpaca was discovered to be infected with serotype 1.

July 6 2009 ~ Bluetongue Disease: Vaccination - Hansard

Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire, Conservative) asked DEFRA "what recent assessment he has made of progress in the BTV8 vaccination programme". He also wanted a stement about "the effects on veterinary practices of undertaking the programme."
Jim Fitzpatrick replied:
"The BTV8 vaccination programme played a vital role in keeping the UK free from circulating BTV8 disease last year, with vaccination levels in the region of 60 per cent. across England. Vaccination remains voluntary in 2009. BTV8 vaccine is readily available both from the remaining Government underwritten supply and from the three manufacturers who are supplying vaccine direct to the market.
If adequate vaccination levels are not reached this year, and BTV8 is reintroduced, the disease may spread to unvaccinated animals. Evidence suggests that the disease is still present and circulating in some neighbouring EU member states. Farmers and livestock keepers should not become complacent and should vaccinate their animals for BTV8 as soon as possible. Veterinary practices have played and continue to play a crucial role in making vaccine available to livestock keepers and advising on best practice usage to livestock keepers to ensure that disease does not spread. In playing this crucial role veterinary practices have also had the opportunity to benefit from sales of the vaccine, and we have no evidence of widespread negative impacts on the industry."
No mention of BTV1 from Mr Fitzpatrick. No mention either of the negative effect on vet practices reported by Nicky Paull on June 5th below when she said that the veterinary profession had been " left in the dark" about DEFRA's vaccine price cut - which led to farmers who had vaccinated in good time feeling cheated and asking for rebates.

July 2 2009 ~ Institute for Animal Health bluetongue and AHS experts will be available to talk with every day at the Royal Show (7-10 July, Stoneleigh, Warwickshire)

The Pirbright experts, who include Professor Dave Cavanagh, will be in the Global Science and Business Centre. A giant model midge will be hanging up nearby and a daily seminar will be held at 13.00 in the small meetings room within the GSBC. See www.horsemart.co.uk for full details.
(On African Horse Sickness (AHS), please see warmwell pages, updated today.)

July 1 2009 ~ No ban on imports

When Baroness Byford asked "Her Majesty's Government whether they will ban the importation of cattle and livestock from areas in Europe affected by bluetongue" the reply can be summed up by the word NO.
However, Lord Davies (Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for DEFRA), gave a rather fuller reply (Hansard), urging farmers themselves " to consider the risks and check the health and vaccination status of livestock when sourcing susceptible animals from abroad".

June 26 2009 ~ "The only thing that will change this is an outbreak or scare. ... We thought we were doing a better job than that."

It has been encouraging that there has been little to report on Bluetongue in recent weeks - but it is highly discouraging that so many farmers have decided - in spite of so much urging from veterinary experts - not to vaccinate. The experienced Cumbrian vet, David Black, is quoted today in the Cumberland News
"I think people are being complacent about bluetongue. The only thing that I believe will change this is if we have an outbreak or scare. I can't see people taking any more notice of what we say. They plainly don't think it's worthwhile doing. We thought we were doing a better job than that."
Mr Black's Veterinary Group, Paragon, records that just 53 per cent of susceptible farm animals kept by its clients have been vaccinated since last September. "That figure rises significantly to 71 per cent for cattle vaccination alone".

June 13 2009 ~ "Scottish response to bluetongue disease where compulsory vaccination has been an incredible success story" Nicky Paull

The Scotsman today reports on the speech made by the President of the BVA. Extract:
"The BVA supported this programme throughout the consultation period and is pleased that there has been a take-up of well over 80 per cent of the vaccine. ... importing livestock from mainland Europe, where bluetongue is circulating, continues to be a risk..."
On bovine TB
"The failure of bTB to take hold in Scotland can again be linked to the strong legislative stance taken by the Scottish Government on pre- and post-movement testing of animals coming into your country. I am pleased to see that Scotland is considering applying for official bTB-free status."
And on traceability
"we share some of the industry's concerns that proposed scheme does not provide sufficient improvement over the current procedures to warrant the additional costs and practical difficulties."

June 11 2009 ~ Simon Hall, (who succeeds Charles Milne), will run Scotland's compulsory bluetongue vaccination campaign

He will also, according to the Farmer's Guardian, " lead a new animal disease eradication strategy and oversee plans to draw up new rules to help rid Scotland of diseases - including BVD (Bovine Viral Diarrhoea), scrapie and bovine TB. The industry is currently drawing up plans for a new testing regime for BVD. Discussions are set to begin next month."

June 5 2009 ~ BVA's Nicky Paull says the veterinary profession was left in the dark about vaccine price cut.

The Farmers Guardian (Jack Davies) reports on the losses amounting to thousands of pounds faced by veterinary practices forced to sell vaccines - that they had bought at full price - at the half price Defra decided to put on the left over stocks. Nicky Paull said encouraging farmers to vaccinate remained the top priority and following a meeting with French farmers last week she said she was in 'no doubt' that the disease remains a very real threat.
"A number of vets who bought vaccine stocks at full price were left furious when Defra cut prices without warning, forcing them to follow suit and take a loss on their products."
The article quotes one practice whose partners felt the fact that this had happened threatened to undermine the industry's efforts to work closely with Defra. Some farmers have been asking for refunds. Nicky Paull is quoted explaining that although the "core group" had been privy to discussions about the price cut "the confidentiality of those discussions left the veterinary profession in the dark about the price cut".

June 2 2009 ~ Nigel Gibbens warns farmers to vaccinate.

The Met Office is predicting a hot summer - likely to boost culicoides numbers - and Nigel Gibbens, the Chief Veterinary Officer, is warning farmers not to be complacent about the threat. The Melton Times quotes the chairman of its local branch of the NFU, Charles Sercomb
"We would like to see more people vaccinate. The take-up in this area is quite good compared with other parts of the country where it is somewhat lacking. If farmers don't vaccinate we run the risk of catching it but I hope it doesn't come to that. I think farmers who are not vaccinating are convinced we won't have any trouble because last year it wasn't a major outbreak. But it is rife on the continent and playing havoc."
Ros Dean, a sheep farmer and Leicestershire chairman of the NFU, is also quoted: "There are some smiles on farmers' faces at the moment because we have had a good start to the season. But I think some people have a false sense of security. And we are not on a level playing field; farmers in France get compensation if their livestock get Bluetongue."

May 28 2009 ~ "With that threat now over.. "?

We read in the Sentinelthat this year's Staffordshire County Show. is back to its former glory: "more than 3,000 horses, cattle, sheep, pigs and goats will be paraded before judges at the annual two-day event, which began yesterday at the County Showground, in Weston Road, Stafford." The writer goes on to say, "Last year the number of cattle on parade was down nearly 40 per cent due to the threat of blue tongue disease. But with that threat now over, organisers are toasting a bumper entry level this time around."
With 15% quoted to Countryfile by DEFRA as the overall level of vaccination, one hope such optimism is not unfounded. We still remember the worry expressed by the Federation of European Vet (FVE) back in March 2008 when its president, Walter Winding, gave us a depressing insight into what our European neighbours seem to feel about the way UK disease control is handled;
"Irrespective of the disease outbreaks the UK has faced over recent years, it continues to cut budgets and to reduce its Animal Health Services...."
The FVE added that it was unlikely that the UK scheme
" ...would lead to a reliable overview of vaccination coverage, never mind export certification."

May 22 2009 ~ Rumours continue that vaccinates' fertility is affected. Why have these not been adequately scotched?

The Hexham Courant quotes Trevor Simpson, an auctioneer at Hexham and Northern Auction Marts: "It is a big cost to the farm and there has been an awful lot of stories that vaccinations can affect the fertility of both cattle and sheep... a high percentage had decided against it..." The paper also mentions the need for each animal to be injected three weeks apart, and that farmers - (very understandably) - are "unwilling to add to their already heavy workload"
But rumours about adverse reactions are very destructive and give farmers a false sense that opting out of vaccination is a reasonable option - which it is not. In France, a summary (in french) prepared by the French National Agency for veterinary medicinal products (ANMV-AFSSA) gives facts and figures
(our unofficial translation)"...The French National Agency for Veterinary Medicinal Products keeps track of reports of adverse reactions (abortion and mortality mainly) and assesses the risk. In the case of serotype 8 vaccine, 1 to 2 animals in every 50,000 might show an adverse reaction, according to the Agency, while 1 to 2 animals in every 240.000 might die from the vaccine....adverse reactions are considered rare... a very slight increase in incidence compared to previous assessments - "likely due to differences between sales figures and the statement of the actual adverse effects"
Dr Patrick Dehaumont, Director of the Agency is very clear:
"With this record, there is no question of doubting the ratio of benefit to risk of vaccination. It protects livestock, protects breeding and limits the spread of disease."
(France, officially the European country most affected by Bluetongue in 2008, has had two isolated cases only this year so far and confidence is high that both strains will now fizzle out as a result of the compulsory vaccination programme.) .

May 21 2009 ~ Scotland. Nigel Miller says, "The vaccination programme has gone incredibly well"

In stark comparison to the UK's average of 15 % under their "voluntary" vaccination policy, it looks as though more than 95 per cent of susceptible livestock have been vaccinated in Scotland's compulsory campaign.
Dan Buglass in the Scotsman
"...Spot-checks will still be carried out. He says it is possible to move animals both north and south of the Border with few problems. The Scottish Veterinary Service is advising Scottish farmers not to contemplate buying livestock from England or Wales unless they have been vaccinated. Some pedigree cattle have been imported from "blue zones" on mainland Europe. They have been vaccinated and tested both on departure and arrival, but they will still be barred from all the major shows during the summer months.
Dan Buglass concludes: "Keeping Scotland free from bluetongue presents a huge opportunity in terms of the potential exports of pedigree cattle and sheep. Back in 2001 and, subsequently, after the food-and-mouth crisis confidence in UK, livestock hit a nadir and took a long time to recover. The general view is that if farmers play their part in disease surveillance, there will be some useful business openings..."

May 19 2009 ~ What does Bluetongue vaccination cost in France?

A example breakdown of the cost of vaccines, sent to all livestock farmers in France last November, showed that when vaccinating against both strain 1 and 8
a) for cattle, vaccinating a herd of 100 carries an overall cost of 683.80 euros of which the State pays 286.00. This leaves 397.80 for the farmers to pay for his 100 cows
b) for a flock of 300 sheep, the total is 606.07 euros of which the State pays 253.50euros, leaving 352,57 euros for the sheep farmer to pay.
This excludes the cost of each vet's visit (about £30) and the cost of the injecting of the vaccines - but these too were reimbursed at 50% up until December 2008. It is a little misleading to convert these prices into sterling - but today, 397 euros is about £350, while 352 euros is about £309)

May 19 2009 ~ Dr Watkins thanks all those who sent contact details for Countryfile.

She has been strongly supporting and advocating vaccination of all susceptible ruminants against BTV since 2007 and she took her policy to Brussels in Autumn 2007. She told Countryfile:
"... I vaccinated all my sheep and cattle last September against BTV8 so they are having their boosters this spring whilst the lambs are having their primary dose whilst still protected by passive antibody. I shall have to do the calves, some as yet unborn, when they come back from their summer grazing at the end of July.
However I do understand that many farmers, especially impoverished hill farmers with large flocks of sheep, find the cost of vaccination very onerous and hesitate to do it when the risk at present seems very small - whilst by contrast the threat of pasteurella and clostridia for example is ever present.
There are also financial worries looming like how to pay for EID of sheep, and the money that DEFRA will also take from farmers for the new cost sharing proposals if they are passed...."
See Dr Watkins BTV8 draft policy (On this website since November 2007)

May 19 2009 ~ 15% only across England and Wales

Countryfile's response to Dr Watkins' suggestion that reporting had been less than balanced included this surprising (to us) statistic:
"...While there are pockets of Wales and England with a high take up BTV8, it remains a fact that only 15% of farmers in those countries have vaccinated their flock. We checked this figure with DEFRA on Friday, to make sure that the situation hadn't changed since we shot the item....
With regard to the right and wrongs of charging for the vaccine and whether it should be compulsory, I would submit that they are questions which should be addressed to DEFRA. It is our job to report the current state of affairs, rather than comment on it...."
If the figure is a mere 15% across the country, the policy has failed.
Bluetongue is a painful and destructive disease and we are about to enter the danger period. That English and Welsh flocks remain vulnerable at a time when even the French with their compulsory and subsidised scheme are now far more adequately protected and confident, seems a dangerous situation for Britain. Putting the blame on hard-pressed farmers who were given a voluntary policy does not seem helpful.

May 18 2009 ~ "There is no facility to email Countryfile with my views on their unbalanced reporting..."

This email from the virologist and farmer, Ruth Watkins, expresses her frustration at the BBC's Countryfile programme yesterday in which Alick Simmons Deputy Chief Vet) said it was irresponsible of farmers not to have vaccinated "...Although the Cumbrian farmer said that vaccinating his sheep would cost £3000 at least including, the lambs and he could not afford it, this was not followed up by Craven.  How much it would have cost a similar farmer in Scotland was not discussed, nor the fact that we are the only country in Europe to insist on a voluntary vaccination policy..." The email should be read in full. Interestingly, the difficulty of vaccinating lambs in efficient batches when they are born over a fairly lengthy period is also discussed. She says, "Many farmers are vaccinating in Wales at the moment; the local vets can't get enough of the vaccine."

May 15 2009 ~ Scottish buyers don't want unvaccinated store cattle from England

The compulsory Scots vaccination campaign, now completed, means that Scottish buyers have been staying away from store cattle sales in Northern England (in England, bluetongue vaccination is, of course, 'voluntary') because they would then have to have the new animals vaccinated and kept separate for a month. The Cumberland News quotes the BVA's Kim Haywood: "... Similar problems are anticipated at the north of England's breeding sales if Scottish buyers decide to stay away from these too because too few cattle have completed their bluetongue protection."

May 15 2009 ~ France: The 2 confirmed cases which slipped through the 80% vaccination campaign in Maine-et-Loire

Very little more information yet and no indication of which strain. We do know from www.cholet.maville.com that the two farms in which the cases have been confirmed have since been vaccinated. One of the farms had been about to be vaccinated anyway - but had not been because it was at the bottom of the vets' list. Symptoms appeared a few days ago and suspicions were aroused when one calf died. The article notes that 372 farms were affected last year and predicts that the vaccination campaign will have made a huge difference this year.

May 14/15 2009 ~ Two more cases in France

Two cases of Bluetongue have been found in France. A calf has died. The farms concerned (at which vaccination, it appears, has now taken place) are in the Maine-et-Loire department of western France. More detail on Friday in www.ouest-france.fr

May 13 2009 ~15^oC - a key temperature which is recognised to raise midge activity and enable the bluetongue virus to replicate.

The NFU site says,
"Mild spring temperatures have already topped 15 degrees Celsius... The Met Office's long-range forecast... indicated that this summer will be warmer than normal with rainfall near or below average. With the risk of infection now increasing on a daily basis, the JAB campaign is encouraging farmers to vaccinate.."
JAB is quoted:
"...We know that adult midges are rapidly increasing in numbers and that they are now biting livestock....we urge farmers to speak with their vet as soon as possible and order the vaccine today."
Meanwhile, Jack Davies reports in the Farmers Guardian that the discount of 50% on vaccine was "having an effect on uptake.... reduced price vaccine is being sold in 100ml bottles and while produced by Merial, it is owned and sold by Defra through veterinary wholesalers. There are still stocks of smaller bottles available from vets and with vaccine fast going out of date some have also decided to reduce the price of their own stock."

May 11 2009 ~ "a number of scanning and targeted surveillance measures in place..."

In answer to the question "...what mechanisms are in place to (a) prevent and (b) monitor the import and spread of bluetongue disease in summer 2009?" Jane Kennedy (Hansard) spoke of
"restrictions set out in Annex III of the Commission Regulation (EC) No 1266/2007 (as amended)"
and mentioned without any clear definition of what they were
" a number of scanning and targeted surveillance measures in place to monitor Bluetongue in the UK as detailed in the UK-wide Bluetongue Control Strategy"
From 1 April 2009, there has been double testing of imports
"to ensure that disease is picked up in both its early and late stages"
The disease is "additionally controlled" through vaccine, she said. (She did not mention that it was the voluntary policy that had left 12 million doses of vaccine being sold off half-price to those who hadn't yet vaccinated. Those who, in good time, had chosen to protect their animals, paid the full price.)
Intervet, Merial and Fort Dodge, all authorised to market vaccine in the UK, "should meet the demand for BTV-8 vaccine in 2009," she added. Read in full

May 11 2009 ~ Dai Davies warns the Welsh

All remaining bluetongue vaccine stocks in Wales will be discounted by 50% as in England (see post below) and NFU Cymru President, Dai Davies is quoted on www.newswales.co.uktoday:
"Recent figures show that there has been an increase in the first three months of this year in the uptake of the BTV8 vaccine in Wales and we appreciate the great lengths that many farmers have already gone to to ensure their livestock is protected. ... midge activity is rising and the risk of disease circulating is greatly increased...There is no Government compensation for any losses sustained due to bluetongue and our fate is largely in our own hands as far as this disease is concerned. My firm advice remains don't wait - vaccinate."

May 7 2009 ~ Bluetongue vaccine prices to be cut

In the hope of encouraging more farmers to vaccinate their livestock with the 7.5 million of the 28 million doses left unsold. DEFRA says it will reduce the price it sells vaccine to wholesalers from 44p per millilitre to 22p per millilitre from today. Suppliers are then expected to charge between 33p-39p per millilitre plus Vat instead of 66-79p. Nigel Gibbens, chief veterinary officer, is quoted by Farmers Weekly
"...With midges already active, and the Met Office predicting a warmer summer .. conditions for the spread of bluetongue may be ideal. Livestock keepers should take this opportunity to buy their vaccine at a discounted price, before the government stocks are no longer available."
Nicky Paull (BVA) is quoted as saying she fully sympathised with farmers who would be thinking they could have vaccinated livestock much more cheaply had they only waited to do so. Peter Morris (National Sheep Association) says, "Vaccine is better in animals than on shelves. But the government must not be seen to be rewarding those producers who didn't bother to vaccinate at the expense of those who were responsible and reacted swiftly."
See also http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2009/090507a.htm

May 3 2009 ~ ProMed's comment on the BTV1 outbreak in France

(see posting below) The latest ProMed posting on bluetongue carries this moderator's comment:
"It will be interesting to note if this case is a new (clinically manifested?) infection, heralding -- rather early -- the 2009 bluetongue season, which would have normally be expected not earlier than June, or just a serological evidence of an older infection. It would also help to note if the affected animal(s) is/are of local or foreign origin."
Read in full

May 1 2009 ~ Yesterday was the deadline for all Scottish farmers to have their livestock protected against the virus. Cumbrians now urged to vaccinate

Cumberland News today quotes Alistair Mackintosh, National Farmers' Union (NFU) livestock board chairman, who says that since the vaccine costs around 55 pence per dose, it makes good financial sense.
"Effectively we are all within the same protection zone when it comes to movement of animals. If I'm planning on trading with Scotland it's therefore within my best interests to vaccinate. When you have cattle worth £1,000 or sheep worth £100 surely it is worth your while to pay the 55 pence to protect them?" Since there is no compensation payable for Bluetongue in Britain, the disease, he says ".. can have devastating effects on sheep flocks and although cattle can recover, it takes time."
Read article

April 30 2009 ~ Bluetongue returns to France - in an alpaca

bourse.challenges.fr (our translation) "In an official statement, the French Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries reports the first recurrence in 2009 of Bluetongue (serotype 1) - at Lavigney in the Haute-Saône (Eastern France) an alpaca has been confirmed positive for BTV1. In the regulated zone only vaccinated animals from now on are allowed to move. Michel Barnier,the French Agriculture Minister reminds farmers that vaccination of both sheep and cattle must be completed as soon as possible, since vaccination is the only effective means to fight against Bluetongue."

April 24 2009 ~ DEFRA's "tough new import testing regime" planned - after criticism about wasted vaccine

Wasted money from unsold vaccine comes at an unfortunate time. Jack Davies in today's Farmers Guardian reports that,
"Defra continues to face criticism over the potential waste of millions of doses of vaccine after it was revealed officials were warned of the situation in October last year"
DEFRA may well have to dispose of millions of doses of vaccine because of the poor voluntary uptake. The FG says that Defra was warned six months ago that it would be unable to sell all its stock. Had they approached other Member States then it would probably have been sold.
There will now be a
"new stringent testing regime .... sheep and cattle will be tested twice - one to two days after arriving in the country, and again seven days later."
And we read that DEFRA is now "pushing through licences for vaccines against BTV1" However, as we read in Hansard, Jane Kennedy has not tendered for supplies of it. Imported stock infected with new strains is now likely to be killed "to prevent the spread of disease" (Since animals themselves are not contagious and it requires the bite from an infected culicoides midge to cause bluetongue, killing any animal returning a positive test seems unnecessary - and may perhaps be more of a political move to satisfy the ignorant rather than for any sound veterinary reason - but informed comment would be very welcome on this point.)

April 23 2009 ~ Jane Kennedy: No orders have been placed for supplies of BTV-1 vaccine

Asked in a written question by Oliver Letwin whether DEFRA has placed an order for serotype 1 Bluetongue vaccine, she replied (Hansard) that DEFRA has not done so.
"DEFRA continues to closely monitor the disease situation in Europe and are working with experts and vaccine manufacturers to consider possible disease incursion scenarios so we are able to deploy proportionate responses if the threat of a BTV-1 disease incursion increases significantly."
(How quickly Ministers seem to succumb to the incomprehensibility of DEFRAspeak with its spilt infinitives, bizarre choice of word, and non-agreement of subject and verb. Is "DEFRA" singular or plural? Language matters. When political answers become difficult to follow it bodes ill for the common sense of policies. )

April 23 2009 ~ French Minister praises the biggest vaccination campaign ever undertaken in France

Michel Barnier, the French Agriculture Minister thanked all participants at a meeting yesterday for their efforts in the vaccination campaign. There have been no reports so far of virus circulating in France this year. He is quoted on the french website www.web-agri.fr:
".. Aucun foyer dû à la circulation virale 2009 n'a été déclaré en France," souligne le Ministère.
By April 15, 42% of susceptible livestock had already been vaccinated before the legal deadline at the end of the month.

April 22/23 2009 ~"reaching the key temperature of 15C has made the need to protect livestock against the disease critical..."

The Chief Vet for Wales, Dr Christianne Glossop, is quoted today in FWi:
"The rise in temperature triggers midge activity and the ability of the bluetongue virus to replicate. We have heard upland farmers assuming their animals are not at risk, but they should not be complacent. It is entirely possible that there are areas within every locality where the midge that carries the virus can flourish."
She also warned that it was not sensible to wait until the disease was found close to a farm since it takes three weeks after completing a course of vaccine for animals to be fully immunised.

April 22/23 2009 ~Fort Dodge Zulvac 8 Ovis® Bluetongue sheep vaccine is now licensed and available in the UK from vets.

The company believes that the product will provide significant benefits to sheep farmers. Full details are in their press release which quotes David Bartram MRCVS, Veterinary Technical Manager at Fort Dodge :
"Sheep farmers have been waiting for a Bluetongue vaccine which offers a cost effective solution to vaccination - particularly for animals which received their primary course last year and are simply in need of a booster. We expect the fact that it's licensed for use in pregnant sheep to also prove attractive. Zulvac 8 Ovis® is the latest addition to Fort Dodge's Zulvac range for both cows and sheep. It is already used in Europe and has helped protect millions of animals."

April 20 2009 ~ BTV origin in Europe: " no single convincing hypothesis has been proposed"

The Microbiology Blog www.microbiologybytes.com:
"... Despite widespread speculation regarding the exact origin of BTV-8 as the strain of the virus found in northern Europe, no single convincing hypothesis has been proposed. Although future full-genome sequencing might assist this task (as was the case in the incursion of West Nile virus into North America), the small number of reference strains of BTV-8 from areas of potential origin collected before the incursion into northern Europe makes it unlikely that this approach will provide unambiguous evidence. As long as our understanding of the potential routes of virus introduction remains poor, we will be unable to accurately estimate the potential for future introductions of BTV, as has been illustrated by the more recent detection of BTV-6 in Europe, or of other midge-borne arboviruses, such as African horse sickness virus (AHSV)..."
Read in full. Dr Alan Cann remarks that although "the technology to produce safe, effective, inactivated vaccines existed, no coordinated action was taken by any Member State of the European Union (EU) to begin production of a BTV-8 vaccine until late 2007, when the full damage began to become evident. This was in part due to the assumption that the virus would not overwinter under northern European conditions (despite the fact that BTV had been documented overwintering successfully in other areas with far cooler winter temperatures)."

April 16 2009 ~ Beware maternal transmission non-vaccinating farmers are warned

Jonathan Long's article in FWi today quotes Ian Anderson, Intervet Schering Plough's product manager, who said experience of the disease in Holland had shown that BTV8 could be transmitted to unborn calves (and lambs) before their immune systems were fully prepared and could then go on to be reservoirs of disease once they were born.
"There's no clear cut answer as to when the disease is transferred across the placenta to the calf, but it's likely to be in the first trimester of pregnancy, as the calf's immune system isn't fully active at that point and the calf won't recognise the virus as being a foreign organism. We've heard many cattle farmers suggest they aren't overly worried about vaccinating against BTV8 if cattle only show mild symptoms and then go on to develop natural immunity to the disease. But if these farmers don't vaccinate their cattle and cows then become infected early in pregnancy there is a high chance their calves will be born infected."
The article goes on to describe symptoms in calves to look out for. It adds that anyone considering importing in-calf cattle should think carefully before going ahead even when the cattle themselves show no indication of active disease, as their calves could be infected.

April 14 2009 ~ Jersey now vaccinating against serotype 1

Zulvac® 1 is currently awaiting its UK licence. However, because of its proximity to the threat of serotype 1 from France, Jersey has been provided with Fort Dodge's Zulvac® 1 vaccine against Serotype 1 Bluetongue (BTV-1) in cattle and sheep under the terms of a Special Export Licence from the French Government. Full details are in this press release from Fort Dodge. (Jersey cattle photo by Derrick Frigot, past president of the Royal Jersey Agricultural & Horticultural Society)

April 13 2009 ~ Dutch admit mistake with stranded heifers

A www.agd.nl article says that the Dutch VWA has admitted making a mistake with the two heifers which are stranded in Stranraer. The vet thought that Ireland was a BT-area, while it has in reality a BT-free status, VWA says. The Dutch authorities will allow the return of the animals.
"De Voedsel en Waren Autoriteit (VWA) erkent een fout te hebben gemaakt bij het certificeren van twee vaarzen voor export naar Ierland. "De dierenarts dacht dat Ierland tot de blauwtongbesmette gebieden behoorde. Het heeft echter een vrije status", aldus VWA. Van Nederland mogen de dieren terug. In Schotland, waar de dieren waren bij het ontdekken van de fout, is veel ophef over de kwestie."
Grateful thanks to Ruud Peys for this link.

April 9 2009 ~ Benefit of bluetongue vaccine remains unchallenged - says a summary prepared by the French National Agency for veterinary medicinal products (ANMV-AFSSA)

The information on the french website www.pleinchamp.com ( unofficial translation) suggests that adverse effects from vaccines are rare. The French National Agency for Veterinary Medicinal Products keeps track of reports of adverse reactions (abortion and mortality mainly) and assesses the risk. In the case of serotype 8 vaccine, 1 to 2 animals in every 50,000 might show an adverse reaction, according to the Agency, while 1 to 2 animals in every 240.000 might die from the vaccine. While adverse reactions are considered rare, there is a very slight increase in incidence compared to previous assessments - "likely due to differences between sales figures and the statement of the actual adverse effects" says Dr Patrick Dehaumont, Director of the Agency
"With this record, there is no question of doubting the ratio of benefit to risk of vaccination. It protects livestock, protects breeding and limits the spread of disease."
(As of 5 March 2009 France, officially the European country most affected by Bluetongue in 2008, has had a total of 32,321 affected premises (serotypes 1 et 8) reported. Source (in french) www.agoraflux.com

April 9 2009 ~ The importation of cattle from the Netherlands to the Republic of Ireland has left two Dutch animals stranded at Stranraer.

It was discovered at Larne that two of the six Dutch cows had been pregnant before being vaccinated. According to the NFU, legislation not only needs to be tightened but also properly enforced by all member states. The European requirements on movements between Europe's BTV8 zone - which includes the Netherlands - and a BTV-free zone like Ireland meant that Ireland refused entry and the two unfortunate cows were sent back to Stranraer - where the Scottish Government is, according to the Farmers Guardian, "considering its options as to how it deals with the cattle involved." Our understanding is that it is highly unlikely that these two vaccinated cows could present any real risk - particularly when vaccination of Scotland's own livestock is compulsory and should be completed by April 30 - but informed comments would be welcome.

April 6 2009 ~ Welsh Assembly says it may sell off unused vaccine to other EU countries

There are 5.25 million unused doses of BTV-8 vaccine in Wales. The Farmers Guardian quotes NFU Cymru president, Dai Davies. Extract:
".... if the Assembly takes the decision to sell off the remaining doses of unused vaccine abroad then availability will be entirely dependent on market forces and the likely cost of vaccine will rise by 10-15 per cent in this country.
.....The opportunity ...to vaccinate stock at a time that suits their business and before the weather warms up and midge activity increases. ...There remains a serious risk of disease .... I am again urging all Welsh farmers to vaccinate now."
Read FG article.

April 6 2009 ~The first combined vaccine against both strain BTV8 and BTV1 has been developed for Europe by Fort Dodge

Fort Dodge has already obtained a provisional licence for the use of combination vaccines Zulvac®1+8 Bovis and Zulvac® 1+8 Ovis vaccine in Spain. Their press release is here. Extract:
"... The development of the new vaccine was triggered by recent outbreaks of both Serotypes of the disease in the same area of France and Spain. The company says that the Bluetongue Serotypes 1 and 8 restriction zones are overlapping more and more as Serotype 1 moves rapidly further north and Serotype 8 moves south.
Fort Dodge has obtained a provisional licence for the use of combination vaccines Zulvac ®1+8 Bovis and Zulvac® 1+8 Ovis vaccine in Spain. ... The combination vaccines are produced at its manufacturing plant in Olot, Spain... "
Read in full With serotype 1 reported in Brittany in November, the threat from both strain 1 and 8 is real and a combined vaccine should be made available as soon as possible for UK flocks and herds.
(However, there seems to be no real risk from other strains - BTV6 and BTV11 - reported. See report for March 16 below: "No bluetongue clinical disease for either strain has been observed in the field or under experimental conditions.")

April 1 2009 ~ Fort Dodge vet, David Bartram, says, non-immune calves "must not be vaccinated before the immune system is able to effect a durable response to the vaccine"

Warmwell.com is very grateful to David Bartram, BVetMed MRCVS DipM MCIM CDipAF, Fort Dodge's Animal Health vet:
"The issue of the lag period before full protection is obtained is not unique to BTV vaccines; it applies when a preventive vaccination campaign is started for any disease. It is important to use any veterinary medicinal product in strictly in line with the marketing authorisation (MA) for the country concerned (reflected in the product labelling). With any BTV vaccine, calves from naive cows must not be vaccinated before the immune system is able to effect a durable response to the vaccine; and calves from vaccinated cows must be vaccinated after the risk of interference from maternally derived antibodies from the colostrum has passed. For the most effective control of BTV, ensure that stock have completed vaccination before the midge risk period (or as soon as possible if the stock are born during the risk period) and always follow the manufacturers' instructions"

April 1 2009 ~ Professor Peter Mertens warns that virus can travel like "aerial plankton"

Professor Mertens, from the Institute for Animal Health, told the Society for General Microbiology in Britain that www.horsetalk.co.nz/news:"In experiments, a single bite from a fully infected midge can transmit the Bluetongue virus and, as midges are blown across Europe "like aerial plankton", it is almost impossible to prevent them getting to Britain....
..the whole region is now at risk from further incursions of Bluetongue virus, as well as other insect transmitted viruses, many of which can also affect humans."
He said that it is clear that present vaccines can work against BTV-8
"However, more advanced vaccines, made from the protein-subunits of the virus, along with diagnostic tests that can distinguish vaccinated from infected animals, are urgently needed."

March 31 2009 ~ " losing a cow would cost more than vaccination"

An article in FWi looks at France today where the financial penalty for not vaccinating after April 30 means that France is already ahead with vaccinating their flocks and herds. The article quotes a farmer in Brittany, Nigel Ford, who used to farm in Oswestry.
"With BTV1 and BTV8 moving up from south-east France last year we were placed in an observation zone. For me this meant there was a real risk cows could contract the disease, so we didn't think twice about vaccinating. Averaging about 10,000 litres means there is not much room to play with and losing just one cow out of the small herd would significantly affect the amount of milk produced."
He understands the need for the highest possible coverage when the wild deer population could be harbouring disease. His vet took just 10 minutes to inject 30 cows with the two separate bluetongue vaccinations. He says that the " Groupement de Défense Sanitaire (GDS) involved in the management of animal health is so stringent it doesn't even let diseases like BVD and IBR go endemic, as is the case in the UK. Animals are being tested all the time and having a clean herd is important if you want to trade." Read in full

March 30 2009 ~ "The vaccination against bluetongue disease is not responsible for the blood sweaters, says expert Distl"

Der Spiegel has an article on the mysterious and frightening phenomenon of the cases of deaths of very young calves from an Ebola-like disease - so-called 'blood-sweaters' - on German farms. It quotes Ottmar Distl of the University of Veterinary Medicine in Hanover
"calves of mothers that were not vaccinated have also contracted the illness."
The article says that scientists believe that genetic defects are also unlikely to be a cause, because calves from three different breeds are affected. Viral or bacterial infection also seem unlikely since the animals are not infecting each other. As for pesticides or GM feed, Distl says that "the distribution of cases simply does not bear this out." See also below:

March 30 2009 ~ Blood sweaters: "there may also be something new to science.... Antibodies derived from BVD (Bovine Virus Diarrhea) vaccine and bluetongue antibodies present in colostrum may fix together in individual cells in calves of certain genetic make ups....

The latest Pro Med posting recommends the freezing and storing of the affected colostrum: Extract:
" It is still unlikely but just possible that some form of toxin in forage (i.e. bracken fern family, or coumarins produced by fungi and molds) are being eaten by the mothers and concentrated in the colostrum.
(2) If BVD-vaccinated herds are involved, there may also be something new to science. Antibodies derived from BVD (Bovine Virus Diarrhea) vaccine and bluetongue antibodies present in colostrum may fix together in individual cells in calves of certain genetic make ups, thus provoking an autoimmune response. This might take 2-3 weeks to appear clinically. The fact that a herd is not vaccinated against BT does not mean it has not been field challenged, and, therefore, if only one BVD vaccine is involved, this would be worth following carefully, and the vaccine manufacturer may take interest. The stored colostrum could be useful for following up this line of enquiry..."
Read posting in full

March 29 2009 ~ "waiting in the hope that a dual strain vaccine is around the corner will leave you susceptible this summer to infection. " Nicky Paull

The BVA President is quoted in FWi. She says that for farmers who did vaccinate last year, cattle will only need a single shot. "Vaccinating now will give protection before turnout and avoids the hassle of gathering animals back from grass." If everyone waits until there is a hint of the disease, "a mad rush for vaccine could see insufficient stocks available..."
"Any bought in cattle of unknown vaccine status or youngstock who missed out on protection last year will need two injections three weeks apart. Vaccinating now will also make sure there is enough vaccine available. .. I cannot see many practices keen to have large vaccines stocks after the financial disaster for several practices, where out of date vaccines had to be thrown away.... rumours of an all in one vaccine covering strains 8 and 1 are delaying decisions to boost with BTV8 vaccine alone. We do not yet have a vaccine against BTV1 licensed for use in the UK, although the licensing process is gearing up for one. But when it does come it will be a single strain vaccine, so waiting in the hope that a dual strain vaccine is around the corner will leave you susceptible this summer to infection."
Read in full

March 28 2009 ~ Information received about Merial's BTVPUR AlSap 8 vaccine and young stock

Warmwell is very grateful to Sharon Cooksey BVSc, MRCVS, Veterinary Manager at Merial Animal Health Ltd whose email informs us that the new full licence (as a result of further studies submitted to the EMEA) has new data and recommendations on its use in youngstock. As she points out, new recommendations can only be included on a licence if they are backed up by study data to approve the change. She says that BTVPUR AlSap 8 is the only vaccine licensed which prevents viraemia in a vaccinated animal challenged by BTV8 disease. The vaccine can be used from 1 month in animals born to non vaccinated dams and from 2.5 months in animals born to vaccinated or immune dams.
"It is worth pointing out that this statement regarding minimum age of vaccination has been fully assessed and validated by the European Medicines Agency," she adds.
Some immunity is conferred by a single dose in cattle but a second dose is required to result in a sustainable immunity and to ensure full protection against viraemia. The licence also includes full results of work done to support safe use throughout pregnancy in sheep, and interim results demonstrating safety for at least the last trimester in cattle ( this work is ongoing) The dose interval for cattle for Merial's BTVPUR AlSap 8 vaccine has changed and the second dose can now be given be given at 3 -4 weeks after the first. Read full email.

March 27 2009 ~ what percentage of livestock farmers in each region have vaccinated their livestock against bluetongue disease

Roger Williams asked the question yesterday. Jane Kennedy's reply included her justification for a non-compulsory campaign and the miserable figures for the North West 27% and the North East 26%

March 26 2009 ~ Merial ready to respond to readers' questions about timing for the vaccination of young lambs and calves. Fort Dodge too is "on the case"

Warmwell.com is very grateful to Merial and to Fort Dodge for their very prompt initial reply to our vaccine queries and we are confident that we shall soon be able to post detailed information or advice.

March 25 2009 ~ "The entire country's livestock industry is at stake if we fail to protect our flocks and herds"

Farmers Weekly quotes NFUS president Jim McLaren following the news that latest figures from the Scottish government show only 49.21% of holdings have been vaccinated. Producers there have until April 30 2009 to vaccinate all cattle and sheep - or face a possible fine of £5000.
FWi "....Chief Vet Charles Milne said the statistics were largely in line with projected estimates, he insisted he would not be happy with anything less than 100% adherence to the programme which was agreed in consultation with the industry. ....I expect a big upsurge over the next three to four weeks when livestock is brought in for lambing or calving, so I am cautiously optimistic that we will hit the target."

March 23 2009 ~ Questions and queries - Bluetongue Conference March 30

There was a plea for detailed and comprehensible information
• ...about vaccination experience noted in the field according to type and age of animal, number of pregnant animals vaccinated (per vaccine manufacturer) results of any untoward 'reactions' in pregnant animals (per vaccine manufacturer and by type of animal) and so on. "Obviously," writes the questioner, " these would be of farmer's experience and not be carefully controlled field trials, though the details of the manufacturers own trials should also be made available."
Then there is the practical issue of when to vaccinate newborn animals if the newborns in the low prevalence area are born to non-vaccinated mothers.
• Have manufactures trialled their vaccines in young non-immune animals? The manufacturers prescribe different timescales - possibly forgetting the danger that young unvaccinated animals can be left in that state for several months.
Please do continue to send any questions you might have. (See below)

March 23 2009 ~ Questions and queries - Bluetongue Conference March 30

Queries included
• "Why are we not included?" - a questioning of the strange reluctance DEFRA seems to have about including in their deliberations the increasing numbers of livestock owners who do not fall into the category of "industry". Is this owing to their efforts to transfer cost and responsibility to "industry" farmers?
More and more people are now keeping farm animals along with their desire to produce fresh vegetables ("partly thanks to the government's consistent failure to support agriculture" writes a questioner. "Remember how hard it was for them to find everyone who was keeping poultry when H5N1 was found?")
When one remembers the difficulties encountered in 2007 when it was suddenly realised that there were no crushes, no portable, safe cattle handling equipment for use of the farms and smallholdings where emergency testing had to take place, it might be thought that everyone with a stake in animal health policy might be represented at last. That this is apparently not the case and that small scale farming is left out of the equation even more is worrying to say the least.
UPDATE A reader writes, "Anyone can ask to participate, I do not know of any bar to entry, but obviously too many people or too many 'start from the beginning' queries would ultimately destroy what is an effective working group...hobbyist/ self sufficiency guys are anathema to the smooth running (sic) MAFF/DEFRA machine."

March 20 2009 ~ Bluetongue Stakeholder Conference on Monday 30th March

A reader writes, "I am writing with a request - I am planning to attend the forthcoming Bluetongue Stakeholder Conference on Monday 30th March.... I am slightly at a loss as to know what to say (if anything) in advance; going to listen is ok, and I expect I will be supporting initiatives in any way that I can...but am wondering if you could ask your readers if they have any points or queries that they would like me to take (if I can - no guarantees)."
If anyone does have a question or query that might be useful, no matter what the content might be, please do get in touch so that it can be passed on. Very many thanks in advance to anyone who does so.

March 19 2009 ~ Approval for Merial's BTVPUR AlSap 8 in 5 days instead of six weeks

"The European Commission has shortened its vaccine approval working time in order to grant full marketing authorisation for Merial's BTVPUR AlSap8. This recognizes the key role of vaccination in responding to the threat of bluetongue. Approval for Merial's BTVPUR AlSap 8 - the only bluetongue vaccine so far to have received full approval by the Commission - was announced on Monday, 16th March. The EC took five days for the written procedure part of the approval process, a move that cut some six weeks from the expected approval time...." FoodEast has more detail.

March 19 2009 ~ First batch of BTV8 vaccine expired on March 1, 35,000 doses are to be thrown away in England.

...and in total, five million bluetongue doses in Wales are also in danger of having to be discarded. Andrew Forgrave in the Daily Post - writes that vaccine doses "worth an estimated £3m may have to be written off in Wales if farmers fail to jab their animals this spring. Some 5.25 million doses are available for use in Wales but they are all due to expire over the months up to June..." Read in full

March 16 2009 ~ 95% of cattle were vaccinated in Holland last year because farmers were actually seeing cows with bluetongue symptoms.

The Dutch vet Karin van Heuven-van Kats has visited Lancashire with a sombre message. FWi quotes her: "Farmers in the UK haven't seen enough cases ...Seeing is believing." Dutch farmers "saw exactly what this virus could do and they didn't want it to happen again. So they vaccinated and I must urge all cattle farmers in the UK to do the same. You have the opportunity to avoid the massive problems suffered by Dutch farmers...."
She said that vaccination had caused no ill effects and "Where farmers did contact us to say there had been a death the day after vaccination, the animal was always subjected to rigorous tests. In every case the cause of death had no link to the vaccination."

March 16 2009 ~ The BTV6 zone in the Netherlands and Germany was lifted as of 5 March.

(Apologies for not adding to the report below that since both countries were able to present evidence to the EU Commission suggesting that no virulent BTV6 virus strain has circulated and that positive test results could most probably be explained by the use of a modified live vaccine the temporary control zone was lifted.)
The BTV11 temporary control zone in Belgium was also lifted as of 5 March in a situation similar to that of the Dutch and Germans. No bluetongue clinical disease for either strain has been observed in the field or under experimental conditions.
The SCoFCAH statement
(It is unfortunate that some journalists have unwittingly reinforced farmers' fears about BTV6 and BTV11. The Cumberland News, for example, reported on March 13 that "BTV6" was "also circulating in Europe")

March 14 2009 ~ "one or two farmers had asked: should we bother to vaccinate..."

The Lowestoft Journal: "....Norfolk farmer Roger Long, who has been at the forefront of the vaccination campaign, said this week:
"I think that farmers are more conscientious in this region, but I worry whether there is a degree of complacency creeping in...The vets are now getting the new vaccine. Make sure that you've got your order with your vet and get the job done as soon as possible."
....David Ball, who runs Norwich Livestock Market and farms near Southwold, had just given all his out-wintered cows a bluetongue vaccine booster. "We vaccinated 325 in one day and checked tags and then re-checked..."

March 13 2009 ~ French farmers warned that vector activity has resumed

The French Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has issued a note that marks the end of the vector free period (March 11) and warns of the resumption of surveillance and protective measures against insects. "La présente note a pour objet de vous informer de la reprise de l'activité vectorielle et de ses conséquences en terme de gestion des foyers, de surveillance sentinelle et de mesures de désinsectisation."
Meanwhile, in Cumbria, the Cumberland News reports that, in spite of the urgent arguments of Jakob Pustjens (see below) who has just visited Longtown and Carlisle, there are still farmers who - even now - are reluctant to vaccinate. One farmer, who is well aware that some farmers are looking for reasons not to vaccinate is quoted: "I think the Government should make it compulsory."

March 11 2009 ~ Scots are no longer importing animals susceptible to Bluetongue

The Farmers Guardian reports that they are " turning their backs on imported animals in a bid to keep the country free of bluetongue" New figures from the Scottish Government that confirm no susceptible animals were imported into Scotland during January and February - compared to 67 in the first quarter of 2008.

March 10/11 2009 ~ EU Bluetongue vaccines show a "good safety record"

See www.emea.europa.eu/pdfs/general/direct/pr/5679409en.pdf
"A European Medicines Agency (EMEA) review of field safety data provided mainly by Member States from the 2008 emergency vaccination campaign against bluetongue disease has shown a good safety record for the vaccines used across the EU Member States during that period. Overall, the frequency of adverse drug reactions was very low (< 1:10 000) and the results support the continued use of inactivated bluetongue vaccines in the 2009 vaccination programme."
See also "An overview of field safety data from the EU for Bluetongue virus vaccines serotype 8 emerging from the 2008 national vaccination campaigns" www.emea.europa.eu/pdfs/vet/press/pos/65201908en.pdf Extract "..... taking into account the extremely high number of vaccine doses used the frequency of adverse reactions is always "very rare". Overall the pharmacovigilance data provided by the MS demonstrate a good safety record for all vaccines used during the 2008 vaccination campaign."

March 9 2009 ~" the public are not aware of these regional breeds and their significance in defining our countryside..."

Professor Diana Bowles, founder of the Sheep Trust, hopes a new study will " kick-start new protective initiatives" from DEFRA for "heritage breeds". Unlike rare breeds, which have legal protection, heritage breeds - defined as genetically distinct, geographically concentrated and adapted to their environments - are not considered by the law as endangered.
The Sheep Trust was the organisation that helped to conserve sheep breeds threatened with extinction in 2001 and the genetic resources of Heritage Sheep Breeds are not protected by any other organisation. The Sheep Trust has, for the first time, mapped 16 heritage sheep breeds across the country using state-of-the-art modelling technology and a detailed flock census. Breeds that tend to be concentrated within one area could, unless properly protected by vaccination, suffer devastating losses from an outbreak of a disease such as bluetongue. The Farmers Guardian on Friday said, "Apart from encouraging Defra to intervene, Prof Bowles said it was imperative to develop markets to secure the long-term future of heritage breeds... their significance in defining our countryside...we need the public to be asking for these breeds and we need to work with supermarkets to supply them."

March 8 2009 ~ MP Geoffrey Cox is calling for all livestock farmers to take advantage of the next few weeks and vaccinate their animals against Bluetongue before the warmer weather sets in.

The MP for Torridge and West Devon is quoted by the North Devon Gazette "During 2008, I and many others campaigned vigorously for the Bluetongue vaccine to be available to farmers in Devon and also for a coherent policy on Bluetongue movement restrictions. It would be devastating to see a rise of cases during 2009 and I urge all livestock farmers to take note of the JAB campaign and get their animals vaccinated against this disease."

March 6 2009 ~ JAB 2009 says, "Take advantage and vaccinate your animals before turning them out to protect them from the threat of bluetongue."

Merial, Intervet and Fort Dodge vaccines are still available. Extract from the joint statement from JAB (see JAB associations )
"In 2008 we were very fortunate not to see a re-emergence of the bluetongue virus in England, while France reported a dramatic increase .... we cannot over-emphasise the threat that still hangs over us from this disease. ...there is a very real risk bluetongue could circulate again in the UK in 2009, either as a result of wind-borne incursion or through animals legally brought into the UK from the Continent...
We must not forget the severe economic hardship bluetongue caused the farming community when it first hit our shores in 2007. Vaccination remains the only effective tool to protect susceptible animals..."
Read in full (new page as usual)

March 5 2009 ~" investigations suggest that no virulent BTV6 virus strain has circulated in the Netherlands or Germany"

ProMed's most recent update quotes from the EU DG SANCO - SCFCAH Website. The report strongly implies that the limited appearance of bluetongue strain, BTV6, and Belgium's BTV11 - neither of which has been shown to be virulent nor circulating - is very likely to have been caused by the use of a modified live vaccine. (see also below) As we also note below, Europe uses only inactivated vaccines and safety issues are not a concern. Attenuated live vaccines used elsewhere are highly effective - but certain safety issues have sometimes been raised. More detail

March 4 2009 ~ "One in four livestock producers are unlikely to vaccinate against bluetongue this year.."

An alarming report by Johann Tasker in today's FWi following a recent survey: "....some 30% of beef and dairy producers are prepared to run the risk of leaving animals unprotected. As a result, vaccination levels are likely to fall far short of the blanket coverage needed to guarantee Britain remains bluetongue-free...... many producers failed to appreciate the risk posed by the disease to their businesses and the role of vaccination in preventing it from spreading more widely..... Some producers believed the risk of a bluetongue outbreak was so low they didn't need to vaccinate..." Read in full

March 3 2009 ~ Emerging diseases: "controlling them will take a co-ordinated European and international approach"

A Farmers Weekly article by Cedric Porter quotes Steve Dean, chief executive of the Vet Medicines Directorate, who said at a recent National Office of Animal Health conference:
".. The rapid spread of bluetongue has demonstrated the problems emerging disease can cause. When they were not protected by vaccines some sheep owners in Europe were seeing mortality rates of up to 20%.."
Mr Dean sees classical swine fever, bird flu, peste des petits ruminants, West Nile Virus and Rift Valley Fever as equally worrying threats and he considers that controlling them will take a co-ordinated European and international approach. The Farmers Weekly: ".... He also said the industry needs to develop a communication strategy to demonstrate the importance of using vaccines and preventative medicines. .."
UPDATE See also the article at redgreenandblue.org "Britain more Liable to Disease Threat as Foot and Mouth Laboratory Funding Disappears" - very critical of what it calls the "worryingly short-sighted approach" of DEFRA in pulling out of funding a revitalised Pirbright and the provision of field virologists to join the IAH team - an innovation that would have created "a holistic service, able to predict and respond to outbreaks of disease in human and animal populations." (More)

March 3 2009 ~ "Farmers just hadn't realised the true risk and severity of bluetongue disease"

Farming UK today brings home how effective Jakob Pustjens (see also below) has been in talking to farmers of his first hand experience of Bluetongue in Holland. His timetable for the rest of March: Week 2 - commencing Monday 9th March
Carlisle: Mon 9 March
Skipton: Tues 10 March - Lunchtime meeting arranged by CCM Auctions and Kingsway Veterinary Group
Newark: Wed 11 March
Longtown: Thurs 12 March
Hexham: Fri 13 March
Read in full
And Sarah Trickett in Farmers Weekly also reminds us today that
"Farmers should not be lulled in to a false sense of security thinking that the cold weather will have killed the midges capable of spreading bluetongue..."
and quotes Intervet/Schering Plough animal health vet manager, Alasdair King, who says, "It is likely some midge larvae and possibly adults too have survived February's cold spell. It only takes a few days of daily temperatures to average above 12C for them to start breeding to large numbers, with midges at their most active at 15-30C.....Insecticide use should form part of a management programme inclduing measures such as fencing of stream banks and removing midge breeding areas such as stagnant water and dung heaps" (Read FWi article in full.

March 2 2009 ~ Bluetongue vaccine - expiry date concerns

The BVA news release today quotes BVA President, Nicky Paull.: "The news, placed on the Defra website last Friday (27 February), that there will be no extension to the expiry date for bluetongue vaccines already in the supply chain "will come as a financial blow to some veterinary practices who have been left with stock that is now unusable." The release goes on to say that since "the veterinary profession rose to the challenge of delivering vaccine as swiftly as possible and last year's campaign was a great success, with no cases of circulating vaccine being reported during the course of 2008" now to find that the practices involved are going to be left carrying a financial burden not of their own making is totally unacceptable. Read news release in full.
Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian puts it more bluntly: "Farmers and vets to lose out as bluetongue vaccines expire" confirming that DEFRA will not be granting an expiry date extension to vaccines. He also quotes Nicky Paul: "The vaccine that is now stuck in the supply chain is due mainly to the delay in the vaccine roll out, and the BVA is extremely concerned that practices are going to be wary of getting their fingers burnt again this year" Read FG article. .

March 2 2009 ~ DEFRA's overall contribution to Bluetongue Virus research

On 27 Feb Tim Farron asked DEFRA how much the Department had spent on "research into a vaccine for (a) BVT1, (b) BVT8, (c) BVT6 and (d) all other strains of bluetongue disease in each of the last six years". The question was not answered clearly - but the "overall Bluetongue Virus research spend, of which some has been spent on molecular research over the last six years", is given in Hansard. Some might think it rather meagre.

March 1 2009 ~ Vaccine price rising by 25%?

We have received an email today from a farmer in Suffolk whose vet can get a batch of vaccine with an expiry date of June 2009 at the old price. The farmer has been told that the price of the new vaccine is going to increase by 25% - and wonders if others have heard of this steep increase. Comments to warmwell.com gratefully received.

February 25 2009 ~ "wind spread of infected midges to the UK is not unlikely this summer..."

"..Susceptible stock must, therefore, be vaccinated again this year. In the UK, we still only have vaccination against serotype eight, so we can only guard against other serotypes by maintaining vigilance for clinical signs of disease and being sensible when importing stock from abroad." Fwi today,, quoting vet David Feneley of Wensum Valley Vet Surgeons. His comments also look back to the visit of the German vet Dr Johannes Winkelmann, who was in the UK to address the National Sheep Association last October (see below). He had been very clear that farmers would face massive financial losses unless livestock was protected - and that 80% national coverage was essential.
"You must aim to have at least 80% of your livestock protected against bluetongue to stand any chance of controlling the disease. Annual vaccination must be vigorously maintained for several years before anyone can talk about possible eradication. Unless you set about this now you are putting your livestock industry at tremendous risk."
Dr. Winkelmann had "been at the forefront of Germany's bid to combat the spread of the disease" and he told the NSA that farmers were being "extremely naive" if they thought the UK was going to escape the effects of the bluetongue virus.

February 24 2009 ~"Alternative areas, such as antivirals, siRNA, interferon and nanotechnology, may be of future use in the control of Bluetongue.."

"..We give an overview of BT vaccines, starting from conventional to recent developments, and their feasibility in controlling BT infection..." This paper, by scientists at the Indian Veterinary Research Institute, comes from : Expert Rev Vaccines. 2009 Feb;8(2):191-204. It is available as an abstract fromPubMed
"...Differentiating infected from vaccinated animals (DIVA) is theoretically possible with inactivated vaccines but has not yet been developed, whereas the attenuated live vaccines are not candidates for DIVA. Attenuated live vaccines are efficacious but safety issues are of great concern. (warmwell note: Europe, of course, uses only inactivated vaccines and safety issues are not a concern) New-generation vaccines (subunit, virus-like particles, core-like particles and vectored) can be employed for DIVA. Recombinant vaccines, which generate cross-protection against multiple BTV serotypes, have great potential in BT vaccine regimens. Furthermore, new-generation vaccines are safe and efficacious experimentally, but large-scale field trials are warranted."
Read abstract

February 22/23 2009 ~ Bluetongue in Norway. "This is not a current outbreak."

ProMed Mail, after quoting the Forbes report below, gives links to the maps showing the temporary restriction zones in Norway. Moderator AS comments:
"Though no further details are available, it may be assumed that the animals, detected now as infected, are either imported animals or local animals infected during the previous season -- namely between June and November 2008, and that the virus involved is BTV-8. This is not a current outbreak. Exact details are awaited, however, and a detailed notification to the OIE is anticipated.
The Norwegian Food Safety Authority has published notifications on the event on 20 and 21 Feb 2009. According to the maps included in the said notifications on the Web site of the Norwegian food safety agency, the affected farms are located at the south western tip of Norway. ..."
Read ProMed

February 20/21 2009 ~ First case in Norway

Forbes "The Norwegian Food Safety Authority says the country's first cases of bluetongue infection have been detected in two cattle herds..."

February 19 2009 ~ "good news for Merial and industry professionals throughout Europe who have put their faith in vaccination as part of the strategy to control bluetongue."

The European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Veterinary Use (CVMP) has adopted a "positive opinion for a marketing authorisation under exceptional circumstances" towards Merial's bluetongue vaccine BTVPUR AlSap 8. It is one of Merial's range of inactivated and purified bluetongue vaccines. The CVMP's positive opinion opens the way for Merial to receive full EU marketing authorisation. See www.foodeast.com"Thanks to mass vaccination the number of cases of bluetongue was dramatically reduced in several countries. BTVPUR AlSap 8 is licensed for use in both cattle and sheep. It is important that BTVPUR AlSap 8 has been recognized as preventing viraemia, thus limiting the spread of bluetongue thereby allowing safe trade. This is exactly what the EU is seeking."

February 19 2009 ~ Extending date of expiry in unused vaccine stocks

Farmers Weekly today: "... Farmers should plan their vaccination strategies with their vets immediately to ensure protection against the disease.....Jules Dare of the Westpoint Vet Group told the meeting that DEFRA and the vaccine manufacturers were in discussions about extending the expiry date of these packs.
"So long as the seal hasn't been broken and the vaccine has been refrigerated, there shouldn't be a problem with extending the dates."
... discussions were ongoing to allow preventative vaccination against other strains. "This should allow the UK to protect against BTV1 in due course, depending on the risk level of the disease spreading here."
Reminding farmers present of the symptoms, Mr Dare said suckler herd managers should look out for cows with sunburnt udders. "It appears that bluetongue hypersensitises the udder to sunlight, meaning the outside of the udder burns easily, while the rest of the udder remains fine. Cows suffering like this will be reluctant to allow calves to suckle."
Mr Dare also said farmers needed to check which vaccine they would be using, as three were available, all with different specifications.... "Merial's, product BTV Pur 8, can only be given to stock more than three months old and Fort Dodge's vaccine, Zulvac 8 Bovis, is only licensed in cattle and can only be given to stock more than 2.5 months old. Prices for the three products will also vary and all have to be used within eight hours of the seal being breached." Read the FWi article in full. It gives specific advice about timings of vaccinations.

February 16 2009 ~ 8 cattle holdings infected with Bluetongue serotype BTV-11 in Belgium

Since we first reported on Feb 6 the finding of BTv11 in Belgium, it seems that 7 additional cattle farms have been discovered in the provinces of Flemish Brabant, Antwerp and Limburg where the same variant of bluetongue is present. From www.favv-afsca.fgov.be (Dutch) ".... In cooperation with the European Commission, the Belgian Reference Laboratory CODA and the European reference laboratory in Pirbright (United Kingdom) the Food Agency's investigations continue to determine the precise extent of the problem and whether - as suspected - a non-harmful vaccine virus is present. This presumption is not only supported by a limited genetic analysis (of the virus), that shows a great similarity with a vaccine strain used in Africa, but also by the properties of the BTV-11 virus found , which caused no clinical problems. Up to date only a very limited number of holdings is infected and at any of these farms only one or two infected animals showed. ..." A large temporary control zone has been set up around the affected farms and all animals intended for trade and kept in this temporary control area or which left this area after 1 November, 2008 and held elsewhere , have to be sampled within 7 days (before departure) and tested for BTV 11. Animals will only be accepted for trade when the results of the laboratory is favourable. If investigations show that the strain is non-pathogenic, restrictions -after consultations with the European Commission- will apparently be lifted.

February 13 2009 ~ There may not be a midge in sight but now is the time to start thinking about protecting stock from bluetongue

Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian today (read article) explains that it was owing to the 80 per cent of farmers in the south of England, who chose to vaccinate their stock, that Bluetongue disease was stopped in its tracks in the UK last Summer.
"But further north in England, uptake was alarmingly low and with the UK still at risk from the disease there are fears another year of poor uptake in some areas could see the disease return in 2009. ....there is a renewed impetus to encourage farmers to start vaccinating early and take advantage of the 12 million doses left over from last year's campaign..."
Tom Tupper, who runs 1,100 breeding ewes at Bignor in Sussex began vaccinating his heavily pregnant ewes this week. He is quoteed by the FG:
"We will also vaccinate the lambs at four to five weeks old. There should be some protection passed on by the mother but we are not sure how much and how long it lasts, so we will vaccinate."
(Read article)

February 13 2009 ~ Almost total coverage is essential - otherwise, while individual animals might be protected, the country will not be.

The 12 million doses held at veterinary wholesalers have already been paid for by DEFRA under the terms of last year's tender but DEFRA is not tendering this year. Some of the existing vaccine supplies will be out of date by the end of this month, with the rest due to expire at the end of June. Once it all runs out it is impossible to say what prices and availability will be.
The Smallholder says,
"With bluetongue vaccine costing around £25 plus vat for twenty doses, and in spite of the fact that the government urges farmers to vaccinate, it has made it clear that it is not likely to fund the bill for bluetongue vaccine next year. The vaccine, which does not keep once opened, makes vaccination very expensive for small producers as two shots have to be administered for effective protection..."
(One might comment that the price paid by infected sheep and their owners is high too. With the present voluntary campaign it is vital that farmers realise that almost total coverage is essential - otherwise, while individual animals might be protected, the country will not be.)

February 12 2009 ~ IAH says that the perceived value of Pirbright's bluetongue unit is £45m

From a new report into "The economic and social impact of the Institute for Animal Health.s work on Bluetongue disease (BTV-8)" (10 page pdf file)
".....While the cost of operating the IAH unit working on the BTV-8 disease amounts to less than £10m, the perceived value of their work...on the bluetongue disease from the British society's viewpoint is £45m. By preventing a major BTV-8 outbreak from affecting the UK.s agricultural sector, IAH and its partners contribute to protect British farmers from a potential £485m loss in their annual income, as well as to protect 10,000 jobs throughout the UK.s economy that would otherwise be lost.."
The BTV-8 unit carries out activities, elaborated upon in the report, into Research & vaccination, Surveillance & Diagnostics and Disease control. IAH also works with other laboratories in Europe involved in the study of the BTV including CIDC-Lelystad in the Netherlands, CODA-CERVA in Belgium, the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute in Germany and Afssa-Lerpaz in France. (Read pdf file in full)

February 11 2009 ~ BVA president, Nicky Paull, says Government leadership should rekindle vaccination momentum

A Farmers Guardian article, "Fresh call for bluetongue import ban as voluntary ban fails" today, quotes Nicky Paull - who praised the response to bluetongue last year, but said farmers needed to be shown more leadership for 2009.
"The threat from bluetongue still remains very real with vaccination the only effective protective measure. We need to look to leadership not only from the farming industry and the veterinary surgeons, who play a key role in that industry, but also from Government in rekindling the momentum at this crucial time in the control of the disease."
The article mentions the finding of a single case of "BTV11" in Belgium (we reported this on February 6th below) Our expert correspondent, Sabine Zentis, has sent the following comment:

February 11 2009 ~ BTV11 in Belgium - "This cow has tested positive for antibodies only and no virus has been discovered" Sabine Zentis.

She writes to warmwell.com: "This will make it extremely difficult to estimate the extent/mode of introduction of disease. To discover more cases, extensive surveillance would be necessary. I was wondering whether it could be possible that various strains of BT might have been lurking around for quite some time in Europe but have never surfaced to any extent (maybe due to non favourable climatic conditions?) prior to 2006 when BTV8 showed up on the radar screen.
Only after the widespread outbreak of BTV8 was awareness raised and diagnosis stepped up. Could this (BTV11) be a very old case of infection in one animal gone unnoticed? Who knows. As no virus has so far been recovered it is impossible to state that someone has used live vaccine and the absence of antibodies against other types of BTV in this cow doesn't support the theory of vaccination (see www.agriholland.nl : - the Belgians do not rule out illegal vaccination of the animal.)

February 11th 2009 ~ "cattle have been imported into the UK and subsequently found to be carriers of bluetongue, despite having been allegedly tested before shipping" -

Once again,we find the Scotsman's mention of "carriers" today a rather unfortunate and misleading use of the word. This column has discussed the concept of carrier to denote the possibility of an animal effectively vaccinated against Bluetongue being able to spread the disease to midges. As Sabine Zentis so clearly explained in December: " if the animal has been vaccinated according to the vaccine manufacturers instructions it can develop a very low level viraemia WHEN bitten by an infective midge. The PCR then is of course positive but this doesn't mean that the animal has enough virus to infect a midge.". And as Dr Anthony Wilson of Pirbright says in this column below:
"With an efficacious inactivated vaccine no viraemia should be seen at any stage - there should never be any live virus in the animal to multiply up.. inactive vaccine should not contain any live virus, so recrudescence could not occur in vaccinated animals."
He also confirmed that during the "vector-free" period the risk of onwards transmission is negligible
"but.. I suspect that most policy-makers would be nervous about saying that the risk is actually zero during this period."
See below

February 11th 2009 ~ Importers vilified - in spite of preparations and expert advice

No one would argue that irresponsible imports are selfishly dangerous - but when all possible safety checks have been made and expert advice taken, as in the case below, the publicising and consequent overreaction seems unfortunate. Dan Buglass in The Scotsman today reveals that it was the newspaper's own reporting of the importation of "a small consignment of pedigree Belgian Blue cattle" that led to distressing results for the farmers involved. Mr Ted Fox farms on the south side of the Cheviot Hills. Neighbours were furious when they read about the importing of the cows from Belgium - unaware of all the checks that had been made. Mr Fox rang The Scotsman to say,
"I would never do anything, and that includes importing animals, that could do damage to our great livestock industry. We took professional advice that included discussions with a government vet before we embarked on this project. We were assured that the risks were non-existent. The cattle we selected were tested and isolated before leaving Belgium with a similar procedure followed when they arrived in Northumberland. We wanted the best genetics available and paid accordingly for some excellent cattle."
The level of anger and abuse the farmers encountered suggests that many believe Bluetongue can spread if any foreign animal is imported, vaccinated or not, tested or not, isolated or not. Some journalists and farming unions seem to be emphasising the fear of so-called infected carriers from abroad - perhaps even at the expense of the urgent call for all livestock farmers to vaccinate. But an import ban alone - however well enforced - will not prevent the virus arriving nor protect their animals if infected midges reach the UK again. It seems all too likely that they must.

February 10th 2009 ~ "I can tell you it is a quite terrible illness that causes animals great pain.."

Farmers Weekly quotes the Dutch farmer, Jakob Pustjens, who addressed farmers at Welshpool Market in north Powys on Monday. Mr Pustjens said the disease cost his business £13,000 but he "got off lightly" compared with many other farmers near his farm in southern Holland. g "...He urged farmers not to follow farmers in northern Holland, who believed virus-carrying midges would not reach their units. By the time that livestock showed visible signs of the disease it was already too late for them, he said. Sheep in particular could not fight the disease and many died within a few days..." Read full article.

February 6th 2009 ~ Jakob Pustjens will spend Thursday at Thirsk auction mart describing his experiences to farmers and urging vaccination

His visit is part of a tour of English and Welsh livestock marts during February and March organised by Merial Animal Health and the Livestock Auctioneers Association. His own family farm at Nederweet in the south of The Netherlands has 100 Holstein Friesian dairy cows and 90 heifers. He is also an agricultural management consultant.
"In 2008 when the Dutch Government gave us the green light to vaccinate, we didn't have to think twice! My advice to farmers in the UK would be to vaccinate before bluetongue is diagnosed in their area otherwise it could be too late."
See www.darlingtonandstocktontimes.co.uk

February 6 2009 ~ New Bluetongue virus strain in Belgium- BTV11

A cow infected with serotype BTV-11 from a herd in East Flanders was sampled in November 2008 as part of a routine investigation. BTV1, BTV6 and BTV8 - the serotypes already in Northern Europe, were ruled out. www.favv-afsca.fgov.be (in Dutch) tells us that samples were confirmed at Pirbright in December. The view expressed is that "this finding has no immediate consequences. There is currently only a single infection involving only one animal . The investigation in November and again in the last month on the holding affected as well as the analysis of thousands of samples in the last year from all over the country, gave no indications that the BTV11 is effectively transmitted and spread by vectors. Only such virus circulation would be the key condition to declare an outbreak of bluetongue." We are very grateful to Sabine Zentis for the link and information.
(UPDATE. The information is now reported by ProMed with comment from moderator AS: "......Such an infection could have been caused by several theoretically possible modes, including the following: 1. Infected vectors (_Culicoides_). 2. Applied live attenuated BTV vaccine that includes BTV-11. 3. Injection of other biological(s) contaminated by BTV-11. ....".)

February 6 2009 ~ How far is "climate change" responsible for BTV in Northern Europe?

Stephen Higgs, a pathology professor at the Texas university of Galveston and professor Ernest Gould of Oxford University have written a paper in the February "Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene" They say that although arbovirus diseases (i.e. carried by arthropods such as mosquitoes, midges and ticks) can'tbe disassociated from the climate, many other forces play significant parts in new patterns of viral emergence. "There are some confounding factors here, in that infected but asymptomatic livestock are being moved around, and midges can be spread great distances quickly by the wind." All the same, they felt that climate change "may have contributed" to the spread of Bluetongue virus and that, since "some experts" predict average temperatures increase in certain regions of the world, "then species of arthropod vectors may disperse beyond their current geographic boundaries, and we need to be ready for the possibility that similar outbreaks could occur." See article at esciencenews.com

February 5 2009 ~ "...an isolated PCR test for Blue tongue may cost £30. However....."

Warmwell.com has received with gratitude this clear explanation from Dr Colin Fink at Micropathology Ltd about the costs involved in testing for Bluetongue : "A number of variables must be considered for any assessment of what is a reasonable charge for this service..." He explains a larger scale undertaking "could reduce the price considerably."

February 4 2009 ~ "PCR tests for bluetongue currently cost £30 a head before laboratory and veterinary charges are included"

(see farming UK article) It has been remarked before that the charges for bluetongue testing seem extraordinarily high. It would be useful to know how the cost is justified. Can anyone help?

February 3 2009 ~ "...you never think that bluetongue will affect you, until it does"

Many UK farmers are in the same position as Dutch farmers in 2006 when Bluetongue was first discovered there. FWi tells us today that Jakob Pustjens, a farmer from the south of The Netherlands, is going to attend several livestock markets in England and Wales, hoping to share his experiences.
"As a farmer you never think that bluetongue will affect you, until it does. Unfortunately, by the time that livestock show visible signs of the disease it's already too late to prevent it. I knew many farmers in the North of The Netherlands who thought the disease would be confined to the south and would not reach them. It did and they were left counting the cost.."
Mr Pustjens goes on to say that one of his clients saw "average annual milk yield decline very quickly, from over 7500 litres to less than 6000 litres, while on another high-performing unit the average daily yield fell from over 40 litres to under 10 litres in less than a month. A quarter of the herd eventually had to be slaughtered." The markets involved in the programme in the first week are mainly in West England and Wales: ... Welshpool: Mon 9 Feb ... Shrewsbury: Tues 10 Feb ... Worcester: Wed 11 Feb ... Brecon: Wed 11 Feb - Evening meeting 7pm ... Thirsk Thurs 12 Feb ... Lancaster Fri 13 Feb
Week 2 begins Monday 9th March and will be in the North of England. Link to article.

February 3 2009 ~ When Bluetongue returns there will be a shortfall of 16.3 million doses of vaccine to protect all livestock in England

With 12 million doses left on shelves, DEFRA made the decision not to tender for further supplies for 2009. In December, Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian reminded farmers that "there are fears vaccine manufacturers could divert supplies to Europe where governments are already guaranteeing orders for 2009. He quoted David Bartram, a vet at vaccine manufacturer Fort Dodge, who said there was 'potential' that guaranteed orders in Europe could leave England running short in the event of an outbreak. The article concluded that "The latest figures presented at a recent meeting of EU vets shows the uptake in some parts of England was as low as 26 per cent, while Wales had a total uptake of just 25 per cent."

February 2 2009 ~ Scotland's compulsory vaccination campaign is working

DEFRA's given reason for not making vaccination compulsory was that "individual farmers are best placed to make decisions based on their own assessment of the economic and welfare benefits of vaccination" - ( a most uncharacteristic - and unrealistic, alas - vote of confidence). DEFRA said a compulsory scheme would have to be overseen by vets, adding significantly to costs and slowing the delivery of vaccine. Unfortunately, as many advised at the time, the decision could result in a low take-up in areas not yet alarmed - and we have now seen this in Wales and the North where individual farmers there have widely ignored the economic and welfare benefits of vaccination. Stocks of unused vaccine that will soon be out of date (see below) are languishing in the "supply chain".
Scotland's decision to make vaccination mandatory ensures full coverage of sheep and bovines, and still allows owners to vaccinate their own stock. What's more, the Scottish Government meets the costs of surveillance, monitoring and enforcement and contributes 50% of the total manufacturer's cost of the vaccine (at a cost to itself of £2.6 million) There are random spot checks and a monitoring of uptake - and the campaign seems to be going very well

February 2 2009 ~ "anything less than 80 per cent of livestock protected against bluetongue means we will not control the disease."

In England, we have a campaign that has seemed to some to have lost its way, surveillance that is considered by many to be inadequate and a lack of informed leadership that inspires anything but confidence in anyone. As Jane King, editor of Farmers Weekly, says here: "The Germans think we are crazy not to protect our livestock. They argue that annual vaccination must be vigorously maintained for several years before anyone can talk about possible eradication and that anything less than 80 per cent of livestock protected against bluetongue means we will not control the disease."

February 1 2009 ~ No complacency from those who have seen the effects of Bluetongue

In the UK BTV8 could be stamped out if vaccine uptake were good - but the 2009 campaign will again be a voluntary one. 80% plus coverage would guard against BTV8 coming in from mainland Europe - but that needs everyone to take the threat seriously. There has been so little mention of Bluetongue recently in the UK that farmers can hardly be blamed if they doubt the risk to their livestock; there will be no advance ordering by DEFRA this year, there are vaccine stocks remaining unused (see below), there have been idiotic rumours about abortion, (now scotched by the NFU) and a reluctance on the part of all (except the farmers who have seen enough to want to protect their animals) to spend money on a campaign that is voluntary anyway.
In East Anglia, the South East and the West Country, where the dangers of BTv have been taken seriously, vaccine take-up has been excellent - but elsewhere farmers are either ignorant or else prepared to take ridiculous risks. Unfortunately, the unused Intervet vaccine expires on February 28th, (20ml bottles), or March 31st, (50ml bottles). This is a blow for those farmers who do want to protect their animals and would prefer to vaccinate in April. Merial vaccine, we understand,expires on June 30th.

January 30 2009 ~ Importers should bear the cost of bluetongue testing, says NFU

At present of course, it is DEFRA that pays for the testing of imported animals - but government cost sharing plans aim to pass the cost on to farmers. Kevin Pearce, the head of food and farming at the NFU, thinks it would be wrong for farmers to have to pay on behalf of the few producers who import animals from areas of Europe at risk from bluetongue - and the union remains absolutely opposed to government cost-sharing plans.See FWi

January 29 2009 ~ The NFU in Wales has scotched the rumours that Bluetongue vaccine can cause abortion

Farmers Weekly reported last week that Estyn Jones, chairman of NFU Cymru's Brecon and Radnor branch, said that the scanning of results from flocks in two Welsh counties with the highest concentration of sheep suggests the vaccine has no impact on sheep miscarriages - indeed the results show that abortion levels have been particularly low in vaccinated ewes.

January 20 2009 ~ PLAPROVA - Animal disease vaccines from plant proteins

A project named PLAPROVA - which consists of a consortium of 11 partners based in the EU, Russia and South Africa, aims to use "transient expression" technologies to "express particulate antigens" in plants in order to produce practical vaccines from plants. The project will run for a total of 35 months. It might well eventually produce effective vaccines against bluetongue and other farm animal diseases more quickly and cheaply than present methods can.
www.farminguk.com reports: "..Overall project coordinator Prof. George Lomonossoff said, "... this international cooperation is central to the success of the project in battling diseases that affect us all.
.....the consortium will concentrate on diseases of importance to farming in both the EU and Russia, which includes avian influenza, blue tongue, foot and mouth disease and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome. Proteins identified through this screening programme will be developed for large-scale production and ultimately low-cost production of effective vaccines."

January 18 2009 ~ Ramsak helps with vaccination drive.

Chris Smith, a field officer at the Ring of Agricultural Machinery in Sussex and Kent (Ramsak), is quoted by Thanet news
"....Ramsak is a rural network that has a large number of members across the South East who contact us when they need help in organising a specific job. A lot of farmers needed help with vaccinating their livestock against bluetongue, so we were able to point them in the right direction and get the right people to protect their sheep and cattle..." Visit www.ramsak.co.uk for more information on the services the group provides.
90% of farmers in the East and South East voluntarily vaccinated their animals last year. The paper reminds us that all animals that were vaccinated (against BTV8) in 2008 need just one booster jab this year - but cattle not vaccinated should receive two inoculations this winter, sheep just one.

January 17 2009 ~ Vaccine against BTV1?

With the Bluetongue serotype 1 as close as Brittany - and with animals testing positive for BTV1 imported in December - farmers may well be worrying about the availability of BTV1 vaccine if the eventual need arises to vaccinate against BTV1 as well as BTV8 - as all livestock farmers in France are now required to do. Fort Dodge's mass vaccination campaign with Zulvac 1 is progressing throughout France and they are working on licences for a number of other European countries - including the UK.However, as we know, DEFRA is not planning to tender for supplies. (see below).

January 16 2009 ~ Bluetongue serotype 8 in Italy and urgent movement restrictions in Sardinia

Report at the OIE WAHID interface shows a confirmed outbreak of BTV8 close to the French border in the Piedmont region.
The Italian website www.libero-news reports that urgent measures against bluetongue are being adopted in the Province of Olbia Tempio in Sardinia after results on 6 cattle and 2 goats in came back positive for BTV8 on January 5.

January 12 2009 ~ Western Isles: Crofters call for vaccination to be voluntary as it is in the Shetland Islands

The Western Isles petition reads (extract):
... Due to the remoteness the Shetland Islands asked for a derogation and were allowed to vaccinate voluntarily. There is a possibility that we in the Western Isles could also have this choice."
The Stornaway Gazette asks Should the Western Isles take part in the bluetongue vaccination programme on a voluntary basis? Replies so far:
72% Yes, 19% No and 9% Don't Know
(But it was pointed out that the question was so ambiguously phrased that many who voted "Yes" thought they were voting for vaccination. The results seem now to be reversing.) Vaccination in Scotland against BTV8 has been compulsory since November 3 2008, when Scotland automatically became a Protection Zone. Producers there have until April 30 2009 to vaccinate all cattle and sheep - or face a possible fine of £5000. However, the Shetland Islanders were given the derogation that they "may" vaccinate (see Bluetongue Order 2008 pdf)
The question of the BTV1 strain - just over the Channel in Northern France - remains a worry. Vaccination against both strains is now compulsory in France and all France is now both a BTV8 and BTV1 Protection Zone. New rules would allow the UK to vaccinate against the BTV1 strain without proof that the virus was circulating (The "vaccination without circulation zone" is to be referred to as the Blue Zone in the new, more rational EU rules.) - if there were only BTV1 vaccine available in the UK. As for BTV6, there is still no news of its likely progress nor its source.

January 6 2009 ~ No news on DEFRA bluetongue page since December 19

- although the relevant page was updated yesterday to repeat the number of confirmed premises affected by Bluetongue (BTV8) in England and Wales as currently standing at 149. The big chill throughout the UK and Northern Europe will at least have caused the midges to cease activity for a while.

January 4 2009 ~ "Epidemiological investigations into the Dutch and German BTV-6 outbreaks are still continuing..."

..was how DEFRA reported on BTV6 in its BTv update of November 14 2008 (pdf file) It seems, however, that there is no news yet on the possible source of this strain of the virus. Following the new rules, exports from the Dutch inclusion zone to third countries are now possible (see below), provided the country that wants to import is prepared to accept the possible risks.
According to part of the most recent ProMed posting on Bluetongue (Dec 14)
"BTV-6 seems to be widespread in the Netherlands. It remains unclear whether the BTV-6 is vaccine virus, a vaccine virus that has regained virulence, or a field virus. Several studies need to be verified, full results are expected during the course of December 2008...." Read ProMed posting in full
We understand that if BTV6 could be declared to be a weakened vaccine virus, restriction measures would no longer need to apply. It seems that CVI Lelystad type 6 tests on animals have shown that this strain of the virus does not cause symptoms - but no other news seems yet to have emerged during the course of December 2008 into the possible origin of BTV6.

December 19 2008 ~ All the progress we have made could be reversed...

Jack Davies' message in the Farmers Guardian is very clear: "The UK is still at risk from bluetongue, and if disease does hit then the results could be catastrophic, reversing the progress made this year in keeping it at bay."
However, he adds, Defra's "reluctance to fork out for more vaccine" is perhaps understandable since there are still 12 million doses left on the shelves
"Whether blame lies with the farmers who chose not to vaccinate, or with an overly optimistic industry which ordered too many vaccines, the fact is the farming industry could lose out heavily in the long run. Protecting against disease is a lucrative business, and it is now up to individual farmers - in England and Wales - to show the manufacturers there is a viable market here in the UK..."
It is to be hoped that farmers who read the FG will act on his advice; that they get vaccines in early and show the vaccine manufacturers they want to get on top of the disease, will soon follow the market. "Without that," he says, "vaccines will be shipped to more willing European farmers while the industry looks on, praying the disease doesn't rear its head in 2009."

December 18 2008 ~ More bluetongue in Austria

The French newspaper, Le Figaro, reports today that nine new cases of BTV have been found in cows in the eastern part of the province of Haute-Autriche. This brings the number of infected animals in Austria to 11. The Austrian agency for animal health (AGES) considers these new cases as forming part of a "secondary epidemic" and are waiting to see if other animals in the same area show infection in the next few days.

December 18 2008 ~12 cattle near Crewe test positive for BTV8

Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian reports today
"...The infections... were discovered following routine post-import testing and will raise serious questions about why farmers in England are continuing to import from high risk areas on the continent.
The latest case comes as Defra came under growing pressure this week in the House of Lords to ban imports from areas on the continent where disease is circulating. Liberal Democrat peers this week urged Ministers to introduce emergency import restrictions to prevent a 'catastrophe' following the discovery of BTV1 on a farm near Blackpool last month.
Lord Tyler, a former agricultural spokesman in the House of Commons accused the Government of 'dithering' while Lord Livesey of Talgarth warned there could be serious repercussions if the issue is not tackled.
He said: "To avoid a catastrophe it is essential that action should be taken now to prevent imports of live cattle and sheep into the UK, which I believe would be a disaster for farming livestock systems in the UK."
Lords Hansard page here. DEFRA website here.

December 18 2008 ~ Lord Livsey of Talgarth asked whether the government would introduce emergency legislation to prevent the live import of susceptible animals

In view of the latest case of imported animals testing positive for Bluetongue, it is ironic that it was only on Monday that Lord Livesey of Talgarth had made another plea for legislation
"... I am aware of what the Minister said about EU rules, but to avoid a catastrophe it is essential that action should be taken now to prevent imports of live cattle and sheep into the UK, which I believe would be a disaster for farming livestock systems in the UK. Is it not now essential to act and persuade the European Commission to give us permission to do this?"
Lord Tyler added,
"..will the Minister confirm that the British Veterinary Association pointed out last week that this form of bluetongue, serotype 1, is not susceptible to any licensed vaccine? Is that not a particular reason for taking action now? Does he recognise that those of us with farming neighbours and constituents who suffered the devastation of foot and mouth, and before that BSE, believe that this looks like the Government dithering and delaying?"
Read Hansard extract in full

December 18 2008 ~ The Times publicises a radio programme on BBC World Service "One Planet -The Battle Against Bluetongue "

at 10.30am, 4.30pm, 8.30pm, 1.30am. See The Times. We are surprised to read "There is, as yet, no reliable preventive vaccine" and alarmed by the tenour of the ending of the review
"...Susie Emmett investigates what is being done to combat the disease in Europe and fend off a potentially devastating continent-wide epidemic. She meets farmers, scientific researchers, and the veterinarians and farmers' leaders behind a campaign to inoculate every farmed animal at risk in Western Europe - with a vaccine that may not work."
Such writing can surely only further confirm a reluctance to vaccinate. After years of being told that vaccination against FMD is bad for business and the misapprehension that Foot and Mouth vaccine "doesn't work", vulnerable listeners are going to be told that bluetongue vaccine "may not work"? One can only hope that the preview does not accurately reflect the general message of the actual programme. Read in full

December 17 2008 ~ Guaranteed vaccine orders in Europe could leave England running short in the event of an outbreak

The National Sheep Association chairman, Peter Morris, is quoted in Jack Davies' article in the Farmers Guardian today. He said the 12 million doses remaining in the UK this year would be enough for 'preventive vaccination' but would leave farmers short on supply if there was an outbreak. An additional 16.3 million doses is needed to protect all livestock from an outbreak in England
FG: "And with no firm order from Defra, there are fears vaccine manufacturers could divert supplies to Europe where governments are already guaranteeing orders for 2009, potentially leaving farmers in England short on vaccine." The FG adds that the "latest figures presented at a recent meeting of EU vets shows the uptake in some parts of England was as low as 26 per cent, while Wales had a total uptake of just 25 per cent."

Tuesday 16 December 2008 ~ No tender for vaccine in 2009

The Farmers Guardian's Jack Davies writes
"DEFRA has confirmed it will not be issuing a tender for bluetongue vaccines for 2009, but will instead open it up to the free market."
About 12 million doses still remain in the UK because in some areas the uptake has been low. The FG says that it will now "be up to manufacturers how much additional vaccine is released into the marketplace".
The problem has always been - as we have said several times before - that, having the learnt the hard way from having made CSFG vaccine that was subsequently never bought, vaccine manufacturers will not rely on chance. They need to know that they are guaranteed orders and payment in full. Since other EU countries are going to tender this could mean that the UK finds itself at the end of the queue.

Monday December 15 ~ Bluetongue round-up on latest ProMed posting.

The ProMed posting, which gives the position in affected Member States from the presentations given on Dec 2/3 (European Livestock and Meat Trading Union (UECBV) - Animal Health Update ) cannot give the most up to date figures - which have been rising disastrously in France for both strain 8 and strain 1. The ProMed posting today includes a translated article from the French (Proceedings of the French National Institute for Agricultural Research) showing just what a devastating effect Bluetongue is having in France, the worst affected of the Northern European countries.

Dec 15 ~ Vaccination starts in Southern Sweden for all farmed ruminants

We understand that the Svenska Bla Stjärnan (Swedish Blue Star) has been officially given the task of educating its members to help during crisis situations. In order to ensure that coverage is adequate to stop the spread of the virus, the Swedish Agriculture Administration is paying for Blue Star helpers who will accompany vets to carry out vaccination on all susceptible farms. A young Swedish blogger says, "We work in teams of two and drive around in a car to different farms."
This seems an admirable model that might well be copied elsewhere.

Saturday December 13 2008 ~ Austria - a two-month-old calf with no clinical symptoms tests positive for bluetongue

Its mother had not been vaccinated. Vaccination will be compulsory in the whole of Austria from December 15. See AFP

December 12/13 ~ "inactive vaccine should not contain any live virus, so recrudescence could not occur in vaccinated animals, only in those which were naturally infected and had since recovered..."

Continuing the discussion on the misuse of the word carrier to denote the possibility of an animal effectively vaccinated against Bluetongue being able to spread the disease to midges, Dr Anthony Wilson sends a few more thoughts in this email - including clarification about his apparent disagreement with Sabine Zentis below
"....I think I misread your original post. If you get what is called 'sterile immunity', this means that the vaccine stops any virus from circulating. There are then degrees of vaccine efficacy; at one end, a vaccine may reduce virus circulation so that the virus will never reach high enough levels to be transmitted onwards by midges; a vaccine at the other end may reduce clinical disease but onwards transmission may still be possible If you get what is called 'sterile immunity', this means that the vaccine stops any virus from circulating. I thought that you were suggesting that midge bites could stimulate the recrudescence of live virus in vaccinated animals. Some work conducted a few years ago here ....suggested .... "recrudescence" as a possible explanation for overwintering, and might yet turn out to be an important route for other strains... However, inactive vaccine should not contain any live virus, so recrudescence could not occur in vaccinated animals, only in those which were naturally infected and had since recovered.
The recrudescence paper was Takamatsu et al. (2003) The abstract can be found here. "A possible overwintering mechanism for bluetongue virus in the absence of the insect vector", Journal of General Virology 84: 227-235.

Friday Dec 12 2008 ~ The SCOFCAH proposals could overhaul the way the EU tackles bluetongue.

The proposals intend to distinguish between countries with active disease, countries where the virus is not currently circulating and areas where no virus has been detected.
Up until now it has been frustrating to say the least that vaccination could only happen in an area that is already infected - (shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted). The new proposals of pre-emptive vaccination mean that in the UK livestock would be able to beat the arrival of other strains by being vaccinated before the virus arrives - the whole point of vaccination. A Vaccination Zone could be established where it had been proved that no virus was currently circulating. The Farmers Guardian today says,
"It could also be the answer to reducing the risk of disease arriving on the back of imported animals, with tough new movement rules to be put in place for any of the new zones. Animals moving from disease areas such as in France, would only be allowed into the new vaccination zones if they had been vaccinated, followed by a 60-day waiting period. Therefore, if the UK was declared a vaccination zone, it would place tight restrictions on imported animals from France, Germany and Holland where disease was currently circulating." Read in full
Is anyone able to say how far the UK has got with licensing a BTV1 vaccine? We should be very grateful for informed comment.

Dec 12 ~ "potential hurdles in the way" - the cost of proper surveillance

John Mercer, the NFU's chief livestock adviser,is quoted by the FG
"To be a vaccinated zone you have to prove there is no virus circulating and we need to work out how we do that. There will have to be a surveillance programme put in place, and we have to work out exactly how we would do that and how far we would have to go to prove disease is not circulating.
"We also have to think about the costs tied to that surveillance programme, so there is still a lot of detail to be sorted out."
As usual, producers are concerned about gthe impact on trade. John Mercer says , "Any changes will see more lines drawn on the map, and that could bring with it implications for trade, so we have to establish exactly what they would be before anything can be implemented here." If only a part of the UK was designated a "vaccination zone" it could cut it off from the rest of the country and bring back movement restrictions.

Dec 12 ~ The threat from France

Jack Davies' article in the FG today also quotes Dr Chris Oura,
"A priority in the UK is to support France in its vaccination strategy. There is a lot of talk about creating buffer zones here and vaccinating pre-emptively but if we can eliminate, or really reduce the risk from France, then we would provide a great deal of protection for livestock keepers here in the UK."
The new EU proposals could help protect the UK by enabling France to create a buffer zone for BTV1 - already present in Northern France.

Thursday Dec 11 ~ "It is a pity that these decisions, particularly those covering the import of animals from areas where bluetongue is rife, were not made earlier in the year.."

As we noted below, the EU Commission is no longer discouraging protective vaccination campaigns outside the PZ and will allow restrictions on the trade of vaccinated stock moving from lower risk zones to completely disease free areas such as Scotland. As Stackyard.com says today
".The contents of the NBA petition (see above), which was circulated to the Scottish Government, MPs and MEPs was taken up strongly by Alyn Smith MEP who pressed for low-risk countries, lying outside bluetongue protection zones (PZs), to be able to distribute vaccine ahead of the actual arrival of the disease.
The Association is pleased these actions have been successful .."
Stackyard quotes Kim Haywood: "It is a pity that these decisions, particularly those covering the import of animals from areas where bluetongue is rife, were not made earlier in the year. However it is clear the Commission has reacted to the alarming spread of the disease across most countries in Western Europe and so those, like Scotland, which have yet to confirm the presence of the disease within their borders will be better able to protect themselves against the unwelcome arrival of diseased imports in 2009."

Wednesday December 9/10 2008 ~ "A positive PCR result indicates that viral RNA is present in an animal; it does not on its own indicate that active ("live") virus is present."

Once again we are very grateful to Anthony Wilson of Pirbright who, on the subject of the recent misuse of the word "carriers" writes to agree with Sabine Zentis (below) except that he says,
"the only point I would disagree with is the statement that vaccinated animals are capable of developing a viraemia when bitten by a midge. With an efficacious inactivated vaccine no viraemia should be seen at any stage - there should never be any live virus in the animal to multiply up."
He goes on to make clear that
"naturally infected animals which have recovered and cleared all active virus may still have traces of viral RNA in their bloodstream, and therefore demonstrate a PCR-positive test result, for up to six months.
The same is true for midges - a PCR-positive result indicates that fragments of viral RNA are present, but not necessarily active virus. A midge which ingests a viraemic blood-meal but is not "competent" will never become infected - virus will never spread beyond the gut walls - but traces of viral RNA remaining in the gut may cause it to show up as PCR-positive."
Dr Wilson explains that several papers have recently been published claiming that a species has been "confirmed" as a vector on the basis of a PCR-positive result (when in fact this shows only that the individual has fed on an infected animal - nothing about the potential for onwards transmission) This remnant of viral RNA has been a major cause of the current confusion over which Culicoides species are acting as vectors in northern Europe; The suggestion a few years ago that BTV might be able to spread vertically from adult midges to their offspring was based on a PCR-positive result rather than virus isolation. His recent overwintering review article can be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0060210 He confirms that during the "vector-free" period the risk of onwards transmission is minimised,
"but given the various findings during 2008 about secondary transmission routes and the possibility of vectors sheltering in animal housing I suspect that most policy-makers would be nervous about saying that the risk is actually zero during this period."
Read email in full

December 7 2008 ~ The term "carrier" is open to misinterpretation. A PCR positive result doesn't always mean the animal is infective for the midge

In yesterday's Scotsman we read "there have been several incidences of imported cattle and sheep being diagnosed as carriers..."
In this context the term "carrier" is misleading as it suggests that imported animals showing a PCR positive result can infect other animals. Only culicoides midges can infect other animals. The real meaning of carrier is for animals persistently infected. Warmwell.com is grateful to Sabine Zentis for this comment:
The animals imported will eventually clear the virus and whether they pose a threat is dependent on different factors:
1. a PCR positive result doesn't always mean the animal is infective for the midge and if the animal has been vaccinated according to the vaccine manufacturers instructions it can develop a very low level viraemia WHEN bitten by an infective midge. The PCR then is of course positive but this doesn't mean that the animal has enough virus to infect a midge.
2. the same can be said for animals that have been infected, lets say, in July and are imported in December. By then the antibodies should have cleard the viraemia and although the PCR gives a positive result this animal certainly don't pose a risk. It is possible to establish the status of an animal; this requires virus isolation or consecutive PCR blood tests to calculate the time of infection.
3. Without an active vector population (looking outside, I doubt there are any Culicoides around at the moment) these animals don't pose a risk, at least as long as no other, yet unknown ways of transmission are "invented".
This is not to say, of course, that we do not share the general worry about such imports that are unnecessary from areas where the various strains of virus are circulating.

December 5 2008 ~ EU Commission is urged to establish a European Bluetongue vaccine bank

Sabine Ohm of PROVIEH has, jointly with Neil Parish (Conservative MEP for the South West UK and Gibraltar) and Sabine Zentis, written a letter to Commissioner Vassiliou about a vaccine bank for BTV and they have given their kind permission for this to be publicised on warmwell.com. Extract from the letter from Neil Parish:
"....I would stress that more must be done to keep livestock farmers informed; more transparency is needed and it would be beneficial if the Commission could advise Member States accordingly...... I would urge the Commission to consider the possibility of establishing a vaccine bank, which would stock genetic material from all known serotypes of Bluetongue. This seed stock of serotypes could then be made available to contracted vaccine producers in case of any further outbreaks of Bluetongue. Vaccine production could thus be stepped up enormously and vaccine could be provided without delay, preventing the virus from spreading over vast territories and threatening many livestock holdings all over the EU." Read in full

December 5 2008 ~ Can the Commission explain why it is planning a vaccine bank for African Horse sickness but not for Bluetongue virus?

There are 24 known serotypes of Bluetongue Virus and seven (see FG) are already circulating in the EU. An EU parliamentary question is tabled to urge the development of an EU vaccine bank for BTV and ask the Commission to explain why it is planning a vaccine bank for African Horse sickness but not for Bluetongue virus. (See question)

December 4 2008 ~ Prionics offers the PrioCHECK(R) BTV DR, a diagnostic test that detects all 24 BTV serotypes known.

More information at www.zampbioworld.org "The new Prionics PrioCHECK(R) BTV DR can detect very low titers of anti-BTV antibodies already at post infection day 6 in sheep and at post infection day 7 in cattle. Infection detection dates were determined in a study conducted by the OIE Reference Laboratory in Pirbright, England, where experimentally infected animals were tested with the PrioCHECK(R) BTV DR at various days post infection. .. The new test is also highly suitable for vaccination programs that are applied to combat Bluetongue. The Prionics test can be used to identify immunized animals making it a useful tool for monitoring the success of these programs...."

December 4 2008 ~ " EU to rewrite vaccination and livestock movement rules" says Farmers Weekly

SCOFCAH seem to be saying that movement rules can be tightened up - but that this must not be seen as a mechanism to introduce a ban on imports.
Jonathan Riley and Nancy Nicolson, writing in the Farmers Weekly:
"...A meeting of the Standing Committee on Food Chain and Animal Health voted on 3 December for changes and details are beginning to emerge. It appears movement rules for importing livestock into the UK could be tightened up....certain areas of the EU would eventually be able to vaccinate animals while still allowing authorities to impose extra conditions on importing from zones where the disease was known to circulate.
.... some areas which have begun vaccinating will no longer have to freely accept stock from infected areas, as is currently the case..."
But, as the Farmers Guardian report below also makes clear, no one yet seems quite sure how this will work and how areas are to be defined. New vaccination zones will not become law for at least one month and perhaps for as long as two months.

December 4 2008 ~ Yesterday's EU decision brings pre-emptive vaccination nearer

Alistair Driver and William Surman write in the Farmers Guardian
".... Yesterday (Wednesday, December 3), the Brussels animal health committee agreed to allow new 'vaccination zones' where animals can be vaccinated, but the zones do not have to accept animals from infected areas elsewhere in the EU.... The changes may mean the UK, or parts of it, could, for instance, now declare a BTV1 vaccination zone even if no disease is circulating, while simultaneously restricting imports from areas where BTV1 is circulating, such as parts of France." Read in full
An NFU spokesman in Brussels is quoted: "This is a welcome movement in the right direction. We now need to look at exactly how we can implement the rules across the UK. If these rules had been in place two years ago we could have had pre-emptive vaccination against the disease and we may not (sic) have imported any bluetongue in the first place" (Odd - and worrying - use of the word "imported". It wrongly implies that it was imported animals rather than the arrival of infected midges that carried the disease to the UK.)

December 2 2008 ~ DEFRA's Bluetongue Control Strategy has been updated.

DEFRA says, "The revised Strategy reflects lessons learned since its original publication in August 2007, addresses new risks, and reflects the developing situation in continental Europe and associated risks of incursion of new serotypes. This replaces the original strategy which was first published in 2007." See updated Strategy file. (pdf) Page 31 of the 33 page document con tains a table which "identifies further considerations for some of the measures outlined in this control strategy when faced with multiple serotypes and in particular, opportunities to consolidate/combine controls."
Emailed comments very welcome.

December 1 2008 ~ SCOFCAH to discuss plans to re-vamp Europe's bluetongue controls tomorrow

Member States are anxious to impose import bans from areas where disease is currently circulating. The Standing Committee on Food Chain and Animal Health (SCOFCAH) in Brussels will - on Tuesday - discuss the idea that Europe could be split into four zones
• free areas
• vaccination zones with no disease circulating
• vaccination zones where virus is circulating
• virus circulation zones where there is no vaccination
Jack Davies' article in the Farmers Guardian says,
"SCOFCAH will also use the meeting to discuss the potential to allow preventative vaccination in disease free areas"
Using vaccination pre-emptively is the logical and rational thing to do - and it has been extraordinary that this has not, up until now, been allowed by the European Union.

November 30/ Dec 1 2008 ~ they 'know' because the labs are too secure that Bluetongue type 6 did not escape from the Central Veterinary Institute (Wageningen)

From the report of the Lelystad Symposium on Emerging vector borne viral diseases, kindly sent by Christine Bijl in the Netherlands, we learn that several of the speakers and researchers are still comparing the exact print of the BTV6 outbreak virus to the Onderstepoort-MLV ( monovalent live vaccine). "Only if they find an identical match on all parts will they say it came from an MLV-vaccine. And this could have been used by a keeper who prematurely wanted to protect his animals against type 1, using the SA-cocktail containing 1 and 6. And it could also be an illegal transport of animals from Israel, where they vaccinate against type 6, through Bulgaria and Rumania with its poor surveillance etc. It's doubtful if we will ever know the truth..." Read report in full.

November 30/ Dec 1 2008 ~ Report from the Symposium Emerging vector borne viral diseases - Lelystad, November 28, 2008

The Central Veterinary Institute at Wageningen is preparing for spread by insects of the so-called vector borne diseases. The symposium covered epidemiology and control of five important vector borne viral diseases,
• Bluetongue (BT)
• African horse sickness (AHS)
• West Nile fever (WNF)
• Rift Valley fever (RVF)
• Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF).
As the website points out, some of the emerging diseases can infect humans causing "serious health problems, frequently resulting in death".
Warmell.com is very grateful to Christine Bijl and ELA for this fascinating report.

November 27 2008 ~ "inactivated vaccines against BTV serotypes 1, 2, 4, and 8 should be currently available.....the industry needs EU coordination - Member States to launch a call for tender ... rapidly followed by confirmation of orders ..."

ProMed moderator, AS, in the posting 20081126.3725, says
"On 21 Nov 2007, the EU Health & Consumer Protection DG held a meeting in Brussels with 8 vaccine producers, addressing the availability of vaccines against bluetongue. According to the report (EU document D1/MCG/mb(07)D/412950), inactivated vaccines against BTV serotypes 1, 2, 4, and 8 should be currently available. ... Will BTV-6 vaccine be added to the arsenal? - Mod.AS]
The pdf file referred to, containing the conclusions of the meeting with vaccine producers, and a table showing "only a preliminary indication of the capacity for vaccine" can be found here.
Eight vaccine producers (Intervet, Pfizer, Fort Dodge, Syva, I.Z.S. Teramo, Calier, CZ Veterinaria, Merial, Ceva Santé Animal) were involved and the conclusions were:
• All companies attending the meeting are currently developing vaccines against Bluetongue and some of them are already producing against certain serotypes
• Vaccines producers provided assurance that they have enough production capacity to supply vaccines for mass vaccination in the EU against bluetongue (considering that the need might be up to 220 million doses of all serotypes of which 150 million doses for BTV-8 according to the preliminary estimates made by the Member States).
• In order to be able to provide the necessary amount of vaccines, the industry needs the Member States to launch a call for tender in the Member States. This must be rapidly followed by confirmation of orders such that production can be commenced given that the lag time between orders being received and product being delivered may be up to 6 - 8 months
• Vaccine producers asked for coordination between EMEA, DG ENTR and DG SANCO on the authorisation of vaccines suitable for mass vaccination (multistrain dossiers and requirements for bluetongue vaccines in emergency vaccination are already addressed in EMEA working documents).
Full pdf file It cannot be too strongly emphasied that Member States must both tender for and then confirm orders for vaccines so that the producers can make the necessary doses available as quickly as possible. Not surprisingly, the vaccine producers are calling for coordination within the EU.

November 27 2008 ~ ProMed posting on BTV1 in the UK and BTV-1 ex France, BTV-6 in the Netherlands

ProMed posting 20081126.3725 quotes the relevant Farmers Guardian article (see below), DEFRA page and also the Darlington and Stockton Times which quotes Peter Kendall and Peter Morris, both calling for a halt to all imports from countries where bluetongue strains are known to be circulating.
As usual, the moderator's comments are important. Extract:
The expressed frustration of the UK farmers, who are requested to refrain voluntarily from imports which are allowed according to EU existing regulations, is understandable. Those regulations date back to the pre-BTV era, when the whole of Europe was regarded BTV-free.
The introduction of BTV-1-infected animals into the Netherlands, UK (and, apparently, Belgium) is not surprising under such conditions: it is rather surprising that such cases are limited, reportedly, to these countries..... The over-wintering capacity of bluetongue in Europe has been clearly demonstrated during 2 winters; an enhanced vaccination effort is required before the next bluetongue season.... (read in full)

November 25/26 2008 ~ Pre vaccination blood tests should be undertaken by the exporter and insisted on by the importer

"From a diagnostic and virologist point of view," says Dr Ruth Watkins,
"when vaccinating cattle for possible export - (valuable animals that are special in some way) - blood samples should be taken and stored at the time vaccination is begun and then, three weeks after the second dose of vaccination, when it is known for sure that animals are going to be exported, a further blood sample should be taken. Both blood samples should then be tested for the presence of antibody and checked for bluetongue virus RNA1 and 8 or other serotypes.
While such tests might cost up to £100 pounds or so, the £1000s spent on pedigree animals and transport puts such a figure in perspective. A farmer gets no compensation for imported animals that are subsequently culled - but if such testing were done before animals are moved into the UK it would do much for the safety of movements and the reputation - and pockets - of both importers and exporters."
She adds ruefully, "Most farmers don't understand enough about testing. Rational virus diagnosis - i.e. using all the tests at your command - is not routinely practised and understood in veterinary medicine - but surely farmers would rather these tests were done." (phone conversation)

November 25/26 2008 ~ "Regarding the origin of the BTV-6 strain.. the "flower" route has yet to be ruled out, but is far from being confirmed.."

Warmwell.com is very grateful to Anthony Wilson of IAH Pirbright for an email clarifying what can and cannot be deduced from the sequencing work done so far. Extract:
"...There are therefore two possibilities - the virus escaped outside Europe and was then imported, or the virus escaped following vaccine use within Europe. While we cannot absolutely rule either of these scenarios out, BTV-6 does not occur in the same bottle of the SA vaccine as BTV-8, while BTV-8 does not occur at all in the Israeli vaccine; there would therefore be no reason why anyone would want to use a vaccine containing BTV-6 in the BTV-8 zone. ...
Secondly, we still do not know how BTV-8 got into northern Europe - there is no "smoking gun", but there are a number of possibilities (each relatively unlikely, unfortunately). The "flower theory" arose from the observation that many serotypes of BTV circulate in sub-Saharan Africa, and that cut flowers from these regions may be packed at night, under brightly-lit, open-sided buildings; these buildings are therefore qualitatively similar to the light traps we use to trap midges, but much larger. The packed containers are wrapped in polythene and chilled to keep the flowers fresh, and midges are capable of surviving for relatively long periods under cool conditions. This route has therefore yet to be ruled out, but is far from being confirmed."
The email is concise and clear. It should be read in full.
(An email just in from a UK vet says, "Whilst this (flower) route may only be theoretical, it is of interest to note early outbreaks in East Anglia were near trunk roads A12 & A14 which serve Harwich and Felixstowe. Harwich I know has Many Dutch Flower Lorries passing through.)

November 25 2008 ~ BTV1 in North West - reports from both Farmers Guardian and Farmers Weekly

Farmers Weekly says, "NSA chief executive Peter Morris told Farmers Weekly that the cattle, from an area of France currently battling strains one and eight, had been moved perfectly legally having been vaccinated against bluetongue strains one and eight 60 days before travelling to the UK. But, the cattle appear to have been infected with type one of the disease around the same time as they were vaccinated and showed low level viremia when post-imported tested by DEFRA.... it is believed the virus was present only at a very low level."
Jack Davies of the Farmers Guardian reports that these were pedigree cows imported from France - and that they have been killed:
"Chief veterinary officer Nigel Gibbens said: "Taking into account the epidemiological evidence and the consideration of the risk represented to British livestock, I have taken the decision to cull these animals."
Some might feel that - even if by a miracle female midges somehow managed to survive travel with them - the current cold weather makes the risk of spread impossible. Culling these pedigree animals might seem more of a public relations exercise for the ignorant than a necessary measure.
The DEFRA website has now been updated.

November 25 2008 ~ BTV1 is now in England, a farm in the North West, near Blackpool.

Warmwell.com has heard the alarming news that BTV1 has been discovered on a farm in the North West. We, like others, are waiting for more information. DEFRA has yet to confirm the discovery (7 pm) but we hope for official confirmation shortly.

November 25 2008 ~ Only a properly encouraged vaccination coverage can stop Bluetongue in its tracks - post import checks won't do it.

It is hard not to follow the progress of the DEFRA's attempts to protect our livestock from Bluetongue without feeling foreboding. As Professor Geoff Simm, - head of SAC Edinburgh's Sustainable Livestock Systems Group, and particularly concerned about the survival of rare breeds threatened by Bluetongue - said in July
" . Protecting biodiversity in our farm animals and crops is important to help us meet future challenges, including that of feeding the growing human population in a sustainable way. We also have important national and international obligations to do so....."Read in full
Without adequate vaccination coverage in farmed ruminants - and that really does have to approach 100% given the numbers of unvaccinated wild deer - there will be scant chance of stopping the virus when infected midges arrive. Official checks on the efficacy of the vaccination campaign are urgently needed. For DEFRA to speak of its "post-import tests on all animals imported from any area in continental Europe, for all Bluetongue serotypes" and that DEFRA is "working with experts and vaccine manufacturers to review preparedness for incursions of any serotype of Bluetongue" leaves out of the equation the vital fact that bluetongue is spread by midges. Infected animals do not infect each other. BTV1 and BTV8 are just across the Channel and to assume that the midges will not come into the UK as they did last year is surely irrational? Post import tests will not stop the midges. Only a properly encouraged vaccination coverage can stop Bluetongue in its tracks. .

November 25 2008 ~ What systems exist to monitor the prevalence of blue tongue disease throughout the UK? asked James Paice

(Hansard) In her written answer, Jane Kennedy replied that there were " a number of scanning and targeted surveillance measures" including "specific surveillance work" targeted at what she called ""higher risk areas" and the "post-import tests" for all bluetongue serotypes James Paice's next question [237133, worryingly and wrongly designated "Bovine Tuberculosis: Vaccination" by Hansard for the second time] asked "what systems are in place to establish (a) how many doses of BtV8 vaccine have been purchased by farmers from vets and (b) what proportion of them have been administered."
Jane Kennedy could only repeat that
"no definitive figures can be provided on the numbers of sales from veterinary practices to farmers, or the number of livestock actually vaccinated....sales data from the supply chain suggest enough vaccine has been sold to vaccinate around 60 per cent...." (Read Hansard)
For those aware of the effects of bluetongue and desperate that vaccination coverage must approach 100%, this might sound like the most languid complacency.

November 24 2008 ~ EFSA's attempt to assess risks linked to Bluetongue transmission during transit

The EU Commission's recent request to the European Food Safety Authority's Animal Health and Welfare Panel was to look at the risk of transmission of bluetongue when animals are in transit and the impact of different control measures in reducing spread. The objectives were
(i) to determine the factors that contribute to the risk of bluetongue transmission in transit as defined in Reg. 1266/2007, and
(ii) to evaluate the likely impact of different control measures in reducing the spread of bluetongue virus (BTV), including the appropriateness of treatment of animals and transport vehicles with insecticides or repellents.
EFSA's opinion can be read here - ( a summary can be seen at www.medicalnewstoday.com) However, EFSA seems to feel that in view of lack of data and " the difficulty of estimating parameters associated with vector biology" their conclusions about risk must remain somewhat vague.
"...data provided by the member states were not sufficient for the panel to be able to precisely assess the effect of the transit of animals during the "seasonally vector-free period" on BTV transmission." (www.medicalnewstoday.com)
One positive statement however was that "...with regard to the selection of animals to be transported, the available data indicates that vaccination may be more effective in reducing the risk of BTV transmission during transit than testing animals before transportation..."

November 23 2008 ~ "Due thanks MUST be given to researchers at Pirbright, who have done a fantastic job in unwravelling the conundrums that the appearance of BTV in Europe posed."

Warmwell.com is very grateful to Nick Clayton, the Honorary Secretary of the Goat Veterinary Society, who has kindly answered our request for any more information on the theory that BTV6 might have been spread by imported flowers. Extract from email:
"... Things move so fast that whatever any of us say at any time, is likely to be superceded within a few days!... The talk by Anthony Wilson, a specialist Epidemiologist from Pirbright, at GVS on Thursday, was highly illuminating. When BTV6 was first reported in Holland, it was thought "almost certainly", to be a live vaccine strain that had "escaped" - as can happen with live bluetongue vaccine. That theory was based on the closeness of the DNA typing of the strain to the one used in multivalent live vaccines in several parts of the world. The argument against that is that none of the other strains in the relevant vaccine had been found on surveillance.
According to Anthony, over the last few days, it is now thought that in fact the strain of BTV6 found in Holland and Germany, is a natural strain, imported from abroad. That has two implications. Firstly it could overwinter, as did BTV8 in 2006/7, and secondly, how did it get there. The common factor between the "import" of BTV8 and BTV6 is that virus carrying midges could have been imported with flowers from regions known to be infected with those strains of BTV, which are known to circulate where the flowers came from. Unless a more likely scenario emerges, that is as they say, the perceived wisdom."
Read full email. (The imported flower route remains a theory. It is one of several avenues to be investigated and there is no real question of confirmation for its having been the source of BTV6 in Northern Europe.)

November 22 2008 ~ "Not a single vet in the room could report a genuine side effect in cattle sheep or goats which was not subsequently explained by other disease or mishap."

The website Devonfinefibres.wordpress.com reports on the Goat Society ( GVS) Meeting last Thursday. It seems that goat owners have been extremely responsible about vaccinating even though, for goats, 6 monthly boosters are essential because of its relatively poor immune system compared to sheep. On the subject of vaccine performance and the threat from other strains:
"...Not a single vet in the room could report a genuine side effect in cattle sheep or goats which was not subsequently explained by other disease or mishap. There was good evidence that most rumours were spread initially by farmers who were looking for excuses not to vaccinate....
The next big threat to us is BTV1 which is now in Brittany... A vaccine is on the way but when and how is not yet known. The recent discovery of BTV6 in Holland (the same place as BTV8 was first found) has led to much work on the virus origins by the government laboratories. It now seems (and this is hot off the press from the government vets) that it and the particular type of BTV8 we have, were carried into Holland in cut flowers imported from Africa. Midges settle on the flowers in the opensided packing stations, are chilled in the refrigerators (apparently the BT midge can live for 3 months in the fridge in "suspended" animation) and then of course, released into Holland to infect cattle! International trade is good for the Kenyans etc but what about our livestock?..." Read in full
(We have heard the flower theory before and would welcome confirmation that this is now considered confirmed as the route of infection.)

November 21 2008 ~ Nigel Miller: "We need a UK-wide health policy and we need it now.".

Farmers Weekly reports that the NFU Scotland's Vice President wants all producers in the UK to ban imports from Northern Europe
".... To avoid the introduction of any strains, we require farmers to put in place a complete ban on the introduction of animals from Europe into the UK. .... to be truly effective, we also need Europe to bolster its legislation on bluetongue....producers in Scotland need to get behind the vaccination campaign. ...The newly launched Bluetongue Helpline, will also help ensure that Scotland gets this vital vaccination process right..."
See NFUS site (The Scottish Government Bluetongue Helpline number is 0845 155 3366)
One comment on the FWiSpace forum: "The Scottish government had the option to join in with a UK wide bluetongue policy at the back end of last year and chose not to and has spent the better part of 12 procrastinating on the subject of vaccination. Scotland won't be in any way vulnerable if all its farmers comply with their compulsory vaccination policy..." (Read in full)

November 20 2008 ~ "DEFRA remains alert to the spread of BTV-1..."

Hansard On Monday, Robert Key asked the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the risk of the BTV1 strain of bluetongue reaching the UK from France; and if he will make a statement.
Jane Kennedy replied: "... DEFRA remains alert to the spread of BTV-1 through France and monitors the risk carefully. In addition to the movement controls on animals from BTV-1 zones on the continent, implemented under EU legislation, DEFRA continues to conduct post-import tests on all animals imported from any area in continental Europe, for all Bluetongue serotypes. This means that all types of Bluetongue can be detected through routine testing. DEFRA (is)....working with experts and vaccine manufacturers to review preparedness for incursions of any serotype of Bluetongue."

November 20 2008 ~ Vaccination in the north of England "may be less than 40 per cent." - and over 5 million pounds-worth of BTV-8 vaccine remains unsold

Hansard Jane Kennedy continued
"...sales data from the supply chain suggest the overall uptake of vaccine across the whole of England is around 60 per cent. Sales data indicate that uptake in (a) East Anglia may be in the region of 80 per cent. or above, (b) in the south-west may be slightly lower than this, and (c) in the north of England may be less than 40 per cent."
When Robert Key asked how many unused doses of bluetongue vaccine there were in England; and what their value was, Jane Kennedy replied: "Out of 28 million doses purchased by DEFRA, approximately 12 million doses of Bluetongue serotype 8 vaccine remain in the supply chain (i.e. are not yet sold to veterinary practices). The value of this unsold vaccine is approximately £5,011,713. DEFRA are working with the farming industry and supply chain to plan for the use of existing stocks of vaccine to vaccinate animals ahead of the 2009 risk period."

November 20 2008 ~ East Yorks NFU "delighted with the way farmers have responded" - but questions remain

In spite of widespread concern that vaccination take-up has not been good enough to protect the country, we read in www.humberbusiness.com that officials from the York East NFU say there has been a good response to the rallying call that livestock farmers complete the vaccination programme before Christmas. Most animals have now been vaccinated, they say.
Unfortunately, DEFRA is not able to judge the percentage of vaccination take-up in the country. The worryingly low figure of 60% uptake represents the amount of vaccine recorded as having been delivered to veterinary surgeons; there are no accurate figures on actual usage on farms. As a correspondent writes, "This is the first 'test' of cost sharing and responsibility and raises the obvious question - is this the correct approach for a notifiable disease?"

November 19 2008 ~ EU proposals to permit vaccination in disease free areas

(The proposal is on the EU website as are presentations of Member States on the Bluetongue situation.)
http://ec.europa.eu/food/committees/regulatory/scfcah/animal_health/presentations_en.htm#12112008
The European Commission is to tighten movement restrictions in the wake of confirmation of BTV6 in the Netherlands. Stricter movement restrictions have now been put in place in Germany and the Netherlands to help prevent the bluetongue virus spreading and there are, at last, proposals to permit vaccination in disease free areas whilst preventing the import of animals from areas where the virus is circulating.
7thspace.com says
"Proposals to amend bluetongue legislation and permit vaccination in disease free areas whilst preventing the import of animals from areas where the virus is circulating are also welcomed."
The SNP website reports that MEP, Mr Alyn Smith, Scotland's only full member of the European Parliament's Agriculture Committee, has requested an urgent meeting with Commissioner Vassiliou in order to communicate the conclusions of a recent Royal Society of Edinburgh report that EU policy must change as it is currently making Bluetongue control more difficult. He is quoted:
"Today's confirmation (i.e. of BTV6 in Holland) underlines the fact that the entire EU exotic disease regime must be looked at again.... I'm not convinced our disease management system will cope.... there is a clear need to change the zoning of areas when vaccination programmes are undertaken. There is a lot of expertise the Commission can call on to reform the regime and I'm delighted Scots scientists are so to the fore."

November 19 2008 ~ More cases of BTV1 found in France yesterday and today

The french website GDS18 reports that a new case of BTV1 was found in the Finistere area of Brittany and also at Ségur in the departement of Aveyron.
The statistics for France are as grim as ever:
23 565 cases of Bluetongue strain 8 from virus circulating this year. 3 582 cases of Bluetongue strain 1, 77 premises where both 1 and 8 have been found.
A larger map, dated today, showing the areas of France affected, can be seen here.

November 17 2008 ~ BTV-8 found in imported French sheep both in Gloucestershire and Dorset

DEFRA says that "post import testing has detected Bluetongue infection in one imported sheep on a premises in Gloucestershire, and in a further consignment of six imported cattle on a premises in Dorset (infection with BTV8). All of these animals originated in France. See Defra website for details.

November 14 2008 ~ EU conference dominated by bluetongue disease.

The Farmers Guardian says that at the Brussels conference
"...many delegates claimed the large scale vaccination policy was a failure as it was only implemented after the disease was well established and, in many cases, out of control."
The view that "the disease has been made worse by livestock movements between farms and across member states' borders" is mere common sense and, since a return to localised food production cannot happen in the short term, the need for vaccines cannot be overemphasised. But vaccine has to be manufactured - a lengthy process - and where there is no apparent commitment from governments to pay for the preparation of vaccines against diseases that have not yet taken hold, the result can be a grim game of catch-up made worse by the widespread assertion that vaccines threatens trade. In fact, it is trade itself that threatens animals. The globalisation of food means vast numbers of often untracked movements of live animals, often in very poor conditions. As ProMed said very recently,
"the threat of emerging infectious diseases to global health has been increasing over time. As international travel and trade have proliferated, disease-causing agents now have the ability to move around the globe at faster rates."

November 14 ~ BTV-6 - That only one to 2 animals per holding have been found infected by BTV-6 on each affected farm "is puzzling"

ProMed quotes (and translates) the Agrarisch Dagblad article from Nov 12 giving information derived from the Central Veterinary Institute in Lelystad. Extract:
"... surveillance, carried out around the 1st affected farms in Eastern Netherlands, has been practically completed. So far, 11 farms have been found affected; all the affected animals are cows with the exception of one single sheep. The fact that only one to 2 animals have been found infected (by PCR) in each of the 11 farms is puzzling, but serological tests may follow to help in clarifying the situation.
In addition to the infections in the Netherlands, 4 cattle holdings have been found infected last week in Germany (Bentheim, Lower Saxony). No other BTV-6 cases have been discovered elsewhere in Europe."
See ProMed (It is interesting too that the infected animals tend to be cows.)

November 14 ~ Origins of this "enigmatic outbreak" of BTV6 not yet solved

This, from the Institute is also quoted on ProMed:
"It has been suggested that the virus could have arrived in the region as the result of illegal use of live attenuated BTV vaccines, and Bottle-A of the South African BTV vaccine does contain BTV-1, a strain of current concern in many regions of Europe. However, the absence of antibodies to multiple other serotypes in the antiserum from Heeten indicates that this animal at least had not received either of the multivalent vaccine preparations that are known to have been generated by OBP in South Africa."
Moderator AS says
"To reach final conclusions about the origin of this enigmatic outbreak, the expected results of the serological tests in Lelystad and of the sequencing of the entire genome of the new virus strain in Pirbright should be taken into consideration"
Read in full

November 14 ~ BTV-6 "...more needs to be done to determine and confirm the origin of this outbreak"

Lungile Bonga, Communications Officer Onderstepoort Biological Products Ltd, has written to Promed with the following statement:
"The origin of the BTV-6 in the Netherlands has for a while been associated with the vaccine strain from Onderstepoort Biological Products (OBP). At OBP, we feel that this is inconclusive, and we wish to affirm our availability to assist in any way reasonably possible. We believe that more needs to be done to determine and confirm the origin of this outbreak through comparative sequencing studies and phylogenic comparisons of the whole genome of the vaccine strain to isolates of wild type BTV's from Africa and Asia. Only then can an acceptable confirmation in terms of origin of the BTV-6 be made. We do know that the BTV phylogeny of South African and, for that matter, African viruses have on VP2 alone a close serotype relatedness with each other and the vaccine strain."

November 12/13 ~ vaccination plan for 2009 will be published "by December of this year"

Parliamentary answers on BTV6 vaccine and unused stocks of BTV8 vaccine are here. (The heading for PQs 233350 and 233351 were erroneously given on Hansard as Bovine TB vaccination.) After pointing out that there is as yet no European vaccine for BTv6 and that DEFRA "is in discussion with potential vaccine providers, the veterinary profession and industry stakeholders about plans for 2009", Jane Kennedy said,
"The 2009 vaccination strategy for Bluetongue serotype eight is currently being discussed with stakeholders. This includes consideration of the role the existing surplus can play in meeting future demand before the vaccine expires. Further details will be announced following these discussions with the expectation that the vaccination plan will be published by December of this year. This will be made available on the DEFRA website."
Hansard

November 11 2008 ~ Christiane Glossop warns "the risk of bluetongue continues to be high"

The letter from Wales' Chief Veterinary Officer can be read on www.walesonline.co.uk. It reveals real anxiety that Welsh farmers' complacency or ignorance is putting the country at risk.
If the doses of vaccine are not used then the fear expressed by Nicky Paull, president of the British Veterinary Association, might well become a reality
"Our big concern is that if farmers don't use the vaccine this year, the pharmaceutical companies might not produce it for the UK market next year.
If there is demand in Europe and not in the UK, they will be putting their vaccines into wherever they will get the sales. ... they will be thinking about their shareholders, not necessarily the farmers, so we have to keep demand up to make sure we have access to vaccine next year."

November 10 2008 ~ Updated map of European restriction zones from EU

See also EU's Bluetongue Page The link to the full sized map (pdf) is here at http://ec.europa.eu (new window) or click on the map on the left

The NFU website today gives the following additional notes:

• " BTV 1 - New areas in Spain.
• BTV 6 - Found in Germany.
• BTV 6 - Police investigations into the source of the outbreak in The Netherlands continue.
• BTV 8 - Found in Austria for the first time.
• BTV 8 - Spreading in Hungary.
• EU map has not been updated to include Scotland yet.
• France
  21,614 cases of BTV 8
  3,340 cases of BTV 1
  68 Cases of BTV 1 & 8 on same farm
• Now BTV 6 has been confirmed in the Netherlands the new zone has extended into Germany. This should not be seen as an extension of the disease rather Germany and The Netherlands putting in place the EU controls now that a new zone/outbreak has been confirmed (don't forget the original zone was a voluntary national ban until the situation was clearer).
• An EU veterinary task force will be in Holland next week to help, investigate, etc.
  The Spread of BTV8 in Spain is very worrying. The new colour (which can only be described as diarrhoea brown) is the old blue BTV1&4 zone with BTV8 thrown in." NFU website
(Vaccination in France against serotype 1 and 8, which has been voluntary up until now, is compulsory for the next twelve months except for animals under 10 months going to slaughter, or those destined for slaughter from closed and protected premises french source)

November 9/10 2008 ~ BTV-1 - "a significant leap of this virus"

ProMed reports the OIE WAHID interface, Weekly Disease Information on the current situation in Portugal. (OIE) The moderator comments:
"The current discovery of this serotype in northern Portugal, an area hitherto not affected, means a significant leap of this virus, which now covers vast areas in the Iberian peninsula and France. The potential of BTV-1 to expand its spread in Europe has recently been demonstrated by the discovery of 2 BTV-1 positive cows, imported from France to the Netherlands through Belgium. According to a press release of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture dated 7 Nov 2008, the 2 cows, which were imported on 8 Oct 2008, have been euthanised following their discovery on a farm in the Dutch province Gelderland. Animals in the vicinity of the importing farms are being tested; results will become available during the coming week..."
The posting (PRO/AH> Bluetongue - Europe (74): OIE) also considers Austria (BTV-8) and Greece (untyped). and (see below) BTV-6 in Germany.

November 9/10 2008 ~ BTV-6 "source of the infection and/or the route of its introduction remain, for the time being, unknown"

ProMed gives the OIE WAHID interface, Weekly Disease Information (OIE) of the BTV-6 event in Germany. The Moderator remarks: "The above is the official confirmation and notification of the event reported in ProMED-mail posting 20081107.3494. The 3 affected farms are located in County Bentheim, Lower Saxony, very close to the border with the Netherlands and in particular to the BTV-6 affected Dutch province Overijssel (see the map included in the above notification; zoom in). It would be interesting to note which clinical signs were observed (the "Nature of diagnosis" included "Clinical").
The source of the infection and/or the route of its introduction remain, for the time being, unknown. The epidemiological comment, addressing the EU approach towards vaccination (against BTV-6?) is somewhat vague; do the authorities suspect that an uncertified BTV vaccine has been applied locally? Clarification would help." See ProMed or our post below

November 8 2008 ~ Agrarisch Dagblad report on BTV-1 in the Netherlands

The Agrarisch Dagblad report says that 2 animals testing positive for BTV-1 entered the Netherlands yesterday from South West France via a Belgian cattle trader. The Belgian government gave details of the transport movements to the Dutch ministry . One animal has been traced so far - to a stock breeder in Ophemert. No additional measures have been put in place since these are considered solitary cases.

November 7 2008 ~ "inspection authorities are always one step behind or cannot get a grip on the complicated networks of trade contacts and transport movements"

Reacting to the news that suspected BTV-1 has been found in a cow that was exported to the Netherlands from France through Belgium (blood samples have been taken and the results will be known next week), the Dutch Association for small farmers and smallholders (NBvH) is asking the Dutch government for extra measures to protect animals from disease brought into the country by imports. Their secretary Christine Bijl says,
"... NBvH is very concerned about the role that the trade sector plays in importing animal diseases. These diseases 'globalise' more and more. Animal transports go to and from all places in the world, while the system gets less and less transparent. Now it is bluetongue, before it was tuberculosis, tomorrow it might be foot and mouth again or swine fever."
NBvH press release

November 7 2008 ~ BTv-6 - EU Commission plans to reevaluate the situation and measures on 11 Nov 2008.

It is assumed that BTV 6 in the Netherlands was caused by the illegal use of a BTV-6 vaccine. If a live vaccine has been being used illegally, it remains to be seen if the virus is actually circulating.
ProMed's latest posting (Extract from www.ml.niedersachsen.de translated by Sabine Zentis):
"...In the 4 affected cattle herds from the Netherlands, clinical symptoms have occurred. ... these farms are not connected with each other.
....Wed 5 Nov 2008 the Friedrich Loeffler Institute demonstrated the BTV serotype 6 genome in 4 samples of cattle from Bentheim county. Virus isolation and further genetic characterizations are under way. Because of the location of the farms, ... In Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, 3 zones (20 km, 50 km and 150 km around the affected holdings) are established where certain surveillance activities and movement restrictions for susceptible animals are in place. In Lower Saxony, there are around 17,900 cattle, sheep and goat farms with a total of about 1.36 million cattle, 83 000 sheep, and 4500 goats affected by the current restriction zones..."
Read in full

November 7 2008 ~ More on the virus "Toggenburg Orbivirus [TOV]"

ProMed carries further information about the "new" virus found in Switzerland sent by the Deputy State Epizootiologist in Uppsala
"...Antibodies to this virus were detected in imported animals (i.e. goats) in Sweden earlier this year...it was decided to send the animals back. However, the owner could not organize this, and, eventually, the animals were culled. Some samples were sent to the reference laboratory in the UK, but they were unable to culture any virus from the material..."
The moderator comments: "...So far, Switzerland remains the only country known to be infected. The possible presence of this novel virus in other European countries, though plausible, is yet to be studied. This does, however, show that TOV-infected animals would most likely come up positive in serological surveillance for BTV but that the virus may go undetected in PCR systems designed for specific BTV serotypes." Read ProMed posting in full

November 7 2008 ~ Extract from pdf file "Genetic Characterization of Toggenburg Orbivirus, a New Bluetongue Virus, from Goats, Switzerland"

[Epub ahead of print] by Institute of Virology and Immunoprophylaxis, Mittelhaeusern, Switzerland for publication in Emerg Infect Dis. 2008 Dec
".....Only the segment 10-specific rRT-PCR showed a positive result, whereas all segment 5- and segment 1-specific assays did not detect TOV. These findings demonstrate the importance of selecting an appropriate rRT-PCR protocol for detection of TOV and other unusual BTV-like viruses. The fact that most diagnostic laboratories use segment 1- or segment 5-specific rRT-PCRs for routine detection of BTV might also explain why TOV has never been detected in other regions....."
See pdf file (This is a highly technical study)

November 7 2008 ~ Qiagen has licensed a molecular assay to detect all 24 strains of bluetongue.

Qiagen (registration needed) announced yesterday that it has licensed technology from the Institute for Animal Health for molecular testing for bluetongue...Called the cador BTV RT-PCR Ki and developed by the IAH, the planned launch is in 2009.
Qiagen said that the kit enables swift and sensitive detection of all 24 known BTV strains - including BTV-6 which has caused the latest outbreak of the disease in the Netherlands, and BTV-1, which has spread from North Africa, up to the north coast of France, now even detected in Brittany. Because bluetongue causes symptoms that are not specific to disease, "there is a growing demand for reliable and fast laboratory tests which might help to contain future outbreaks". Mortality rates can be as high as 70 percent.
Rapid on-site diagnostic testing for many animal diseases has been possible elsewhere for some time and the UK's reluctance since 2001 to make use of such kits in the fight against diseases such as foot and mouth remains a matter of deep concern and bafflement to those who are aware of the capabilities of such portable technology.

November 6 2008 ~ Merial says, "..nothing in the pipeline for BTV-6."

Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian quotes Brian Rice, veterinary manager for Merial Animal Health on the subject of BTV-6:
"This puts us in the same position we were in when BTV-8 first appeared in Europe. There was no vaccine then, and it was allowed to run riot until we could get one produced and licensed for use. ...a new vaccine would have to be developed and that can take up to a year..."
At present there have only been two limited areas (in Holland and Germany) of BTV-6 being found but there is always the risk that it might spread. The Institute of Animal Health at Pirbright said (see below) they were "currently sequencing the entire genome of the new virus strain to see if it is completely similar to the live vaccine strain or if it is a reassortant containing genome segments from other strains. This might provide additional indications concerning its origins and movement."
Importing stock increases the risk of new strains entering the UK. In addition, not vaccinating stock with available vaccine stocks increases the risk of BTv-8 becoming endemic and making manufacturers feel they are wasting time and effort on developing vaccines for the UK.

November 6 ~ And now, more cases of BTv6, this time in Germany

As feared, serotype 6, the strain of Bluetongue found in Holland (see below), has been found elsewhere. Today, 3 cows in Germany are reported as returning positive results for serotype 6. According to the German site www.dvfb.org/ we read that in the Bentheim district (our own informal translation) 3 cattle returned positive results for BTV 6 and a fourth cow's results are at present unclear. Restriction zones are being adjusted accordingly.
This is potentially alarming news. Vaccines that are being used in Northern Europe do not cover serotype 6 and the obvious worry is that the strain is spreading, either as a result of misuse of vaccine or- even worse - that midges themselves might be carrying the new strain. We should very much welcome informed comment. All the same, the priority is for British livestock to be protected against BTv8 and the complacency and lack of knowledge among some farmers causing them not to bother to vaccinate is very worrying indeed. As Nicky Paull, president of the British Veterinary Association, has said (Farmers Guardian Oct) :
"Our big concern is that if farmers don't use the vaccine this year, the pharmaceutical companies might not produce it for the UK market next year.
If there is demand in Europe and not in the UK, they will be putting their vaccines into wherever they will get the sales. ... they will be thinking about their shareholders, not necessarily the farmers, so we have to keep demand up to make sure we have access to vaccine next year."

November 5 ~ First case of Bluetongue in Austria - vaccination to take place in 150 km ring

The International Herald Tribune reports: "Austria's Health Ministry says a cow has tested positive for the bluetongue virus in the country's first ever case. .... The ministry says the virus was detected during routine checks in the northern Austrian district of Schaerding.
Health Minister Andrea Kdolsky said....animals at risk from the virus within 150 kilometers (93 miles) of the confirmed case would be monitored and inoculated."

November 4 2008 ~ The government does not know how many bluetongue vaccines have been administered in the last 12 months

Parliamentary Questions from Stephen Hesford and Andrew Rosindell drew disappointingly vague replies yesterday: "...no definitive figures can be provided on the numbers of livestock actually vaccinated." Read Hansard

November 3 2008 ~ When to vaccinate pregnant animals against Bluetongue

In response to the queries about "the optimum time to vaccinate pregnant ewes and cows" Dr Watkins writes clear advice:
" In my opinion pregnant animals can be vaccinated at any stage of their pregnancy with inactivated BTV vaccines. The whole point of an inactivated vaccine is that this is safe to do unlike the live modified vaccines. ... I looked to see if any other veterinary vaccines had saponin or quil A as adjuvants in them- this adjuvant is not yet used in human vaccines though it is being developed for use with more control in purity and composition than the current saponin and quil A which are derived from the bark of a tree (see Wikipedia under saponin). A vaccine called pregsure BVD for cattle has quil A and 3 other adjuvants in it and in the data sheet they advocate its use at any stage in the pregnancy and at any stage of getting pregnant or lactation. .... Any medication in pregnancy is carefully considered but there is no reason to believe that inactivated vaccines are a risk... "
Please read in full

November 2/3 2008 ~ The compulsory vaccination of more than 7 million cattle and sheep in Scotland begins

From Monday November 3, Scotland automatically falls into the Protection Zone. Scottish producers have until April 30 to vaccinate all cattle and sheep. The vaccination of other susceptible animals such as goats, farmed deer and llamas is voluntary, but government officials and farming organisations are urging owners to join in the vaccination campaign.
Last week, the Farmers Guardian quoted several Scottish farmers. Neil Drummond, stockman for Cloquhat Farm's Limousin herd at Blairgowrie, said: "The sooner we start vaccinating the better," adding that the risks of not vaccinating were 'just too great'. Kenneth Russell, a farmer who runs 70 Simmentals and 60 Charollais alongside 100 Blackface sheep and a flock of 320 pedigree crosses said compulsory vaccination was the best way forward. He described the voluntary vaccination programme in England as 'crazy'. "You've either got to vaccinate everything or not at all," he said.
David Craig, a Simmental breeder from Stewarton, Ayrshire, said
"It will be a bit of a hassle but having said that, if not doing it means taking the risk of losing a pedigree animal to the disease it's worth it."
Some farmers expressed concern that they had not been given enough information about the best time to vaccinate their pregnant stock. Charles McCombie, a Charollais and Aberdeen-Angus breeder from Huntly, Knock, said: "There is a bit of confusion over what we have to do. We need to know the optimum time to vaccinate pregnant ewes and cows, but vaccinating is a necessary evil."

November 2/3 2008 ~"Swiss virus is clearly a novel bluetongue virus (BTV), not a mutant/recombinant/reassortant of previously characterised viruses"

ProMed's quoting of the summary of Switzerland's Federal Veterinary Office (FVO) website's Q&A re the "new" strain makes it clear that "...BTV surveillance system in Switzerland is unique in Europe...explains why we are the only country in which this virus was been noticed. But it is likely that the virus is present elsewhere in Europe.
....The TOV (acronym for "Toggenburg Orbivirus"), has produced only mild disease in goats and virtually none in sheep. No diseases seen in experimentally infected goats. Its discovery has scientific significance but no impact upon agriculture..." Read in full

October 31 2008 ~ An extra 100 million euros on fighting bluetongue in 2009, on top of the 60 million euros already pledged

The European Commission yesterday proposed to spend an extra 100 million euros on fighting bluetongue in 2009, on top of the 60 million already pledged. The measure has yet to be approved by the European Parliament and the member states. (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)

October 31 2008 ~ Netherlands BTv6 report : "The virology is excellent and the conclusions are carefully worded..." says ProMed

ProMed gives in full the report by Professor Peter Mertens and his colleagues at the IAH, Pirbright, at Lelystad (the Netherlands), and at Onderstepoort (South Africa) into the new Netherlands strain. Their remarks take into account suggestions that the outbreak was caused by unlicensed use of a live bluetongue vaccine produced by Onderstepoort Biological Products, a company in South Africa. However, says the report
"the absence of antibodies to multiple other serotypes in the antiserum from Heeten indicates that this animal at least had not received either of the multivalent vaccine preparations that are known to have been generated by OBP in South Africa. We are currently sequencing the entire genome of the new virus strain to see if it is completely similar to the live vaccine strain or if it is a reassortant containing genome segments from other strains. This might provide additional indications concerning its origins and movement.."Read in full
The Netherlands have now declared its entire territory a Restricted Zone (RZ) for BTV-6 and 8.

October 31 2008 ~ New strain of BTv in Switzerland, says Farmers Guardian

As Jack Davies wrote yesterday in the FG, the discovery of another strain of bluetongue new to Europe, this time in goats in Switzerland, means there are now four serotypes of the virus in Northern Europe - BTV1, 6, 8 and the new previously undiscovered serotype. "It is the first time scientists have discovered the latest strain - 'Toggenburg Orbivirus' (TOV)- which was discovered in two goat herds in Switzerland." The FG quotes Peter Mertens:
" This new BTV is so different from other ones that we cannot even guess where it came from. Although the virus did not cause overt disease in goats, if it started to spread and behave like other BTV strains, then it could become a more serious threat to ruminants, especially as there would be no vaccine against it."
Read FG article
sciencenow.sciencemag.org says that in order to prove that the "Toggenburg Orbivirus" actually is a novel bluetongue serotype
"... the team will have to verify that antibodies against the virus don't neutralize the 24 known serotypes and vice versa, Hofmann says; that has been impossible so far because the virus won't grow in cultured cells."
Read in full

October 24 2008 ~ BTV6 is the "new" strain found in Holland

It appears that the new type of bluetongue that was found in the Netherlands (see below and reported on October 18) turns out to be serotype 6. According to this report in Dutch,www.blikopnieuws.nl a 50 kilometre zone has been put around the affected farms in the East of the country and export is prohibited.
There is no BTV6 vaccine available in Europe. One can only hope that this strain can be confined in a very limited area.
Serotype 6 is found in Central America and Africa. The question - for the second time - is "How did a virus that has hitherto been seen only in Central America and Africa reach the Netherlands?"
DEFRA has told its stakeholders: "We are continuing to conduct post-import tests on all consignments of cattle and sheep from continental Europe, for all Bluetongue serotypes." However, Jane Kennedy's apparent lack of concern at the low take-up of BTV8 vaccine, and her statement that she has made
" no plans to reach specific levels of vaccination at specific times. Vaccination is the responsibility of the livestock industry"
is likely to be causing deep alarm at a time when food security is of such national importance.

October 24 2008 ~ "persistent rumours are gradually taking momentum away from the vaccination programme..."

Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian looks at the dire effect that anecdotal and unsubstantiated rumour-mongering is having on the UK vaccination campaign. As he says, the attitude to vaccination from farmers in Wales and the North of England is very different from that in last year's affected areas where uptake reached around 90 per cent.
" Scientists are adamant that the UK is still at risk - not only from continental disease but also the possibility of disease overwintering in wild or unvaccinated stock in the UK. Encouraging vaccination next year will be an uphill battle for the industry ..."
The FG article looks at - and debunks - the current myths about vaccine. Dr Ruth Watkins, the virologist and farmer, is sympathetic to those who have found the logistics of vaccination campaign, where the onus is on the farmer to bear the costs and manage the injections, very difficult - but she is under no illusions about the rumours. As she says below, they are tosh. "... the longer the farmer leaves before vaccination this autumn the less worthwhile it will become...in readiness for next summer when infection must be presumed to re-emerge from a much wider area throughout England and Wales than the SE of England." (see below)

October 23 2008 ~ New vaccine supplier on the block

We have received an email from SYVA laboratories. They developed the first Bluetongue serotype 4 vaccine for sheep approved by the Spanish Agency (SYVAZUL 4), that was used by the Ministry of Agriculture of Spain in the vaccination campaigns started in 2005. They are currently supplying the Spanish Ministry with its SYVAZUL 1 and are very soon to provide a vaccine against serotype 8, SYVAZUL 8 The email says " the company is driven to become a major player in the European Veterinary Immunologicals industry." (Read email)

October 22 2008 ~ Holland's supposed "ban on breeding" - (and the "new" strain seems to be limited to the three farms)

Ruud Peys, UK correspondent to the Agrarische Dagblad has very kindly sent this clarification : "The ban on breeding is, as far as I can see it, invented by Farmers Weekly, maybe because of a mistake in the translation. FWI uses as a source - boerderij.nl - but that magazine does not mention a breeding ban at all. Also, the Dutch VWA has just announced that the 'new type', if indeed it is such a thing, seems to be limited to the three farms around Deventer where it has been discovered before." (We hope for more information on the last part of that sentence, but assume it means the farms where it was discovered on 18th Oct)
UPDATE Ruud writes, "yes, the unknown variant is so far only found on the three farms the VWA has mentioned before and is, so far, not discovered on any other farm in Holland by VWA."

October 22 2008 ~ ProMed carries Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, press release

[in Dutch, but translated and edited by Moderator.AS See ProMed
Extract ".... an export ban on breeding and production animals susceptible to bluetongue.... The Central Veterinary Institute (CVI).... determined that it is not the serotype BTV-1, which is present in France.
Further investigations will be carried out in cooperation with the EU reference laboratory in the UK, to find if this is a variant of the BTV-8 or a new type of the bluetongue virus.
The ....VWA. is sampling all cattle on the premises for further investigations. .."
The moderator comments that "the Dutch precautionary measure -- banning exports of breeding and production ruminants until the completion of the strain's identification -- is commendable."

Oct 22 2008 ~ Can the Dutch have really banned animals from breeding during the ban?

The ProMed commentary continues:
".....The Farmers Weekly article (here) includes also information on Dutch producers "banned from breeding sheep, cattle, and goats." This is a rather exceptional measure, not mentioned in the official press release. Confirmation (with duration of applicability) or otherwise will be helpful. If confirmed, such step could be explained by the wish of the Dutch authorities to prevent later difficulties in the export of pregnant animals due to risk of fetal viraemia, in view of the cases of infected offspring born in importing countries (see ProMED-mail postings 20080306.0916, 20080308.0948, and 20080408.1294)...."
The moderator also mentions ProMed's gratitude to ".....Agrarisch Dagblad, a daily newspaper, which has been most helpful to ProMED-mail on several occasions" See ProMed

October 22 2008 ~ Wales: "I am sure that many if not most farmers will vaccinate in the Spring of 2009. Some locals have said as much to me."

The virologist and farmer, Dr Ruth Watkins, has sent us an email with her thoughts on the apparently new strain in Holland
".....The finding of a different virus to BTV8 and BTV1 in the Netherlands is very intriguing. It may be quite complex for them to sort out just what it is, they will have to sequence all the 10 genes I should think. This should not take very long..." (Read in full)
. - and also her take on the news reported in FWi yesterday that the Welsh Assembly Government has threatened to start selling off some of the 7.5m doses of unused bluetongue vaccine unless farmers start vaccinating their stock against the disease.
"....I hope there will be some vaccine in date in March April next year to purchase...."
Read Dr Watkins' email

Oct 22 2008 ~ Scotland: "This worrying development serves as a sharp reminder.."

NFU Scotland vice-president Nigel Miller is quoted in the Herald about the situation in the Netherlands, "...we count our blessings that we remain free of disease but we cannot let our guard down for a single moment. Scotland is a few weeks away from our own vaccination campaign and the winter when temperatures reduce the threat from the midges that transmit the disease. Given Europe's failure to control the disease, we urge producers not to throw away our advantage in disease control by recklessly importing stock from abroad."

October 21 2008 ~ If animals are tested negative with this ELISA it does not mean that they have not been vaccinated, says VLA

The VLA writes to tell us that they have been receiving quite a few submissions from clients who want to check the antibody levels of their animals post BTV 8 vaccination. The ELISA test which they perform is not 100% sensitive, they explain, and so some vaccinated animals are testing negative by the ELISA.
The following message is going onto the VLA website this week to help give clarification.
"There are no validated tests available at the present time that conclusively prove that animals have been successfully vaccinated with BTV-8 vaccine. The antibody ELISA used at VLA is extremely sensitive at detecting antibodies in BTV infected animals however it does not always detect antibodies in vaccinated animals. If animals are tested negative with this ELISA it does not mean that they have not been vaccinated. If animals test positive they are likely to have been vaccinated."
Warmwell is very grateful to the VLA for this clarification.

October 21 2008 ~ "sometimes there are larger interests at stake" - the story of the possible new strain in the Netherlands

Farmers Weekly says,"....Dutch scientists have begun investigations into whether the strain is a variant of BTV8, the strain being vaccinated against in the UK, or new type of the virus. ... The ministry said it would make a further decision over the ban once more was found out about the strain. Dutch farming organisation LTO told Farmers Weekly's sister paper Boerderij that it supported the export ban.
"Given the pressure from abroad and the worrying situation we are in because we don't know what is going on, this measure is appropriate," a spokesman said. "The measure will cause economic damage, but sometimes there are larger interests at stake."
Read FWi

October 21 2008 ~ Questions needing answers

The situation in Holland will remain unclear until more tests are complete. With viruses there is always some small measure of genetic shift to be expected. It seems that this "new" strain shows a greater change in nucleotides from the very slight differences previously seen in serotype 8. As the first Agrarische Dagblad report on Oct 18 explained, 250 nucleotides are normally tested by PCR
"Up until now, up to three differences only have been observed. This deviating virus has eleven differences..."
However, we understand that expert opinion considers that it is yet too early to say whether what is suspected in eastern Holland really is a new serotype. If it is, we are on dangerous and worrying new ground. As the ProMed commentator said (see below) "The possibility of the circulation of a new BTV strain in the Netherlands, in particular if the strain is suspected to be refractory to the BTV-8 vaccine, is of high epidemiological impact and deserves to be sorted out at the earliest..."

October 20 2008 ~ Dutch agriculture department has ordered a export ban for breeding cattle from 6.00 pm today

This is because of the so far unknown strain of Bluetongue being investigated in Holland. The article by Mariska Vermaas in the Agrarisch Dagblad today tells us that
"....The central veterinary institute (CVI) of the Wageningen UR has found bluetongue at three different holdings in the east that deviates more than is normal from the dominant serotype in the Netherlands. Animals which had been vaccinated nevertheless showed symptoms.... All ruminants on the affected farms have been examined. The ban a precautionary measure and only applies to sheep, ewes and cattle - and is a temporary ban lasting until the situation becomes clearer..."
Many thanks again to Ruud Peys, British correspondent for the Agrarisch Dagblad, for alerting warmwell to this development.

October 19 2008 ~ ProMed comment on the apparently new strain in Holland

ProMed gives an excellent translation of the Ag Dag report of friday. The moderator comment:
".... A firsthand, professional report will be welcomed.
The possibility of the circulation of a new BTV strain in the Netherlands, in particular if the strain is suspected to be refractory to the BTV-8 vaccine, is of high epidemiological impact and deserves to be sorted out at the earliest. CDI may consider involving OIE's BT reference laboratories in this important investigation. - Mod.AS"
Read in full
What is becoming more and more urgent, given the way bluetongue can ravage flocks and herds and its serious implications for animal welfare - is a properly coordinated EU policy instead of the present piecemeal approach. (See below)

October 18 2008 ~ New serotype discovered in Holland?

The Agrarische Dagblad reports that a possibly new type of bluetongue has been found "that clearly deviates from the bluetongue seen in the Netherlands since August 2006" says the article following the Dutch central veterinary institute (CVI) of Wageningen. The new type is different from serotype 8 and serotype 1 according to Piet van Rijn of the CVI. The article says,
"... The bluetongue virus has a genetic code of approximately 20,000 positions. A very small bit of approximately 250 positions is used in the PCR-test to show all types of bluetongue virus. Up until now, up to three differences only have been observed. This deviating virus has eleven differences..."
(Many thanks to Ruud Peys for the link.)

October 16 2008 ~ Switzerland - GIS and transmission models used to improve larger and more targeted surveillance

The ability to combine Geographical Information Systems (GIS), mathematical models and up to date epidemiological knowledge has led, in Switzerland, to an early warning system developed for detecting the incursion of bluetongue and to monitor the frequency of its vectors. Detail at 7thspace.com.
Switzerland declared the whole country as a restriction zone last October. Although no outbreak since last November seems to have been reported on the Wahid Interface, 23 outbreaks in 2008 - with the most recent being confirmed on 14th October are shown on the Swiss federal veterinary website www.bvet.admin.ch. (This paragraph has been slightly corrected since earlier today - with grateful thanks to Sabine Zentis.)

October 15 2008 ~ "Our fear is that without adequate funding we will not be able to maintain the high standards of livestock disease control and provide such vigorous enforcement."

Cuts in financial support from DEFRA look set to continue. Devon County Council's Leader, Councillor Brian Greenslade is quoted today on www.devon24.co.uk :
"The Government gave us the extra responsibilities, and then removed the necessary funding for it last year. It would be better if the Government recognised Devon's needs for prevention against diseases such as Foot and Mouth, Bluetongue and Bird Flu, and reflected it in its future funding."

October 13 2008 ~ Eradication cannot result from unco-ordinated piecemeal action in Europe

As in Financial crises, so in disease crisis. The great danger for European livestock farming seems to be a withholding of resources for research and possibly piecemeal action by Member States as a result of ignorance about the efficacy of properly organised and funded vaccination campaigns. "Bluetongue control strategy, including recourse to vaccine. A critical review" (pdf) is a presentation given by Vincenzo Caporale at the 23rd Conference OIE Regional Commission for Europe 16 -19 September in Vilnius.
The importance of an effective risk communication campaign directly involving farmers, other stakeholders and politicians is particularly stressed.
Since 1990 Vincenzo Caporale has been the Director of Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise "G. Caporale" (IZSA&M) in Teramo, Italy.), a veterinary public health institute in Legnaro (PD) that conducts laboratory controls. The presentation is clear, colourful and very concise. Particularly appreciated is the Peanuts cartoon, illustrating the difficulty of learning the essential lessons from catastrophe. But the lessons of the past show that Bluetongue is a disease that could be eradicated in northern Europe if sufficient funds and cooperative action across the EU were forthcoming.
"Surveillance, preventive mass-vaccination and strict movement controls are the key points IF one wants to limit BTV spread."
And for the EU at present there does seem to be a great "IF". An important point made is that "Methods to define research priority in the EU in animal health should be fully reviewed." The problem with piecemeal action is that it would mean
• no eradication
• further virus spread - and
• livestock owners will be on their own in the end

October 13 ~ If the vaccination message has not got through, why hasn't it?

"The importance of an effective risk communication campaign directly involving farmers, other stakeholders and politicians" This is a key sentence from Dr Caporale's bluetongue presentation above - and the lack of such a campaign has been the problem - that there seems greater readiness to believe ignorant and inaccurate half truths than to embrace the enormous benefits of vaccination. Is this because the vaccination message has not got through? And if it has not, why hasn't it? Is the message unclear? Is it
• in the wrong media format?
• insufficiently promoted by Government?
• disregarded because it is a voluntary scheme?
• not perceived to be important as the worst effects of BT have not been seen?
• part of the economic crunch and regarded as too expensive?
Unfortunately, on top of this, is the way in which the vaccination was 'rolled out' in the UK. It does not seem to have taken into consideration key aspects of the livestock farming year - especially relevant for hill farmers because of the difficulty in gathering animals on the uplands.

October 12 2008 ~ "stop pushing the golden egg over the edge!"

says Jan Vaarten, Executive Director of the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe a recent newsletter:
"...some people seem unable to stop behaving like little cuckoos when it comes to vaccination: they do not rest until they have pushed vaccination over the edge to a certain death. Recently, at a hearing organised by the European Parliament on the "EU Community Animal Health Strategy and Vaccination Technology", and after many presentations about the need for vaccines, the discussion was diverted, once again, to "what consumers might think of meat from vaccinated animals". Let's be clear: almost every food-producing animal kept in Europe today is vaccinated, and almost all meat imported from third countries is produced by vaccinated animals. ... Vaccination of animals is safe for consumers. ...In case of trade-related concerns regarding vaccination, it would seem more honest to step forward and put them on the table - rather than hide behind so-called "consumer interest". But whatever you do: stop pushing the golden egg over the edge!..."
Read in full

October 9 2008 ~Compulsory bluetongue vaccination in Scotland starts on November 3 for all cattle and sheep

See Reuters. "...The government is providing 2.6 million pounds to cover half the costs for the first year of vaccinations..... The statement strongly recommended that other domestic animals susceptible to the debilitating midge-borne disease should also be vaccinated for the Serotype 8 (BTV8) variety."

October 7 2008 ~ French cases of both serotypes continue to rise. BTv1 zone continue to extend northwards

According to the website gds18.org, new outbreaks of serotype 1 discovered in the departments of Charente and Dordogne means that there are now 2,750 cases BTV1 from virus circulating in 2008. In addition, BTV8 confirmed cases from virus circulating in 2008 now total 17,257.
Compare this with September 25.
The full sized map and full key for coloured areas can be seen here ( new window, slight delay) The green area shows the control zone for serotype 1 and 8. Yellow dots show holdings where both BTv1 and BTv8 cases are confirmed, while the yellow area shows the extension of the control zone for serotypes 1 and 8 - on the march northwards. Larger map

October 6 2008 ~ "We can definitely say that any rumours of health issues with the vaccine are just nonsense" Malcolm Corbett, North East livestock representative, NFU

Journal Live today also quotes Northumberland Animal Health Divisional Veterinary Manager Peter Gray:
"Take-up of the bluetongue vaccine in Northumberland has, so far, been depressingly low. One of the key reasons for the poor use of bluetongue vaccine appears to be ill-founded complacency about the high ongoing risk posed by the disease, made worse by unsubstantiated rumours about the safety of the vaccine.
The risk to farmers' livestock and livelihood from this disease far outweighs any perceived risk associated with vaccination. Vaccination is the only effective way to protect against bluetongue..."
Read in full

October 3 2008 ~ Veterinary expert, Dr Johannes Winkelmann, says peak periods for bluetongue infection are September, October and November.

He told the North Regional NSA meeting in Hexham on Tuesday (see below) that vaccination was the only effective way of controlling the spread of bluetongue. As a result of Dr Winkelmann's advice and work the BTV8 virus is now under control in Nordrhein-Westphalia (NRW) and our colleagues in Germany tell us that he is very highly regarded as an expert. The Farmers Guardian reports:
"..Dr Winkelmann said part of the NRW strategy was to identify and set up a network of sentinel farms where there was no existing resistance to bluetongue. Last year the first positive case was diagnosed in June and two months later this had risen to 2,000 animals. By October nearly 8,000 animals had been diagnosed, this topping 9,000 animals by the end of November 2007.
Initially veterinary surgeons had looked at dealing with the disease through factors such as controlling the midge vector, and dealing with the symptoms of the disease. It rapidly became clear the only practical way forward was through vaccination....
So far no side effects from bluetongue vaccination had been reported.."
A single midge bite can spread the disease, he said.

September 30 2008 ~ Welsh Liberal Democrat, Kirsty Williams, urges farmers not to import - and to vaccinate.

Kirsty Williams, AM for Brecon & Radnorshire, has been urging farmers to vaccinate. See Wales Online "I absolutely fail to understand why farmers are bringing livestock into the UK at a time when bluetongue is circulating viciously on mainland Europe. Not only are farmers putting their own stock at risk but their neighbours also ...I see no other way for farmers to protect their stock - other than to vaccinate."

September 29 2008 ~ "peanuts compared with the cost of treating even a couple of sheep which get the disease "

See Mark Holdstock's blog "....The vets ... told me that a 'Indian Summer' could carry quite a risk of the disease re-emerging. There's also a rumour circulating amongst the farmers that the vaccine can cause fertility problems amongst the ewes. Vets dismiss this saying the vaccine's dead not live so there shouldn't be any issues with it. Also there's the cost. At fifty pence a dose, that can add up to more than a hundred pounds for even a small upland farm. But as one of the local vets told me that's peanuts compared with the cost of treating even a couple of sheep which get the disease."

September 28/29 2008 ~ "All the rumours re the vaccine causing infertility and abortion are tosh- the real and actual risk is the infection with the BTV8 virus...."

Ruth Watkins, doctor, expert virologist and farmer, writes, "When people do things voluntarily that they must pay for - they are entitled to as much information as they can absorb and to reason out their own response.....There is such a financial crunch on farmers this year I cannot see myself why, in Wales and the North of England where there is no BTV8 circulation, it should not be acceptable to vaccinate in winter/spring when it is most convenient and prior to birth. The lambs, kids and calves can then imbibe passive antibody to BTV8 in the colostrum. Yet no one will talk about this publicly..."
She refers to a letter to a farmer friend in which she sets out her thoughts about the timing of vaccination.
"... Clearly it is essential that all farmers vaccinate all their ruminant stock during the winter and early next Spring. Clearly also, it is ideal if there is money enough and the will and time to vaccinate all one's ruminants now as I have done (having written a vaccination policy I could hardly do otherwise).
However, the voluntary vaccination policy is less than perfect - and expensive for the farmer, and the longer the farmer leaves before vaccination this autumn the less worthwhile it will become, especially in view of the BTV8 vaccination that will be required over winter and early spring of 2009 in readiness for next summer when infection must be presumed to re-emerge from a much wider area throughout England and Wales than the SE of England."
It is important to read the letter in full

September 26/27 2008 ~ "DEFRA has given farmers a chance to show that we can act collectively and responsibly"

to prevent Bluetongue from gaining hold, and farmers have blown it, thereby giving ministers and mandarins the perfect excuse for imposing further red tape, regulations and costs at will. ...."
A heartfelt letter from Chester farmer, Huw Rowlands, sums up the frustration many farmers are feeling.
".... The refuseniks are risking everything, and using scaremongering pseudo-scientific claims to justify their inactivity. Having vaccinated all my cattle at the earliest opportunity in September, I am happy to report no side-effects...."
Read in full

Sept 25 2008 ~ Ruthin: the risk of transmission is "negligible"

The three bulls in Denbighshire who returned "positive" results for bluetongue are now said by the Welsh Minister for Rural Affairs, Elin Jones, to be at the last phase of infection, which means that it is very unlikely indeed that bluetongue could be spread by their presence in Wales. (See further comment on testing and viraemia.)
All the same, it appears that the scare has at least caused what the Denbighshire Free Press calls a "surge" for vaccinations and the NFU in Wales has again urged that farmers cannot afford to be complacent or apathetic about vaccinating animals "...it is the only way we can safeguard our stock and protect ourselves from the devastating economic consequences of this disease once it strikes. There is no Government compensation for any losses sustained due to Bluetongue and I remain firmly of the view that we cannot afford not to vaccinate."
UPDATE Wales Daily Post tells us that Meirionnydd FUW has arranged an open meeting at Neuadd y Cyfnod Y Bala, tomorrow (Friday, September 26) at 7.30pm to give more details on bluetongue. More details are available from area officer Dei Charles or the FUW office at Dolgellau, 01341 422298.

Sept 25 2008 ~ The march of BTv1 in France

New cases of the BTv1 strain of Bluetongue have been confirmed in the Herault and Tarn-et-Garonne regions of France. The map shows in green where serotype 8 and 1 now exist together. (Since this area includes my own land I am very grateful to have completed in my own sheep the two vaccinations for both strains - but my own vet is not optimistic that enough booster vaccine can be obtained nor that there are enough vets to cover the number of farms at risk.)
Recommended for French speakers is the website gds18.org In France, the latest figures for virus circulating this year is now an astonishing 16103 cases of serotype 8 and 1 494 cases of serotype 1.
More - in french - on the current situation www.actualites-news-environnement.com

Sept 23 2008 ~ "mine were the only vaccinated female sheep offered for sale out of over four thousand auctioned in Llandovery mart...."

Dr Ruth Watkins expresses worry that ".... in the climate of rumour and partial information around BTV8 the dangerous practice of not using the the vaccine because of misinformation is gaining ground and going to be difficult to shift." She sends warmwell copies of her latest thoughts about bluetongue and available tests as diagnostic virologist, clinician and farmer. Extract
"....It is difficult to make in house tests as quality control is a very important issue and difficult to maintain to an evenly high standard for many reasons. .. we will have to live with the limitations of what is provided. I am confident that Pirbright's standard of testing is second to none in the veterinary world.
.... I think the problem lies with the antibody testing used. I think this is confusing for farmers who are paying for testing or reading about testing. They are subject to untrue rumours about the side effects of vaccination, the test results are not clearly set out and no clinical group answers their questions thoroughly and honestly. The vaccine manufacturers must protect themselves against being sued...."
Read in full (Some technical language may be challenging to the layman)

Sept 22 2008 ~ First batches of Fort Dodge cattle vaccine, Zulvac, in the UK today

Fort Dodge has now obtained VMD approval for its vaccine and has sent this press release to warmwell.com. Extract:
".......Zulvac 8 is available in 50 dose and 10 dose packs. The key claims are active immunisation against Bluetongue serotype 8 of cattle from 2.5 months old and a significant reduction of viraemia.
The vaccine is administered in 2 x 2 ml doses at three week intervals given by intra muscular injection and the product is supported by a fixed 2ml multidose applicator with Sterimatic needle protector and cleaning system to ensure accurate dosing and hygienic conditions..."
Read in full. The vaccine can be prescribed by vets to cattle farmers inside the PZ. Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian comments, "The move towards an open market will come as a good sign for next year's vaccination campaign, which could see enough vaccine available earlier in the year to allow vaccination to start before the summer risk period."

Sept 22 2008 ~ "low levels of seroconversion post-vaccination should not put people off vaccinating their stock..."

Dr Chris Oura has sent a clarification of these issues to ProMed.
Extract: "...... It seems clear that, for animals vaccinated with inactivated BTV-8 vaccines on a single occasion, the absence of antibodies detected by the cELISA tests does not correlate with a lack of protection. In other words seronegative vaccinated animals are still likely to be protected from BTV-8. Therefore reports of low levels of seroconversion post-vaccination should not put people off vaccinating their stock. However this does cause a problem in that, at the present time, we are unable to reliably confirm by testing that animals have been successfully vaccinated..
... it is important to be cautious about interpreting PCR results, as animals will, in some cases, be PCR-positive; however, they may not be at risk to the local midge population. Laboratories however are able to go some way to interpret the PCR results and, depending on the CT levels*, can predict if the animals are likely to be in the early (viraemic) or late (non-viraemic) stages of infection. The only test available to confirm that the animal is viraemic is virus isolation, and the drawback of this is it takes at least a week to perform. ."
Read in full.

September 22 2008 ~ "this detailed, pacifying information will encourage animal breeders... to complete the timely vaccination.."

The ProMed moderator AS, comments,
"....Hopefully, this detailed, pacifying information will encourage animal breeders in regions at risk, both in the UK as well as in continental Europe, to complete the timely vaccination of their susceptible animals against BTV-8. The peak disease season may continue until the end of October 2008, trailing beyond.
Regarding the vaccine safety issue raised in item [1] (i.e. the FW article), according to the (45-year-long) experience of this moderator, all animal mass vaccination campaigns against any disease in any species in industrialized as well as in developing countries are accompanied by owners' complaints. Most of such complaints reflect honest but subjective observations of concerned individuals, in the majority of cases eventually found to be groundless, provided the vaccines in question are properly certified, and in particular when they are inactivated ones. This does not mean that accidents never happen on the manufacturing level but, mainly, during application; complaints should always be thoroughly investigated and their results published."
Read ProMed posting in full.
See also, a commentary (in blue) to questions warmwell had put, very kindly sent to us yesterday by Dr Oura.

Sept 20 2008 ~ Third Denbighshire bull confirmed after further tests.

See BBC. However, it is interesting that Wales' Chief Vet Dr Christianne Glossop, has said the risk of transmission is negligible. The animals had all been vaccinated before they were imported. She is quoted:
" .. Veterinary advice is that as the risk of transmission from these animals is now negligible, they do not need to be slaughtered."
Once again, we would urge readers to notice the words of the ProMed moderator on the subject of what post import tests may actually be revealing when they come back "positive" He said:
" .... ....As opposed to the detection of "bluetongue virus," the "detection of bluetongue" may mean that antibodies or non-viable virus components have been detected by the post-import testing procedures applied. If active BTV is not present, there is no actual risk of further infection or spread of the disease on the importing farm or of its introduction into the circulation cycle (vectors)......no renewed activity of BTV-8 has been detected, so far, on British soil..." See ProMed
(One does get rather tired of the ignorance displayed by headlines such as, "Bluetongue Epidemic hits North Wales" when there is, as far as anyone knows, no active virus in Wales and no epidemic. Farmers must understand the importance of vaccinating their animals as quickly as possible, but they should also, surely, be given clear and unambiguous information about what the tests given to all imported BTv vaccinated animals does and does not reveal.)

September 19 2008 ~ Fears that vaccine may affect breeding has led many to leave vaccine in the fridge. "Bloody idiots," says Alun Edwards of the FUW

Disquieting news from the Farmers Weekly. It seems that many farmers are worried that animals are already stressed by the dire weather and believe rumours that the animals might, if they are vaccinated, react badly just at the time they should be breeding. FWi reports that
"The doubts over vaccinating were reflected at Penrith livestock market which reported that, of 6000 mules through, only two batches of ewes were vaccinated. "
We read that uptake of the vaccine has been so low in the North of England that only one in five livestock farms is protected. FWi quotes Alun Edwards of the FUW, who called producers who resisted vaccination "bloody idiots".

September 19 2008 ~ Vilnius Conference press release "permanent surveillance and vaccination: best tools for containing bluetongue"

"Vilnius, 19 September 2008 - The 23rd Conference of the Regional Commission for Europe of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), held in Vilnius, Lithuania, from 15 to 19 September 2008 , concluded with a strong commitment to move forward with the implementation of extensive vaccination against bluetongue in infected and at-risk countries, using vaccines complying with OIE standards. .... Experience gained from controlling the disease has shown that strict movement restrictions and vaccination are the most effective prevention and control tools, as is also the case for other animal diseases.
The Conference recommended that Member Countries develop and establish regional surveillance networks for early detection and rapid response mechanisms under the strict supervision of the public and private sector veterinarians working in conjunction with the Veterinary Services...." More

September 18 2008 ~ Wales - 7 cattle are being re-tested to discover the "extent" of the infection

Following the news late on Monday that bluetongue had been detected in imported cattle from the Limoges area of France (see below) in post import checks, the Daily Post now reports
"....Tests on a third animal proved "inconclusive", and four more in the batch of seven imported from the Limoges area of France tested negative. Last night the Welsh Assembly said all seven cattle would be re-tested to confirm the extent of the infection. Now an urgent call is being issued to sheep and cattle farmers to vaccinate their animals to help prevent a widespread outbreak in North Wales, which could kill thousands of animals...."
Despite repeated warnings, few farmers in the region are so far believed to have taken up the bluetongue vaccine.

September 18 2008 ~ The Netherlands considers buying BTv1 vaccine

Yesterday's Agrarisch Dagblad reported that the Dutch Ministry is considering buying supplies of the serotype 1 vaccine. The advance northwards from Spain and Southern France of this strain, BTv1, seems to be taking place at a rate of about 50 kilometres a week (see below). As we have said below, there are now areas of France where the two strains of BTv8 and BTv1 exist side by side. The Dutch Ministry's concerns will surely challenge the highly questionable EU rule that forbids vaccination as a preventative measure except where there has already been a confirmed case of the strain of virus.
In Britain too, the risk of BTv1 is certainly being considered. In Scotland for example, Charles Milne, chief veterinary officer, quoted in the Scotsman said, "...vaccination against BTV8 only provides immunity for the most prevalent form of the virus currently in the UK....." - and although many are far from sure that there is "currently" any form of active virus in the UK at all, the rapid spread of strain 1 northwards through France can hardly be ignored as a danger.

September 18 2008 ~ "cynical" Scottish farmers reminded of the midge's ability to live in cold climate

In reporting the Scottish plan for compulsory vaccination (see also below), starting probably in November, Dan Buglass in the Scotsman writes, "...They might do well to consider the fact that bluetongue, previously only found in southern Europe - principally in Greece and Italy - made the sudden leap to the Netherlands in the autumn of 2006 before arriving in England last September. The death rate in sheep can be as high as 30 per cent, and there is no compensation." The article makes it clear that Nigel Miller, vice-president of NFU Scotland and Brian Simpson, of the Scottish Beef Cattle Association are now urging farmers to get behind the compulsory vaccination programme. Nigel Miller commented, "... The voluntary uptake of the vaccine in England, as revealed recently, has been disappointing."

September 17 2008 ~ Romania reports bluetongue test results from animals imported from the UK

In a Brussels presentation from Romania(pdf) we read,
"On the 10th of September, one consignment of 49 sheep was transported from a restricted area in UK to a holding in district Bihor, Romania. All animals were certified as being vaccinated against bluetongue less than 60 days before dispatch. Therefore the sheep were also tested by PCR and certified as negative for bluetongue viral antigen. Within the laboratory checking at destination, among other tests, the serum samples taken from 28 animals were assessed by ELISA for bluetongue antibodies too. 18(~ 70%) of samples reacted positive...."
Our understanding is that positive lab ELISA tests show that the tested animals have built up immunity after vaccination, are protected and are not going to be able to spread disease via midges. Expert comment would be very gratefully received.
UPDATE In response, Sabine Zentis writes,
" I see the big problem in the negative animals : this presentation states that only 70% of vaccinated sheep show antibodies and yet all had been vaccinated.
Is is poor performance of the vaccine or some sort of "problem" with the certification? If it was all done by the book and the animals have been vaccinated properly... one would expect 100% antibody positives...."
It does seem to us that clarification about what tests actually mean is essential if farmers, vets and stakeholders are to understand what does and does not constitute a real risk.
(The most recent presentations from other EU countries can be accessed from ec.europa.eu...animal_health/presentations)

September 16/17 2008 ~Scotland: "Around seven million farm animals will be vaccinated to stop the "clear and present threat" of the bluetongue virus"

The Press Association says that the Scottish Government has announced that the programme "will cover all cattle and sheep and a voluntary option will be aimed at species such as goats, deer and zoo animals. The government will pay for half the £5 million manufacturing costs while the industry picks up the rest of the bill."
www.scotland.gov.uk says,
"A compulsory vaccination programme....will not begin before the start of November and will depend on the prevalence of midges which spread the disease among animals. Speaking after a meeting with the industry where stakeholders agreed to the compulsory winter vaccination programme, Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead said the need to vaccinate this year had been reinforced by the increased risk to Scotland from recent incidences of bluetongue in England."
Charles Milne, Chief Veterinary Officer for Scotland is quoted: "Vaccinating in the winter months when the lack of midges dramatically reduces the risk of disease circulation allows animals to develop immunity without exposure to significant risk. ....It will take several weeks for every animal in Scotland to be vaccinated against this virus. Additionally, vaccination against bluetongue virus 8 (see notes) only provides immunity for the most prevalent form bluetongue virus currently within the UK. Livestock keepers therefore cannot afford to become complacent and risk importing further serotypes of this disease."

September 16/17 2008 ~ Bluetongue tests positive in Denbighshire (Wales)

WalesOnline "Two imported cattle have tested positive for Bluetongue type 8 and a further is under investigation at a premises near Rhuthin, Denbighshire..."

September 16/17 2008 ~ "the maximal period when ruminants are thought to be infectious to competent insect vectors..."

The Shropshire Star quotes Gareth Vaughan, president of the Farmers Union of Wales (FUW) who rightly warns against "the dangers of listening to gossip and rumours about the vaccine" and urges farmers in Wales to vaccinate as soon as they can. But commenting on the recent imports found to have traces of bluetongue following post import tests, he referred to animals that "had tested positive for bluetongue". This is surely misleading. The recent ProMed commentary to which we referred below (September 11) seems sure that
"no renewed activity of BTV-8 has been detected, so far, on British soil..."
The moderator makes an important distinction between "positive for active bluetongue virus" and "detection of bluetongue" in otherwise healthy imports. The detection of antibodies or "non-viable virus components" by post-import testing procedures by DEFRA is not the same thing as finding active virus that could be spread if Culicoides midges were to bite an infected animal, get infected with the virus, and then go on to bite other ruminants. Midges that are not themselves infected can spread the disease only if they ingest blood from animals who have been in contact with Bluetongue and have active, infective virus in their blood.
According to the April 2007 EFSA report (pdf) on Bluetongue,
"....the PCR assay is perhaps overly sensitive in identifying BTV virus-positive animals, A 60 day infective period is more reflective of the maximal period when ruminants are thought to be infectious to competent insect vectors, and in reality the duration of this infectivity is markedly shorter than 60 days in the vast majority of infected ruminants...."
As the ProMed moderator commented, "...If active BTV is not present, there is no actual risk of further infection or spread of the disease on the importing farm or of its introduction into the circulation cycle (vectors)..."

September 15 2008 ~ German Bluetongue Expert coming to Hexham Northumberland

The Northern region of the National Sheep Association (NSA) are to hold an open meeting for members and friends within the Function Room at Hexham Auction Mart on Tuesday 30th September at 7.00pm.
"All farmers with stock susceptible to BTV8 are welcome to attend this important meeting. Dr Johannes Winkelmann, who was Head of the Animal Health Service for the Chamber of Agriculture in the German State of North Rhine Westphalia (NRW) when BTV8 affected cattle and sheep for the first time in August of 2006 has been invited by the NSA to speak about his experience with the Bluetongue virus.
As a result of Dr Winkelmann's advice and work the BTV8 virus is now under control in NRW. In July and August of this year, only 3 cases of BTV8 have been confirmed in NRW, compared to 1537 cases in the same months last year. Dr Winkelmann will inform the meeting of how BTV8 spread, its effect on the cattle and sheep, the monetary loss experienced by the various types of infected stock and practical advice on how to prevent the disease from becoming as prevalent as it did in NRW."

September 15 2008 ~ "So many rumours are circulating regarding this problem, many of which are totally untrue"

Hans Pörksen, Northern Region Chairman of NSA said: " We are very fortunate to get a Veterinary Surgeon of his practical experience of Bluetongue to come and tell us what we as farmers should do this autumn and in future years to prevent this disease. So many rumours are circulating regarding this problem, many of which are totally untrue." Further information about the open meeting from Regional Organiser - Julie Sedgewick Tel 01388 664496 Email: jas@nationalsheep.org.uk

September 15 2008 ~ "narrowing down the list of suspects"

A useful (non-pdf) link, complete with graphics, to Where Does Bluetongue Virus Sleep in the Winter? by Anthony Wilson, Karin Darpel, Philip Scott Mellor, (see posting for Sept 6) can be found on the internet. Extract:
"...Rather than a single "missing link" enabling the virus to persist during the winter period, experiments have revealed a toolbox of possible mechanisms, with the potential to interact with and complement one another. For example, chronic infection of the uterus could increase the likelihood of transplacental transmission, which in turn may create chronically or latently infected calves. Examples of BTV overwintering in the literature can be found ranging from as little as three months to eight or nine. The shortest of these periods could be bridged by any of several candidate mechanisms, and the principal difficulty faced by the epidemiologist is narrowing down the list of suspects...."
Read in full

September 13 2008 ~ Hungary has its 1st case of bluetongue

It is a farm in Forraytanya, near the village Gelej, in the northeast of Hungary. The moderator at ProMed comments
"A confirmation or otherwise of the suspicion stated above, and -- in case affirmed -- additional information, in particular concerning the BTV serotype involved, are requested. If it is BTV-8, this will mean a concerning but not surprising eastward spread of the virus. Identification of a different BTV serotype in Hungary is less likely in the absence of reports on recent cases in southeastern Europe."

September 13 2008 ~ Switzerland: "Unvaccinated cows, sheep, and goats currently returning from summer pastures, should be vaccinated immediately".

Today's ProMed also carries a link to the Swiss website www.news.admin.ch which reports "Three sheep have been found infected by bluetongue [virus] in Switzerland, one case in each of the cantons of Freiburg, Basel-Land, and Aargau. The new cases indicate that additional outbreaks may be expected throughout Switzerland during the coming weeks. Unvaccinated cows, sheep, and goats currently returning from summer pastures, should be vaccinated immediately."

September 12 2008 ~ More post import tests show traces of Bluetongue

DEFRA is careful not to imply active virus (see below) but using instead the phrase, "premises affected by Bluetongue", reports, "Six imported cattle on a premises near Worcester, these animals originated from Germany. One further cow on a premises near Dorchester, Dorset, this animal originated from France "

September 11 2008 ~ Cattle in Somerset have "tested positive"

However, it is to be hoped that those writing for the agricultural press will make the distinction (as ProMed does below) between "positive for active bluetongue virus" and the present "detection of bluetongue" in healthy imports - which may mean that antibodies or non-viable virus components have been detected by the post-import testing procedures applied. If we understand this correctly, such non active components are not dangerous to the UK and it seems important that yesterday's ProMed commentary should be read. Jonathan Riley, in Farmers Weekly interactive, says that there are "four to five further premises under investigation in areas as diverse as Somerset, Worcestershire and Cumbria." FWi's source added that there was also "a brewing controversy over a further batch of cattle en route from France to farms in Scotland. The cattle have been turned away by the Scottish authorities and are now being held on the English side of the border" FWi adds "While there is no reason to presume that the animals are infected with bluetongue, of great concern is that the cattle have been imported from an area in the south west of France which is under surveillance for the BTV1 strain of the bluetongue virus. .."

September 11 2008 ~ If active BTV is not present, there is no actual risk of further infection or spread..."

The ProMed posting about the detection of BTv in County Durham should be read in full, but particularly of interest is the expert commentary by moderator AS. Extracts:
"...there is no suggestion that this import was illegal. As the move is within a PZ, no pre-movement testing is required. .... bluetongue infection does not always express clinical signs in infected animals, it is, therefore, not unexpected to see BT-positive animals moving between Member States. Several such cases have been reported in previous postings.
....As opposed to the detection of "bluetongue virus," the "detection of bluetongue" may mean that antibodies or non-viable virus components have been detected by the post-import testing procedures applied. If active BTV is not present, there is no actual risk of further infection or spread of the disease on the importing farm or of its introduction into the circulation cycle (vectors)......no renewed activity of BTV-8 has been detected, so far, on British soil..."
Read in full

September 11 2008 ~ Recent evidence indicates a drop or delay in take-up of vaccine in counties recently brought into the PZ.

The moderator comment above continues:
"Sales data for some of those counties suggest that the number of animals vaccinated in these areas could be as low as one in 3, and in Northumberland and Cumbria, the most recent counties brought into the Protection Zone, as low as one in 5. On top of that, it will take 6-8 weeks from now for livestock keepers in the north of England and Wales to have had sufficient opportunity to vaccinate their livestock and to gain immunity (at least 3 weeks in sheep and 6 weeks in cattle). ... It remains to be seen whether Scotland decides to declare an official bluetongue protection zone and vaccinate as well. The Scottish government has BTV-8 vaccine in stock. It is not an easy decision: if declared, all live exports of cattle, sheep and goats to countries that are disease free (such as Ireland) would stop, with serious economic implications."
Read posting in full

September 10 2008 ~ Bluetongue in 18 imported cattle in County Durham

DEFRA says, "We have announced the detection of Bluetongue in 18 imported cattle on a premises near Bishop Auckland, County Durham. The animals originated from within the BTV8 Restricted Zone in Germany and were detected as a result of post-import testing carried out by Defra on all Bluetongue susceptible animals arriving from Continental Europe."
Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian, quotes Deputy chief veterinary officer, Alick Simmons: "Recent evidence indicates a drop or delay in vaccine take-up in counties recently brought into the Protection Zone. Sales data for some of those counties suggest that the number of animals vaccinated in these areas could be as low as one in three, and in Northumberland and Cumbria, the most recent counties brought into the Protection Zone, as low as one in five. The threat from bluetongue is present and real, as shown by the most recent import cases. Vaccination as a preventive measure is therefore more important than ever, so the message to the industry remains clear: don't hesitate, vaccinate."

September 10 2008 ~ Fears of importing serotype 1 from France

As we show below, the spread of serotype 1 up into South West France from Spain would appear to be moving at a rate of a rate of 50 kilometres a week. Although vaccination against strain 1 is now happening in the new areas of risk (my own sheep in SW France are due for their 2nd vaccination against both strains) there has been a shortfall of the vaccine in parts of France. While animals can be imported into the British Isles from France it is not fanciful to fear that animals from parts of South West France whose vaccination certificates are in order for BTv8 may nevertheless - as the Scots here are evidently fearing - be subject to the threat of BTv1 and may not yet be immunised against it. Testing imports for Btv1 is certainly important. NFU Scotland and the writer of this article in the Courier are expressing concern following the news that
"a pedigree bull is en-route from one of the disease hotspots in France to a farm in Aberdeenshire "
Their evident thought is that "Chief vet Professor Charles Milne might have no option but to declare Scotland an official bluetongue protection zone (PZ), a status already accorded to the whole of England." (Read article)

September 8 ~ Bluetongue in Sweden

The first two cases of bluetongue have been discovered in western Sweden on Saturday in a livestock herd about 10 kilometres east of Halmstad. The two animals have been destroyed.
www.thelocal.se "The farm has around 300 animals and results from tests performed on the rest of the herd on Sunday are expected on Tuesday. .... More veterinarians will travel to the region on Monday to perform tests on other farms in the immediate vicinity of the farm with confirmed cases of the disease. "In addition we'll start vaccinating, which will occur at the same time," ..... a 20-kilometre radius restrictive area has been set up around the affected farm... In addition, a 150-kilometre radius protective area has also created within which existing animals are free to move, but beyond which they cannot be taken."
Radio Sweden adds, " A huge vaccination campaign to protect animals in Sweden against the blue tongue virus has been announced by the Swedish Board of Agriculture after an outbreak of the disease in the south of the country. Two cases of the viral disease that effects ruminants were discovered on a farm in Halland, southern Sweden..... Around 20,000 sheep and cattle are to be involved in the first stage of vaccinations. The aim is then to extend the process in an 80 kilometre radius around the outbreak point."
UPDATE Sweden's official notification on the outbreak to the OIE confirming its diagnosis as BTV-8 including a map, can be seen on the OIE website

Sept 6/7 2008 ~ Vaccination guidelines, UK

ProMed has abridged and edited the main vaccination guidelines from DEFRA's website.
The abridged and edited guidelines can be seen here.

September 6 2008 ~ ProMed posting on situation in Germany and France

The posting can be found here. It includes information that in Germany, from 01 Jul to 01 Sep 2008, BTV 8 has been confirmed in 522 ruminants - with the majority of cases confirmed in Northern and Southern Germany in regions that experienced only low level of virus circulation during 2007. The Ministry says that, within 3 months, approximately 70 percent of the cattle and 90 percent of the sheep and goats have been vaccinated. A vaccination field trial, supervised by the Friedrich Loeffler Institute, has shown very high levels of immunity after vaccination in cattle and sheep.
As for France (see below) the moderator comments that although the French figures are somewhat complex, "clearly France is witnessing a renewed circulation of the virus which is more intensive than the one recorded in the other European countries" BTV-1, as we show below, is spreading up from the South West

September 6 2008 ~ The question of how bluetongue virus survives through the winter

has been discussed by Drs. Anthony Wilson, Karin Darpel and Philip Mellor of the Institute for Animal Health Dr. Mellor is quoted on the same ProMed posting:
"Although the major mechanism of bluetongue virus spread is undoubtedly that of Culicoides midges feeding on infected ruminants, growing the virus and then transmitting it to further susceptible animals, other mechanisms may also be at work. These may assume greater importance during the midge-free season (winter), such as we in northern latitudes experience. . ..Experiments have revealed a toolbox of possible mechanisms, with the potential to interact with and complement one another.""
ProMed links to the original 4-page paper, Wilson A, Darpel K, Mellor PS (2008), Where does bluetongue virus sleep in the winter? PLoS Biol 6(8): e210. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0060210,

Sept 4 2008 ~ New cases of BTV1 in South West France

(For detail and zone map for France see www.gds18.org )
Cases in France now stand at 10,400 of BTV8 (virus circulating this year, 2008) and 251 new cases of BTV1 (virus circulating this year, 2008)
Last year there were in France 15 569 cases of Bluetongue of which 3 cases only were of serotype 1. In the first six months of 2008 there were 6,020 cases of which 6 were of serotype 1 associated with virus circulating in 2007. According to the French website (late August) "At the present time, the BTV1 strain is progressing at a rate of 50 kilometers a week."

Sept 4 2008 ~ Devon MP Richard Younger-Ross questions why imported cattle are tested on arrival rather than before export.

South Devon's Herald Express quotes Mr Younger-Ross, who has written to Hilary Benn: "It is also unclear whether farmers who have imported Bluetongue cattle will be compensated considering their animals were imported in good faith with reasonable checks made. With the difficulty of maintaining herd levels because of the TB culls, together with the high cost of feed, it is not unreasonable for farmers to receive compensation in these cases."
At present, though, the question remains whether culling should take place when imported animals test positive. The eminent vet, Paul Roger, told Farmers Weekly last week, "It is highly likely that due to the massive uptake of vaccination in the south east the local midge population is naïve to the virus. These animals pose a huge risk of infection and as such should be euthanised as soon as possible." .( Could he have been misquoted?)
DEFRA considers slaughter unnecessary because " there is no evidence to suggest that virus is circulating between local midge and animal populations in the local areas.." adding, "Full epidemiological investigations are underway." See also, below, Nigel Gibbens' defence of the decision not to slaughter the animals at Tiverton

Sept 4 2008 ~ Tiverton BTV positive heifers showing no visible signs of bluetongue

The Tiverton farmer concerned, Mark Davis, told the Exeter Express and Echo yesterday that the affected heifers were showing no sign of the disease. He said:
"The heifers have been here for two and a half weeks. If they were going to be sick they would be by now, but they are still all healthy."
Expert comment would be much appreciated, but might this not suggest that the heifers had been infected just before vaccination but that vaccination itself had kept the effect of the disease at a very low level? Further independent tests are being carried out at the farm, with results expected early next week.

Sept 4 2008 ~ A new technique for genetically "bar-coding" biting midges

Science Daily reports that a new technique developed by Jane DeGabriel of the University of Aberdeen will be preasented today to the British Ecological Society's Annual Meeting at Imperial College. Her research is being carried out under a Scottish Government grant to the University of Aberdeen, Advanced Pest Solutions Ltd and the Institute for Animal Health, Pirbright.
"The four species within the group Culicoides obsoletus that we are interested in cannot be distinguished visually. So we are using a genetic bar-coding approach to identify the midges to species level using molecular methods. We have developed a high-throughput genetic screening method to identify large sample sizes of midges to species level, both efficiently and cost-effectively."
Having collected a million midges from light traps set up on 37 farms throughout Scotland, from the English border in the south to as far north as Thurso, her team were then able to produce a detailed map of Scotland showing that all four species of midges are present in all areas of Scotland. Midge numbers and species "varied both geographically and seasonally, reflecting differences in climate and habitat."

Sept 3 2008 ~ Worrying new cases in South West France

Yesterday evening there were 382 suspected cases recorded by the veterinary services in and around Ariege and 213 holdings have already been confirmed as positive. (135 relate to sheep, 7 to goats, 243 cattle.) The only immediate protection measure is the use of insecticide - compulsory throughout Ariege since August 22, 2008. Stockbreeders have been told to contact their vets to plan for vaccination which should take place throughout September. More (in french) on www.ariegenews.com

September 3 2008 ~Bluetongue: SCFCAH agenda

The Agenda for the EU's Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (SCFCAH) meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday includes a 2nd Addendum (4D):
"Exchange of views on the implementation of Regulation 1266/2007 on bluetongue"
The Regulation 1266/2007 implements rules for Council Directive 2007/75/EC on the "control, monitoring, surveillance and restriction on movements of certain animals of susceptible species in relation to bluetongue" and it is possible that changes may be suggested.
Information from EU Member States on the epidemiological situation and on vaccination was Item 2. Item 6 : "Exchange of views and possible opinion of the Committee on a Draft Commission Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 1266/2007 as regards the minimum requirements for bluetongue monitoring and surveillance programmes. (Doc. SANCO/2157/2008 - Rev.1) Item 7: "Exchange of views and possible opinion of the Committee on a Draft Commission Decision amending Decision 2008/XXXX/EC approving the emergency vaccination plans against bluetongue of certain Member States and fixing the level of the Community's financial contribution for 2007 and 2008. (Doc. SANCO/2253/2008) (See full agenda etc at http://ec.europa.eu/food/committees/regulatory/scfcah/animal_health/ag_23092008_en.pdf)

September 2 2008 ~ Clarification - Vaccine (vaccine uses killed virus) itself cannot, of course, produce viraemia.

There is no question at all that vaccination can lead to disease and we are extremely concerned to have caused any confusion. Intervet had reported that
"Some vaccinated animals showed no viraemia, the others showed only low level viraemia with a very short duration after vaccination."
Cattle that show viraemia must have been exposed to the virus in order for tests to return positive results. It is uncertain which vaccine the cattle at Tiverton below had been vaccinated with. Our apologies if the paragraph below seems to suggest that Intervet vaccine - or any vaccine at all - induces viraemia. What is true is that when vaccinating in a country where BT is circulating you can never rule out that an animal will become infected before protective immunity has built up. Germany has not used any Intervet vaccine.

September 1 2008 ~ Intervet has found low level viraemia in vaccinated animals after vaccination. (Please see clarification above)

Although DEFRA denies that the Devon cattle results were false positives (See Jack Davies' article today in the Farmers Guardian) we hear that it has been stated by the vaccine manufacturers (Intervet) that they have found low level viraemia in vaccinated animals after vaccination. The FG article tells us that DEFRA has denied claims that its tests for bluetongue disease had given false readings in the case of infected cattle on a farm at Tiverton. The farmer concerned had said the PCR tests had reacted to vaccine not virus. Defra however has said there was no mix-up and that the PCR test had confirmed bluetongue in eight cattle found on the farm at Tiverton last week..." ( Read in full)
Defra's CVO, Nigel Gibbens, is quoted in the article: "We are actually specifically looking for the virus itself and not the antibody....There's been more than one test and the PCR test is very sensitive so we are confident there has been no mix up."
But viraemia is not antibody and one wonders what the other tests were. As the correspondent who informed us of Intervet's finding of viraemia in vaccinated animals writes,
"This might be the case with the imported heifers. I hope that they will be re-tested and that maybe someone is bright enough to check the blood for infectivity. It might turn out that these animals are not infective at all."

September 1 2008 ~ Nigel Gibbens defends the decision not to slaughter the animals at Tiverton

See Farmers Guardian : "Killing those animals now might give the illusion of control but it doesn't guarantee anything at all. We did kill animals right at the beginning of the outbreak last year on the grounds that if the disease isn't already in the midge population - and we didn't have disease at all then - you have a chance. But the disease is already here and killing these animals would have very little effect in terms of disease control."

August 31st 2008 ~ Mass vaccination can begin in Wales tomorrow

Farmers right across Wales will be able to start vaccinating from tomorrow when the existing bluetongue protection zone will be extended to cover the whole of Wales - but the Daily Post reports that "....Welsh Assembly officials remain worried at the level of complacency among Welsh farmers. Feedback from this summer's agricultural shows suggests many producers believe the midge-borne disease will not reach Wales because England's protection zone is acting as a bluetongue buffer.
Rural affairs minister Elin Jones stressed Britain's first case of bluetongue was not confirmed until late September last year. She urged farmers to contact their vets and vaccinate their animals as soon as possible.... We have the vaccine this year. We didn't last year. But it will only make a difference if it's used."

August 30th 2008 ~ BTv-1 on the march northwards in France

An urgent meeting, described as "pessimistic", took place in France on Thursday about the progression of serotype 1 . It seems to be approaching at a rate of 50 km per week. (The green area shows regions where both serotype 8 and 1 have been confirmed.) There is however a problem with vaccine in France with only restricted amounts being available between now and October.
The confirmation of new cases of BTV1, in the Departments of Aude, Gers and the Lot and Garonne has led to a modification of zones. This zoning is instituted by the decree of August 27, 2008 defining the regulated zones relating to Bluetongue - coming into effect on August 28, 2008.
There are now 8167 cases of BTV8 in France resulting from viral circulation in 2008 and 178 new cases of BTV1 resulting from viral circulationthis year.
15,569 cases of Bluetongue were declared in France in 2007 (including 3 case of serotype 1). More information (in french) from gds18.org/

August 29th 2008 ~ More bluetongue imports

Defra confirms Bluetongue detected in Devon (BTV8) in eight imported cattle, on premises near Tiverton, Devon. "The animals originated from the same consignment imported from within the BTV8 Restricted Zone in Germany...The cases in Devon were detected as a result of post-import testing carried out by Defra on all Bluetongue susceptible animals arriving from Continental Europe, in addition to checks at the country of origin. ..There is no evidence to suggest that virus is circulating between local midge and animal populations in the local areas. Full epidemiological investigations are underway..."

August 29th 2008 ~ First new case in Denmark

BTv8 has been confirmed (by laboratory PCR testing) at Bredebro in the Tonder commune in the south of Denmark. According to the WAHID (OIE) report, the suspicion was based on clinical signs in two cattle, noticed at the time of vaccination of a cattle herd with 104 cattle and 13 sheep on 26 Aug 2008.

August 28 2008 ~ Bluetongue vaccine may arrive too late to help Cumbrian farmers

Tim Farron, MP, is quoted by Cumbria's North West Evening Mail: "....Rather than waiting until September 1, the area should have been included within the protection zone some weeks ago to give the farmers the best chance at the sales. Vaccination is not compulsory as long as the area has been officially declared a protection zone. But many farmers from the south or south east may want to opt for vaccinated animals as their first choice with anything else fetching lower prices at auction."

August 28 2008 ~ Cow infected in Switzerland between first and second vaccination

Showing how urgently necessary the vaccination campaign is, we read that a dairy cow in the Bernese Jura, has been diagnosed with Bluetongue and must have been infected before it had received its first vaccination. It had shown signs of the disease when the other 60 cows on the farm were getting their second vaccination. It now seems that five other animals in Jura may have the disease too (see also below).
Since the first Swiss case in October 2007, 21 animals, on 9 different Swiss farms have been infected. This new case and those in neighbouring countries show how vitally important the current vaccination campaign is. More details can be read (in french) on www.admin.ch

August 28 2008 ~ "It was entirely predictable..."

Dr James Irvine at www.land-care.org.uk is one of the few voices in Scotland to be pointing out that it is the EU regulations allowing free movement within infected areas that poses the greatest risk at present for Scotland
"...In the interests of trade rather than science the EC permits the free movements of livestock between so-called Protection zones throughout the EU ..... .
...While NFU Scotland huffs and puffs and complains to Hilary Benn about the English rolling out their vaccination programme right up to the border (as the English have consistently said they would), NFU Scotland have been conspicuously backward in demanding a derogation from the EC rule....
Also, NFU Scotland and other Scottish stakeholders, would have done well to have insisted that the Scottish Government ordered its 12 million dose supply of vaccine very much earlier in the year, or indeed at the same time as England did on 20th December 2007. Rather they and others, wasted valuable time arguing as to who was going to pay for it...."
The article can be read in full here. It is strange that so few media articles point out that it is the EU rules - no derogation seems even to have been properly urged - that have put Scotland at risk - along with its own delay in getting vaccine.

August 27 2008 ~ Post import testing has found Bluetongue in imported rams in Southern England

DEFRA has announced
"the detection of two cases of Bluetongue (BTV8) in imported rams on premises near Lewes, East Sussex and Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire Both animals originated from the same premises within the BTV8 Restricted Zone in Central France."
Animals are allowed to pass freely between Protection Zones in different member states and had been recently imported from France.

August 27 2008 ~ Scotland - the price of delay

Several articles today continue to quote Nigel Miller and to express concern that vaccination is to take place in the regions closest to the Scottish border before all the major sales of breeding and store stock have taken place.
The Herald quotes Dr Karen Smyth, rural development manager of the Scottish Rural Property Business Association (SRPBA) who says:
"The date at which the campaign will be introduced will be in the best interests of our livestock sector in Scotland. Being designated as a protection zone will bring with it considerable commitments, eg: bluetongue vaccinations and boosters will have to be administered for a number of years, and it will not be possible to remove that protection zone status without at least two clear years free of bluetongue. Therefore careful consideration must be given before we enter the protection zone."
The Scotsman : "The situation is highly complex, but the Scottish Government has indicated that it will hold another "stakeholder meeting" late next month, by which time the wider picture should be much clearer."
See also Plea for caution over importing of livestock in the Aberdeen Press and Journal and Call for supporting evidence of Bluetongue protection zone in the Farmers Guardian.
Reading such articles it is hard not to sympathise with the frustration of those like Dr Irvine (e.g. here) who say, "because of the lamentable lack of vaccine, Scotland will be left with an unacceptably high risk of getting bluetongue before the VFP arrives. While Scotland may. 'get away with it', it is not a risk its livestock farmers should be faced with."

August 25 2008 ~ Grim statistics from France

According to http://gds18.org/ACTUALITE/ACTUFCO.html (our unofficial translation) France is now reporting 5,621 cases of BTV8 resulting from virus circulating in 2008. In addition, there are now 74 new cases of BTV1 resulting from virus circulating this year (in the South West of the country).
"Restricted Zones have been extended following confirmation of new cases of BTV8 ( viral circulation 2008) in the departments of the Ardeche, of the Ardennes, Aube, Ille and Vilaine, Lot, Meuse, Haut Rhine, Savoy, Yvelines and Essonne.
BTV1, confirmed in Ariège, Haut Garonne, the Gironde, the Lot and the Garonne has involved a modification of the zoning of these regions.......For information: 15,569 cases of Bluetongue were declared in 2007 (including 3 case of FCO serotype 1).
6020 cases of FCO declared in the first half of 2008 (including 6 case of FCO serotype 1) related to the viral circulation of 2007."
Maps and pdf link at http://gds18.org/ACTUALITE/ACTUFCO.html

August 22 2008 ~ Pictures of misery

If farmers, not sure whether to vaccinate, are nevertheless curious as to the sort of state sheep and cows can be in when affected by Bluetongue, the photographs on this french website may help them make up their mind to protect their animals.

August 22 2008 ~ "alleged that the uptake of voluntary bluetongue vaccination in the areas south of Cumbria and Northumberland has been alarmingly low"

James Irvine on Land-Care.org ".... it is alleged that the uptake of voluntary bluetongue vaccination in the areas south of Cumbria and Northumberland has been alarmingly low, at only some 40 - 45%. That would not be enough to provided a reliable barrier to the spread of bluetongue disease... the crazy EC rules insist that livestock within all Protection Zones - whether they have active disease or not - must be allowed to move freely within these Protection Zones... bluetongue virus-carrying livestock will shortly be legitimately allowed to move right up to the Scottish Border, whether they come from England (which is awaiting its first resurgent case) or elsewhere in the EU (where disease is rife). ...even if Scotland managed to start with its first million doses by the first of October, cattle would not be fully protected until the first of December, although sheep would be by early November. But that is when the risk of bluetongue spread is on the decline. Therefore, because of the lamentable lack of vaccine, Scotland will be left with an unacceptably high risk of getting bluetongue before the VFP arrives...." Read in full

August 21 2008 ~ Scotland reacts to news that all England will be a PZ by September

Google latest news (an updating page of links about Scotland and bluetongue)
Stackyard quotes Nigel Miller:
"It is important to bear in mind that properly vaccinated stock will be able to move into a free area like Scotland over time. A veterinary certificate confirming vaccination should accompany these animals. They can leave the vaccination area after 35 days from full vaccination if they are tested for Bluetongue. Untested animals cannot be moved for 60 days following completion of full vaccination. A Post-Movement Notification Document (PMND) and a copy of the veterinary certificate of vaccination must also be sent to the Scottish Government within three days of the vaccinated animals arriving here.
"The time involved in properly vaccinating and certifying animals will run to months rather than days so this short window when free movement between free areas in Scotland and England can continue to take place will be all important."
The Scottish "tough it out" approach has not been tough on the virus but rather based on trade considerations and hoping for the best. As James Irvine wrote a few days ago on Land-Care.org (www.land-care.org.uk) :
"....Livestock movements during the summer months in Scotland are light, compared to those in the autumn and in the spring. Surely there was a window of some 3 months or more in the summer when vaccination could have been carried out with minimal disruption to trade? This, accompanied by a derogation that no livestock were to be imported into Scotland until compulsory vaccination had been effectively completed, would have seen Scotland safe from bluetongue serotype 8
But vaccine was not ordered early enough and there was no derogation forthcoming from the EC...."
It is a little hard to understand how Richard Lochhead, quoted in the Press and Journal,today can justify the statements: "...the priority for government and industry remained keeping Scotland free of the virus for as long as possible" and "We have pulled together to keep bluetongue out of Scotland " when no Scots farmer has been able to protect animals fom the virus by vaccination - and will not be able to do so until the winter. Instead they are threatened with "hefty fines" if they break the complicated movement rules.

21 August 2008 ~ Welsh unions are worried some producers may gamble and wait to vaccinate their animals next spring to save money.

The Daily Post reports that the unions, concerned that farmers may gamble on the disease, had asked for greater clarity on when Wales would become a Protection Zone. The Assembly has made it clear that this will not take place before Sunday, August 31. Similarly, DEFRA has said that Cumbria and Northumberland, the last areas to join an England-wide zone, will not be officially inside the zone before September 1 - unless, as in Wales- a new case is diagnosed in those areas. But farmers should be ordering vaccine now. The Daily Post quotes Christianne Glossop again, "This is a period of high risk for the disease and farmers must prepare to vaccinate now."

20 August 2008 ~ Bluetongue Protection Zone will be extended into Northumberland and Cumbria "shortly", says DEFRA.

Defra website: "... However, this will not happen before 1 September unless the re-emergence of circulating disease requires it..... . This will complete the vaccination roll-out by bringing the whole of England into the Protection Zone. .... Livestock keepers in the areas coming into the Protection Zone will be able to obtain the vaccine from the time they become part of the Zone; however, they are encouraged to order vaccine in advance through their vet. ....Animals can only be moved out of the Protection Zone if they are vaccinated, naturally immune or moving for slaughter, subject to meeting certain conditions." Read in full - and see also Farmers Guardian

20 August 2008 ~" the north of England and Scotland may well be hit harder by bluetongue disease.."

Writing in reaction to the NFUS call to halt vaccination in the north of England, Dr James Irvine of Land-Care.org (www.land-care.org.uk)
"......Surely there was a window of some 3 months or more in the summer when vaccination could have been carried out with minimal disruption to trade. This, accompanied by a derogation that no livestock were to be imported into Scotland until compulsory vaccination had been effectively completed, would have seen Scotland safe from bluetongue serotype 8.
But vaccine was not ordered early enough and there was no derogation forthcoming from the EC. Endless delays in Scotland ordering its 12 million doses have contributed, along with the absurdity of the EC rules, to the incredible situation whereby NFUS Scotland is seeking, in the interests of trade, to halt further vaccination in England. The risk is, of course, that the north of England and Scotland may well be hit harder by bluetongue disease than elsewhere in England or in Wales. But clearly NFU Scotland is hoping to get way with it. That is not the way to logically control the spread of such a dire disease as bluetongue." Read in full
See also last November's warmwell blog entry when we recalled Debby Reynolds' brave and wholly wrong opinion in 2006 about the risk from bluetongue and saw a sad similarity with Scotland's stance.

20 August 2008 ~ First Swiss case in 2008 - in an unvaccinated sheep

A case of bluetongue in the Jura canton of Switzerland was diagnosed in an unvaccinated sheep yesterday - showing, says www.admin.ch (french) - "that the vaccination campaign in progress since June is vital.....most of the cattle, sheep and goat population of our country has been vaccinated. The cases found in unvaccinated animals demonstrate the risk: infection is widespread and that without vaccination, the number of cases would be much higher."

18 August 2008 ~ Wales: "Farmers who intend to take their animals to sales in the current disease-free areas of Scotland and northern England are advised to move them before the end of August "

Dr Christianne Glossop is quoted in the Swansea Evening Post, warning that since the declaration of the protection zone in Wales is imminent - unlikely before the end of August but "the situation could change quickly" - farmers who want to move animals into the last remaining free areas should not get caught out by the declaration of the new PZ in Wales.
She added: "My message continues to be to farmers that they must prepare to vaccinate. There must be no complacency. There have been some 4,000 new cases of bluetongue in northern Europe in the past few weeks ,and we must remember that the first case of bluetongue in the UK last year occurred in September. This is a period of high risk for the disease." (Moving animals from one free area to another through a PZ is still allowed as long as movements conform to the licence regulations EXD467(BT)(E) Version 4 pdf. )

16 August 2008 ~ five new cases in the north of the Netherlands confirmed yesterday

See Reuters. "...The Dutch Agriculture Ministry urged farmers to vaccinate their goats, sheep and cattle against the bluetongue livestock disease after confirming five new cases in the north of the Netherlands on Friday. All five infected animals were sheep that had not been vaccinated against the virus ...."

16 August 2008 ~ "....the challenge is really to try and persuade Scotland to speed up its vaccination programme so that everyone is in the same zone as quickly as possible...."

Daelnet.co.uk reported on Thursday that the message from the North East and North West NFU in response to Scotland's wish for the vaccination programme to be halted in Northern England until after the Autumn sales "make no sense at all" The North East regional livestock board chairman and Rochester farmer, Malcolm Corbett is quoted
"With only Northumberland and Cumbria remaining outside the Bluetongue Protection Zone, it would mean imposing a 'voluntary' border across Northern England - to the detriment of both farmers and auction marts. It would also put English farms at risk of contracting this very serious disease....There's no doubt that extending the Protection Zone up to the Scottish border will create havoc... However while it's true that animals would normally be moving to Scotland at this time of year, it's also true that others move south and it's unacceptable to contemplate moving large quantities of unvaccinated animals into areas where vaccination has already taken place. So the challenge is really to try and persuade Scotland to speed up its vaccination programme so that everyone is in the same zone as quickly as possible. As a matter of urgency we also need them to relax their restriction on the movement of animals over the border for slaughter. This is something they could do very quickly and would go some way to easing the situation."
NFU County Chairman for Cumbria, Russell Bowmen, said that as usual it would be farmers paying the price for administrative discord.
"It has been obvious for months - ever since Scotland announced its decision to impose a compulsory vaccination programme later this year - that we would have a period of time where cross-border trade would be severely compromised."
The article goes on to say how important it is for the two governments in England and Scotland to work together to try and resolve this situation "before our struggling livestock industry is hit with another financial hammer blow." Read article

15 August 2008 ~ NFU Scotland is calling for a halt in the bluetongue vaccination programme before it reaches the north of England..

.. because " ..traditional trade would be affected if the north of England is brought into the vaccination zone before the regular calf sales take place this autumn," said NFUS vice-president, Nigel Miller. FWi quotes Nigel Miller: "The planned vaccination programme in Scotland is not due to kick in until the vector-free period starts in mid-December unless bluetongue hits before then. We believe the time is right to review the continued roll-out of vaccine in England. If the current timetable in England is met, there would be significant implications for calf producers in Northumberland and Cumbria who have traditionally supplied Scottish finishers through the September and October sales. Halting vaccination in the north would strike a balance between the economic considerations of trade disruption against those of necessary disease control."

....We fully understand the Scottish view and the importance of cross-border trading, but there is an industry wide view that we stick to the roll out programme as vaccine becomes available."

15 August 2008 ~ "in contrast to the 2008 situation in continental Europe, no renewed BTV-8 circulation has been recorded on the British Isles so far..."

ProMed carries a statement from Simon Carpenter at Pirbright in response to ProMed's request for information about the vector free period. What Simon Carpenter of Pirbright says in his statement to ProMed is that what seem like new cases (that we have noted as mentioned on the DEFRA website - two discovered very recently) are actually "consistent with historic infection prior to the declaration of the VFP" - In other words, are positives where infection seems to date from 2007 - not this year. The moderator's comment expresses gratitude for the authoritative, first hand response from Dr Carpenter, and the comment concludes,
"...The advantages related to VPF declaration may deserve a short explanation. Trade in animals is restricted during the vector activity period because the introduction of viraemic animals into BTV-free areas will enable the establishment of virus circulation through the infection of vectors feeding on the introduced carrier animals. Only animals testing negative to infection are allowed movement. However, during the VFP, such restrictions and conditions are alleviated or discontinued, leading to significant economical benefits, benefits to trade, as well as to the animal welfare aspects related to such restrictions.
It remains to be seen whether the current favorable situation in Britain, namely the absence of BTV-8 circulation, prevails throughout 2008."
The full ProMed posting can be seen here.

15 August 2008 ~ The adjuvants present in Bluetongue vaccine can cause false positives on TB tests

The immune response they stimulate means that vaccine should not be administered at the time of first injection of tuberculin in order to avoid any risk of interference with the TB test. Although there does not seem to be anything about this on the Defra website (can anyone see a reference to bTB testing at the time of BT vaccination?) the Farmers Guardian quotes a Defra spokesperson: "It is not recommend that any medicines, including bluetongue vaccines, should be administered at the time of injection of tuberculin (your vet's first visit) in order to avoid any risk of interference with the TB test. No problems are expected with using medicines on the day of the reading of the skin test (your vet's second visit)."

15 August 2008 ~Sheep farmers are being advised not to use the vaccine within two weeks either side of tupping

The Farmers Guardian says "....Some vets have already sent letters to their farmers warning them that vaccinating within two weeks of putting a ram into a ewe, or from the planned tupping date, could render the vaccine ineffective."
Alasdair King, veterinary manager at Intervet, is quoted: "Our advice on the bluetongue vaccine is the same with any other vaccine - we would not advise using it within two weeks of mating."

14 August 2008 ~ "the need for a concerted effort from the livestock industry to reignite their interest in vaccination"

Some UK farmers, still unwilling or unsure whether to bother to vaccinate, seem unaware of the reality across the Channel. According to the French website gds18.org there have now been more than 4,000 new "cases" (we can only assume this means affected animals but would appreciate clarification) of Bluetongue - both strains 8 and 1 - reported in France in 2008. The French government are to be congratulated on their decision - not backed by the EU - to help finance both vaccinations in areas at risk in the South West of France. (Ministry pdf) - but there are still areas where vets have still not yet received vaccine and livestock owners are very anxious.
As one correspondent writes,
"It is amazing how BTV8 has taken off in France, perhaps the veterinary vaccination is too slow a method along with the limitations in the amount of vaccine, and the reporting is encouraged by compensation - and there was a lot of BTV8 infection there to start with... I am not clear how BTV1 vaccination is going..."
Whatever the reason for the huge numbers of cases in France, the sooner the whole of England and Wales becomes one Protection Zone the better.
As we reported on August 6th, Wales' Christianne Glossop says,
"The precise timing for the protection zone declaration is dependent upon when vaccine batches are available. This decision highlights the need for a concerted effort from the livestock industry to reignite their interest in vaccination....We are entering the period of highest risk of bluetongue....."
And on August 12 the Western Mail reported again on the Welsh Assembly Government's decision, ".... to extend the zone to the whole of Wales instead of opting for a gradual roll-out, county by county." Of vaccination, NFU Cymru president Dai Davies said "The alternative is unthinkable. I remain firmly of the view that we cannot afford not to vaccinate."
Meanwhile, Scotland is gambling on there being no immediate risk.

11 August 2008 ~ Defra: "As of 00.01 Monday 11 August 2008 the Protection Zone will be extended again...

...but not Cumbria. DEFRA says it will "cover the Counties of Durham and Tyne and Wear (Metropolitan Boroughs of Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland) and the Unitary Authorities of Hartlepool, Darlington, Stockton-on-Tees, Middlesbrough and Redcar and Cleveland.... We will continue to expand the Protection Zone and to roll out vaccination to the free area as vaccine is delivered.... The additional vaccine is available for use in the existing Protection Zone from today." See Zone map from Monday 11th Aug.
There seems to be no reason forthcoming about why Cumbria continues to be excluded from the PZ . Others with less urgent need have been brought into the fold. How can farmers in the Lake District buy, sell and show their livestock - and what will happen if animals are not protected now that it is evident that new virus is on the move? It really does seem odd. As one well-informed farmer from Cumbria wrote on Saturday, "it will have devastating effects on overwintering prospects in Scotland if matters are not sorted out with some speed."

8 August 2008 ~ Why is the Lake District - with all its hill farms and sheep - still left out of the PZ?

DEFRA is to be congratulated on its efficient roll-out of vaccine. Now that nearly all English counties are included in the Protection Zone however, it is curious and worrying that Cumbria, (together with Durham, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear) is still left outside the protection zone. Farmers still don't know when they will be able to vaccinate and the chief worry is that the Autumn Sales will be disrupted for the second year running since last year's FMD virus escape at Pirbright led to disastrous movement restrictions over the whole country. Cumberland News says that the exclusion of Cumbria,
"effectively cuts Cumbria off from the most of the country, seriously limiting farmers on where they can buy, sell and show livestock."
The DEFRA site today reveals another case of Bluetongue, taking the total to 137 - but there is no official indication that this is new virus circulating - as it already is in Holland, Belgium, Germany and especially France.

7 August 2008 ~ 2008 virus in Holland

Agrarisch Dagblad says (our unofficial summary) "Bluetongue has been confirmed officially in the Netherlands - the first case this year. A young unvaccinated bullock in Staphorst had shown clinical signs. The central veterinary institute (CVI) of Wageningen has yet to confirm strain 8. Belgium and Germany have also new cases from virus circulating this yr."

6 August 2008 ~ All Wales to become PZ by the end of the month, it is hoped

We read in the Western Mail that Dr Christianne Glossop says,
"The precise timing for the protection zone declaration is dependent upon when vaccine batches are available. This decision highlights the need for a concerted effort from the livestock industry to reignite their interest in vaccination; the need to minimise the impact of bluetongue controls during the autumn trading season and to ensure the process is simple and easily understood.
We are entering the period of highest risk of bluetongue and, as midge populations become more active, the threat of virus circulation increases."
Read in full

5 August 2008 ~ Protection zone set to extend further on Thursday (August 7) after Merial delivered the first batch of its 13 million doses

The DEFRA website and the farming press report that
".. two further million doses of vaccine will be released and the PZ will extend to cover... parts of Shropshire, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, North Yorkshire and all of Lancashire and Merseyside... The Merial vaccine will only be available in 100ml bottles, at a cost of around £66.14- £79.36 a bottle (66-79p per dose) - around 10p a dose more expensive then the Intervet 50ml bottles currently available in the existing protection zone..."
Defra's roll-out plan will see vaccine gradually delivered to the free areas based on risk. See new zone map (new window). See Merial press release
The aim is that the PZ will eventually cover all of England and Wales. As long as farmers do vaccinate their animals, this is very good news for the UK and contrasts well with the situation in some parts of France for example which, although at risk, are still unable to protect their animals because their vets have not yet received vaccine. So far this year in France there have been 3,042 cases of BTv strain 8 outbreaks due to currently circulating virus and 15 new cases (outbreaks) of serotype 1. See (in french) gds18.org

1 August 2008 ~ The strain originates from sub-Saharan Africa

Professor Peter Mertens, who has researched the bluetongue virus for 25 years at the IAH, together with 24 co-authors from six different institutes have written a paper about their analysis of the full genome of the BTV strain currently in Northern Europe and their comparison of it to other BTV strains. (Maan et al. Sequence analysis of bluetongue virus serotype 8 from the Netherlands 2006 and comparison to other European strains. Virology, 2008; 377 (2): 308 DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2008.04.028) It would seem then that ".....Although NET2006/04 showed high levels of nucleotide identity with other 'western' BTV strains, it represents a new introduction and was not derived from the BTV-8 vaccine, although its route of entry into Europe has not been established."

1 August 2008 ~ New EU -wide Bluetongue legislation comes into force today

The pdf file can be seen here (new window) The wording is, as usual, anything but easy to follow. The main concern is that animals being moved from one place to another .must have been protected against attacks by the vector Culicoides "In addition, at least one of the conditions set out in points 1 to 7 must be complied with....."

31 July, 2008 ~ Current situation in France

The green area of SW France is now aware of both strain 8 and strain 1 circulating. (UPDATE In parts at least of this green area, we discover, many veterinary surgeries have not received vaccine supplies - even though the risk is now from two strains.)
Below it, the pink area has only strain 1 so far. According to the french website http://gds18.org/ACTUALITE/ACTUFCO.html
(our unofficial translation) "New cases of Bluetongue strain 8 (i.e.circulating this year) have been confirmed in the departments of Aisne, Doubs, Maine and Loire, Vienne and Haute-Vienne - resulting in an extension of the protection zone. The confirmation of 4 new cases of Bluetongue strain 1 (2 in the Atlantic Pyrenees and 2 in les Landes) located in the heart of the existing PZ do not require any modification of zoning. Cases on these 4 new premises where animals had positive results had either not been vaccinated or had been vaccinated but not yet achieved immune status.
6020 cases have been detected in the first semester of 2008 related to virus circulating last year in 2007 .
1868 cases of BTV8 are related to virus circulating this year, in 2008. 9 new cases of BTV1 also resulting from virus circulating 2008. (There were 15,569 cases of Bluetongue detected in France in 2007 - including 3 case of serotype 1)
news.xinhuanet.com reports that departmental officials in the department of Allier (Central France) are planning to allocate 172,500 euros to help Bluetongue affected farmers in their department. We have not yet seen any confirmation of this

31 July, 2008 ~ vaccination programme "at risk of becoming a victim of its own success": Peter Morris

Joanne Pugh's article in the Farmers Guardian today quotes Peter Morris, chief executive of the National Sheep Association, who has warned farmers against becoming complacent.
"Although the vaccination programme had been a 'fantastic success' so far, with a 'phenomenal' uptake of around 85 per cent within the Protection Zone, that did not mean there was a big enough firewall for farmers in the north not to inject stock..."
He said that there are "difficult decisions" to be made now that "all the counties in the PZ were covered" since, if there was an outbreak outside the PZ, in uncovered Cumbria for example, there would not be enough vaccine available at short notice. Chris Oura advises farmers in the PZ not to move unvaccinated stock close to the edge of the PZ, presumably since this could, if midges carrying disease move with them, jeopardise the free zone. Mr Morris echoed our own concern about Scotland's not being able to vaccinate until the Autumn. This raises the ever important question - is the fear of losing trade really more important than the risk of spreading the disease? (In terms of the future of farming if Bluetongue really gets a hold, we would say definitely not - but in the short term one can understand, as Mr Morris does himself, the frustration caused by movement restrictions.) Read the FG article.

July 28 2008 ~ " potentially very damaging to Scotland's livestock, let alone livestock throughout the EU...".

www,land-care.org.uk
"..... Current EC rules continue to insist that there must be free trade of livestock between all Bluetongue Disease Protection Zones .... Previously the authorities argued that the risk of Scotland getting bluetongue disease this summer was small, because of the relatively slow rate at which midges are thought to travel via the wind. All that assurance comes to naught when free movements of infected livestock could shortly bring the virus to the Scottish border .... Worse still, the policy adopted by Defra for Bluetongue vaccination is that it is done on a voluntary basis, with the latest batches of vaccine supplied in 100 ml bottles. There is no way of knowing for sure what the effective uptake of the vaccination programme in England actually is.
Even worse again, when Scotland does get a supply of vaccine, as soon as the first dose is given to a single animal a Protection Zone will be declared. It takes two doses and two months for vaccination to be fully effective in cattle....."
Read in full. Dr Irvine links to the NBA petition asking urgently for a derogation to prevent the movement of livestock into areas until vaccination has a chance of being effective.

July 26 2008 ~ PZ expands again on Monday 28th July

to cover Herefordshire, the unitary authority of Telford and Wrekin and the districts in Shropshire (North Shropshire, Shrewsbury and Atcham, South Shropshire and Bridgnorth) previously in the Surveillance Zone, says DEFRA. "Extension into the last parts of the Surveillance Zone has been agreed following a review of the vaccine available in the supply chain." There will now be no Surveillance Zone in England and the Protection Zone will be expanded and vaccine supplied to free areas as soon as more supplies of vaccine become available. Livestock keepers in the Protection Zone are strongly advised to contact their private vet to place an order. The map of the new zones is added to the Zone map page (new window)

July 25 2008 ~ There may not be an absolute vector-free period in some areas, says EFSA

Asked by the European Commission to deliver advice on bluetongue with specific reference to the overwintering of the virus - and the protective measures that can be taken- the Animal Health and Welfare Panel (AHAW) of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) says that while recent data showed that in some areas, some Culicoides midges may remain active indoors through winter, the role of these insects in prolonging the transmission period of the virus is still not clear. There may not be an absolute vector-free period in some areas. (This may not be a surprising conclusion to some observers.)
According to the EFSA website, Member States are being advised to
"carry out in-depth analyses at regional level, since the life pattern of these insects may vary depending on location and season."
i.e. DEFRA is being advised to organise in-depth surveillance of the life pattern of the relevant midges in the various different areas of the UK.
As for the effectiveness of insecticides, the AHAW Panel said insecticides may be used to "limit the population" of Culicoides and their biting rates but should not be used as a stand-alone measure . By September 2008, the Panel intends to advise specifically "on the risks linked to the transit of animals through bluetongue infected areas".
For the pdf files showing the "Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Animal Health and Welfare on request from the Commission on bluetongue" the links and a summary can be found here.

July 24 2008 ~ Cumbria is not yet in Protection Zone

According to the Ellesmere Port Standard, "Cumbrian farmers fear that they will lose out due to the county's omission from the Bluetongue Protection Zone. Cheshire and Greater Manchester farms will be able to vaccinate their animals but Cumbria remains outside the zone. Without the vaccine, farmers could lose out when sales begin in August, as each animal must wait a month after having the jab before it can be moved."

July 21 2008 ~ Latest map of zones

Can be seen here. The Protection Zone was extended again today to cover Worcestershire and the districts in North Yorkshire (Scarborough, Ryedale, Hambleton & Harrogate), Cheshire (Macclesfield, Congleton & Crewe and Nantwich) and Greater Manchester (Rochdale, Oldham, Tameside and Stockport) previously in the Surveillance Zone, as illustrated in the declaration (PDF 510 KB) which comes into force at 00:01 on 21 July 2008. This follows the delivery of 1.9 million additional doses of Bluetongue vaccine. Defra has also confirmed that the Merial BTV-8 vaccine has been awarded a provisional marketing authorisation from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate.

July 21 2008 ~ Insecticide manufacturer PelGar International has published a free booklet

Stackyard.com says that PelGar suggests that putting Defra-approved insecticides in and around animal housing, the parlour and livestock vehicles, will reduce the chances of the animals being bitten in the first place. PelGar manufactures a range of Defra-approved insecticides including Vulcan, a "high powered, ready-for-use triple action fly spray", and Alphaban which is diluted with water before spraying; both can be used to treat buildings, equipment, machinery and vehicles. The booklet gives more details of the available products and offers practical spray advice so that they can be applied correctly for greatest effect. Copies of Protect against Bluetongue are available free of charge by calling 01420 80744 or emailing office@pelgar.co.uk.

July 21 2008 ~ Wales may change its strategy to incorporate the whole of Wales in a protection zone.

Dr Christianne Glossop has said that the Welsh administration's current approach is too piecemeal and that, since the delay (see below) means that the new batch of vaccine is now not expected until mid August, Cardiff may decide the declare the whole of Wales a bluetongue protection zone in early September to allow livestock vaccination to proceed right across Wales. She is quoted by the Daily Post
"We are trying to calculate whether this is more advatageous than rolling out vaccination in a piecemeal manner, with all the confusing movement restrictions that would result."
livestock in protection zones would be subject to 60-day movement standstills, scores of sheep and cattle sales would be thrown into disarray. No decision has yet been taken and no vaccine will be held back.

July 18/19 2008 ~ In Wales, the roll-out of bluetongue vaccine has suffered a setback.

Delivery of the latest batch of 1.5m doses has been put back at least a month. Dr Christianne Glossop, who had hoped to declare south-west Wales a bluetongue protection zone in the next few days, is quoted in the Welsh Daily Post "On current indications we do not expect to roll-out the protection zone further until mid-August at the earliest." Few farmers in south-west Wales will now be able to sell breeding stock at the big NSA Cymru sales at Builth Wells in September and breed societies may now have to revise their sales programme. The reason given is that bluetongue experts consider that, given the potential advance of the disease, England should have priority for vaccine.

July 17 ~ Protection Zone will be extended again on Monday 21 July

to cover Worcestershire and the districts in North Yorkshire (Scarborough, Ryedale, Hambleton & Harrogate), Cheshire (Macclesfield, Congleton & Crewe and Nantwich) and Greater Manchester (Rochdale, Oldham, Tameside and Stockport) previously in the Surveillance Zone, as illustrated in the declaration (PDF 510 KB) which comes into force at 00:01 on 21 July 2008. This follows the delivery of 1.9 million additional doses of Bluetongue vaccine. Defra has also confirmed that the Merial BTV-8 vaccine has been awarded a provisional marketing authorisation from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate. See DEFRA An order was placed in June with Merial to deliver 13 million doses of BTV-8 vaccine, eight million for use in England and five million for use in Wales.

Monday 14 July ~ "a particular threat to our Farm Animal Genetic Resources"

In an indication that DEFRA may be feeling less confident that the vaccination message is resulting in a high enough coverage to protect all ruminants, a DEFRA news release today quotes the Chair of the National Standing Committee on Farm Animal Genetic Resources and head of SAC Edinburgh's Sustainable Livestock Systems Group, Professor Geoff Simm. He is particularly concerned about the survival of rare breeds:
"We are concerned that some keepers of rare and traditional breeds....may not have heard the vaccination message. ...urging vets to contact their clients with these breeds to encourage them to vaccinate. Protecting biodiversity in our farm animals and crops is important to help us meet future challenges, including that of feeding the growing human population in a sustainable way. We also have important national and international obligations to do so....."Read in full
Very true - but the unfortunate EU rule that vaccination is permitted only within the bluetongue protection zone means that even now there are farmers who do not feel any sense of urgency - and even within the zones it is alarming to hear that so many remain undecided. Without adequate coverage in farmed ruminants - and that really does have to approach 100% given the numbers of unvaccinated wild deer - there will be scant chance of stopping the virus. Official checks on efficacy are vital and it is hard not to sense a certain languid indifference on the part of some of those officials exhorting farmers to "order vaccine so that they can protect their livestock at the earliest opportunity". .

Monday 14 July ~ PZ extended today..

.. to cover all of the District of Selby, the Unitary Authority of York, West Yorkshire (made up of the metropolitan boroughs of Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield), Derbyshire (including Derby), Staffordshire (including Stoke-on-Trent) and West Midlands (made up of the metropolitan boroughs of Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull and Walsall) See warmwell's Zone Map page and DEFRA website

Saturday 12 July ~ "It's all very well talking about the successes of bluetongue, but what hope is there of people working together now?"

FMD, TB and Bluetongue. While at least in the matter of Bluetongue, the UK is pretty much on track it does need the understanding and cooperation of all farmers if the virus is to be left with nowhere to go. One wonders if the real extent of dismay among those who farm dairy and beef cattle is touching anyone in the government. Many livestock farmers are in despair - and very, very angry. Distrust and a feeling of being utterly discounted has never been greater - yet the present food and energy crisis means that the country needs its farmers more than ever. Has the government really no inkling of this either?
Lyndon Edwards, chairman of the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers is quoted at www.thecep.org.uk Mr Edwards has a 200 head organic dairy farm in Chepstow and has lost 70 cattle over the last three years, costing him hundreds of thousands of pounds. He says
"As well as the value for the cattle, I am losing half a million litres of milk every year. I should be getting 35p/litre for it. Lots of farmers are on the brink of losing their business. What is particularly galling is just over the border in Wales, there is a chief veterinary officer who has a brief to control and eradicate TB.
It's all very well talking about the successes of bluetongue, but what hope is there of people working together now? The gloves are off. Farmers will start to refuse to co-operate to Defra's bovine TB measures and who can blame them. Mr Benn has missed a massive opportunity to control TB in both badgers and cattle. He talked about public acceptance, but if the public saw the suffering of infected badgers they would be horrified by the lack of animal welfare."

Friday 11 July ~ The National Beef Association says breeders looking for replacements, or store stock for feeding, will soon require proof of vaccination before they purchase

Kim Haywood, the director of the NBA is quoted at www.meatinfo.co.uk
"We know that farmers in TB areas would give their right hands to protect themselves from the disease in exchange for so little time and money and we are certain that every farmer in a BTV8 protection zone should be thinking the same. Bluetongue causes extensive cow infertility and premature births - and semen recovery of infected bulls may never return. ... surviving calves can be carriers ...Later this year we expect that breeders looking for replacements, or store stock for feeding, will require proof of vaccination before they purchase."

Friday 11 July ~ Risk involved if pregnant cows are imported

Jack Davies at the Farmers Guardian reports the warning that since "scientists have concluded that the bluetongue virus can pass across the placenta and infect unborn calves.."
" stock imported from the continent could bring the disease with it regardless of it having tested negative for the virus..."
An EU Working Group concluded at the end of April that "preliminary conclusions indicate that trans-placental transmission of BTV-8 occurs and it does so frequently but it has to be confirmed if this is the major means of over-wintering in Northern Europe". The Belgian research indicated that trans-placental transmission in cattle is proven for BTV-8 but so far no proof yet of trans-placental transmission in sheep. See recent papers

Wednesday July 9 ~The new declaration comes into force on the 14 July 2008 at 00.01.

DEFRA From 00:01 Monday 14 July, the Protection Zone will be extended again to cover all of the District of Selby, the Unitary Authority ofYork, West Yorkshire (made up of the metropolitan boroughs of Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield), Derbyshire (including Derby), Staffordshire (including Stoke-on-Trent) and West Midlands (made up of the metropolitan boroughs of Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull and Walsall) as illustrate
The Declaration of a Protection Zone and a Surveillance Zone made at 16:00 on 2 July 2008 under the Bluetongue Regulations 2008 will be replaced by this declaration.

Wednesday July 9 ~ a DNA-based system has been developed that may "pave the way for the development of a highly safe, and successful vaccine against bluetongue"

We read at www.thaindian.com that Professor Polly Roy at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has discovered that bluetongue virus (BTV) is using "unique viral enzymes to replicate..."
"Replication of the viral genome is the "heart" of a virus. It is the key process that allows establishment of infection. Understanding the fundamental processes of how bluetongue virus initiates and sustains infection will help us determine the best way to prevent and control bluetongue disease...
..... the scientists know that it is possible to synthesise the structures that allow replication of the virus in the lab, they believe they will be able to examine the effects of viral mutations on replication. Recently, a DNA-based system has been developed that will provide breakthrough experimental techniques of relevance to many viruses that infect humans and animals. It will also pave the way for the development of a highly safe, and successful vaccine against bluetongue disease. ..." Read in full
See also the background to Professor Roy's work on the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine website

July 8 ~"From today, the details on the VLA webisite of our turnaround time for the Bluetongue PCR have been modified..."

"We will endeavour to report the majority of results within five working days or less." Many thanks again to Lynn Hendry at the VLA (VLA website) She writes, "Previously it said that the turnaround for this test was a minimum of 7 working days but this was incorrect and should have read a turnaround of a maximum of 7 working days. I have also added that the majority of test results will be ready to report in 5 days or less." See also below for the problems of the 7 day limit for exporters of "other ruminants"

July 8 ~ NFU and BVA "fully supportive of this investigation"

Dr Chris Oura (Institute for Animal Health) and Dr James Wood (University of Cambridge) have just begun to investigate two aspects of bluetongue vaccination in Britain.. Dr Oura is quoted on the www.iah.bbsrc.ac.uk website: "We are most keen to get the involvement of farmers in Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk in this study, they being at the epicentre of last year's historic outbreak. To help farmers this year and next year, we need to assess how well vaccination is working and what reasons underlie decisions to vaccinate".
Dr Oura and Dr Wood want to
"...ascertain the take-up of vaccine by farmers and to understand better the reasons for the success of the programme. The other aspect is to quantify the animal health, welfare and financial benefits associated with vaccination. The results will be essential not only for demonstrating how worthwhile vaccination has been this year, but also to inform possible further vaccine development, formulation and application, and for preparing the most up to date information and advice for farmers for next year."
Dr Wood is Director of the Cambridge Infectious Diseases Consortium, a veterinarian who has specialised in the epidemiology and control of infectious diseases of livestock, horses and wildlife. http://www.vet.cam.ac.uk/cidc
All information sent to him "will be treated in strict confidence and will be unattributable". Email btv8@vet.cam.ac.uk or phone 01223 764962 See webpage

Tuesday 8 July ~ widespread ignorance around about the seriousness of the disease

A much repected farming friend writes in an email today:
"... as several of your correspondents have pointed out, there is still a worrying ignorance around about the seriousness of the disease. About a month ago I was in an agricultural merchants waiting my turn and overhearing the conversation of a woman in front of me. I realised that she had cattle and so I butted in and asked her how she had got on with the vaccination for Bluetongue. Her answer was 'I am still debating it'.
A week before my husband had been talking to a local grazier about when he was going to put cattle on a small scrap of environmental land we own away from the farm. When asked the same question about vaccination he said that he still hadn't made up his mind..."

Tuesday 8 July ~ no infrastructure in place for accurate checking on the numbers of vaccinates

The email goes on to echo the worry expressed long ago in March by the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVA) that the UK plan would be unable to make it clear what percentage was vaccinated, when, and if this was carried out correctly. "It would seem unlikely that this would lead to a reliable overview of vaccination coverage, never mind export certification" This genuine concern seems to have been dismissed by Fred Landeg at the time. Today's email:
"What really worries me is that there appears to be no infrastructure in place for accurate checking on the numbers of livestock vaccinated. The official line is that since Defra knows the numbers of animals on farm from the annual census and also knows the number of vaccines ordered, officials will know roughly what the take-up has been. But this is not good enough.
If Defra is not going to take responsibility for accurate checking of vaccine take-up and identifying areas and individuals with no vaccination, then the BVA/RVC should ask their members
(a) to check on numbers of ruminant owners in their practices who have failed to vaccinate susceptible animals;
(b) to report back to BVA/RVC and Defra;
and (c) write urgently to those who have not vaccinated urging them to do so without delay - assuming that the vaccine is still available in all protection zones.

Tuesday 8 July ~ A worrying abrogation of responsibility

How can Defra expect farmers to share costs if Defra abrogates the basic responsibility of collecting information, when it has the data bases which could be used to provide it? At the same time, Defra needs to work in conjunction with the veterinary profession in order to get a complete picture - there will be numbers of livestock keepers with minute numbers of animals but who will almost certainly be registered with a vet.

Monday July 7 2008 ~ The Protection Zone will be extended again today

"Almost 2 million additional doses of Bluetongue vaccine" have arrived. The Protection Zone will be extended to cover all of the East Riding of Yorkshire (including the City of Kingston upon Hull), South Yorkshire (made up of the metropolitan boroughs of Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield), Gloucestershire (including the unitary authority of South Gloucestershire) and Warwickshire, as illustrated in the declaration (PDF 524 KB). Livestock keepers in the Protection Zone should contact their private vet to place an order. See also relevant DEFRA page
For detailed map see current Zone map.

July 3/4 2008 ~ The VLA addresses concerns about the turn round time for the Bluetongue PCR, particularly for goat breeders.

We have heard from the VLA today:
"The reason we have a 7 working day turn round time is to allow for any technical problems with the test and for retesting of samples. We will be endeavouring to report results routinely within 4 to 5 working days or less but have allowed 7 days for the reasons I have given above. We will be aiming to test twice a week and so it should be only rarely that a submission takes 7 working days to report. I hope this answers your query and that your warmwell readers will be assured and satisfied by this reply."
The VLA is evidently working very hard indeed to speed up tests and Warmwell.com is very grateful to Lynn Hendry and others at the VLA for such a quick and helpful response. The VLA is well known among farmers for its helpfulness and friendly approach. The problem for the exporters of "other ruminants", alas, remains that a seven day limit is very tight even if tests can be done in 5 days. If tangible evidence in the form of a letter is required to back up the export licence then a ten day limit would seem only reasonable. How are the test results going to be reported to the exporter? If an email or fax would do then there would be less of a problem - but if DEFRA is demanding a formal paper trail any technical problem could result in delays and losses. If prebooked transport arrangements with hauliers had to be cancelled because of a technical hitch it would be very expensive. It might not even be possible to rebook and then one would be faced with having to test yet again at some future point and go through the same process and anxiety.

July 3 2008 ~ South West Wales will be next

Wales' Daily Post says that once the south east area vaccination, begun on friday, is completed ".. the programme will shift to an area including the remainder of Neath Port Talbot, Swansea, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire. It had been thought the next area to be targeted would be the Welsh borders in order to create a buffer zone against the disease's midge-borne advance from England. But Wales' chief vet Dr Christianne Glossop said the south west was chosen after a veterinary risk assessment and analysis of livestock populations, meteorological conditions and predicted midge circulation. The area will be declared a protection zone to allow vaccination to begin..." Read in full

July 3 2008 ~ Experts have predicted an early influx of the Culicoides midge

Yesterday's Mail (which does not mention Bluetongue) gave a gloomy forecast after the mild winter and wet spring has created ideal breeding conditions for midges and mosquitoes
"...'Generally, July and August are the key months for pest prevention, but these environmental conditions have meant that the season has started much earlier than normal.' Paul Pearce-Kelly, senior curator of invertebrates at the Zoological Society of London, explained: "..... Changing weather patterns and milder winters are creating conditions more favourable to mosquito breeding. We are seeing a trend of an increasingly favourable climate here to mosquitoes. Normally the biting winters in Britain would kill everything off, but now we are seeing much milder conditions which means we are becoming more vulnerable to these pests. 'Increased travel - not just of humans but of cargo too - is also producing an environment in which mosquitoes flourish.'..."
Read in full

July 3 2008 ~ Scotland's vaccine is to be available in 100ml bottles only.

The Merial vaccine is to cost around £70 per 100ml bottle Unfortunately the problems that the size of bottle is likely to cause - such as waste and misuse - do not seem to have occurred to those doing the ordering. The Land Care website has more detail. Extract: "...Scotland only ordered its 12 million doses on 27th June: last week (1). Two million doses are said to be promised should BTV8 strike Scotland before the Vector Free Period in December. But it looks as though much of that 2million doses may be wasted on account of the large bottle size. The purchase of Scotland's vaccine is a cost sharing business, with the Scottish Government contributing up to £3million of the cost. The rest, whatever the cost, is to be paid for by the industry. But Scottish stakeholders were allowed no part in the tendering process...." Read in full

July 2 2008 ~ Another new case in France

has been confirmed in the Département of Aveyron at Huparlac. There are now in France 6 017 cases of BTV reported during 2008 (of which 6 are bluetongue serotype 1). Of the year's reported cases of BTV8, 13 cases are "this year's" virus circulating in 2008 (There were 15 569 cases reported in 2007 (of which 3 were of serotype 1). The report in French.

July 2 2008 ~ Testing other ruminants for export "...the turn round for these tests is 7 working days! How on earth are we meant to cope with this?"

An anomaly in the Licence and Testing programme for exports has come to our attention. Because the BTV vaccine has not yet been granted a Marketing Authority for other species, different rules for export apply to ruminants other than sheep and bovines. For the purposes of the new EXD484 Licence "to move ruminants other than cattle or sheep", goats, camelids, or any other ruminants must undergo two blood tests under one of two timescales. However, in both options, the second test must be done not more than 7 days before the export. The VLA website has details of the testing and it quite clearly states that the turn round for these tests is 7 working days.
Some goat owners feel, not unnaturally, very frustrated at the way in which goats in particular are treated in the UK. There are 90,000 in Britain - with some very large dairy herds regularly exporting quality stock all over Europe. One farmer, who is just about to start working with the Norwegians on a large AI programme in Cashmere goats with a view eventually to exporting to Norway and Tanzania, says, "We might be small but as a species we probably punch above our weight for live breeding stock exports. We could do without this sort of additional headache!"
Any helpful comment to warmwell.com about this would be much appreciated.
Jane Barribal of farmtalking writes, "those affected should write/phone to the VLA/DEFRA/their MP's etc,. and explain the logistical difficulties of this time scale. It may seem obvious to us but probably isn't to those who sit in offices and have never seen a goat and may have no idea what a camelid is."

July 1 2008 ~ PCR test for Bluetongue

A PCR test for Bluetongue now available from the VLA
"The Veterinary Laboratories Agency has worked in collaboration with the Institute of Animal Health (IAH) at Pirbright to introduce the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test for Bluetongue virus. This test is now available via veterinary surgeons for pre-movement (UK) and export testing purposes only. As of this date, PCR testing for these purposes will no longer be available from IAH, Pirbright."
According to the VLA website, prices of PCR tests are:
single sample submitted - £30
2 to 9 samples submitted - £25 per sample
10+ samples submitted - £22.50 per sample
Price of ELISA test: £4.50 per sample
These prices include the cost of up to two re-tests, if required, as defined in the approved testing protocols.
All samples for bluetongue testing for pre-movement (UK) or export purposes must be submitted to the VLA. Samples submitted to the Pirbright laboratory for testing for pre-movement (UK) or export purposes will not be tested from now on. PCR samples must be submitted using the: VLA Bluetongue PCR Submission Form (pdf)
ELISA samples must be submitted using the: VLA Bluetongue ELISA Sample Submission Form If tests for diseases, other than bluetongue, are needed on the same animal, farmers are asked to supply additional sample(s) and submit them using the appropriate submission forms. (The VLA webpage should be viewed in its entirety.)

Tuesday July 1 2008 ~ Vaccine arrives in South East Wales

850,000 doses of the vaccine are now available but it is somewhat depressing to read in the Welsh press such as the Western Mail that since there is "no compensation for those whose flocks or herds are infected" vaccination is "essentially a business decision". The UK is relying on the voluntary good sense of all farmers to effect a vaccination coverage of the necessary breadth - and, given the susceptibility of wild deer that cannot be easily vaccinated, this really must approach 100%. One realises with concern that in the UK, if the virus is left pockets of unvaccinated animals in which it can take hold and spread, then the vaccination campaign could falter and fail. The Western Mail also quotes NFU Cymru president Dai Davies
"I'm urging those farmers in the Protection Zone to vaccinate their susceptible animals such as sheep and cattle as soon as possible in order to protect their stock, their livelihoods and the industry as a whole ...While I appreciate it is an added cost at a time when the livestock sectors can ill-afford it, I regard it as a small price to pay .... The alternative is unthinkable. I don't think we can afford not to vaccinate."
Mr Davies also made it clear that the "rumours of adverse reactions to the vaccine circulating around livestock markets were unsubstantiated" See also below.

June 30 2008 ~ PZ now covers the whole of France

On June 20, 2008 the whole of continental France was declared a Protection Zone since there is now no Department to remain unscathed - indeed, the SW part of France fears a possible double attack from both strain 8 and strain 1. The bluetongue restricted zones of Europe now look like this.
Large version.
The Groupements de Défense Sanitaire or GDS are animal health groups in France who act in conjunction with the official Veterinary Services to devise and implement action plans against disease and who have, for example, devised a collective mutual aid system for compensating economic losses. They are active in most areas and their webpages - in french - are informative and easy to navigate. Just one page on the Department 18 GDS site, for example, gives an indication of how helpful such an organisation can be. Current cases and zones are shown on coloured maps and there are useful links on subjects such as vaccination, vaccines and additional financial aid from the government. French livestock owners - thanks particularly to the GDS - have, up until now, had access to a certain amount of compensation from disease losses (This ceases at the beginning of the Summer). An Agriculture Ministry memorandum explains (in french) on this pdf file the nature and amount of official financial help. Such a wealth of helpful, transparent and up-to-date information may make British farmers wonder why such clarity is not available on their own side of the Channel.

June 29 2008 ~ "..may be the best option from the point of view of trade restrictions in the short term, but it is not the best way of controlling spread and therefore of protecting trade in the longer run."

Dr Irvine of the Land Care website does not share the optimism expressed below by Nigel Miller. In his Land Care article yesterday he expressed again how axiomatic it is that vaccination comes before a threatened disease arrives ..."But when will the EC get round to recognising that axiom?"
"...... whatever the epidemiological modellers may say, Scotland is at risk from bluetongue as early as this summer and late August..
The EPIC Report ( note: EPIC is the Scottish Government's Epidemiological and Population Health and Infectious Disease Control Centre, based at the Glasgow Vet School) on the threat of bluetongue disease to Scotland, chaired by Professor Gunn of Aberdeen and involving six of Scotland's scientific establishments and Pirbright, has had its remit extended and has not yet published its findings. Although the risk of bluetongue reaching Scotland may be thought by the SCVO and his advisers to be low, the consequences of it happening would be dire... We should not be taking such a risk..... "
If bluetongue disease arrives in Scotland before the so-called vector-free-period, the Scottish authorities intend to keep Protection and Surveillance Zones as small as possible. As Dr Irvine says, this is hardly "the best way of controlling spread and therefore of protecting trade in the longer run." If England's Protection Zone arrives at the border with Scotland before the end of infected midge activity it would put border animals at risk since, under present EU rules, movement of livestock from anywhere within other Protection Zones is allowed - even where bluetongue has been rife and vaccination not yet effective. As Dr Irvine concludes: "These matters must be cause for much anxiety among livestock farmers in Scotland, but none more so than those who farm in the Scottish Borders." Read in full

June 27 2008 ~ NFU Scotland has welcomed the announcement that the Scottish Government has placed its order for Bluetongue vaccine

Stackyard "The order for twelve million doses of vaccine - enough for all of Scotland's cattle and sheep - has been placed with the pharmaceutical company Merial. Deliveries are expected to start in August. Depending on disease developments in England, Scotland may choose to start its compulsory vaccination campaign in the winter.... "
Nigel Miller is quoted: "The announcement....allows for a flexible approach to disease control in Scotland. Vaccination is moving ahead at pace in England and Wales, and Scottish livestock farmers are hugely reliant on that voluntary programme receiving the full backing of producers in those parts of GB that currently have access to vaccine stocks. Vaccination is the key tool in preventing the disease from getting a foothold in the UK in the next few months. Should the disease cross the Scottish border this summer then we now have the tools in place to react. If the disease's progress is stalled by the vaccination campaign elsewhere in the country then Scottish vaccine stocks will be in place to allow a protective campaign this winter."
Unaccountably, stakeholders at the meeting on June 24 (see below) were not told that this order was going to be placed.

June 27 2008 ~ Zones will be extended today. Latest vaccine batch has cleared

DEFRA announced on Wednesday "The Protection Zone will be extended at midday on Friday 27 June, following the latest delivery of 2 million doses of Bluetongue vaccine." The new zones will be put on our zone map page as soon as possible. Livestock keepers in the areas coming into the Protection Zone will be able to obtain the vaccine from the time they become part of the Zone but need to order vaccine in advance through their vet.
Protection Zone restrictions will apply to those keepers coming into the extended zone. Animals can move out of the Protection Zone if they are vaccinated, naturally immune or moving for slaughter, subject to meeting certain conditions. Animals will also be able to be moved between the Protection Zones in Wales and England, subject to the conditions on the transit licence.

June 25 2008 ~ As expected, no order has yet been placed for Bluetongue serotype 8 vaccine (BTV8) for Scotland.

Dr James Irvine, whose disappointment and deep concern following yesterday's stakeholder meeting, is apparent at the Scottish Land Care website, writes that Scottish livestock farmers were led to believe that an order for 12 million doses was imminent, but still have no clear idea when the vaccine will be available. (Some 2 million doses may, possibly, be available before then if (if!) BTV arrives.) He writes:
"Is the EPIC epidemiological modelling study, commissioned by the Scottish Government, available in the public domain? It should be....
...It would be interesting to read the evidence on which the remarkable statement is based that significant disease control is achieved with only 50% vaccination. It looks as though it is a smokescreen to cover the eventuality that the 2 million doses that may be available before December 2008 are not going to be enough..."
What is deplored by so many of us, and by Dr Irvine in particular, is that there is, as ever, too much emphasis on trade considerations - rather than on effective disease control and clear communication with anxious farmers. "....Obfuscation in the procurement of essential bluetongue vaccine is the last thing we need, " he says, adding that because of, " inappropriate bureaucracy such as illogical EC rules on vaccination in disease-free countries (2), Scottish livestock farmers are being forced to accept serious risk.." Read in full.

24 June 2008 ~ DEFRA issues New Licence

New licence: EXD484(BT)(E) - (pdf new window) General licence for the movement of ruminant animals other than cattle and sheep out of a Bluetongue Protection Zone or a Bluetongue Surveillance Zone including movements to free areas outside England or Wales or for export.

June 24 2008 ~ Worse and worse..

Clear and friendly communication with farmers and vets has never been more urgently needed. Another email - from Devon again - tells us that a farmer, concerned about the costs involved with vaccinating all of his stock, was advised by his vet
".... to do his cattle, his pedigree sheep and any sheep which were to be turned out onto the moor (and therefore difficult to access later). As for his commercial flock on more accessible grazing, the advice was 'wait and see how the disease progresses and/or wait until vaccination is made compulsory so the Government will pay for it'. Can it be possible that a vet is giving out advice like this?"
Unfortunately it looks very much as if it can. Even now - with time so desperately short - and even after the splendid efforts of JAB, accurate information is not getting to the right places. Any helpful indications that this worrying situation is being addressed would be very welcome indeed.

June 24 2008 ~"I've done my best to explain why but keep feeling I shouldn't have to do this..."

Another concerned farmer in Devon has written. Extract:
"Following on from your correspondent from Dartmoor whose neighbours are NOT vaccinating, I have a different problem. My neighbour runs 300 head of cattle and has bought the vaccine but left it at the vets! I am completing my 2 doses next weekend and he hasn't even started.
.... It's going to be a lot of trouble getting all the cattle together to vaccinate so he wants to wait to see if there is indeed any further incidence before going ahead. I've explained until I'm "blue" in the face that you need to vaccinate ahead of any further outbreaks because animals won't be immune until sometime after the second dose. It just doesn't seem to register.... There is also a problem with some local Alpaca keepers. Some have got together and decided to administer only half the dose of 1ml believing that it can't possibly be right that Alpacas need the same dose as cattle! Again, I've done my best to explain ...."
The writer wishes that not only alpaca owners but also those farmers who are happy to let vaccine sit in a fridge "to see if there's any further incidence" need access to authoritative and correct information, adding," I keep feeling I shouldn't have to do this.." (Warmwell.com knows the feeling.) See also our May posting "What about camelids" while the relevant BVA one-page summary on vaccine for all susceptible speciies can be seen here (pdf)

June 24 2008 ~ Fort Dodge has begun to supply Italy with BTV8 vaccine

Fort Dodge Animal Health has announced the supply of the first 500,000 doses of the Company's Zulvac® 8 vaccine. Serotype 8 was first identified in Italy in March 2008 in the province of Verona.  Fort Dodge is one of two companies appointed by the Italian government to produce the Bluetongue Serotype 8 vaccine and will supply a total of 4.4 million doses during June and July. Mass vaccination of cattle will start in the province of Verona, followed by Mantova and Brescia, and then extending to cover all sensitive cattle in the North of Italy.  The management of the vaccine distribution process will be carried out by the Istituto Zooprofilatico delle Venezie.  Fort Dodge is first company to supply the Serotype 8 vaccine in Italy.  It is being produced at the company's manufacturing facilities in Weesp, The Nederlands. See press release

June 24 2008 ~ "We are based on Dartmoor and to my concern a significant number of our neighbours have decided not to vaccinate .."

"..as a result of the rumours circulating about the vaccine causing abortions in their cattle. We are vaccinating tomorrow..." Part of an email received on Monday evening.
WHY are such rumours still circulating? This farmer's neighbours in Dartmoor may - like the very concerned writer of the email - be self-confessed "Luddites" when it comes to the internet and are not being advised, it seems. We have attempted to put such rumours to rest - but the website is a voluntary one with limited readership. Even now that - for bluetongue at least - vaccination has been accepted by the EU as the only viable choice, it is hardly surprising that farmers are baffled and unsure what to do since vaccination for FMD has been ignored and many farmers still erroneously assume that this must be because it is in some way unsafe. The real reason for the non-use of safe vaccines, such as those available for foot and mouth, rests on trade considerations alone. Scientifically based animal health policy is a matter of national importance yet, in spite of a certain amount of self congratulation that seems to be going on in high places, there are still baffled and worried farmers who are choosing out of fear and ignorant rumour not to vaccinate. This is truly alarming.

June 24 2008 ~ Austria will start vaccinating livestock in the regions bordering Germany from July.

Plans are to cover the whole of Austria once sufficient vaccine is available. The first 30.000 doses of vaccine should be available early in July in the Vorarlberg region and the priority is to vaccinate animals first that are destined for marketing in autumn. Vaccination is compulsory. www.dolomiten.it

June 23 2008 ~ 3D model of the Blue Tongue virus 5,200,000 times the size of the real thing has been created by Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) engineering researchers

According to The Engineer Online The engineering researchers at Warwick University have based their model on data provided by IAH Pirbright and Oxford University.
"...The Warwick team used rapid prototyping technology, normally used to create highly accurate 3D copies of components for a range of manufacturing processes, to create an accurate 3D model virus that is 5,200,000 times the size of the real thing. Dr Greg Gibbons, who leads the University of Warwick's WMG's rapid prototyping team, is working with Prof Peter Mertens, head of the Arbovirus Research Group at the Institute of Animal Health at Pirbright, and Robert Esnouf of Oxford. 'Having a physical model that you can pick up and peer at will make a huge difference,' said Prof Mertens.
The Blue Tongue model will be on show at the Royal Society's Summer Science Exhibition in London from June 30 to July 3.

June 23 2008 ~ Open Letter to Charles Milne asks for early vaccination in Scotland to be accompanied by a voluntary import ban while effective vaccination is being completed

Dr James Irvine has written an open letter to Scotland's CVO, Charles Milne, Vaccinate at the earliest possible date
"..... Why on earth are Scottish farmers importing beasts from countries with high disease is beyond me, when the limitations of premovement testing are obvious. But the illogical EC rules allow this to happen. ... .... it may be argued by some that there is no point in vaccinating in late August or September (should the vaccine for Scotland be available by then) since by the time vaccination could be fully effective the disease risk would have been largely gone. I believe this to be quite fallacious. Effective vaccination gives protection for 12 months. There is considerable latitude on either side of the 12 months.....
....vaccination ..surely must start at the Borders and work north. Waiting until the whole of Scotland has vaccine would be distinctly unwise ....At present livestock farmers do not know whether vaccine has even yet been ordered for Scotland..."
The letter should of course be read in full on the www.land-care.org.uk website
The next stakeholders meeting in Scotland is today (Monday) The Scottish Government declared on March 7 they were going ahead with the process of acquiring 12 million doses of BT-8 vaccine for all the cattle and sheep in Scotland. Since then, there has been no news for livestock owners.

June 20 2008 ~ "...as Anna Hill finds out, vaccination is patchy and there is no system in place to monitor how many animals have been treated."

Farming Today (June 19) suggests that farmers are being too complacent about vaccinating their livestock. Richard from Elm Farm commented later on the BBC page " the only sensible target amongst susceptible farm livestock is for 100 per cent uptake.... 80 per cent as a target will mean farmer uptake well below that. A serious point for consideration is the potential reservoir of Bluetongue infection in wild susceptible animals such as deer....a 100 per cent vaccination target in farm livestock is even more critical ..."
John Brigg from Warwickshire, under restrictions in a Surveillance Zone since last October said, ".... Although desperate to move into the PZ and start vaccinating I can accept there has been a hiccup in the vaccine supply but dread Warwickshire being moved into the PZ before the Royal Show. This would have the effect of allowing stock - vaccinated or not, it is a voluntary scheme - into the county from all over the previously infected areas into a county with a naive population of midges and unvaccinated livestock."
On the programme, the point was also made that lack of portable handling equipment makes it difficult or even impossible to vaccinate cattle on the marshes. It may be remembered that this caused real problems during the 2007 FMD crisis in Surrey. Lack of such equipment raises serious questions about the feasibility of emergency vaccination and testing in a crisis.

June 20 2008 ~ Federation of Veterinarians of Europe warning revisited

The UK does deserve quite a lot of credit: the zones will be extended again, vaccine is available and more is on its way. How very angry Fred Landeg (now retired, now CBE) was when the FVE was so dismissive of the UK scheme back in March. Its president, Walter Winding, gave us a depressing insight into what our European neighbours seem to feel about the way UK disease control is handled; "Irrespective of the disease outbreaks the UK has faced over recent years, it continues to cut budgets and to reduce its Animal Health Services...."
The FVE added that the UK would be unable to make it clear what percentage of livestock had been vaccinated, nor when and if this had been carried out correctly, adding that it was unlikely that the UK scheme
" ...would lead to a reliable overview of vaccination coverage, never mind export certification."
We must remain hopeful that the JAB organisations, with their determination to encourage the highest possible coverage, will be able to ensure that this prophecy was wrong.

June 20 2008 ~ June 2 batch of vaccine clearing for shipment - we hope

DEFRA says today, "The batch, which has already been prepared, is undergoing final, rigorous quality control testing and indications so far are promising. However, before it can be released, the vaccine needs to undergo remaining checks, including final clearance from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate. As soon as we've had that clearance, we will update this page with further information and make an announcement about the next stage of the roll-out..."
Cornwall, Warwickshire, Gloucestershire, the current Restricted Zone in Wales and the major part of Yorkshire will be able to be assimilated into the Protection Zone - and thus able to vaccinate - as soon as the batch is released. They had hoped to start vaccinating on June 2. As we say below, Intervet's Alasdair King said the delay was not related to any problems with the vaccine.
The UK's other supplier, Merial, hopes to start delivering the additional 13 million doses ordered by Defra "as early as July", according to this Farmers Guardian article.

June 19 2008 ~ Roll-out of the vaccine to the South East Wales bluetongue restriction zone "imminent".

Wales Daily Post reports
".....NSA Cymru development officer Helen Davies said the roll-out of the vaccine to the South East Wales bluetongue restriction zone was imminent. Leftover vaccine from the first 2.5m-dose batch will be targeted at Welsh border farms to create a buffer zone. The rest of Wales must wait until late summer - probably August - until vaccine from a second 5m-dose batch becomes available..."
The rest of Wales is understandably worried. One farmer from Mid Wales, not only concerned about protecting flocks from Bluetongue, is quoted:
"Unless the whole of Wales is soon designated a Protection Zone and the vaccine is rolled out throughout Wales, then this year's breeding sales will be a disaster."
Breeders are of course anxious since the 60 day standstill following vaccination affects farmers' ability to get sheep into sheep breeding sales. The National Sheep Association and the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society are organising a meeting at the Royal Welsh showground on Wednesday, 25th June at which it is hoped the Welsh CVO, Dr Christianne Glossop, will address concerns about the bluetongue vaccination timetable.

June 19 2008 ~ DEFRA's next batch of vaccine from Intervet, already prepared, has been undergoing "rigorous quality control testing"

It seems very likely that the next batch from Intervet will be soon available. They have risen to the occasion with very commendable speed - and as we say below, the fact that DEFRA has ordered further supplies from Merial is in no way at all a reflection on Intervet since they were not in the tender, being already so busy with current supplies. DEFRA's website hopes to have news of the planned expansion of the Protection Zone tomorrow. Intervet are apparently receiving a very low number of suspected adverse reactions following vaccination: none of which is causing serious concern. See DEFRA's vaccination page.

June 17 2008 ~ "no significant fertility problems have been reported"

On the subject of the recent and odd rumours about fertility problems, Dr Chris Oura, Head of the Non-Vesicular Reference labs at Pirbright, writes the following:
" I have attended many scientific presentations on all aspects of bluetongue vaccination and I have never heard any significant reports of fertility problems in sheep vaccinated with inactivated bluetongue vaccines. Inactivated bluetongue vaccines have been used extensively in many countries in southern Europe since 2006 in both sheep and cattle with no significant fertility problems. My feeling is there is confusion here with use of live attenuated vaccines which have been reported as causing fertility issues.
I must emphasise that the vaccine we are using in the UK in an inactivated vaccine and up to the present date no significant fertility problems have been reported related to the use of inactivated vaccines in sheep and cattle. "
It is to be hoped any rumours that deter farmers from vaccinating can be scotched as soon as possible. Alasdair King, veterinary manager at Intervet, whose views are the same as those of Dr Oura, told warmwell that the confusion has arisen because people have heard that the disease itself can cause infertitility, abortions and abnormalities (e.g.see below). However, we are dealing here with a safe, inactivated vaccine and it is vitally important that all farmers who can, now order and use it.

June 17 2008 ~ Midgeater and Barrfly technology "This technology is an essential building block in ensuring we can control the disease.." Nigel Miller

The Sunday Herald's article:
".... In 2003, Texol developed the Midgeater, a machine that sucks up the insects after mimicking the CO2-generating effects of animal breath, which attracts the insects. ... .. Powered by propane gas and electricity, the new devices will be smaller and cheaper to produce ... a retail price under £500... ...Glasgow-based Innovent (Scotland) Ltd, founded by entrepreneur Bobby Motherwell, .... invented the Barrfly - a light, fabric-based ducting which creates an air curtain that cannot be penetrated by flying insects and can be fitted around outdoor structures...
Nigel Miller, vice-president of NFU Scotland, said: "Combating bluetongue is our number one priority.... This technology is an essential building block in ensuring we can control the disease." .... ...."
Read in full

June 16 2008 ~ Farmers should vaccinate and not be deterred by unsubstantiated rumour

There is deep concern that farmers are hearing and being alarmed by rumours concerning the vaccine's possible effect on fertility in sheep. Belgium has been mentioned. * No experts we have spoken to or heard from have been able to find any substance to such rumours. Evidently all such worries are taken very seriously but it should be remembered no vaccine ever produced has ever carried an absolute zero risk. In Europe, sheep already infected with the disease previously and then vaccinated are likely to experience increased infertility of course, but the vaccine itself does not seem to have been shown to have any effect on fertility. If there were any reports to the contrary they would be immediately posted up here and, as usual, any helpful information will be gratefully received (contact).
The message now is vaccinate. Do not delay.
UPDATE One very eminent veterinary source writes to warmwell,
"The simple answer is that the actual disease can cause problems with fertility, probably also stillbirth, abortion, foetal abnormalities and neonatal deaths. Live vaccine can also produce similar problems, but the vaccine being used throughout Europe to provide protection against BTV8 is NOT live and it is therefore safe - and sensible - to use it. Economic losses and welfare problems will be far greater if people do not vaccinate - BTV 8 is a very nasty virus."
The next batch of vaccine (already prepared) is, according to DEFRA, "undergoing rigorous quality control testing and we will update this page with more information by 20 June"
(*Update 2. We hear that a Belgian vet has heard of no such reports. He strongly urges everyone to vaccinate their stock. He says that the huge losses of livestock in Northern Europe mean that vaccination is definitely the best option.)

June 13 2008 ~ Farmers should always read the insert that comes with animal health products says Intervet Animal Health.

The Farmers Guardian quotes Alasdair King, veterinary manager for Intervet, following the concern (see below) that when flukicide and/or wormer was given at the same time as the bluetongue vaccine, the vaccine had to be re-administered. Mr King said very few products were licensed to be used together because of the massive workload involved in testing all possible combinations.
"....we know that flukicides have an effect on an animal's liver. As liver function is important in generating immunity, giving a flukicide at the same time as a vaccine could mean that the vaccine doesn't work as it should." In addition to reading the administration information, Mr King recommended discussing vaccination with a vet and planning ahead in order to adapt management plans. As well as information online at www.farmersguardian.com/bluetongue, meetings are also being staged around the country. .. "
Read the Farmers Guardian article in full.

June 13 2008 ~ OIE booklet on Bluetongue in Northern Europe

The scientific booklet describing Bluetongue is described as being " of great utility for veterinarians and animal health professionals in the framework of an early detection of Bluetongue and other emerging diseases." It can be ordered online from the OIE

June 12 2008 ~ "English colleagues show that it is very difficult to isolate infectious virus from these calves," says Van Rijn

Another interesting article by Mariska Vermaas in www.agd.nl quotes CIDC-Lelystad Department of Virology's Piet A. van Rijn, PhD:
"The fact that there no new infections have been found may be because the calves take in colostrum after birth and are this protected against bluetongue. How long this maternal protection lasts, we don't know yet. But it will certainly play a role in the transfer of the virus... The longer there are no new cases, the greater chance of success that the vaccination campaign can prevent the spread of the virus by blocking it. More and more animals are going to be fully protected by vaccination ..."
Optimism that the vaccination campaign has been put in place in time seems to be gaining ground in the Netherlands, as here. We continue to fear for Germany however - and of course it is essential that Northern Europe works together on its vaccine campaign.

June 12 2008 ~ consensus for the possible vertical and horizontal transmission of BTV during "vector-free period"

One expert comments on extracts from papers given at the symposium on Bluetongue in Brescia last week:
"... what the presentations say to me is that animals should not be moved from infected areas - not in the early winter even if the vector has become inactive. ...we are moving further and further away from using the vector-free period as a definitive risk-free measure.
It does put the EU in a bind because their main objective has been to keep trade routes open and to compel still uninfected Member States to keep their doors open to the continued movement of livestock. Is this the reason why some countries are beginning to mouth the words: "We are endemic"?.."

June 12 2008 ~ Welsh Assembly has today announced that they will allow the movement of animals from the English PZ direct to slaughter to designated slaughterhouses in the Welsh Free Area. See movement licence page.

Minor amendments have been made to current licences to reflect this. There is no news yet (midday) on the DEFRA site of the "further information" said to be "likely to be available by 12 June."

June 11 2008 ~ UK now has two suppliers and Merial is delighted with the order.

Merial's Head of Production Animal Business, Graham Davenport:
"We are delighted to have received this order from Defra and we will be working hard to ensure there is continuity of supply for farmers in England and Wales. All Merial's bluetongue vaccines, world-wide, start their life at our Pirbright Vaccines Centre in Surrey before being finished in Lyon, France. So it is particularly pleasing for us to have gained business here in the UK. This adds to previous bluetongue vaccine orders, beginning back in 2004, from Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Spain.
We will start to deliver vaccine to England and Wales in July; in the meantime we will be putting in place the necessary veterinary technical support."
(Intervet were not being overlooked or passed over here. They were not in the tender at all, having a heavy commitment already and genuinely determined that promised doses should be delivered as soon as possible.)

June 11 2008 ~ 13 million more doses for England and Wales

Defra has today announced that it is placing an order with Merial to deliver 13 million doses of Bluetongue serotype 8 vaccine, eight million for use in England and five million for use in Wales. The batch of vaccine which was due in the week on 2 June is still undergoing further testing before it can be released. Please see the link provided for additional information. www.defra.gov.uk/news We hope for more news about expanding the Protection Zone some time tomorrow.
Farming UK quotes JAB (for JAB organisations see below)
"This is excellent news as it means we will now have sufficient vaccine to cover the whole of England. This will allow farmers to protect their own livestock against the devastating bluetongue disease. When we started the process of looking at vaccine supply we thought it would take most of this year to secure sufficient vaccine supplies. However, despite recent delays in vaccine release, the process has so far exceeded expectations and to be in a position of having sufficient vaccine for the whole of England by September is extremely good news."

June 11 2008 ~ flukicides and wormers.

The information about what you can and can't use with the vaccine is (as we say below) all on here: http://www.bluetongue-info.co.uk/FAQs.asp (Click on question 22 and it should give the information.) "Admittedly," says our correspondent, "they have not put it on those data sheets so I would presume it is up to the vet to clarify the position with other vaccines, but as you rightly say the information is not exactly well known. We can only hope that not too many people have made the same error."

June 11 2008 ~ Fuel strikes stop vaccination in Germany

We understand that owing to an indefinite strike of lorry drivers in France, Portugal and Spain, the next lot of BT vaccine for Germany can't be distributed. No one can say at the moment how long the delivery will be delayed - and there seem no plans afoot to use alternative means of transport. One frustrated farmer in Germany, well aware that in some cases politicians use plane travel for their private use, writes, "I am wondering why the Government doesn't send a plane, usually our Ministers are flying around the world wasting taxpayers' money....." For those who read German, see www.oberberg-aktuell.de

June 10 2008 ~ Agrarisch Dagblad on the rapid spread of BTV-8 compared to bluetongue in North America.

Mariska Vermass writing in the agrarisch Dagblad says "Scientists have however no idea what is the cause of this difference." 200 scientists at a meeting in Brescia in Italy have established that serotype 8 behaves in a significantly different way from other BT-types. It spreads faster and has other 'idiosyncrasies' like virus transfer from mother to the embryo. Many thanks to the European Livestock Association for the link.

June 8 2008 ~ Vaccine is in short supply. The vector free period is now over.

"The Dutch agriculture ministry has ordered a million extra units of bluetongue vaccine to meet overwhelming demand." Radio Netherlands reports that "More and more farmers are ordering the vaccine to protect their livestock. The ministry hopes that as many farmers as possible will have vaccinated their animals before mid July, when the virus is most likely to rear its head. ..."
Vaccine is in short supply. ProMed commented on June 1 that "the vector season seems to have already started in the continent." As we said on Feb 7, using only one vaccine producer has drawbacks. Batch failures can happen - which seems to be the case at the moment with the latest batch to the UK. It is essential to reach the percentage coverage necessary to halt the disease - but at present, as DEFRA says, it has become impossible "to expand the Protection Zone in line with our previous announcement on 23 May and the published vaccination roll-out plan..." .

June 7 2008 ~ 136 holdings now....

DEFRA says, "The most recent cases were found as a result of pre-movement testing during the vector-free period." And as an emailer says,
"Six more holdings since the last update, location unknown... Since February there are still 26 cases under investigation. How long does it take to confirm Bluetongue?"
DEFRA is also "continuing to work closely with Intervet on determining the availability of the next batches of vaccine and the impact that this will have on the roll-out of vaccination. As soon as further batches of vaccine are available, we will continue to expand the Protection Zone in line with our previous announcement on 23 May and the published vaccination roll-out plan. Further information is likely to be available by 12 June, and a further announcement will be made on the basis of that information." There is still, it seems, "an issue" with an individual batch of the Intervet vaccine "which requires further investigation".

June 6 2008~ "I'm not sure exactly who should have told me. "

The Farmers Guardian reports that some farmers who have vaccinated against bluetongue at the same time as using flukicides or wormers, are now going to have to re-vaccinate. An information sheet on Intervet's website www.bluetongue-info.co.uk/control/bovilis-btv8.asp confirms the vaccine 'has not been tested for safety or efficacy when used at the same time as any other products' but the advice that vaccination against bluetongue should not take place at the same time as the use of other vaccines, flukicides and injectable wormers cannot be seen (today at any rate) on the data sheet page. The FG quotes a sheep farmer in Appledore, Kent, after she discovered she would have to revaccinate."It is appalling that I wasn't told. I'm not sure exactly who should have told me but you can bet there will be other farmers out there who have made the same mistake." As we report below, Eblex has set up a website to help farmers with vaccination, offering 'how to' guides and a checklist. The relevant DEFRA page says " It is essential that the data sheet requirements with regard to storage temperature are strictly adhered to at all times" and one hopes that farmers do read the data page carefully - but there are no specific warnings on the DEFRA page about avoiding using other vaccines or wormers at the same time.

June 4 2008 ~ Germany opts for CZV of Spain to supply 14.8 million doses of BLUEVAC-8

Animal Health online: "This vaccine will be employed in a blanket vaccination campaign that will cover all 12.2 million cows and 3.7 million sheep and goats throughout Germany. BLUEVAC-8 is an inactivated vaccine against the serotype 8..." BLUEVAC-8 has also been delivered to the veterinary services of Spain where vaccination will start soon. (CZV is a European manufacturer of veterinary vaccines and immunological products with connections to Wellcome Foundation. Their products are used in over 40 countries. In addition to their BLUEVAC range of bluetongue vaccines, their most recent development is the vaccine SILIRUM, against Bovine Johne's Disease.)

June 3 2008 ~ DEFRA ".. the batch of vaccine which was due this week needs to undergo further testing before it can be released"

See DEFRA website : ".. This is an issue with an individual batch which requires further investigation....The extension of the Protection Zone which we were expecting to make, subject to the delivery of vaccine, will therefore no longer be going ahead this week (beginning 2 June). ....Further to the update on 30 May regarding the roll-out of vaccination into Cornwall and the Restricted Zone in Wales, the batch of vaccine which was due this week needs to undergo further testing before it can be released.... There are no concerns with the production process, or with vaccine that has been delivered to this date. ...As soon as further batches of vaccine are available, we will continue to expand the Protection Zone in line with the published vaccination roll-out plan. A further announcement will be made when more information is available."

June 3 2008 ~ Deer at a Kent woodland have been vaccinated

Kent online reports that a dart gun loaded with a vaccination was aimed on the herds of red, fallow and roe deer at the Wildwood conservation park in Herne Common, Herne Bay.
"...Head keeper Paul Wirdnam said: "We normally try to do this type of thing when the park is closed. But with so many animals we had to do the vaccination with members of the public watching, which once we explained what we were doing drew quite a crowd."

June 2 2008 ~ Vaccination against bluetongue is expected to begin today in in the current restricted zone in south-east Wales

The Welsh Assembly Government intends to declare a protection zone in the in the current restricted zone in south-east Wales. Under the present and unfortunate EU law, vaccination can only take place in a Protection Zone, and a protection zone can be designated only if bluetongue is found to be circulating in an area or if an area borders a protection zone. There are no plans to change the zoning of the rest of Wales yet.

June 2008 ~ FAQs - Intervet website

A guide on vaccinating. You click on the question to reveal the answer. Example:
3. Why is vaccine only available in the protection zone?
EU law states that vaccine can only be used in a PZ so Defra are only releasing vaccine for use in that area. However they will constantly expand the PZ as vaccine is used over the summer until all of England is covered.
http://www.bluetongue-info.co.uk/FAQs.asp (new window)

May 30 2008 ~"culls would take place at the centre of an outbreak" ???

The assumption appears to linger - in Northumberland at least - that infected animals are automatically killed. A Councillor is quoted in the Hexham Courant today warning that animals could be "trapped on farms",
"although culls would only take place at the centre of an outbreak..."
One can only hope that the misguided, ill-informed and battle inspired language of officialdom in 2001 is not resurfacing. Animals may be put down if their suffering is great but "culled" is entirely the wrong word - and the point of vaccinating is to avoid animals being infected or "trapped" in the first place. Isn't it "the responsibility of the county council's animal health team" to offer encouragement and support to farmers to vaccinate as soon as they can - rather than "to enforce any restrictions imposed by Defra" or "liaise with Defra and put a firm action plan in place"? The article also unfortunately seems to imply that bluetongue vaccination can start when the area is declared a surveillance zone - but the EU Directive explicitly prohibits this.*

May 30 2008 ~ Successful vaccination will protect stock and livelihoods

*Unfortunately, the ill-thought out EU rule of restricting vaccine to areas already infected - the "Protection Zone" - remains, and is one of the main reasons for the NBA petition. The very essence of a vaccination policy is to leave the virus nowhere to go and that means vaccinating all ruminants as far as is humanly possible. Restricting vaccination to areas where infection has already been found is like trying to catch a burglar in a house with all its doors and windows wide open.

May 30 2008 ~ What about camelids?

The Suffolk Free Press reports that about 100 alpacas have been vaccinated against Bluetongue at the Melford Green Alpaca Centre. Its owner is quoted: "We would encourage all other camelid owners to follow suit to ensure that we give the whole of the livestock sector every help we can to minimise the risks from this potentially debilitating virus."
The UK herd now stands at around 16,000 animals - but it is growing rapidly as alpacas are increasingly seen as a viable alternative farming enterprise and more people are keeping them as pets. Nick Blayney, President of the British Veterinary Society, one of the JAB organisations, said recently,
"Our aim has been to achieve the mass vaccination of Bluetongue susceptible animals, including goats and camelids and since the veterinary profession is the corner stone of the vaccination programme, with responsibility for vaccine delivery, proper usage and monitoring for efficacy, BVA has been in overdrive through much of March and April trying to ensure that vets were fully up to speed in advance of the arrival of the vaccine. Now that the vaccine is here, having been granted a provisional marketing authorisation for use inside Protection Zones and classified as a POM-V, we have further updated our advice to the profession. Our one-page summary sets out key considerations for vets including meeting the "under our care" prescribing requirements, movement controls, doses, off-label use, distribution and storage and communication in the hopefully unlikely event of any suspected adverse reactions."
The BVA one-page summary can be seen here (pdf)

May 27 2008 ~ EBLEX online 'how to' guide on Bluetongue vaccination for beef and sheep producers.

A three sided leaflet, a practical guide to bluetongue vaccination, has been produced by www.eblex.org.uk and can be downloaded and printed. (Pdf file here)

May 26 2008 ~ Current Protection Zone map

Warmwell.com is keeping pace with the changing shape of the zones. You can see the progression of maps, including the latest, (May 26 now updated) here. See also the declaration (PDF) that came into force today at 06:00am .

May 26 2008 ~ Wales will vaccinate in a week's time but supplies could be low

The Welsh Rural Affairs Minister, Elin Jones, has announced that vaccination will begin in South-East Wales in a week's time, subject to the delivery of the vaccine and there being no "unforeseen developments" in the spread of the disease.
icWales quotes Gwilym Vaughan, president of the Farmers' Union of Wales:
"Around 7.5 million doses of the vaccine have so far been ordered. But I expect that double that number - around 15 million doses - will be required across Wales."
It does seem rather extraordinary that Wales asked initially for only 2.5 million doses of the 22.5 million tendered for by England back in December. At the time, Elin Jones had said," I am determined that we have resources available to us should they be required."
The amount of vaccine ordered has now been acknowledged to have been too little. 2.5 million could not have covered even the pedigree flocks of Wales, let alone the commercial ones and the cattle. On May 7, 13 million more was tendered for by DEFRA - and this included 5 million more for Wales. Even so, as Mr Vaughan says, there is unlikely to be enough vaccine to go round if an effective level of coverage is to be quickly achieved.

May 23 2008 ~ "from my point of view I have to congratulate the UK, the zones will be extended again and vaccine is available..."

DEFRA has announced that from May 26 the Protection Zone will be extended to cover all of Devon (including the Unitary Authorities of Plymouth and Torbay). The Surveillance Zone is unaffected. On current plans, (which are subject to the overall disease situation), the Protection Zone will be further extended in the week beginning 2 June when Cornwall, the East Riding of Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, the District of Selby, Warwickshire and Gloucestershire (including the Unitary Authority of South Gloucestershire) to all to be brought into the Protection Zone. The Welsh Assembly Government will also declare the current Restricted Zone in Wales a Protection Zone. See DEFRA website
An email from Germany says,
"We haven't seen any vaccine yet in our region; first delivery for sheep is planned for May 30th and for cattle at the end of JUNE. Second vaccination (cattle) is planned for the end of July. For certain regions (lower Rhine valley) it has already been leaked that not enough vaccine has been ordered.... The "competent" authorities are not competent at all."
We agree. The UK situation is being well handled at the moment for which much thanks must go to the Joint Campaign Against Bluetongue (JAB) group and to those with common sense who are helping to advise DEFRA.

May 23 2008 ~ New Chief Vet

A new Chief Vet has taken up the post. MeatInfo.co.uk informed readers yesterday that "Nigel Gibbens has been appointed the new chief veterinary officer (CVO) by Defra...." The MeatInfo site quotes Mr Gibbens: "...... The Government will increasingly develop policy on disease control in partnership with key stakeholders and I am committed to ensuring that those decisions are founded on the best possible veterinary advice."
The news appeared on the DEFRA website with a short biographical note yesterday.
We wish Mr Gibbens the best of success with the job. All the same, one cannot help remembering the comment below from Professor Joe Brownlie in a recent Farmers Guardian article: "The powers of the chief veterinary officer have diminished so severely in the face of a high level of accountability that the position no longer holds its previous lure..."
Nigel Gibbens was born in 1958. His latest published work includes papers on BSE (see lib.bioinfo.pl) (More)

May 22 2008 ~ "Bovilis® BTV8 The data below is specific to the United Kingdom..."

The Intervet website on Bluetongue has a page devoted to its vaccine. Extract from data page: "Bovilis® BTV8 is an inactivated vaccine containing per dose (1 ml) at least 500 Antigenic Units/ml of Bluetongue Virus Serotype 8 prior to inactivation. Aluminium hydroxide and Saponin are included as adjuvants.
Uses
To stimulate active immunity against Bluetongue Virus Serotype 8 in cattle and sheep to reduce viraemia.
Onset of immunity: 3 weeks after vaccination.
Duration of immunity: Not yet established." Read in full (new window)

May 19 2008 ~ Bluetongue Protection Zone was extended again at six o'clock this morning

following the delivery of an additional three million doses of Bluetongue vaccine. See current zone map page

May 19 2008 ~ 12 per cent cut back in Defra funding affects vital animal health work in Mid Wales.

Mick Bates is quoted in the Farmers Guardian saying that he has written to Hilary Benn to point out that the cuts seriously compromise animal health work:
"In light of the recent outbreaks of foot-and-mouth and further outbreaks of bluetongue and avian flu being anticipated, this is clearly a key area which must be safeguarded. A 12 per cent cut has resulted in a loss of some 335,000 to the Powys local authority for 2007-08 and the Trading Standards Service has also received confirmation that the level of funding for animal health work in 2008-09 will be the same as that provided for the current financial year." Read in full
The unnecessary killing of the dairy herds (see opposite page) because of a TB test known to be far too blunt an instrument cost about £100,000. The lost funding that will cause such problems for those responsible for animal health in Mid Wales amounts to about £35,000

May 18 2008 ~ "Vaccination of animals kept for breeding will reduce the chance of infected calves during the following season"

We are most grateful for the translations of the agrarische Dagblad article below that have been sent to warmwell.com. As one emailer remarks, "....the part of the story with the antibodies and newly born calves being a source of infection beats me. If the antibodies clear the virus, where does the infectivity come from ? Does this indicate that maternal antibodies can prevent overt clinical signs but are not strong enough to prevent virus replication? I really would like to know, maybe Ruth (Watkins) has an idea."
Also, a much respected expert adds, "Warmwell's translation is OK. Agrarisch Dagblad added the obvious - namely that 34 calves are 15% and that the calves were infected during pregnancy. They add that vaccination of cows (before?) breeding could diminish the risk of inefected-calves born during the next season." The translations sent to us can be read here. Very many thanks to those who took so much trouble. It is very much appreciated.

May 17 2008 ~ Unborn calves can be infected with bluetongue from the mother-cow - says agrarisch Dagblad

The article in today's agrarisch Dagblad (in Dutch) discusses research at the central veterinary institute (CVI) and the health service for animals (GD) which took place after pregnant cows, exported to Northern Ireland, (see below) gave birth to calves born with bluetongue. Our unchecked translation (help would be most appreciated) seems to suggest that in the course of the research, calves born to 400 cow after 1 January in the midge-free periods were examined. 221 of the cows had antibodies against bluetongue. 34 calves were found to have the virus. A clear translation would be most appreciated. UPDATE Several translations were immediately sent - for which many thanks.

May 17 2008 ~ It is likely that the current restricted zone in south east Wales could be declared a Protection Zone within weeks.

This is the view of Gareth Vaughan, president of the Farmers Union of Wales and reported in Farming Weekly. The article says that vaccination in Wales is likely to start within weeks. "The warning came following a meeting between key industry stakeholders and Christianne Glossop, the chief veterinary officer for Wales. It was suggested that too many farmers appeared to be sitting back waiting for the first case to appear to register with their vets for vaccine..." The disease-free status of farms in the rest of Wales would change if an actual case of bluetongue be confirmed within or near the border and farmers who have not registered with a vet for vaccine would risk being left out. Mr Vaughan said. "Those within the current restricted zone may only have a very short time to do this before vaccination starts," he said.

May 16 2008 ~ " a real chance of holding the disease in the Eastern counties" - provided there is blanket vaccination

The Farmers Guardian today reports on what was said at the Reaseheath meeting in Cheshire, organised by the Nantwich Veterinary Groups' Neil Howie, with support from and Intervet and Boehringer Animal Health:
"...European farmers ...expecting another devastating year.....as some of the repercussions of last year's wildfire spread of bluetongue, such as abortions, defective progeny and continuing reduced performance, became apparent. ....
Independent sheep consultant Chris Lewis believed there was a real chance of holding the disease in the Eastern counties, where it had been identified, provided each of the 127 infected premises vaccinated rapidly along with blanket vaccination on farms in the area, and ultimately a minimum 80-85 per cent uptake of vaccination throughout the whole Protection Zone. However, the window of opportunity for holding the disease at bay had come about more by circumstance than pro-active management by Defra...."The veterinary profession has argued unsuccessfully to get Defra to seek a derogation allowing the UK to create a 'Vaccination Zone' before it became a Protection Zone, so giving immunity chance to develop. Therefore, there remains a potential risk of the disease getting ahead of the vaccination programme.."
Read article

May 16 2008 ~ "success depends on vaccine supply and speed of applying it..."

The Reuters report, Bluetongue animal vaccination starts in most of EU says, "..... Some countries, like Belgium, Luxembourg and the Czech Republic, have made their entire national territories subject to compulsory vaccination for certain animal categories.....In heavily infected areas, the situation will be better than last year as most of the adult population was infected last year and is better protected now," the official said, adding that newborn animals were still at risk if not vaccinated quickly. ...
..... some crossover, especially in France, and this has worried many experts. "There are problems in France with serotype 1 ... ...areas are crossing and they don't have much vaccine. Britain is about the only country with enough vaccine...It's all about timing ... and there are still a lot of animals out there that won't have had the disease last year." Read article

May 16 2008 ~ "a logistical nightmare to get them back in, in batches, to vaccinate cows and their calves when these are at the "right" age"

A farmer highly relieved to have vaccinated 180 sheep on the 14th May (having taken delivery of the vaccine from the vet on Tuesday 6th May) writes,
"Although I feel relieved that my sheep are now protected and the danger to our livestock is receding, at least in my area l know of some livestock keepers who will not vaccinate - their cattle are out on rented grazing and it is for these people a logistical nightmare to get them back in, in batches, to vaccinate cows and their calves when these are at the "right" age. Let's hope these are isolated cases."
Even so, a sense of relief and optimism is becoming more evident. On the subject of the logistics of vaccination for that particular farmer correspondent we read: "The whole operation went smoothly and the Intervet injector gun works extremely well - sadly only on the 50ml bottles. The rest had to be done by using individual syringes and being meticulous with the dosing..... My usual sources tell me that the Protection zone will shift outwards quite quickly now - as the following batches arrive DEFRA will extend the zone. Given the cold March and April I personally do not think that an outbreak of Bluetongue is imminent and it is worth remembering that the Netherlands and Belgium announced the end of the vector free season only on April 22nd"

May 16 2008 ~ DEFRA reports the PZ will be extended again on Monday

DEFRA website: ".....the Protection Zone will be extended to cover all of Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Wiltshire and Somerset. The Surveillance Zone is unaffected. Livestock keepers in the Protection Zone should contact their private vet to place an order. The message is clear "Don't hesitate, vaccinate". Livestock keepers may apply to have land which they occupy within 8km of the Bluetongue Surveillance Zone to be designated as part of that zone. Further information..."

May 14 2008 ~ Record lamb prices at Shrewsbury. Can vaccination save UK farming?

According to Farming Today, there were record lamb prices for the stock at Shrewsbury yesterday. "This is due to Bluetongue", writes a farming correspondent to warmwell. "The continental buyers are in the UK because of shortages at home, because of Bluetongue." He writes, "If we can vaccinate ours in time and salvage our industry..... Yes, Alan Beat is correct to say they had no alternative to vaccinate, it's just that we pushed for it to happen sooner, quicker and bigger than DEFRA et al would have managed without Stakeholder 'support'..."

May 13 2008 ~ Appeal for bluetongue protection zone status 'as soon as possible' in Wales

icWales quotes the Welsh Rural Affairs Minister, Elin Jones
"Under current EU regulations, we have to wait for the English protection zone to reach the Welsh border before a protection zone can be declared in Wales.... I am seeking DEFRA's co-operation in ensuring that the protection zone reaches Wales as early as possible in the summer to allow vaccination to begin in Wales...."
Dai Davies, NFU Cymru president is also quoted: "NFU Cymru has been pressing the minister for some time to tender for a further supply of vaccine which would add to the initial 2.5 million doses which had been secured for Wales. "The requisition of a further five million doses increases the total available to Wales to 7.5 million and will put us in good stead for rolling out the vaccination strategy in Wales once we are permitted to use it. I urge those farmers who have not yet registered to reserve bluetongue vaccine with their local veterinary practice to do so immediately so as to ensure they are not left at the back of the queue. Farmers should not procrastinate but they should be prepared to vaccinate."

May 11 2008 ~ "In the absence of any response from The Scotsman.."

On May 2 Dan Buglass in the Scotsman implied that farmers in Scotland support the wait-and-see policy on vaccination. The National Beef Association of Scotland wrote to the paper to point out inaccuracies - as Dr James Irvine on land-care.org.uk writes today:
"... on May 4th in which it attempted to put the record straight. In the absence of any response from The Scotsman, NBAS was informed that its letter had not been passed on to the appropriate editors. The letter was then resubmitted to the Scotsman on May 6th..."
There has still been no response. The Scottish order for 12 million doses is not due to be completed until late June (the exact delivery date not known) - but there is little evidence that the risk of bluetongue reaching Scotland before then is low. In essence, the NBAS letter points out that considerations of EU trade have overriden the humans and veterinary good sense of protecting Scottish livestock and its farmers. The letter concludes the subject should not be not used by certain members of the farming community " to score points against others within that community who are trying their best to remedy the basic flaw in how viral diseases of livestock are controlled through inappropriate EC regulation".

May 10 ~ Report of the National Emergency Epidemiology Group 18 April 2008 [Revised 30 April]

The epidemiological report can be read here in full, is clearly written and has particularly useful graphs and maps. All the same, it does not pretend to be a wholly complete report.
Report (pdf) extract:
"....The statements in this report are based on the best available evidence. It is important to note that this evidence is far from complete for a full epidemiological analysis, and that much of the data used was collected for purposes other than this analysis.... suggests that BTV at a level greater than an individual animal is contained within PZ1 .....indicates that level of BTV in PZ2 is substantially different from PZ1, and that BTV is not widespread in PZ2.... evidence also indicates uncertainty around the precise extent of herd level infection (here defined as more than 1 animal on a holding affected) beyond the current western and northern boundaries of PZ1. If such infection exists it could provide a focus for recrudescence of BTV in 2008.
78. Note that the evidence available was not collected for the purposes of this analysis and in consequence a number of important assumptions, and estimates to replace missing data have been made. These add to the uncertainty over the extent of BTV in GB."
Full report (pdf)

May 9 ~ Declaration and changes to the Zones come into force on the 12 May 2008 at 06:00.

The new map can be seen on our zonemap page (new window) The whole declaration pdf is on the DEFRA website here "... The Protection Zones will be merged by extending the zones into all of Hampshire and West Sussex. The Protection Zone will also be extended into all of Lincolnshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire. The Surveillance Zone is unaffected. A further 1 million doses of vaccine, available in 50 dose bottles, are available for use in the Protection Zone today. Livestock keepers in the areas coming into the Protection Zone on Monday will be able to obtain vaccine from that date..."
At Tuesday's Bluetongue stakeholder meeting
"...The Commission had not yet indicated any intention to allow vaccination outside a PZ, although it was thinking about the issues. Defra and the Core Group were both confident that the roll-out strategy enabled the risks of expanding the PZ to be properly mitigated, as vaccine would be released into each expansion of the PZ."
It was unfortunate that there were technical problems with the telephone conferencing equipment, which meant dial-in attendees were unable to participate.

May 9 ~ The Netherlands: No Dutch vet = No Dutch vaccines

Bureaucracy and animal health don't mix - and not just in the UK. Today in Agrarisch Dagblad we read with great concern that farmers in the regions bordering Germany and Belgium with a non-Dutch vet cannot apply for vaccination. These borders farmers will have to wait for the German and/or Belgian campaign. According to a spokesman from the Dutch Ministry, this had been known from the start. Farmers in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen particularly, often have a Belgian vet. When these farmers vaccinate with 'foreign' vaccines they will still be able to apply for financial compensation in the Netherlands,- but only if they fill out the necessary registration forms - and only once the vaccination campaigns in the countries with which they share a border have begun their own campaigns.
UPDATE In the Netherlands the first suspected case of BTV in 2008 is under investigation. A sheep in Welsum showed clinical signs consistent with Bluetongue infection and has been euthanized. Blood samples have been taken and laboratory confirmation is awaited http://olst-wijhe.nieuws.nl/773929/Verdachte_gevallen_van_blauwtong_dienen_zich_al_weer_aan

May 9 ~ Sheep farmers not impressed by odd advice to delay vaccination in sheep

In answer to the somewhat odd advice given by Piet Vellema of the privatised Dutch Animal Health Service (as mentioned below) farmers in Holland are not impressed. They are quoted:
"We will vaccinate as soon as we can. We don't want a repetition of last year. If necessary we will vaccinate in autumn again at our own costs, it will cost less than a new outbreak."
(See Ag Dagblad Schapenhouders wachten niet bewust met vaccinatie) We hear that Piet Vellema later said that he had been wrongly quoted . He had meant, apparently, that now that we have enough vaccines in May those with sheep should not have to fight over vaccine now, they can vaccinate in June as well. This is not how the advice came across and it must have alarmed many.

May 8/9 2008 ~ Are we in danger of forgetting that the reason to vaccinate is to prevent BTV 8 infection, to prevent BTV 8 from spreading further?

The question of young stock and the advisability of getting them all vaccinated is a serious question which evidently needs to be resolved. We hear that one vet was reportedly so confused that he insisted on vaccinating a cow proven to have already had a BTV infection and illness. Totally unnecessary. The antigen will have no effect on her, and the owner can only hope she will not now get an abscess from the adjuvants (she may still be immuno-suppressed). But the same vet insisted on not vaccinating any calf below one month of age because of the lack of "permission" to do so. Are the young under one month not to be vaccinated by law? In the case of sheep this will mean thousands of susceptible lambs When, then, may one to do all the unvaccinated lambs, and identify them? As one farmer writes,
" All mine have one ear tag though some have lost it already and it would take hours to go through them individually, weekly? Am I to wait until the last lamb is one month old before I do my lambs? One normally divides them into groups of twins singles or triplets etc not on the basis of age. However I won't be allowed to vaccinate until this part of Wales is declared a protection zone."
Yet Northern Europe knows to its cost that anti-midge treatments don't work and the only option against BTV 8 is as near 100% vaccination as is possible.
Dr Ruth Watkins (below) has written authoritatively about all this. Knowledgeable farmers at least are choosing to go ahead and vaccinate their very young animals. It is heartening to hear that one livestock editor has vaccinated all his lambs - some down to 2 days of age - without ill effect.

May 8/9 2008 ~Defra has today announced that the Bluetongue Protection Zones will be extended and merged on Monday 12 May

following the delivery of additional doses of Bluetongue vaccine. An epidemiology report on the distribution of Bluetongue infection in Great Britain has also been published. Both the news release and the report are available on the Defra website at: www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases .

May 8 2008 ~ "not all farmers have ordered the BTV vaccine, especially those with large herds and conservation grazing and without access to mobile crushes"

The farmer and virologist, Ruth Watkins, is concerned that vaccination levels of 80% are most unlikely to be reached this year.
"... You can see if they do get round to vaccinating the adults they may not get round to vaccinating the calves at a later date, or wait to vaccinate the whole herd at a later date.
Most kids and lambs are born in Spring so they will be of age now to vaccinate. Cattle not only calve in the Spring, but also during the Summer and autumn. In fact even in my sister's herd 20% of animals will remain non-immune this Summer because of the delay in vaccination of calves. In addition to the non-vaccinated calves and herds and flocks are the wild ruminants, the deer, of which there are countless in much of rural England. They graze in my sister's garden and in the fields..."
As Dr Watkins wrote previously, Dr Chris Oura (Pirbright) confirmed that the reason for the 'under one month of age' exclusion was because it is probable the vaccine has not been tested under one month of age - and he confirmed too that the animals could be expected to respond well to vaccine from birth. He shared Dr Watkins' concern that almost all young animals would get no protective antibody against BTV-8 in their colostrum in the UK this year. (More)

May 8 2008 ~" the Dutch vet can have no grounds to claim the protection is so short that it should only be used in July to cover the next 4 months."

(See reference to Dutch story below) Dr Watkins writes today: "I spoke with Alasdair King of Intervet ... He confirms that the bovilis 8 vaccine has not been trialled on lambs or calves less than one month of age- and that before use on these young animals the vet can (and they do) ring Intervet and discuss the use of the vaccine, as with other ruminant species.
There are two adjuvants in the vaccine, one mild that is used in humans aluminium hydroxide, and the other less mild a saponin called quil A; the latter is not used in human vaccines. The adjuvants are there to provoke a stronger immune response to the antigen than giving the antigen alone.
The immune response to bovilis 8 has been tested to see if it is protective by animal challenge experiments. The correlation of antibody titres and neutralisation antibodies measured in vitro has not been done with the protective immune response as yet for BTV so that is why the challenge experiments must be done to prove vaccine efficacy. The level of antibody in vaccinees that can be measured is high - which suggests the vaccine does indeed perform as would be expected, giving protection for a period such as one year. Thus Intervet can rightly claim it should be used similarly to other killed vaccines. The Dutch vet can have no grounds to claim the protection is so short that it should only be used in July to cover the next 4 months."

May 7 2008 ~ "we will expand the Protection Zones as soon as that vaccine is available.."

"Defra has today issued a tender for 13 million additional doses of Bluetongue vaccine, eight million for use in England and five million for use in Wales. ..... Initial indications would suggest a high response to the early availability of vaccine and that take-up of vaccine is high. Further batches of vaccine are being delivered by Intervet, and we will expand the Protection Zones accordingly as soon as that vaccine is available." DEFRA website. Hilary Benn said: "I am pleased with the very high demand for vaccine in the first week of vaccination. The farming industry faces a real threat from Bluetongue. The best way for farmers to protect their animals and their pockets is to vaccinate all susceptible animals. "By underwriting a further order for vaccine, I am giving farmers across the whole of England the clearest signal that there will be vaccine available as we roll out the vaccination campaign county by county. I want the whole industry to engage with this over the weeks and months ahead".

May 7/8 2008 ~ Vaccination of sheep now in May would cover them for the rest of the season, says Dr Ruth Watkins

An article in agrarisch Dagblad (thanks again to the journalist, Ruud Peys, for the link) today reports that Piet Vellema of the privatised Dutch animal health service (GD) suggests that it may be better to delay vaccination of sheep until June or July because it is not yet known for how long immunity following vaccination will last. Intervet does not choose to comment on the length of immunity. Paul van Aarle says, "We know that the vaccine works" - and the virologist, Eugene van Rooij, of the Central Veterinary Institute of Wageningen University does not subscribe to the recommendation of the GD for delay.
A warmwell correspondent in Holland suggests that since such an expert from Wageningen University has already rejected Piet Vellema's advice one need not take it too seriously.
As for Dr Ruth Watkins, she is in no doubt either. She says,
"As there will be a 3 week period before the peak response to the vaccine when immunity is at its greatest, vaccination now is certainly the most prudent (immunity by July - the month when clinical cases started to emerge in large numbers in 2007). .."
She adds that vaccination of sheep could be done again in the midge down time to ensure immunity next season 2009, even if that is only 6 months after the first dose / course in sheep . Read email.

May 7 2008 ~" It remains to see if vaccination, restricted to PZ's, will contribute to the prevention of BTV-8 spreading to the other regions .." ProMed

Massive vaccination of cattle began in north eastern France on Friday 25 April, five days before our own. On the 2nd May, and with his customary tact, the ProMed moderator, AS, wrote : "The long-due BTV-8 vaccination is expected to commence soon also in other severely affected European countries, such as Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg, where it is planned to cover their entire territories, declared as Protection Zones (PZ).
The situation in other countries, such as the UK, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Italy, and Spain is different, since only parts of their territories have been declared PZ's where the vaccination is allowed.
It remains to see if vaccination, restricted to PZ's, will contribute to the prevention of BTV-8 spreading to the other regions with susceptible livestock."
For "The hows and whys of vaccination," go to http://www.nfuonline.com/x27181.xml . "It will be useful to obtain detailed information on the safety and efficacy tests, which the released inactivated BTV-8 vaccine has undergone. "

May 5 2008 ~ "young animals can be expected to respond well to vaccine from birth"

Dr Ruth Watkins writes that since almost all young animals in the UK this year will get no protective antibody against BTV-8 in the colostrum from their mothers, they will be fully susceptible to BTV-8 infection. It is essential that all the animals on a farm, however young, are rendered immune by vaccination. Extract from her email:
"....I feel the DEFRA recommendation of not vaccinating animals less than one month old is ill thought through and irresponsible with regard to disease control. ... One might think DEFRA has said this because the very young cannot respond to killed vaccine but that is not the case. ... There is no reason to suppose the vaccine is toxic to the very young of the species..."
Farmers should go ahead and vaccinate these young animals as the vaccine can be expected to work and they need to ensure near enough to 100% immunity to BTV-8 in their flocks and herds. Dr Watkins' email should be read in full - and as widely as possible. Her advice about camelids, goats and deer is important too.

May 3/4 2008 ~ British Veterinary Association (BVA) website's key considerations for veterinary surgeons

This is a pdf file "A clear line of communication with farming clients is vital to report any suspected lack of efficacy or other suspected adverse reactions" Extract:
The veterinary profession is the corner stone of the bluetongue vaccination programme with responsibility for vaccine delivery, proper usage, and monitoring for efficacy. .... you should
• satisfy yourself that your clients are competent to administer vaccine, if appropriate;
• arrange any necessary visit(s) to check the livestock and premises in order to satisfy the condition "under our care";
• ensure correct numbers of doses for numbers of stock.
  Livestock keepers are allowed to administer the vaccine to their animals. However, if the animals are vaccinated in order to be moved out of a Protection Zone for the purposes of domestic or intra-community trade, then a level of certification will be required.
  Off-label use
  If used in other ruminant species it should be administered under the cascade system under the direct responsibility of a veterinary surgeon. There will be no withdrawal periods if the vaccine is used in goats.
  This vaccine has not previously been used in the field. ..."
  Read in full

May 3 2008 ~ Vaccine guns cannot deliver 1 ml dose from the 20ml vaccine bottles

It seems to have been an unfortunate oversight that, as Jack Davies in the Farmers Guardian points out today, tests have found the vaccine guns "incompatible with the smaller bottles as they are unable to draw up the full 1ml dose." The first million doses to arrive in the UK are all in 20ml bottles. The FG comments: "The guns had been ordered in to help farmers as the vaccine is currently the only 1ml dose on the market and most guns currently deliver a minimum of 2ml."
UPDATE One farmer from the US emailed: "So who needs some gun to vaccinate? I do it all the time with a 50 cent plastic disposable syringe that can be disinfected, and a new needle."

May 2 2008 ~ "... wait-and-see policy favoured by farmers is fully supported by the Scottish government."

The Scotsman's Dan Buglass today implies that "farmers" do support the wait-and-see policy - but the Scottish National Beef Association (NBA) has strongly argued that Scotland wants vaccination to start in early summer - a position demonstrated by the petition now on its own website to the European Commission asking for a change in the rules so that vaccination against Bluetongue virus should be permitted " without the consequences of that area being designated a Protection Zone".
The president of the Scottish Beef Cattle Association (SBCA) is quoted in the Scotsman, saying with more apparent irritation than clarity that the NBA thinking is "clearly driven by sources south of the Border" and that "There is sufficient flexibility in the timing of the Scottish proposals to allow for changing developments in the south, should they arise." All this starkly illustrates the problem caused by trade rules. As with foot and mouth, the modern boon of vaccination is discounted by many of the big players. If they reject vaccination, they sacrifice their animals' health in order to avoid the sacrifice of trade and profits demanded by EU protectionism.
The Scotsman points out that if and when the Scots do vaccinate, it will at least be a compulsory scheme and that 50 per cent of the cost will be met - but the present situation leaves anxious Scottish farmers with the threat of a fine of up to £5,000, or even jail if they acquire vaccine to protect their own animals. BTV8 is a virus that has spread relentlessly since 2006 and it is touch and go whether the vaccine, whose production was delayed by the hesitation of European States precisely because of the trade rules problem, can now be used fast enough to combat it.

May 1 2008 ~ "one of the positives to come out of FMD 2001 ....a 'progressive', intelligent and humane response"

UPDATE on the comment below. We have just received an email from a stakeholder very ready to defend DEFRA and applaud the Department for its contribution to the present BTv vaccination policy:
"I have just been talking to our vet, here completing a TB test this morning... We concluded that one of the positives to come out of FMD 2001 was that a group has evolved, 'battle- hardened' really, that has come together to quickly shape this appropriate response to Bluetongue. Yes, we are vaccinating into an unknown - how long viraemic calves may remain infectious for example - but have chosen a 'progressive', intelligent and humane response, and done so quickly.
I know some people regard DEFRA Stakeholder meetings as a feel-good outing for numpties but I beg to differ - I feel that they have been integral to this response, and that in turn this will inform our next FMD response."
Yes. It is good to be reminded that there are those working within DEFRA and in conjunction with the Department who have, for years now, been doggedly working towards a more humane and modern approach to animal disease control - and we are most grateful for this email (as indeed we are for all emails) UPDATE There have been other comments about this, chief of which this email from the smallholder guru, Alan Beat.

May 1 2008 ~ Peter Kendall launches the national campaign "Don't hesitate, vaccinate" from a Norfolk farm today

The president of the National Farmers' Union has been invited by Tim Cane, estate manager of Crown Point Farms, to watch the first batch of dairy cattle being vaccinated today. EDP24
"...The BTV8 vaccine, which protects all ruminant animals against the midge-borne virus, is now available for the 2.2m susceptible animals in the protection zone which includes all of East Anglia. .... Mr Cane is the chairman of the Norwich and Loddon branch of the NFU and runs the Bixley herd of pedigree Holstein dairy cattle for the Colman family on the edge of Norwich.... David Hallas, who is general manager of Intervet UK, manufacturer of the Bluetongue vaccine, will be joined by Steve Trickey, veterinary surgeon, of the Chapelfield Veterinary Partnership and the BCVA (British Cattle Veterinary Association)."
Good news - all the same, when one remembers the refusal to contemplate vaccination against foot and mouth (vaccines have been effective for decades) one cannot help but agree with this email, just received from a veterinary and animal health researcher:
"Mary, I couldn't help smile, but with sadness too, when I read the posting today - all the fanfare for this wonderful thing called vaccination - they have all been a bit slow to stumble across this marvellous invention (how now can they decry it for FMD in all honesty?) "

Thursday May 1 2008 ~ Vaccination should begin today in the protection zone

As reported below, the first batch of vaccines have arrived ahead of schedule and are ready for distribution The Farmers Guardian comments that the first batch of 1m doses of vaccine, available only in 20ml bottles, should be delievered to the first vets early this morning. "The second batch of vaccine, 2m doses available in 50ml bottles is expected to be released to vets within a few days." The FG videos about bluetongue control can be viewed here (new window)
In the Netherlands, vaccination is scheduled to begin next Thursday, 8th May.

Wednesday April 30 2008 ~ Postcard campaign well under way in the South East

30,000 postcards are being distributed throughout the south east as part of the National Farmers Union's Don't Hesitate -Vaccinate! campaign. . Posters have also been put up where farmers and livestock owners are likely to see them. (source) In early April the BBC reported that "Researchers who studied midges' lifecycles to predict when farms are at risk have said animals in Kent will be the first to be at risk from 21 April."

Tuesday April 29 2008 ~ Intervet has released the first batch of Bluetongue BTV8 vaccine for Northern Europe.

Intervet, now "Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health" has announced on the Intervet website the news that the company ".... has now released the first batch of bluetongue vaccine for sheep and cattle, Bovilis BTV8, fulfilling firm orders received from a number of countries within Europe. Stolp: "We put great effort into the development of our safe and efficacious Bovilis BTV8 vaccine to meet the urgent need as quickly as possible and we are pleased that production is on track, so that we are able to deliver the first amounts of vaccine before the actual start of the "midge season". Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health has developed the Bovilis BTV8 vaccine in a very short period of time. It has been two years since the emergence of the virus in Northern Europe in 2006. The company supplies Bovilis BTV8 vaccine to a number of European countries. At this moment the supply is in balance with the confirmed orders and undecided tender applications..."

Tuesday April 29 2008 ~ Farmers Guardian Bluetongue Q and A page

The FG expert panel comprises Alick Simmons, deputy chief veterinary officer; Alasdair King, livestock veterinary manager, Intervet; Jules Dare, Westpoint Veterinary Group; Prof Philip Mellor, Institute of Animal Health; Dr Chris Oura, Institute of Animal Health; The page covers many questions to which the average livestock owner would want answers

Friday 25th April ~ "vaccine could begin arriving at wholesalers next week in readiness for distribution"

See Farmers Weekly today: "The release could be in the nick of time. Vets in Belgium and the Netherlands have reported that large numbers of the bluetongue carrying midge, cullicoides (sic), have become active in the past few days. Farmers have been warned to watch for symptoms and urged to vaccinate stock. In the UK the earliest date predicted for DEFRA secretary Hilary Benn to approve the vaccine release, by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate, is Friday (25 April). "Once the vaccine arrives ....It would work best if the vet then calls the farmer client. Otherwise there could be chaos if 20 or 30 farmers start ringing vets to see if the vaccine has arrived."

25 April ~ "Registering for vaccination with your vet must become a top priority. Do it today. There is huge urgency."

An article by Caroline Cranbrook in the East Anglian Daily Times on April 19th has already had its effect, we hear. ("I was talking to a farming friend this morning. I asked him whether he had read the article and he said yes he had and that as the result he had registered with his vet...")
Warmwell is very glad to publish the article in full. Extract:
" In the first year the symptoms are mild .... In subsequent years both the severity and extent of the disease hugely increase .. In parts of Europe, the lamb crop is down by about 30%. In the Moselle region of France about 20% of cattle herds are affected...The death rate has risen substantially (20-70% is reported in Europe) and there are twice as many abortions.... Vaccination is the only hope of preventing the disease from spreading in a similar way in Britain and ruining the livestock industry....
In the next few weeks we have a unique and perhaps final opportunity to prevent this catastrophic disease from becoming endemic in Britain. For this reason it is essential that everyone who owns cattle, sheep, goats, farmed deer or camelids should contact their vet immediately and ask to be put on the list for vaccine. .."
Read in full - (It can be copied or printed out from this new window and be passed on.)

Friday 25th April ~ How to vaccinate. Videos on Farmers Weekly site

Videos and pictures about the disease and questions and answers about vaccination can all be seen on this page of Farmers Weekly online.

Friday 25th April ~ "We have no plans to hold discussions with the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe to discuss DEFRA's vaccination plan."

..was Jonathan Shaw's curt reply to the Parliamentary Question posed by David Drew Hansard Is the UK still smarting under the European Veterinarians' comments about the UK plans when they said, "Irrespective of the disease outbreaks the UK has faced over recent years, it continues to cut budgets and to reduce its Animal Health Services...." One remembers too Fred Landeg's response, calling it 'both inaccurate and deeply offensive'.

Thursday 24 April ~ Realisation dawns...not enough vaccine

DEFRA is set to order another 8 million doses. As for Wales, the report on www.dailypost.co.uk says : "Cardiff is now talking to the livestock industry and others before sanctioning a follow-up order" ( i.e. of an extra 3 million doses. )
Elin Jones is apparently saying " we must wait for the English protection zone to reach the Welsh border before a protection zone can be declared in Wales" and - a remark that also leaves one gasping for air..."I have sought Defra's co-operation in ensuring that the protection zone reaches Wales as early as possible in the summer to allow vaccination to begin in Wales." As one informed ex-vet who writes on the Farmtalking forum remarks, "Why on earth the relevant authorities don't immediately declare the whole of the UK a protection zone is beyond me."

Thursday 24 April ~ Farmers Guardian will be interviewing some of the key players

"From the deputy chief vet to vaccine manufacturer Intervet, we will be putting your questions to the key decision makers - be it about the disease, the vaccine, or the strategy for controlling and eventually, eradicating the disease. If you have a question you want to put to the experts email jdavies@cmpi.biz or call 02079218485

Monday 21st April ~ Draft European Commission regulation modifying movement rules now approved.

Under temporary new rules that will apply until 31 December 2008, Member States can request (following EU approval) that animals from restricted zones do not move into BTV-free areas unless they are either vaccinated or shown to be naturally immune. Confirmation of the existence of antibodies by means of a second serological test seven days before movement is to provide reassurance that such animals are immune and safely moved. Calves too young to be vaccinated (under 90 days) can be moved without vaccination, provided that they are kept strictly away from midges. (Source of information www.agriculture-news.eu )

Sunday 20th April ~ "DEFRA ... will have no way of knowing what percentage of animals in an area or on a holding are vaccinated"

A cri-de coeur from the blog of Devon Fine Fibres, producer of cashmere and mohair from sheep and goats, ".....It's times like this when I wish I lived in Scotland where the scheme is to be compulsory. Vaccinate or face 3 months in jail or a £5000 fine!" And from the blog of Locks Park Farm (sheep and beef cattle) in Devon, the farmer of 30 years experience describes how a Bluetongue meeting was shocked by the warnings of a Dutch vet - and highly impressed by the knowledge of the Pirbright vet, Karin Darple, who has been travelling around the south of England, giving presentations:
"....it was superb... She had very practical advice on how to cope with the disease, whether and when insecticides would be appropriate, housing versus the outdoors and much, much, more.
Karin would like to see 100% take up of the vaccine as soon as it hits the shelves, but EU legislation prevents this!" (NB. Please remember to sign the NBA petition about this, now on their own website.)"Vaccine can only be given in Protection Zones where the disease has already struck, not in the surrounding Surveillance Zones. Karin couldn't stress enough that speed is of the essence: to stand a chance of avoiding the devastating effects of the disease we must vaccinate ahead of it - we must prevent the virus from getting established."
Read in full

Friday 18th April ~ " ... The second that I can get my hands on the vaccine, it will be done."

Roger Long, of the NFU's regional livestock board, is quoted today (EDP24) saying vaccine is likely to be here two or three weeks ahead of schedule. In spite of the higher cost of the first supplies of vaccine to arrive because only smaller 20ml vaccine bottles will be available at first, he has ordered 1,500 doses for his cattle and will not delay vaccination until the cheaper 50ml bottles arrive later in May.
Vets are to be allowed to inject a 1ml dose of vaccine from the 20ml bottles and Mr Long is hoping it might be possible for vets to hold a mass vaccination clinic for producers with a small number of animals rather than expecting smallholders with only a few animals to have to obtain a full bottle containing more doses than they need. Read article

Friday 18th April ~ Tim Farron says vaccination for rare breeds should be a top priority

The Lib Dem MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, Tim Farron, who is chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Hill Farming, has written to Hilary Benn to call for rare breeds to be vaccinated first. He says that farmers "may face devastating losses to rare breeds that may prove to be irreplaceable." Under the present vaccination plan, rare breeds don't have any priority even though, because of their low numbers, the survival of breeds such as Rough Fell and Herdwicks could be at risk. See Cumberland News

Friday 18th April ~ DEFRA is being persuaded to order 8 million more doses - we hope

Alistair Driver reports in the Farmers Guardian that the NFU's head of food and farming, Kevin Pearce, says DEFRA is close to ordering another 8 million doses. Mr Pearce told the NFU council on Tuesday:
"Discussions are going on with Ministers about ordering additional vaccine. We need another 8m doses to complete vaccination in England and I am hopeful we will see some positive results on that soon. I think we have a very good case. ...Although Intervet is saying publicly it expects to deliver 3m doses in May, I would be very disappointed if they don't deliver at least 5m in May. Production of vaccine has gone extremely well and they are capable of doing that,"
The NFU and all the other members of the JAB campaign, are to be congratulated on the way they are injecting a much-neede sense of urgency into persuading farmers of the need for 100 per cent coverage of susceptible livestock.

Wednesday 16th April ~ "Animal health and welfare is simply too important to remain as at present..

.. it must be given clear leadership and be made less vulnerable to budgetary fluctuations and 'border disputes' between organisations." This month's Beringer Report (pdf) into the funding, governance and risk management at the Institute for Animal Health to advise the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) makes 13 recommendations including the urgent redevelopment of the Pirbright Site as a new 'National Centre for Animal Viral Disease' BBSRC and Defra should jointly provide long-term core funding so that the facility is no longer funded merely through the award of research grants and contracts, ensuring that safety and biosecurity needs are satisfied.
The BBSRC and Defra must agree long-term arrangements for its ownership and management- and they should lead in setting up a funding body for animal health and welfare research, surveillance and associated functions. Finally, a new Animal Health and Welfare agency should be established.

April 16 2008 ~ BBSRC Chief Executive Steve Visscher : "The BBSRC Council and Executive are extremely grateful to Professor Beringer and his review panel for the thoughtful and incisive nature of their report.

" It provides a real basis for BBSRC to move forward and to resolve the regrettable but inevitable uncertainty under which IAH staff have been working. I would like to take this opportunity to repeat BBSRC's ongoing support for those staff who are continuing to deliver vital research, for example on Bluetongue Disease, during this period." See BBSRC response to Beringer (14th April)

Friday April 11 2008 ~"responsibility without power" No-one wants to be the next Chief Veterinary Officer?

In the Farmers Guardian Professor Joe Brownlie is quoted as saying that "... the modern CVO had responsibility without power and, as such, candidates to replace Mr Landeg were discouraged.
"This is not an attractive position," he said. "I know two colleagues that have been approached and have turned it down. It is a reduced role across the entire sector," he added...."

Friday April 11 2008 ~ Will inactivated vaccine protect the foetus?

(In human medicine, live Rubella vaccine, given before pregnancy does not always protect the baby from secondary rubella infection in the mother even if antibodies are present. This is why small boys are vaccinated too, to try and reduce the circulating wild type.)
A french paper (pdf in French) by the French Agency AFSSA has examined available data on the possible effects on reproduction of the vaccines that have been authorised in various countries. Warmwell.com's unofficial translation may be read here. Extract:
What is certain is that vaccination reduces the viraemia of the wild virus at the time of an infection. So, in the absence of viraemia, there is no teratogenic or abortive phenomenon.
Read warmwell.com's translation

Friday April 11 2008 ~ end the complexities

A farmer from East Yorkshire writes to the Farmers Guardian to describe the real difficulties of the present policy. He suggests, as so many have already done, an urgent acceptance of the
"one sensible solution to all this potential and current chaos and that is to declare the whole country a Protection Zone, not in a piece-meal manner deriving from the sequential availability of the vaccine, but now in one fell swoop......to put an end to all the complexities arising from different zones"

April 10 2008 ~ Several hundred French farmers block Mont Blanc over compensation

Christian Berthet, head of the FFCB livestock farming union for the south-eastern Rhone-Alpes region, is quoted: "Bluetongue stopped us from working in 2007 and we want compensation." France had about 11,000 cases by the end of 2007 and new cases have recently been reported.
UPDATE (We have been told that the french protest at the Mont Blanc tunnel was not really done by farmers, but by cattle dealers, who lost their export business to italy because of their rejection of non-vaccinated cattle. Many thanks to Seb Schäfer.)
The BBC reported:
"The FFCB says the compensation package for 2007 is the same amount as in 2006, when the disease affected 16 departments, yet it spread to the rest of the country later on. The French government on Monday said it was releasing 6m euros (£4.8 million) in aid for farmers whose herds have been hit. The FFCB picked the Mont Blanc tunnel to stage its protest because it leads to Italy, one of the main markets for French veal. Italy closed its border in March as French calves had not been vaccinated against bluetongue."
As we know, there is no compensation planned for the UK at all.

April 10 2008 ~ "Dear members of the Council, and Mrs Androulla Vassiliou..."

The European Livestock Association (ELA) has registered "its great concern" to the EU Commission and the EU Council with regard to those regions and/or countries that are still 'free' zones - but for whom vaccination against BTV8 is not yet seen as a permitted option
"... we strongly urge the Council and the Commission to review the legislation concerning vaccination in order to ensure an adequate and effective response.
We feel that the situation with bluetongue offers a real opportunity for the Commission to demonstrate its leadership and undoubted expertise by adopting a pan European approach to the control of this latest extremely serious threat to our livestock industry. We feel that a critical part of this policy is the option for member states to vaccinate all susceptible animals without the immediate consequences of limiting vaccination to a protection zone.
Furthermore, by adopting preventive vaccination, as was recently advocated by the European Parliament, we will surely be moving towards the very laudable objectives/ideals expressed in the document "Towards a durable animal health policy in a global world". ."
Read the letter sent by the European Livestock Association (html) or (pdf)

April 9 2008 ~ Scots to vaccinate in compulsory campaign....now confirmed...

that £3 million has been secured from the Scottish Government for a compulsory bluetongue vaccine program. Vaccine costs are to be split 50:50 between farmer and government. Confirmation received. This story now appears in FWi
"....Tenders for the supply of 12 million doses of vaccine are to be invited immediately. It is hoped that vaccine will be available for use on a limited scale in the summer in the event of a bluetongue outbreak. It is estimated that the cost to farmers could be as little as 50-60p per vaccination after the grant. All cattle and sheep will be vaccinated in most parts of Scotland. A decision has still to be made as to whether the islands and an area in the north-west will be exempt. Vaccination will be done by farmers themselves with close veterinary supervision to ensure compliance. Failure to comply could result in fines as £5000 and/or six months in jail..."
See also Scotsman (Thursday)

April 9 2008 ~ Under new EU rules, decided today, vaccinated animals and those considered immune will be free to move from bluetongue zones into bluetongue free areas.

The Farmers Guardian: "The draft regulation modifying the rules finally received approval today (Wednesday, April 9) at a meeting of the Standing Committee on Food Chain and Animal Health (SCoFCAH) in Brussels.... Following the decision, member states will be given the power to tighten up restrictions on non-vaccinated stock, allowing them to impose strict import bans on all susceptible livestock older than 90 days...."
Farming Weekly says, "member states agreed the rule change which will prevent the movement of bluetongue susceptible animals more than 90 days old, unless they have been vaccinated or have natural immunity. Another condition is that, where animals have been vaccinated, at least 50 days must have passed before they can move out of a zone, to ensure that they are not infective. This applies to both breeding and slaughter animals, and covers both the protection and surveillance zones until the end of 2008, when it will be reviewed."

April 9 2008 ~ "....accumulating evidence that infection with BTV-8 during pregnancy in cattle may lead to congenital brain defects..."

A letter in the Vet Record about data compiled in the Netherlands is reported on ProMed today. The moderator comment says that the data are complementary to field observations from Germany, presented in posting 20080315.1028 and encourages subscribers to visit Belgium's presentation during the SCFCAH 31 Mar 2008 meeting (pdf) . It includes, among others, the following data pertaining to transplacental BTV-8 transmission in cattle:
1. Increased abortion rate: 68 aborted fetuses tested, of which 28 found RT-PCR positive.
2. Increased neonatal mortality, malformations: 11 out of 109 suspected newborn calves RT-PCR and ELISA positive
In Belgium, mandatory vaccination of sheep and cattle (except veal calves) will take place in May, according to the pdf file (18 very clear pages).

April 9 2008 ~ Switzerland has ordered 4 million doses of bluetongue vaccine - from all three manufacturers: Fort Dodge, Intervet and Merial.

The ProMed posting also comments on the Swiss conclusion that "midges are mostly active in lower areas" The moderator says that this is in need of clarification.
"It seems to be certainly valid when the vector is _Culicoides imicola_. It will be interesting to obtain updated information on the identity of the culicoides species involved in the Swiss arena, and their breeding and feeding behaviour in the prevailing habitats, including higher latitudes."
The Swiss campaign is being organised by the cantonal veterinary services together with the Federal Veterinary Office and carried out by vets. It will be financed by the Swiss "federal government, the cantons and the agricultural industry."

April 9 2008 ~ "Many of my cows have again developed bleeding from the nose..."

A response to the story below has been received from Janine Allis-Smith
'I have just looked at the Dutch website and a link article says they are going to vaccinate livestock in the Northern provinces first, presuming those in the South which have been infected have often developed antibodies and are less susceptible. Then it goes on re the re-infection (Dutch source www.limburger.nl):
"Because of the infection last year, many of N.Brabant and Limburg's dairly farmers are still experiencing big losses. "Many of my cows have again developed bleeding from the nose, one of the signs of the disease", says Cees Gommers from Ysselsteyn. Last year he lost 16 of his 120 cows. Many of the animals left produce up to 40% less milk."...'
Many thanks for this update. (It refers to the paragraph below) The suggestion that animals, according to this report, really can get reinfected is extremely worrying. UPDATE We are grateful to Sabine Zentis who writes, "I have tried to find out some more background info but so far there is no proof of multiple infection in the same animal. The symptoms described can be regarded either as long term effects of BT or might be attributed to a different condition like IBR etc."

Tuesday April 8 2008 ~ Are recovered animals really immune?

Any plans, such as the German vaccination plan, not to vaccinate proven seropositive animals may be put in jeopardy by the worrying suggestion that data in Belgium points to animals getting infected a second time.
Our own rather freely translated version of the article at www.deondernemer.nl today suggests that the Dutch milk stock breeders' trade union (NMV) fear that there will be a shortfall of a million doses of vaccine. The government has ordered six million but the association expects that at least seven million will be necessary. The Dutch Ministry of Agriculture is going on the assumption that on farms where infection has occurred before, animals, being already sufficiently resistent against the virus, are no longer in need of vaccination. However, the NMV is concerned that animals are not protected automatically after a first infection. This is on the basis of Belgian data which suggests that ruminants were infected in both 2006 and 2007.
(Advice about the accuracy of this would be much appreciated but we know how busy readers are.)
UPDATE a kind reader, Janine, sends the update above.

Tuesday April 8 2008 ~ JAB's progress

Congratulations to the stakeholders in the JAB partnership who are raising consciousness about the urgent need for livestock owners to contact their vet and work out how much vaccine to ask for and when they can get on with vaccinating. www.farmingviews.co.uk quotes JAB today now that the vaccine been approved for use in the UK by the Veterinary Medicines Directive and is expected to release the first three million doses to the UK in May but is confident that this number can be exceeded. :
"This is a significant step forward for the campaign, which is aimed at getting farmers behind a vaccination programme to stop bluetongue in its tracks.
Farmers should identify how much vaccine they need for their livestock, they should contact their vet about ordering and talk to them about vaccine availability."
JAB stakeholders are: the NFU, National Sheep Association, National Beef Association, British Meat Processors Association , Livestock Auctioneers Association, Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers, British Veterinary Association , Country Land and Business Association, Tenant Farmers Association, Association of Independent Meat Suppliers, Dairy UK, British Cattle Veterinary Association, the Sheep Veterinary Society, the Rare Breed Survival Trust, British Alpaca Society, British Llama Society, British Wool Marketing Board, British Simmental Society, English Beef and Lamb Executive and the Sheep Centre.

Tuesday April 8 2008 ~ Veterinary profession tries to voice its advice and concerns to the Government "not always as successfully as one might have wished"

Presentations given to BVA Council meeting last Wednesdays (see www.medicalnewstoday.com) included one by Paul Roger of the Sheep Veterinary Society on bluetongue.
"Since the first reported case last year BVA and its relevant divisions have been working to increase awareness of the disease, including recognition of clinical signs, primarily through BVA and divisional publications - an article by the President will feature in the April edition of Off The Record - and websites. As Mr Roger's presentation made clear, the profession has been part of Defra's Core Stakeholder Group and has had the opportunity, albeit not always as successfully as one might have wished, to feed the profession's advice and concerns through to Government. Despite frustrations with the process, the profession had recently signed up to JAB (the Joint Action against Bluetongue campaign), designed to promote the mass vaccination of bluetongue susceptible animals and Council representatives were urged to encourage their members to use the resources available on the BVA website to promote awareness of all aspects of the disease and the importance of vaccination."
See BVA website page on JAB and clinical signs and regional seminars.

Tuesday April 8 2008 ~ Bluetongue causes a loss of over 39 million pounds to Dutch Livestock sector

The Netherlands newspaper, www.agd.nl (Agrarisch Dagblad) reveals today that the Dutch livestock sector suffered a loss of 49.3 milllion euro last year because of the bluetongue epidemic. Research from Wageningen university shows 43.8 million euro losses in cattle and 5.5 million in the sheep sector. This compares with losses of 28.5 million euros the previous year. (Many thanks to the UK correspondent for the Agrarisch Dagblad in Holland, Ruud Peys, who has kindly contacted warmwell.com.)

Monday April 7/8 2008 ~ failure to communicate effectively with farmers or with vets, despite "consultations" and road shows

Under the despair-inducing headline, Farmers sceptical about disease vaccine in the Northampton Chronicle, we read that farmers in the county "have said they know little about the vaccine and are unsure how well it will combat the disease..." This is followed by the anxious words of a farmer:
"We do wish it had been done sooner but some vets recommended we don't vaccinate the cows because there are so many strains of the virus, it's like flu, and we're not necessarily going to cover the right one."
There are evidently many farmers who are still unaware that we are threatened with a single strain of BTV and vets who - for what reasons no clue is given - are advising against vaccination. As an emailer writes, "Here's more evidence of Defra's failure to communicate effectively with farmers or with vets, despite all the money they have invested in their various "consultations" and road shows. .."
Nothing less than the survival of the sheep and cattle livestock industry of the UK is threatened by this disease and vaccination is all we have to combat it. We can only urge readers to sign the NBA petition and do all they can to raise awareness of the vital need for as near as possible 100% vaccination coverage of all farm ruminants.

Monday April 7 2008 ~ " High time the whole country was treated as infected and an urgent all out campaign adopted to vaccinate everything..."

An emailer, an experienced vet, writes today
"Thanks for opportunity to sign petition. However when will Defra realise inky lines on paper do not stop midges or dealers spreading disease? High time whole country was treated as infected and an urgent all out campaign adopted to vaccinate everything. When will this stupid nonsense cease? We have vaccinated sheep for decades against Clostridial disease - and some cattle. Also pigs against disease. The public have happily eaten the meat - yet still these myths are spread to to prevent vaccination."
An area that chooses pre-emptively to vaccinate to protect its animals should not suffer trade penalties. A direct link to the NBA petition here will enable readers to register electronically their support for the plea to the EU to change the rules that militate against a more effective campaign to eradicate disease. As Rees Roberts, HCC chairman says on www.meatinfo.co.uk : " Decisive action needs to be taken immediately ... It is very likely that the disease will reach Wales in 2008 and therefore it is vital that the industry is prepared for this by considering strategies for limiting the impact of the disease in advance of its arrival."

Sunday April 6 2008 ~ Direct link to the NBA petition

Please support the Petition, irrespective of whether you are a member of NBA Scotland or not. The Petition is open to all those who concerned about livestock. A direct link here will enable you to send your support electronically. "We, the undersigned, call upon the European Commission to...
1. Permit vaccination against Bluetongue Virus serotype 8, with inactivated licenced vaccine, in a Bluetongue-free country/region such as Scotland BEFORE the disease arrives and without the requirement to declare that country/region as a Protection Zone.
2. That vaccination should be used to protect against Blue Tongue virus in Scotland as a Free Zone, therefore gaining Scotland the status of 'vaccinated free of virus'.
3. That, in the event of the Surveillance Zone encroaching into Scotland before Bluetongue vaccination can be achieved, vaccination against Bluetongue virus should be permitted without the consequences of that area being designated a Protection Zone."

April 6 ~ " three million doses will be delivered in May"

EDP 24 reports: "Intervet has indicated that it will release the first doses to the UK in May, subject to final batch testing. In a statement, Defra said about three million doses will be delivered in May and could exceed this commitment..."
And as Channel 4 news sensibly reported last night:"...It's about as early as could have been hoped but the vaccine is as yet untried and treating susceptible animals will be a race against time before midges re-emerge and begin to spread bluetongue again.
There have been no new infections confirmed in Britain's 34 million sheep so far this spring -- but testing continues.
A Bluetongue outbreak on the scale of Europe's last year could kill 5million of them. Only once all farmers have vaccinated their flocks, will the threat of Bluetongue pass."

April 5 ~ " scientists who, if they were truly independent, should be shouting from the roofs of their institutes (or homepages of their websites) .."

"...that the present way of doing things does not make scientific sense. But instead, they appear happy to take the Government's money and do as they are asked within a tightly controlled remit. So Scottish scientists, instead of leading the way in Europe as to how Bluetongue disease should be handled, simply add to the burden of thoughtless bureaucracy." Read James Irvine's article on land-care.org.uk in full.

April 4/5 2008 ~ Defra officials ignore their own notices

It is hard to find positive things to say about DEFRA even though we do look for such information and would certainly print it if sent to us. It is, for example, with a sense of ironic despair that we read on p. 38 of the Farmers Weekly an anonymous letter entitled 'Why didn't DEFRA follow the rules?', describing how two Defra officials at a recent Livestock Market Roadshow at Holsworthy Market, despite the numerous notices all over the market, failed to dip their boots in disinfectant.

April 4/5 2008 ~ More a plug for themselves than emergency information for worried farmers?

Nowhere in DEFRA's "Give disease the Boot" article-cum-advert in the print version of the Farmers Weekly is there any sense of urgency, nor is there anything about the need for vaccination, the need to register with your vet, the timetable of vaccination, or the areas which are eligible.
Defra's large colour photo of a farmer looking downwards at 3 sheep standing round him, is captioned 'Good stockmanship and vigilance can help prevent the spread of disease' and it has a long plug for the Defra market Livestock Market Roadshows. There is also a paragraph on Bluetongue symptoms, advising farmers that BT is a notifiable disease and to seek the advice of a vet "if they are worried" But rather than communicating urgency, the need for vaccination, the need to register, the timetable and the areas which are eligible, space is taken up with the injunction:
'To keep up to date about disease and vaccination, visit www.defra.gov.uk/givediseasetheboot or phone Defra's helpline.
As one emailer writes, "WHAT A MISSED OPPORTUNITY. Given many farmers' recent experience of Defra, they are unlikely to look at the website or use the helpline. And how many hill farmers are online?"

April 3 2008 ~ Bluetongue vaccination roll out plan published

DEFRA today seems content to accept that "under EU law" the strange situation exists that if uninfected regions, such as Scotland and Wales and the free areas of England, want to protect their as yet uninfected animals by vaccinating them the area must be redesignated "Protection Zones" which must then, also by EU law, allow imports from genuinely infected zones. Defra says today:
"Under EU law, vaccination can only be carried out in a Protection Zone. As vaccine starts to be delivered by Intervet, vaccination will, therefore, commence in the Protection Zone only. Once vaccination is progressing across the Protection Zone, the intention is to extend or modify the Zone county by county, in order to permit further vaccination. The strategy has been developed and agreed with a Core Group of industry stakeholders. It is designed to be flexible, taking into account the changing nature of the disease, such as moving zones, the varying levels of disease risk in the zones and the availability of vaccine. More details of the vaccination strategy, alongside indicative prices for the vaccine, can be found on the Defra website."
. See NBA Scotland's petition below See also DEFRA's latest Zone map

April 3 2008 ~ vaccination "could significantly reduce bluetongue virus circulation .." says Jonathan Shaw - but uninfected zones stymied by EU legislation

We still have the ludicrous situation in EU legislation that if uninfected regions want to protect their as yet uninfected animals by vaccinating them the area must be redesignated "Protection Zones" which must then, by EU law, allow imports from genuinely infected zones.
It is hard to work out what Mr Shaw's advisers have been telling him about vaccination. Mr Shaw yesterday said, Hansard
"The implementation of a vaccination programme could significantly reduce bluetongue virus circulation and limit its geographical distribution, contributing to its control and potential eradication at some point in the future "
But one is also still rather reeling from Mr Shaw's throw-away line (below)
" lack of scientific evidence to support an immediate prospect of eradication through vaccination suggests that the case for compulsion is weak "
wondering what scientific evidence DEFRA has been looking at and what sort of time scale for eradication his advisers assume would follow a near 100% vaccination coverage. As for the reality of the 'vector-free' period, see ProMed comment below.

April 3 2008 ~ ProMed informed by Pirbright that no new cases infected in past four months "as far as we are aware"

Dr Chris Oura wrote to ProMed "Since November 2007, lab results indicate that all the "new cases" of bluetongue reported in the UK were infected during the vector season in 2007 and were only picked up by pre-movement testing carried out in 2008. As far as we are aware at present, there is no indication that BTV-8 has been circulating in the UK in the past 4 months (December-March 2008). These cases are neither a reoccurrence of disease nor a new outbreak; these animals have remained PCR- and ELISA-positive since being infected during the midge season in 2007, and the animals showed no clinical signs of disease at the time of pre-movement sampling."

April 3 2008 ~"..... the reality of the "vector-free" season"

ProMed today details research carried out by Dr Thomas Balenghien and colleagues: "....BTV-8 RNA detections in both France and Netherlands [see Bluetongue - Europe (17): BTV-8, new vector, update 20080321.1077 and commentary. - Mod.AS] in late autumn 2007 confirm without doubt that culicoides chiopterus has to be considered a potential vector of bluetongue virus in Europe." The commentary adds, "...they state that since entomosurveillance systems based on UV traps assess only nocturnal activity, it could not be excluded that host-seeking behaviour occurs during mild winter days, indicating the need to check the existence of a diurnal movement in winter, in order to evaluate the reality of the "vector-free" season.

April 3 2008 ~ Departments in part of S W France now regulated for both BTV-8 and BTV-1; vaccination will be reassessed to take into account the evolution of the disease.

ProMed also points out today that the French Ministry's website announced on 31 Mar 2008 that "2 new cases of BTV-1 have been confirmed in the Departments of the Gironde (at Queyrac) and in the Department of Landes (at Leon). Following the event located in the Gironde, a decree extending the regulated regions for serotype 1 to this department and part of nearby departments, the Charente and Charente Maritime, was published in the official gazette of 1 Apr 2008. These areas were already regulated under their BTV-8 situation.
The order also amends the regulatory area under the serotype 1 to reflect the launch of the vaccination campaign against this serotype in the departments of the Gers, Landes, Pyrenees Atlantiques and Hautes-Pyrenees.
The vaccination will be reassessed to take into account the evolution of the disease."

April 2/3 2008 ~ "the lack of scientific evidence to support an immediate prospect of eradication through vaccination suggests that the case for compulsion is weak." Jonathan Shaw

Hansard from April 1 - Not, unfortunately, an April Fool's comment; rather a Ministerial one.

April 2 2008 ~ Scotland - although the livestock industry is unanimous in its demand for the vaccine, none has yet been ordered

James Irvine, on Land-care.org.uk, has written about the NBA Scotland petition, calling on the EU for some common sense changes. He writes:
"The hold up in Scotland is in relation to the rules of the European Commission (EC) which forbid vaccination in a Bluetongue-free country or zone. Such a country either has to wait until infection arrives and has been officially confirmed, or declares itself to be a Protection Zone (PZ) even although it has not evidence of disease. The big snag of doing that is that, again according to EC diktat, free movement of livestock from any other PZ throughout the EU must be permitted. This, of course, would simply invite the BT virus to enter Scotland during the 6 weeks that it takes cattle to achieve full protection after vaccination. .... the National Beef Association Scotland has initiated a Petition to the EC. To view the Petition Click Here pdf Please support the Petition, irrespective of whether you are a member of NBA Scotland or not. The Petition is open to all those who are concerned about Scotland's livestock."
See also succinct comment from the Herald

April 2 ~ "We, the undersigned, call upon the European Commission to....:

(The Petition( in new page ) can be sent electronically. The text of the petition from the Scottish Beef farmers (NBA Scotland).
We, the undersigned, call upon the European Commission to
1. Permit vaccination against Bluetongue Virus serotype 8, with inactivated licenced vaccine, in a Bluetongue-free country/region such as Scotland BEFORE the disease arrives and without the requirement to declare that country/region as a Protection Zone.
2. That vaccination should be used to protect against Blue Tongue virus in Scotland as a Free Zone, therefore gaining Scotland the status of 'vaccinated free of virus'.
3. That, in the event of the Surveillance Zone encroaching into Scotland before Bluetongue vaccination can be achieved, vaccination against Bluetongue virus should be permitted without the consequences of that area being designated a Protection Zone."
Anyone who feels concern for Scotland's livestock may email the completed form info@natbeef.demon.co.uk), fax the form back to 01434 601008 or post the form back to: The NBA, Mart Centre, Tyne Green, Hexham, Northumberland, NE46 3SG. Alternatively, go to the NBA website: www.nationalbeefassociation.com, Click on the NATIONAL AND REGIONAL NEWS menu (left hand side of the home page) and then click on Scottish News, then click on Petition. Enter your name and contact details and then press SUBMIT. -( available from 4th April.)

1/2 April 2008 ~ Dutch appeal to the Commission and Member States to take measures to guarantee free trade of products from vaccinated animals.

A press release from the Dutch Liberal party: "Vaccination must be a bigger part of the European animal disease policies - A series of proposals by MEP Jan Mulder has been accepted....Trade restrictions, raised when an MS chooses to vaccinate after an outbreak or at the threat of an infectious animal disease, are at this moment an important reason for countries not to chose vaccination.." More

1 April 2008 ~ Intervet vaccine granted approval

As expected (see below) Intervet's Bovilis BTV8 was given approval today from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate VMD. The Farmers Guardian reports in full:
"An initial 2 million doses is expected to come off the production line in May.....will be available as a prescription only medicine (POM-V) from vets. The vaccine will be administered by the farmer and is likely to cost between 55 and 98p depending on the size of bottle purchased..... Intervet will also be producing a 1ml vaccine gun, allowing farmers to vaccinate their animals without the need for new needles. .... Defra's strategy is to vaccinate up to the borders of the current PZ before extending the PZ out further to allow vaccination in new areas..... the aim is to declare the whole country a PZ allowing all livestock across England and Wales to be vaccinated..."

1 April 2008 ~ Welsh farmers anxious that not enough vaccine is on its way to achieve viable coverage

We read on icwales.icnetwork.co.uk that the FUW president, Gareth Vaughan has called for a meeting of farmers' representatives, vets and other interested parties, saying,
"such issues need to be discussed regularly in a forum with all stakeholders present.. there are complex issues surrounding this matter, such as how limited doses of vaccine can be targeted in a manner that achieves maximum protection for Welsh livestock."
However, as one informed contributor to the farmtalking internet forum remarks, "How can vaccine be 'targeted' if it is to be distributed through normal commercial channels? Won't it be 'first come, first served'?"
Meanwhile, the Joint campaign Against Bluetongue, JAB (see below) to urge all farmers with susceptible livestock to vaccinate their animals as soon as the vaccine is available, is using the slogan, "Don't hesitate, vaccinate."

March 31 2008 ~ Germany moves without waiting for federal regulatory approval

Berlin - German officials said today (source) that they were
"bulldozing through plans to inoculate farm animals against bluetongue disease... central state of Hesse has placed a binding order for 21 million vaccination doses to be distributed to all 16 states, without waiting for federal regulatory approval for the substance. Hesse will pay about 17 million euros to the three manufacturers, the state environment minister, Wilhelm Dietzel, said in Wiesbaden. ..."
( Seb Schäfer pointed out that figures for Bluetongue animal deaths in Germany have not yet been published. The number quoted in the article is the number of premises with cases of bluetongue desease.)

March 31 2008 ~ Merial is the first supplier - to France

As we report below, France has already begun vaccinating - and had the good sense to order vaccine from several sources. The UK, on the other hand, not only stopped Merial's vital work at Pirbright in spite of advice to the contrary last October, but limited its own supplier of the vaccine to Intervet alone. Farming UK today says, "Merial supplies first BTV8 vaccine to reach livestock in Europe French veterinarians have now vaccinated the first sheep and cattle against bluetongue virus serotype 8 (BTV8). They are the first animals in Europe to be protected against BTV8; they were given a Merial vaccine. This represents the first part of a 200,000 dose order announced by the French Ministry of Agriculture and Fishing on 4 March.."

March 28/29 2008 ~ "It is expected that France and England can start vaccination in April..."

(Actually, vaccine is already being used by the French to protect their live trade in newly weaned suckler bred beef bulls to Italy - see below and is expected to begin vaccinating in the priority areas of the North East of France next week with an intitial supply of 300,000 doses - see agriculture.gouv.fr)
Intervet: vaccine production on target is the headline on Agrarisch Dagblad (in Dutch)
"The manufacture of the vaccine is on target, so reports Intervet. "We are now busy with the quality control of the first batch" says a spokesperson. During this process the vaccine is being tested on cattle, sheep and poultry to determine the strength of the vaccine. By these means we can identify how much vaccine to use per dose."
The safety of the vaccine had been established during earlier tests. The results of the quality control are expected during April. This will be followed by the full production process of the vaccine and we will be able to fulfill the first orders from France and England, followed by the Netherlands."
France and England were first to order the vaccine and will be the first to receive deliveries. It is expected that France and England can start vaccination in April..."
The Netherlands is expecting to start vaccinating in May. About 60 Million doses can be made from the first batch to be produced.

March 28 2008 ~ Bluetongue in the New Forest

DEFRA has extended the bluetongue protection zone, following confirmation of disease on premises in Hampshire. The protection zone is now extended into Wiltshire and further into Hampshire.
The number of premises reported on the DEFRA website has jumped from 110 on 19th March to 122 reported today at 1 p.m. See current zone map.

March 28 2008 ~ "Vaccine will be too late for us.."

The current Cumberland News letter page is particularly interesting and, among letters from other deeply concerned citizens of the Carlisle area, it includes a letter about the possibilities of homeopathic or alternative treatments for Bluetongue. While farmers and livestock owners are unable to get hold of vaccine this may well be worth serious consideration. The letter from Mr and Mrs Thorpe quotes The European Livestock Association's Betty Stikkers, who wrote:
"In our country there were several big herds that were treated with homeopathy last year and it worked well. I just made a plan with a friend who is a homeopathic vet to prevent BT in our flock. Vaccine will be too late for us."
The letter adds that Betty and her friend (president of the International Association for Veterinary Homeopaths - and all homeopathic vets are also fully qualified veterinary surgeons) are now starting with the special treatment in the hope of preventing the disease. They will also give them willow branches "which did a great work last year, and the sheep love them" together with "selenium licks to enhance the condition of the animals"
We are grateful to Mr and Mrs Thorpe and also to Betty Stikkers who has kindly offered to give advice to any warmwell reader. b.stikkers@shetlandsheep.nl.

March 27/28 2008 ~ Intervet's BTV-8 vaccine is about to get official authorisation

The Farmers Guardian reports that the "first vaccine able to protect livestock from the BTV8 strain of the bluetongue virus is on the verge of receiving official authorisation. The Veterinary Medicines Directorate is set to announce soon, possibly as early as next week, that it has granted a provisional licence for Intervet's BTV8 vaccine."
It is unknown when the first doses will be available. The Intervet product manager, Ian Anderson, is quoted: "Everything is on track and we are very happy with where we are and we are confident we are going to meet our obligation to Defra."

March 27/28 2008 ~ Bluetongue serotype 8 in Italy

Italy, a country that has been careful to refuse unvaccinated imports from France (see below) because of France's BTV-8 outbreaks, has now reported an outbreak of bluetongue serotype 8. Italy's report to the OIE shows that cattle, noticed as sick on March 11th near Verona, have tested positive for serotype 8. The source is described as "Unknown or inconclusive"

March 27 2008 ~ "We need to place orders for that vaccine now" Dr Ruth Watkins

Dr Watkins wrote today: " If the Scottish virologist veterinarians in all their vet schools and research facilities cannot come forward with a unified plan to tackle Europe about the stupid rule of forbidding vaccination outside the protection zone there is no hope for anyone else to do so.
There is not for instance a single such person in Wales.
My view on vaccination confined to the protection zone was made clear in the lecture I gave at Duns I will espouse this view again at Darlington where I have been asked to give a 25 min talk to the sheep veterinary society and asked to make clear my controversial views!
Unlimited vaccine should be available by end of March 2009, giving us the opportunity to vaccinate every ruminant in the UK next winter before April / May; whether the whole of the UK is by then in a protection zone or not, there is an opportunity to declare the whole of the UK a protection zone in the vector free period contingent upon every farmer able to purchase BTV-8 vaccine. We need to place orders for that vaccine now, from additional companies ie Merial or and Fort Dodge or another. That is the strategy we must adopt. It would be within the rules set by Europe and the UK."

March 27 2008 ~ " It seems ridiculous to a virologist to make rules about not vaccinating in the surveillance zone or outside the surveillance zone..."

Extract from Ruth Watkins' talk mentioned above:
".....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. That is the reason for the redundant rule that vaccination is not allowed in the surveillance zone. 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?..."
Read in full

March 26 2008 ~ The risk of reassortment of individual BTV gene segments

"Veterinary authorities and legislators throughout northern Europe would do well take note of these recent and considerable changes in the epidemiology of BT," say Claude Saegerman and the other authors of Bluetongue Epidemiology in the European Union et al in the current journal Emerging Iinfectious Diseases Volume 14, Number 4 - April 2008
"...the radial extension of BTV-8 across Europe increases the risk for an encounter between this serotype and othersparticularly those that occur in the Mediterranean Basin, where vector activity continues for more of the year. This condition increases the risk for reassortment of individual BTV gene segments....
...best strategic option for control of clinical BT outbreaks in the European endemic areas is vaccination of susceptible animals with inactivated vaccines to protect against disease..... Veterinary authorities and legislators throughout northern Europe would do well take note of these recent and considerable changes in the epidemiology of BT."
The paper, which has useful illustrations, suggests that since BTV is able to survive regularly between vector seasons it may well become endemic to northern Europe.

March 25 ~ SCoFCAH to discuss new draft proposals

The EU Commission is to consider revising the conditions under which live animals may be exported from bluetongue-restricted zones in light of emerging information on the possibility of maternal transmission. New draft proposals will be discussed at a meeting of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (SCoFCAH) in Brussels next Monday, March 31.

March 25 2008 ~ "....they should be running a simultaneous petition whereby vaccination with accredited vaccines should be allowed in a Bluetongue-free country like Scotland"

Extract from Dr James Irvine's www.land-care.org.uk website of March 20
".....although the relevant stakeholders have all agreed that the appropriate vaccine should be ordered, it is understood no such order has yet been placed......
The core flaw in Scotland's Bluetongue vaccination programme is, of course, the totally inappropriate EC Directive that a member State cannot vaccinate in what the EC designates as Bluetongue-free zone...... if Scotland (or part of it) chooses to declare itself as Protection Zone.... it would have to accept freedom of movement of livestock from other Protection Zones throughout the EU where Bluetongue is rife. It is difficult to comprehend how such nonsensical directives could be formulated had there been competent professional and expert advice sought when the EC was hatching them.
What Nigel Miller, and therefore NFU Scotland, should be doing is lodging two petitions to the EC. Not only should the NFUS be making a strong stand against unnecessary and impractical double tagging of sheep, but even more importantly they should be running a simultaneous petition whereby vaccination with accredited vaccines should be allowed in a Bluetongue-free country like Scotland that is at serious risk of getting the disease......"
The article should be read in full

March 24 2008 ~... this complicated and terrible disease": Christianne Glossop

(quoted on icWales,) the chief vet for Wales has commented on the two new cases discovered just before Easter. She asks
".... What is going to happen when the spring arrives? We know from other parts of the world that cattle, unlike sheep, don't always show dramatic clinical signs of bluetongue.
....Will we have the kind of epidemic that northern Europe saw last summer, or will we be fortunate enough not to see that this year? Nobody has the answer to that."
However, anyone who seriously thinks we are NOT going to get the epidemic that northern Europe saw last summer must be an extraordinary optimist. The UK has ordered only 22.5 million doses of vaccine and from a single producer. Wales has asked for 2.5 million of these but there are already 1,600,000 farm ruminants within the protection zones The first million doses will come on line in mid May at the earliest. Since EU rules restrict the use of the vaccines to the protection zones and forbid the use of vaccines to protect animals who are not yet considered in range, the chances of achieving coverage in time look bleak. Surveillance has not been adequate for anyone to be sure what areas really are in range - particularly in the light of what is increasingly looking like overwintering of the virus in calves to be born to asymptomatic or negatively testing cows. (The Telegraph has a brief article on this today.)

March 20 2008 ~".....what are we worrying about? We can let the whole lot have bluetongue and save a lot of government money."

When politicians make facetious comments they sometimes forget that Hansard will report them faithfully. The Labour peer, Lord Berkley, asked Lord Rooker on Tuesday whether it was "safe to eat meat from a cow that has bluetongue, adding - " If it is, what are we worrying about? We can let the whole lot have bluetongue and save a lot of government money."

March 20 2008 ~ The Countess of Mar has raised the serious question of maternal transmission, saying that it is vital that we understand the overwintering process for bluetongue

Hansard Most importantly she asked "...What funding has been made available to the Institute for Animal Health to research this issue?" A farmer herself, she felt it important to add:
"Does the noble Lord agree that it would give farmers a lot more confidence in Defra if the officials who compiled the leaflet Bluetongue: How to spot the disease knew the difference between sheep and cattle and that you do not vaccinate a recumbent cow?"
Poor Lord Rooker's reply was gracious as he quickly pointed out that, since the Countess had warned him before the sitting, the website had already been changed to show "the clinical signs in cattle accompanied by photographs of cattle and the clinical signs in sheep accompanied by photographs of sheep." (Example of page from DEFRA booklet.)
However, he slid past her most vital point. Another question will now have to be tabled if we are to know the amount of funding the government is prepared to make for IAH research to be continued into this vital area. (Precious little it would seem, if Lord Berkley's extraordinary ignorance is a measure of Labour thinking. The threat facing livestock farming in the whole of Northern Europe is unprecedented. Never has research into transmission been so desperately needed.)

March 19 2008 ~ 2 more premises

The Declaration of a Protection Zone and a Surveillance Zone declared at 15.45 on 29 February 2008 is revoked and replaced by this declaration. "One case in Hertfordshire requires the Protection Zone to be extended further into Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. A separate case found in the Surveillance Zone has required the Protection Zone to extend further into Norfolk and Lincolnshire, and the Surveillance Zone further into North and West Yorkshire." DEFRA pdf file (large) or large map here
The Cumbrian News and Star says that the protection zone "has crept closer to the Cumbrian border following confirmation of two new cases of the disease..."

March 19 2008 ~ "We hope...we don't expect anything any more..." Dutch vet, Toon Meesters

The three short interviews by Peter Hollinshead (videos on the Farmers Guardian website) will be of interest to anyone who has not yet seen them. Chris Oura supports the use of the bulk milk test and talks of the evidence in Northern Europe about viraemic calves and over-wintering. He says there is no serological test on antibodies to distinguish between infected and vaccinated animals. But PCR can detect the viral RNA for 200 days post infection. He says orders for vaccine "were put in in October" although the UK, the first to place an order, did so in December.
Particularly affecting is the Dutch vet, Toon Meesters, who, says that in spite of bulk milk testing offered to all farmers in Holland, there can be no end to continuing uncertainty about immunity after infection. Among all the talk of economic losses, he adds sadly:
"But it's also seeing your cows suffering and knowing you can't do anything except treat and nurse and wait..."
In his area of the his practice in the Netherlands between 80% to 90% of the herds were infected and 60% of the cows in those herds were infected. He does not sound optimistic that there will be enough doses, says the disease is already endemic in Northern Europe, and repeats the grave uncertainties that surround this disease. West Sussex vet, Julian Dare, talks of the very few measures that can be taken in the hope of protecting any ruminants who become infected: "good soft bedding", fresh water and - crucially, he says - stress needs to be kept to an absolute minimum. Before vaccines arrive, symptoms can be treated with long-acting antobiotics such as oxyteracycline or penicillin, and long-acting, non-steroidal drugs such as Metacam.

March 18 2008 ~ Joint Campaign Against Bluetongue (JAB)

12 organisations, representing farmers, livestock markets, the meat processing sector and the veterinary profession, have issued a joint statement published yesterday expressing commitment to working together on the campaign achieve mass vaccination of bluetongue susceptible animals. Extract:
"Although the programme will be run on a voluntary basis, JAB is now embarking on a major campaign to urge all farmers with susceptible livestock to vaccinate their animals as soon as vaccine is available."
The Farmers Guardian says the 12 organisations supporting JAB are: NFU, National Sheep Association (NSA) National Beef Association (NBA) Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) British Veterinary Association (BVA) Country Land and Business Association (CLA) Tenant Farmers Association (TFA) Livestock Auctioneers Association (LAA) British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) Association of Independent Meat Suppliers (AIMS) Dairy UK British Cattle Veterinary Association (BCVA) Sheep Veterinary Society (SVS)

March 15 2008 ~ "Sabine Zentis' exemplary contribution is gratefully acknowledged." - ProMed moderator

ProMed -mail's request (in posting 20080306.0916) for field-collected data, in particular relating to the effect of the BTV-8 upon fertility and embryonal development/pathology in bovines and ovines was answered by Sabine Zentis' paper, Suspected effect of maternal infection with BTV-8 on calves born during the calving season 2007/2008 in an infected area: :
".....Since autumn 2007, a massive increase of abortions, stillborn or weak calves as well as fertility problems, have been experienced.
In the absence (or, at least, being unaware of such) of a methodic, thorough veterinary investigation of individual cases, the following information, collected in the field, is hereby reported, while indicating that no clear evidence is available to validate the 8 described cases as resulting from BTV-8 infection. On the other hand, in several cases the involvement of other known teratogenic agents has been ruled out.
[For the detailed descriptions of 8 bovine neonates with changes suspected to be related to fetal BTV-8 infection, including their pictures, the reader is referred to the online communication (pdf). Mod.AS]
The pdf file written by Frau Zentis contains images that show the distressing nature of what is being described.
Read ProMed posting in full

March 14/15 2008 ~ Transplacental movement of BTV is being taken very seriously.

We hear that at least one international expert now considers that the birth of viraemic calves in or near to Spring could lead to Spring populations of Culicoides becoming infected with BTV. This could account for the May seroconversions to BT detected in Germany. The overwintering-via-calves need happen only on a very small scale, but would be sufficient to get the virus-vector ball rolling and for the disease to slowly gather steam - reaching a crescendo late in Summer/early Autumn. He wonders, "Have we not been looking closely enough, proceeding comfortably with our pre-conceived ideas?"

March 14 ~ "The 22 million vaccine doses that the Government have ordered will not be sufficient for blanket vaccination in the time necessary. "

Roger Williams, the Lib Dem MP for Brecon and Radnorshire, said yesterday (Hansard):
"Given the nature of the bluetongue virus and its method of transmission, the problem will continue to face DEFRA and the livestock industry in years to come. The 22 million vaccine doses that the Government have ordered will not be sufficient for blanket vaccination in the time necessary. Will the Secretary take advice and make a risk assessment - an epidemiological assessment - to ensure that the vaccines are used in the places where they will best prevent the spread of the disease rather than on a first come, first serve basis?"
Hilary Benn replied that he had been "taking advice" and that the "core group working on the issue is overseeing the strategy for getting the vaccination programme going..." Whether this amounts to an assurance that an epidemiological risk assessment is to be carried out, or not, is not clear.

Martch 14 ~ Fred Landeg hits back angrily at the FVA, wanting it to 'publicly retract' its statement.

The Government's acting chief veterinary officer, Fred Landeg, has made a angry public rebuttal of the FVA statement reported below, complaining hotly that it was 'both inaccurate and deeply offensive'. Arguing that the voluntary nature of the campaign was not a cost-cutting exercise, Mr Landeg said the UK wanted to ensure rapid coverage of vaccination of areas of "greatest risk" (sic) allowing a quick "roll-out" when vaccine was delivered. He pointed out, fairly enough, that the UK was the first to place an order for vaccine, and that, under vets' authority, animal keepers would be allowed to administer the vaccine themselves. Read FG article.
However, it seems very unfortunate that someone in such a position as Mr Landeg cannot explain the UK's official position rather more mildly - without feeling the need to demand a public retraction. Making a personal attack on the much respected FVA President by saying Walter Winding's statement was "unbecoming of a professional colleague, who I would expect to act on evidence and not speculation" can surely do the UK's already poor reputation in animal disease control no good at all. (Mr Landeg's assertion that DEFRA wanted to reduce "regulatory burdens" may be thought by some a priceless gem of NewSpeak.)

11 March 2008 ~ FVA says the UK Bluetongue vaccination plan "was probably driven by a strong desire to cut costs, and has little to do with animal health and welfare"

The Federation of Veterinarians of Europe now represents 37 countries and has four professional sections. The statement of its president, Walter Winding, gives a bleak insight into the way many of our European neighbours now consider that UK disease control is handled:
"Irrespective of the disease outbreaks the UK has faced over recent years, it continues to cut budgets and to reduce its Animal Health Services...."
According to www.animal-health-online.de the FVA feels the UK plan will be unable to make it clear what percentage was vaccinated, when, and if this was carried out correctly. "It would seem unlikely that this would lead to a reliable overview of vaccination coverage, never mind export certification" (More)

11 March 2008 ~ "in terms of logistics and economics, it was preferable to adopt a voluntary approach."

The Farmers Weekly quotes BVA president, Nick Blayney, who is not happy that, as a member of the FVA, the British Veterinary Association was not consulted before the FVA statement criticising the UK plan was put out. He defends the strategy by saying it was drawn up "painstakingly by the stakeholder group" and that "in terms of logistics and economics, it was preferable to adopt a voluntary approach." (The many dissenting voices to this view have not been heard from much, it seems.) His letter to the Vet Record of Feb 16th suggests that Mr Blayney believes that the veterinary profession will be able to persuade livestock owners of the need for mass vaccination but as the FVA points out,
"If animal owners decide not to vaccinate, their animals run the risk of contracting the disease with all the consequences for their health and welfare. Additional problems will occur if animals that were believed vaccinated become sick. Were they really vaccinated, was the vaccine properly used, was there a vaccine breakdown?" (www.animal-health-online.de)
As Mr Blayney says, "our target must be 100 per cent" -

11 March 2008 ~ Fort Dodge: "we are on track to provide much needed vaccine by May..."

Their press release says that Fort Dodge, (already supplying Bluetongue vaccine to France and Spain), has submitted a dossier on its BTV8 for review by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate. Once accepted, this will put the company on target to offer vaccine from May, by which time product availability is scheduled to reach 5 million doses. The press release considers the likely shortfall of vaccine supplies for England and Wales and says that Scotland "may place a tender for 12m doses"
"... our plants are at the forefront of BTV8 development and produce a highly effective product which will help prevent the spread of the disease. The news that we have submitted our BTV8 dossier to the VMD last week is a major milestone in the development of the product and means we are on track to provide much needed vaccine by May."
Read in full

11 March 2008 ~ Wales: only enough vaccine for two counties and then only for 70%

Kirsty Williams, AM for Brecon & Radnorshire is quoted in icwales
"The Government has only purchased 2.5 million bluetongue vaccines which it is understood will only be enough to treat 70% of susceptible animals in Powys and Monmouthshire. These may be the first counties to be affected but what does the Government plan to do if the disease spreads beyond the Marches? It seems apparent that they have not prepared for such a scenario and I am fearful that it will be farmers who pay the price for the Government's mistake should the disease spread."

10/11 March 2008 ~ Intervet's Bovilis BTV8 "Summary of the Characteristics of the Product"

Warmwell's translation of Intervet's summary of their product can be read here (together with the original french version).
We note that Fort Dodge UK have urged DEFRA to allow it to meet the vaccine supply shortfall, pointing out at a Press Conference today,
"We believe there is going to be a further requirement for doses. If we need more vaccine we need it early, to stop the spread of the disease."
Fort Dodge is therefore offering DEFRA five million doses which can be available by May - but, says the Farmers Guardian, "with other European countries including Germany and Scotland yet to place an order for vaccine, the additional five million doses will be in high demand"
Fort Dodge's UK Managing Director, John Hanley, has, "called on Defra to make a decision as early as possible."

9/10 March 2008 ~ Can the midges be controlled with insecticides?

Section 8 of the EFSA Scientific Report (pdf 137 pages) of 2007 is concerned with vector control. One important sentence reads,
"despite the fact that most of the insecticides in common use worldwide have been shown to be highly toxic to Culicoides adults and also against the larvae, their broad scale application in the field is not justified yet given the current level of detailed knowledge of midge habitat preferences..."
However, one paragraph, concerned with the direct treating of dung, mentions culicoides dewulfi, one of the midges associated with Bluetongue in Northern Europe.
"A number of vectors (C. brevitarsis, C. bolitinos, C. wadai and C. dewulfi) breed in cattle dung meaning that a new generation of midges emerges approximately every 14-21 days and so would be unaffected by any insecticides applied around a premises in preceding days. With dung-inhabiting Culicoides more targeted applications are necessary and may be useful. It has been shown that cattle dung treated with ivermectin is larvicidal to Culicoides for up to 28 days (Webster et al., 1992), which is sufficient as most species complete their developmental cycle in half this time. These four vectors all breed in unadulterated dung lying in the field." (Section 8 of the 2007 EFSA report)
See also below

Sunday March 9 2008 ~ "Working hypothesis•Transplacental infection of 3 calves..."

As the ProMed moderator commented, the update of the BTV-8 situation (pdf of presentation) given to the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health, Brussels 4-5 Mar 2008, by the UK delegation, " included information on the PCR-positive offspring of dams imported to Northern Ireland and Scotland, territories free of BTV, from infected territories in continental Europe."
The presentation concludes with a "working hypothesis"
"....Working hypothesis
•Transplacental infection of 3 calves - Dams exposed to virus - Two calves PCR-including PCR+ heifer's calf - Colostrum feeding matches results - No injections given - No parousCulicoidesobserved/Air temperatures - Already reported experimentally
•Oral infection of PCR+ heifer - In calving pen after PCR+ calf - Placenta from 1stcalving not removed - Additional bedding only measure taken between calvings - Short interval between occupancy - Potential contact with twin PCR+ calves through gate - Periparturientbehaviour - licking calves - Not recorded route of transmission
•PCR+ Scottish cow - Potential contact with three PCR+ calves - Potential contact with PCR+ heifer."

Saturday 8 March ~ " Could this be taken to suggest that the BTV-8 virus involved is a vaccine strain after all?"

The ProMed posting on foetal viraemia and vaccination, should be read in full. Dr. Peter Roeder: ".... the BTV-8 present in northern Europe is not only unusual in its transmission by novel vectors and ability to cause frank disease and mortality in cattle but it seems also to have acquired another new characteristic -- that of transplacental infection -- which one would normally only associate with vaccine viruses. Could this be taken to suggest that the BTV-8 virus involved is a vaccine strain after all? Surely urgent attention needs to be given to defining the determinants of this new situation.
I am attaching some references related to the matter of BTV transplacental infection in cattle and changes in virus behavior induced by the processes involved in laboratory manipulation of BTV viruses...." More The Moderator comments: ".... the announced IAH research project, addressing the issue of possible BTV-8 fetal viremia in ruminants, is essential for decisions on future bluetongue control policy and its results anticipated with great interest."

Friday 7th March 2008 ~ DEFRA's update shows the UK over the 100 barrier for infected holdings

The figure of 101 was posted on the DEFRA website at 13.00 today. France is now near to or already over 18,000.

Friday 7th March 2008 ~ Scotland agrees at stakeholders meeting to order Bluetongue vaccine without further delay for all its cattle and sheep

James Irvine at Land Care.org has written, "At the stakeholders meeting this morning Charles Milne, Scotland's Chief Veterinary Officer, agreed to put in motion the ordering of sufficient Bluetongue vaccine serotype 8 to cover all the cattle and sheep in Scotland. It is a great relief that there will be no further delays in reaching this important, but somewhat belated, decision.
Hopefully the practicalities of placing the order, and when it will be delivered, will be handled with all possible speed...." Read in full.

March 7 2008 ~ "The main question is whether the virus has overwintered..."

Medical News Today reports on the statements in this week's Veterinary Record, by the meteorologist John Gloster, colleagues from the Met Office and the Institute for Animal Health at Pirbright, who "have examined the meteorological conditions leading up to the first British case of the disease" They are warning that the timing of the vacination campaign is crucial ".The main question is whether the virus has overwintered and we should have that answer to that over the next few weeks. It's certainly possible that the disease could easily re-establish in the coming months'..".

March 7 2008 ~ Research on the overwintering of the virus

From research carried out in 2004 and 2005 by D.M White et al. Extract: "Overwintering of bluetongue virus in the invertebrate vector"
"...The hypothesis that BTV overwinters through vertical transmission of the virus by infected adult C. sonorensis to their overwintering larval progeny is supported by our previous studies..... . BTV antigen was detected in the vitelline membrane of infected, adult females and proteoid yolk bodies of their oocytes, but not in the ovarian tissue itself. This demonstration of 'dense' BTV antigen in the reproductive structures in which it was found (33) would suggest that vertical transmission could occur. Vertical transmission of flaviviruses in mosquitoes occurs via the micropyle as the egg passes through the oviducts during oviposition (40). A similar mechanism could function for vertical transmission of BTV in C. sonorensis."
Understanding the research goes far beyond the competence of this website - but extracts may be viewed here.

March 6 2008 ~ New Scientist: "EU puts farmers in a bluetongue catch-22"

Debora Mackenzie of the New Scientist on the situation in which Europe finds itself - with inadequate vaccine and hindered by the bizarre EU rule that has, up til now at least, refused permission to virus free areas to vaccinate pre-emptively without being designated "Protection Zones" themselves. (However, see also today's note on this rule below ).
This week's Magazine issue 2646 (subscription) "Tiny biting flies are emerging across Europe this week as spring returns. At 15 ^oC, any bluetongue virus they are carrying will start replicating, and the disease will spread. Unless sheep and cattle in its path are vaccinated it could ravage Europe's sheep flocks. But it seems unlikely there will be enough vaccine to stop the virus spreading. What's more, European Union regulations mean what vaccine there is cannot be used to stop it invading new areas. .." (Read article in full)

March 6 2008 ~ News from Brussels

Export of pregnant ruminants from Bluetongue restriction zones to Bluetongue free zones and third countries is now forbidden, until these animals can be vaccinated before insemination. The possibility of maternal transmission of active virus (see below) is evidently being taken very seriously
It also seems to be the case now that animals from areas that are as yet uninfected, but which choose to vaccinate, will still be allowed to leave the "restricted zones" ( the fact of vaccination will confer restricted status on those zones) - as long as virus circulation has not been demonstrated. We await confirmation of this. On the 5th March, the EU's Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health had backed a draft amendment by the European Commission to Regulation 1266/2007 on bluetongue concerning "the harmonisation of requirements for the movement of pregnant females and newborn animals, in order to prevent risks associated with the possible trans-placental transmission of bluetongue" and Northern Ireland's ban looks likely to remain in force until this new amendment is passed.

March 6 2008 ~ VAT will be added to the cost of bluetongue vaccine

The Farmers Guardian reports on the price of vaccine:
"The vaccine will be available in 50ml and 20ml bottles, and will be available through private vets via veterinary wholesalers. The wholesale 'list' price will be £22.02 for the 50ml bottles and £13.10 for the 20ml bottles. The final on-farm price is likely to be around £27.50 - £33.00 for the 50ml bottles (i.e. 55-66p per ml) and around £16.35 - £19.65 for the 20ml bottles (i.e. 82-98p per ml). VAT will also be added in order to cover the overhead, handling and administration charges throughout the distribution process...."
The size of the dose is likely to be 1ml, but, says FWi, "this is subject to the ongoing discussions between Intervet and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate as part of the vaccine licensing process".
Interesting to read that Professor Mellor in the IAH release below says
"we have a once-only opportunity to eliminate the virus from the UK before it devastates our ruminant industry..."
and that the BVA President Nick Blayney has said of vaccination coverage that "our target must be 100 per cent". It would be interesting indeed to know the overall price Intervet is charging DEFRA (see below) for the vaccine that is to be sold on to farmers in this way. (Defra's delivery plan says, "The vaccine ordered so far by Defra will cost approximately £11 million." i.e. the cost price appears to be about 49p a dose ) One can only hope that the take-up will be almost universal in spite of the price. At least farmers in the UK will be allowed to do their own vaccination if they wish to - whereas countries getting EU co-financing are not allowed to permit this.

March 5/6 2008 ~ "...recent observations in Holland and the UK that indicate that ruminant offspring that are weak, still-born, and/or PCR positive are now being born to dams that were infected with bluetongue virus last year"

An IAH news release says
"Scientists in the Institute for Animal Health believe that it is a distinct possibility that bluetongue virus survives the winter by passing from pregnant infected ruminants to their offspring whilst in the womb. After birth, the young animals provide biting midges (the "vector") with a fresh source of virus when they take a blood meal.
Knowing how the virus over-winters is a vital before the 2008 vector season gets underway, as it might be possible to introduce preventative measures before transmission re-commences..."
The BBSRC has just provided financial resources to Professor Mellor's bluetongue research team at IAH to investigate if bluetongue virus is surviving in this way. Read in full

March 5 2008 ~ Italy has restricted trade from France to vaccinated animals only - and vaccination in France has begun

This French press source reveals that the Agriculture Minister, Michel Barnier, "obtained from Mérial enough vaccine doses for emergency vaccination" for the animals intended for the Italian market. From March 5, "25,000 amounts will be distributed for the 16 departments of the North-East of France affectrd by BTV since 2006 " It would appear that 25,000 additional doses will be available "in the three weeks time " to ensure a second round of injections.

March 5 2008 ~ NFUS press release on vaccination. Charles Milne will wait for Epic team's economic report on March 21 before advising Richard Lochhead, it seems

The Herald reports on the present NFUS position and Holyrood's present "tough it out" approach.
Many find Holyrood's approach tough on the small farmers and animals rather than on the virus and not realistic as far as risk. The present plan is to vaccinate next winter, a plan based wholly on trade considerations. They would kill any animals found with bluetongue and compensate the farmer only if the animal had been imported.
A team from the Scottish Government's Epidemiological and Population Health and Infectious Disease Control Centre (Epic) "...has been working on the problem since before Christmas" building economic models.....also.. taking into account how many animals need to be vaccinated in a voluntary scheme to make it successful and "how to get out of bluetongue restrictions once they are established." The Herald adds that when the report comes out on March 21 it will,
"... heavily influence chief vet Charles Milne's advice to the Cabinet Secretary Richard Lochhead on bluetongue policy. "
Yesterday's NFUS news release, although asking for vaccines to be ordered now still seems to hold an optimistic belief that Scotland may somehow remain unscathed in the coming months and that its preferred compulsory vaccination campaign can be put off for as long as possible. Read the NFUS release)

March 4 2008 ~ The possibility of maternal transmission is being discussed in The Hague today, along with vaccination strategies

Northern Ireland's unilateral ban is based on an assumption that is by no means scientifically proven as yet. The assumption is that if cows and sheep are able to pass on the disease via vertical transmission then, although the mothers themselves may well test negative for active virus (because they have gone on to develop natural immunity after recovery) - the resulting calves or lambs can develop the active disease. This may appear to have been the case in Northern Ireland - but, as has been pointed out, although the PCR test is very sensitive, the problem is that when the test is based on just a few fragments of the whole Bluetongue genome, it cannot provide unequivocal proof for circulating live virus.
All the same, it is a great leap forward in animal disease control to know that the meeting in The Hague is also discussing how best to use the 6 million doses of vaccine coming on line from May onwards. There are no longer any political or industry voices arguing loudly against vaccination as a control method. The road to sanity as regards FMD and H5N1 too may be becoming unblocked at last.

March 4 2008 ~ Bluetongue vaccine production remains on track?

The Farmers Weekly article reporting that, "Bluetongue vaccine production remains on track for the delivery dates agreed with DEFRA last December, according to manufacturer Intervet " seems to have been removed. Has anyone any information about this? In the article, (before it disappeared), Intervet had said,
"The retail price is something we have no say in. We have agreed to supply DEFRA with 22.5m doses for a set price, how it is priced after that is down to DEFRA and private vets who will supply the vaccine to farmers."

March 3/4 2008 ~ ProMed requests "available scientific evidence" on BTV-8 viraemia observed in bovine and/or ovine foetuses

After posting some of the recent news articles about Northern Ireland's assumptions about maternal transmission of active virus and their unilateral ban on breeding cows and sheep from BTv areas, the moderator remarks,
"The above press release was accompanied by the communicator's commentary, indicating that
"if the 1st findings are confirmed, that would mean that many countries might be at a high risk of BTV 8 outbreaks due to the import of in-calf, seropositive but virus negative cows or heifers. No one can tell at the moment if, and how long, these calves might be viremic and will pose a source of infection for indigenous vector populations. ... To adapt trade measures and vaccination strategies accordingly, any scientific information should be made available publicly as soon as possible."
A similar observation has been received from Dr Paul Sutmoller, who referred to the need to publish the "new scientific information" mentioned by Ireland's Minister of Agriculture as background for her "unilateral action to suspend the importation from bluetongue restricted zones of female breeding-and-production cattle aged over 12 months and female sheep aged over 6 months."
Both remarks are appreciated and seem perfectly valid; we hereby request available scientific evidence on BTV-8 viremia observed in bovine and/or ovine fetuses, its duration and any additional findings pertaining to the said observations. - Mod.AS]"

March 3 2008 ~ "It has now emerged that maternal transmission is another possible means.."

Michelle Gildernew, the Northern Ireland Agriculture Minister is quoted on www.farminglife.com
"I am confident SCOFCAH will introduce effective measures in due course, but, I feel I have to anticipate the out-workings of this committee, and with my Executive colleagues am acting decisively now to protect our industry from this disease."
Northern Ireland's unilateral import controls were taken for a limited period up to March 6. Mrs Gildernew said that the additional import controls will be "regularly reviewed in line with emerging science and developments in the EU Commission". SCOFCAH (the EU's Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health) will meet again next week.
As the Farmers Weekly says, this Irish ban "..goes beyond the EU regulations, which permit trade in live animals between zones during the vector-free period, so long as the animal has tested negative for bluetongue."

March 3 2008 ~With farmers and vets preparing to vaccinate, Jack Davies and Alistair Driver look at the key questions surrounding vaccination.

The Farmers Guardian:
"...the PZ will gradually be extended to allow more farmers the opportunity to purchase vaccine...The south coast may be given priority.... a risk-based approached, targeting those areas most at risk from disease. The intention is ultimately to expand the PZ to the whole of England and vaccinate accordingly as soon as supplies are available...". (Read in full).
It is unclear as yet how vaccination in Wales, (only 2.5million doses ordered) and Scotland (12 million doses expected to be ordered this week) will proceed. Vaccine will be available in 50ml (50 doses) and 20ml (20 doses) bottles and a rough estimate of cost is about 60p per dose. "The cost may vary with veterinary fees and with some farmers requiring supervision, the cost may increase further..."

March 1 2008 ~ " The European Commission is now looking at changing its rules on animal movements... " Belfast Telegraph

Northern Ireland's Belfast Telegraph, in its article, Imports row over disease outbreak says that Assembly members have questioned why the latest bluetongue emergency restrictions took so long to impose - and why they will last for less than a week. (until March 6.) The Agriculture Committee vice chairman, Tom Elliott, has asked why the Irish Republic has been operating more stringent import restrictions while Ulster farmers have been left exposed to the bluetongue threat.

March 1 2008 ~ " The need for vaccination and its urgency have been underlined..

February 29 2008 ~ DEFRA has extended the bluetongue protection zone

following confirmation of the disease on one farm in Buckinghamshire and another in Hertfordshire. There are now 88 confirmed premises in the UK

February 29 2008 ~ Intervet to supply France

Intervet, who has already received firm orders from the UK and the Netherlands, has today received an official order from France to supply 27 million doses of inactivated vaccine against serotype 8. It will supply the Bovilis BTV 8 vaccine to France as soon as possible, . Intervet is currently "optimizing the production process" and is doing the utmost to speed up the first deliveries "for mid-spring". The vaccine has been developed for sheep and for cattle - goats are not yet included in official statements.
Intervet says (informal communication), "Our product is effective in both sheep and cows. In both vaccinated animal groups our vaccine will bring about less virus circulation after infection. So the chance of the virus being picked up by the midges is smaller, and therefore the virus will multiply less and spread less. Virus in the blood does not always mean that the animal is sick. Reducing the virus 100% is not always possible and not always necessary."

February 29 2008 ~ Northern Ireland have suspended the import of certain cattle and sheep from bluetongue zones

See Belfast Telegraph
The legality of such a unilateral move seems to be in question. More as we hear further comment.

February 29 2008 ~ "..the intention is to extend or modify the zone in order to permit further vaccination"

In answer to a question from Peter Bone MP, Conservative MP for Wellingborough, Jonathan Shaw (Hansard) said, " Depending on vaccine availability and the disease situation, once vaccination is progressing broadly across the Protection Zone, the intention is to extend or modify the zone in order to permit further vaccination. This will allow a phased approach as vaccine is delivered."

February 29 2008 ~ U-turn on vaccination from Scottish Government expected next week.

Until last week, livestock representatives in Scotland, and the Scottish Government, opposed vaccination. As with FMD vaccination, EU rules have been the reason. Livestock leaders feared the movement restrictions that would be imposed if a Protection Zone was declared - and the bizarre EU rules say vaccination may take place only in a PZ. Scotland also has a lucrative trade with the Republic of Ireland and did not want to lose their ability to trade with other free countries. It is expected that Scotland will now order 12 million doses of vaccine, probably from Merial or Fort Dodge.
Dr Ruth Watkins is quoted in the Farmers Guardian:
"Vaccine used in Britain this summer will help to suppress the level of virus being carried by the midge population, especially if it is directed first at cattle. This in turn will reduce the number of infected sheep... but it will not prevent infection spread entirely. Britain must try to use vaccine this year even though it will not arrive at the perfect time and its distribution will be imperfect. However it is important that is distributed before August."
Read Farmers Guardian article which has the full story.

February 28 2008 ~ "DEFRA has admitted it culled the wrong animal

after bluetongue was found in an imported cow on a farm near Middlesbrough, in December. The mistake resulted in the infected animal remaining on the farm, in the village of Great Ayton, until mid-January..." See Farmers Guardian
The tone of the Defra spokeswoman's statement may cause some raised eyebrows. She said that the mistake was "due to an 'administrative error in recording identification numbers' on the farm by Animal Health officials, compounded by a failure to carry out the proper checks later by officials at AH 'headquarters'," adding apparently that it was "lucky" that the error occurred in the vector free period....

February 28 2008 ~ Danish scientists to investigate if satellites can predict when and where the midges are present in numbers.

".....When the knowledge gathered about the midges and their preferred conditions for living and reproducing is combined with data covering soil types and farms, the scientists plan to develop a computer model to calculate risk areas for bluetongue in Denmark.
With an efficient computer model, the scientists have a tool which can help calculate how quickly the virus develops in midges and how fast the infection spreads in various locations and in different seasons...." From an article from New Zealand www.horsetalk.co.nz about Bluetongue and about African Horse Sickness (also spread by midges and also, fear many, about to affect Britain)

February 28 2008 ~ France: "this year it is a matter of limiting symptoms and losses rather than eradication of the disease"

The French Ministry of Agriculture has announced their vaccination plan (subject to final agreement on March 4th):
".... voluntary vaccination will be carried out by veterinary surgeons and paid for in part by livestock owners (at a reasonable charge). In effect, this year it is a matter of limiting symptoms and losses rather than eradication of the disease.... the State is buying the vaccines (financed ¾ by the EU, ¼ by the State). The costs of the vaccination process itself by vets will thus fall on the farmers. Even so, the European Commission will contribute this year a maximum of 1 euro for every bovine (i.e. 50 centimes per injection) and 15 centimes per smaller animal vaccinated which will be paid directly to the vets.
The timescale: one delivery for serotype 1 , April for serotype 8, then in stages every month until August when a total number of 40 million of doses ought to have been delivered. (30 million for bovine and 10 for small ruminants) For both sheep and cattle, the 16 departments affected in 2006 will take priority . .."
(We have now translated the information from La Directrice Départementale des services vétérinaires in full,)

February 27 2008 ~ Some extracts from the French veterinary press..

..give an insight into the deep anxiety of French vets about the evolution of the disease since 2006 and the absolute necessity of effective vaccination. From La Semaine Vétérinaire N° 1298 :
".. In two and a half months we had more abortions than in the last 10 years. ... calves weigh 20 kg and die as soon as they are put on drips. In thirty-five years of practice, I have never seen this before. .. the economic impact is enormous. 80-85% of the grazers that we have tested for exportation are positive and they are selling much more cheaply. We have doubts too about the effect on their fertility. I do not know what to say to the farmers/breeders .... It is the same thing with vaccination. I know that I am troubled (when I think) about the risks next Spring if the necessary doses of the vaccine are not ready in time. " Dr François Piffoux, Avallon, Yonne
"... the evolution of the disease in the animals at the beginning of lactation has produced numerous forms or deaths. At the end of December, we have had to undertake euthaniasia everyday, in cattle who are not recovering. Their suffering, is very visible and enormously marked. ... from now on the production in the farms will become less profitable a...and they will disappear unless an effective solution can be found. ... Only an effective vaccination can restore hope to the farmers and breeders..." Dr Herve François, Dieuze , Moselle

February 26 2008 ~ "Animal Health" has launched today a free news alert service on notifiable animal disease.

The service is available to anyone who is interested. It provides registered users with the latest news on exotic notifiable animal disease outbreaks in Great Britain - FMD, Bluetongue, H5N1, Newcastle disease and Classical Swine Fever. It is very easy to register for any or all of these and, for email alerts, all that is needed is an email address. Link
In addition today DEFRA has a link to a general licence for the movement of ruminant animals from premises in a Surveillance Zone in England to premises in a Restricted Zone in Wales

February 26 2008 ~ Merial Licences restored

We must be grateful for small mercies. The Defra website:
"SAPO licence restored to Merial Animal Health Defra has today restored the Specified Animal Pathogens Order (SAPO) licence to Merial Animal Health to permit the use of Foot and Mouth Disease and Blue Tongue viruses for vaccine production. This follows inspections by the Health and Safety Executive and Defra."
It is to be hoped that Merial in the UK can now go full steam ahead on these life-saving vaccines and that orders will be firmly made. See also below.

February 25/26 2008 ~ France way ahead on Bluetongue

As Ruth Watkins points out, France is the only European country to have ordered sufficient vaccine to vaccinate all the domestic ruminants and also to have a plan in place to do so. They realise, too, that in order to protect the Mediterranean countries against infection with the virulent BTV-8 strain as well as France's own livestock, the areas infected in France must do their level best to eradicate the disease.
France's vaccination campaign will be compulsory. (Note: this last statement may not be wholly accurate. Inquiries as to the latest situation are underway) The vaccine itself is being paid for by the EU; french farmers will pay only for half the veterinary bills. Farmers in Eastern and Northern France have already been instructed to errect crushes for their livestock to enable the vaccination to be undertaken efficiently, fast and without injury to beast and man. (Many thanks to Susan Baekeland, our Normandy correspondent, for this information)

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."
Her talk (new window) is clear and informative, should be printed out and read in full. What she says is an eye-opener too about why we are having to play catch-up with the disease, why vaccine production in Europe has been so delayed and why vaccination is going to be incomplete until far more vaccine can be ordered and obtained and 95% coverage of domestic ruminants achieved. (Today's Blog)

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"
according to van den Berg. He also added that the Dutch Government should put this case to the EU Commission in Brussels.
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. UPDATE accurate translation here):
"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..."
What is more, this pdf paper (in French), while revealing that both Merial and Intervet are providing vaccines for BTv8 in France, suggests 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. .."
Read in full

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.

February 22 2008 ~'no guarantees' where the zones would be extended

The Farmers Guardian reports that organisers of Summer Shows are calling on Defra to extend the Bluetongue Zones as soon as possible. Defra's Andrew Clayton said that decisions would be taken based on risk, extending the zones to areas most likely to be exposed to the virus.

February 21 2008 ~ "I have translated the article for your readers because I thought some farmers and vets in England might be interested.."

We are very grateful to Susan Baekeland, now living in lower Normandy and who used to farm in Spain. She has experience in veterinary medicine and forwards to us this article from La Semaine Vétérinaire  No 1299 of 25th January 2008 "Vaccination strategies in the Mediterranean basin - 6 countries share their experience of vaccination against Bluetongue." Read in full

February 21 2008 ~ "My sister's cow Duchess, infected with BTV-8 in Norfolk, is shortly to calve...."

Dr Ruth Watkins, the virologist and farmer, has every reason to be concerned about developments in Northern Ireland:
"If the calves born in N Ireland to the imported cows are documented to have bluetongue infection even whilst being apparently well, it signifies the cows have had a primary infection with BTV-8 in 2007 during their pregnancy and it is likely the calves will be viraemic and infectious to any biting female midge for an unknown period of time in the future, likely into the summer or throughout the summer of 2008.
I would suggest that calves (or lambs) are tested of any imported ruminant into the UK if the cow (or ewe) was pregnant at the time of import, and has antibody to BTV-8, even if she has no virus present; one cannot know if infection in the 'antibody positive but virus RNA PCR negative' mother was in 2006 or 2007- when there is antibody only present (none have yet been vaccinated)...."
Read Dr Watkins' communication in full.

February 21 2008 ~ "We need the vaccine and we need it now."

Margaret Dalton, a former Welsh Woman Farmer of the Year, is quoted in the Wales Daily Post. Fearing a lack of political urgency in getting sufficient supplies of bluetongue vaccine into Wales, she said that the situation was "extremely scary" and had raised the issue with rural affairs minister Elin Jones. "I've had figures showing that in January alone there were 107 new cases in northern France, 362 were notified in Germany between December 28 and January 11 - and the first case in Spain occurred on January 10." Other concerns on Mrs Dalton's agenda include the legalisation of "smokies", processing of wool for insulation and help for new farming entrants.

February 21 2008 ~"... the mechanism by which the original animal and the calves became infected is uncertain"

In Northern Ireland, ".... It would seem that 3 out of 4 calves born to heifers in this group were ELISA positive and PCR positive.... It was judged prudent to remove all of the remaining heifers in this group as the mechanism by which the original animal and the calves became infected is uncertain. What is certain is that this group of cattle had already been exposed to the infection and that they presented a risk..." (see below)
It seems very important that the "mechanism by which the calves became infected" should be found out as soon as possible. If vertical transmission is indeed taking place it suggets a very worrying development. Comment would be gratefully received.
UPDATE ProMed comment: "....The timetable of their route from the farms of origin on the continent until arrival in the destined Northern-Irish farm, including dates and duration of possible intermediate stay(s) in any locations underway -- on the continent and/or on British territory -- has to be completed. The findings in newborn calves (when and where have they been born?), namely their positive ELISA and PCR tests, add to the mystery. Extended viraemia in the heifers is just one of the hypothetical explanations, and not an overly satisfactory one."

February 21 2008 ~Germany announces plans for "mandatory immunisation" on German farms

Officials said 867 German cows and six sheep had come down with the viral disease so far this year, after 20,479 cases last year. news.trend.az The original article (in German) says that it is highly unlikely that a vaccine will be licenced by May but the German authorities are prepared to implement emergency legislation to permit the use of these vaccines on a national scale. The German Ministry accepts that there might be a risk but priority should be to stop the virus from spreading further. A field trial on a limited scale is planned from the middle of March, supervised by the FLI.

February 20 2008 ~ "in total 30 animals were culled."

It is with some astonishment that we read in the Belfast Telegraph that Northern Ireland's Agriculture Minister, Michelle Gildernew, had taken the decision on Sunday to cull the remaining 20 cattle in this imported group and all of their calves.
"... We also culled a further three animals imported in another batch as a precautionary measure. The culling of these animals was completed on-farm on Monday and in total 30 animals were culled."
Michelle Gildernew also told the Stormont Agriculture committee that even livestock that had been in contact with infected animals or that was likely to become infected could be slaughtered, and no compensation would be paid.
The only justification we can even contemplate for slaughtering all the cows and their calves would be the possibility, suggested in some quarters, that vertical transmission between cow and calf has taken place. This seems most unlikely. As ProMed says below of the imported animals, " .. they were most probably not viraemic upon arrival in .. Ulster and thus did not seem to pose a real threat to the local livestock..."
Any information about the possibility of vertical transmission (and Bluetongue is, of course, a disease that can be contracted only by means of the bite of an infected female midge) would be very gratefully received.
UPDATE Bluetongue Disease Minister's Statement to Assembly 19/02/08 ww.dardni.gov.uk".... It would seem that 3 out of 4 calves born to heifers in this group were ELISA positive and PCR positive.... It was judged prudent to remove all of the remaining heifers in this group as the mechanism by which the original animal and the calves became infected is uncertain. What is certain is that this group of cattle had already been exposed to the infection and that they presented a risk..."
This is a strange and worrying development.

February 20 2008 ~ "....decreased public interest in agriculture in general and in non-zoonotic animal diseases in particular. Most unfortunate to Europe's farmers"

The ProMed moderator today , (having cited warmwell.com's publicising the letter to the Vet Record by BVA President,Nick Blayney) deplores the scarcity of research work done on bluetongue BTV-8, and says
"The statement that only "anecdotal" information is available on the effect of BTV-8 upon the production of cattle and sheep in Europe illuminates the clear need for updated, scientifically based information on the BTV-8 epizootic, which has already spread to 9 European countries. The following -- most recent available -- paper is included to somewhat decrease the knowledge gap.....
....the low rate of attention (and research effort) paid in Europe to the BTV-8 epizootic, already identified in 8 industrialised, western European countries, seems to reflect the decreased public interest in agriculture in general and in non-zoonotic animal diseases in particular. Most unfortunate to Europe's farmers..."
More at ProMed mail (We find "most unfortunate" a somewhat Jeevesian use of adjective by the ever-tactful ProMed. "Catastrophic" is one of the adjectives warmwell would prefer. As Peter Morris, chief executive of the National Sheep Association, says below: "What is for sure is that if this disease beats us then the entire British livestock industry will be in real trouble.")

February 20 2008 ~ Welsh farmers anxious about vaccine stocks

Wales has been promised only 2.5 million of the 22.5 million doses ordered. We read in www.tivysideadvertiser.co.uk that Shadow Rural Affairs Minister, Brynle Williams, has said, "It's extremely worrying that only 2.5million doses of bluetongue vaccination have been ordered by the Assembly Government. That does not even come close to covering the pedigree flocks here, let alone the commercial ones and cattle..." As for Scotland, no vaccine has been ordered at all.

February 20 2008 ~ NFU Scotland is inviting farmers from across the North East to its emergency meeting on Bluetongue and Sheep EID meeting on Monday

The meeting will take place in Ring 2, Thainstone Market on Monday, 25 February, at 7.30pm and is open to NFU Scotland members and non-members. Bluetongue specialists Brian Rice and Kevin Douglas of Merial Animal Health Ltd. and Nigel Miller, NFU Scotland Vice-President will address the meeting before opening the floor to questions from the audience. Nigel Miller is quoted at NFUS: "To have Merial's input at this meeting is significant as they already have experience of producing Bluetongue vaccines, albeit for other strains, in the Mediterranean, where the product has been successful. Scotland is at a crossroads regarding vaccination strategy so it is worth speaking to the people who have experience of controlling the disease."

February 19 2008 ~ Stakeholder Meeting tomorrow

The agenda for DEFRA's stakeholder meeting tomorrow will include a Disease Update, the Spring / Summer Strategy - policy statement, Vaccination , Movement issues and Communications. The "stakeholders" have been given a statement with the title, "Why is Defra proposing a voluntary vaccination campaign against Bluetongue? What about European co-funding?" It can be read here. (All links on this page open in new windows)

February 18 2008 ~ "... they were not viraemic upon arrival in Wales or Ulster and thus did not seem to pose a real threat to the local livestock..."

Expert moderator's comment on ProMed, referring to
"such as the Dutch-origin Texel sheep found positive in Wales; see at http://www.dailypost.co.uk are not "1st BTV-8 cases" in new territories. These animals had been infected in their original countries a considerable time -- probably not less than 2 months -- before export. According to the veterinary certificate requirements, if they tested (serologically) positive prior to export, they should have been excluded from the consignments; however, most probably they were not viraemic upon arrival in Wales or Ulster and thus did not seem to pose a real threat to the local livestock; they thus do not deserve the definition "1st case."
As spring approaches and temperatures rise, the risk from such animals will increase. - Mod.AS]"
The slaughtering of 27 animals in Northern Ireland on the orders of DARD appears to be an unprecedented response. As the moderator says, they "..did not seem to pose a real threat to the local livestock."

February 18 2008 ~ BVA President: "Our fragile farming industry cannot afford this.....We must persuade our clients of the necessity of mass vaccination and our target must be 100 per cent"

Nick Blayney's letter in the Veterinary Record should be read in full. Extract: "The profession has the opportunity to demonstrate yet again the value of a viable livestock veterinary sector to the nation. We must persuade our clients of the necessity of mass vaccination and our target must be 100 per cent.......The vaccine will be licensed as a POM-V, to be administered to animals under the care of a veterinary surgeon. It is likely that our clients will be permitted to vaccinate their own animals, although arrangements with regard to movement between zones or states (or devolved national boundaries) may require veterinary certification. .." Read in full

February 18 2008 ~ A voluntary scheme was what you wanted, says Hilary Benn

Hilary Benn has published a UK plan for bluetongue vaccination confirming that it will be a voluntary campaign and that the "full cost" of vaccine will fall on the farmers themselves. The Farmers Guardian quotes Mr Benn:
".....The deal is the Government pays for the order up front and the full cost is then recovered as the vaccine is used by farmers." Benn said the voluntary approach will be taken because 'that's what you said you wanted'.
Could anyone tell us who it was that told the government that a voluntary scheme was what they wanted? Experts in the disease - and the experience in Corsica - tell us that anything less than about 85% or more coverage is simply going to be a waste of effort and money. One can only hope that all farmers will choose to vaccinate, will be able to afford to vaccinate and will be able to find enough doses out of the 22.5 million ordered to be able to vaccinate - and that Intervet provide sufficient doses in time. DEFRA's Delivery Plan for Emergency Vaccination against Bluetongue serotype 8 is here. (pdf new window)

February 18 2008 ~ "Science should not be mixed with a commercial organization"

While Defra is cutting millions from its budget for animal health, Holland is to have a new Institute for Animal Health. This will be achieved by the merging of the
"...Gezondheidsdienst voor Dieren and the Animal Sciences Group of Wageningen University. The new combination will have 1.400 employes and an annual turnover of 175 million euros. Both institutes will further work on the merger plans in the coming months." (source in Dutch)
One Dutch correspondent comments to warmwell.com: "we are not that enthusiastic about this merger. Science should not be mixed with a commercial organization. ASG is the animal research department of Wageningen University and the Gezondheidsdienst voor Dieren used to be a national institute for animal health but was privatized some years ago and is now commercial..."
We too remember Professor Fred Brown lamenting the creeping commercialisation of Pirbright which was, in his day, a genuinely public service institution.

February 18 2008 ~ "NBA Scotland cannot understand the risk the Scottish Government is prepared to take by not ordering bluetongue vaccine..."

".... for general use on livestock farms this summer.
It says it is unrealistic for Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead to expect farmers to be able to counter the advance of bluetongue virus, which has the potential to inflict disastrous economic and animal welfare damage on their businesses, without access to an effective restraint. It is also alarmed that while the Scottish Government says it would be prepared to spend up to £10m on financing a national vaccination programme, should bluetongue spread towards the Scottish border later this year, it is ready to gamble on only 100 to 200 Scottish animals being infected over 2008 - and prefers to hold back its funding until 2009 instead..." The Herald.

February 16 2008 ~ "farmers will be expected to fork out an average £330 if they want to voluntarily vaccinate their livestock "

The tone of this statement in Wales' Daily Post is interesting. It appears in a short article in which the exporter of the pure Dutch Texel ewe, found positive to BTV in Wales, is quoted as saying he had abided by all the rules before exporting the sheep and had sprayed them and "tested and retested". The FUW have called on Welsh farmers to abide by a voluntary ban on animal imports from high risk bluetongue zones in Europe.
In the Daily Echo (Southern England), Farmer Jonathan Gerrelli is quoted:
"If we want to take our animals to Salisbury market, which is outside the zone, they have to be tested to make sure they haven't got bluetongue. Vets have a call-out charge of about £40 and tend to charge approximately £100 an hour once they're actually on your farm. Testing for bluetongue will cost a considerable amount, which will come out of any profit people thought they were going to make at market. I was hoping to take ten cattle to Salisbury market next Tuesday, but there's no way I can get the tests done and the results back in time."
While European neighbours will be able to claim a considerable amount of compensation from the EU, our own farmers will be expected to foot all relevant bills themselves (see below). It is also, of course, uncertain whether the number of doses of vaccine ordered will be anywhere near sufficient.

February 16 2008 ~ "sporadic "out of season" (the so-called "vector-free" season) cases may still occur."

ProMed moderator " The behaviour and, indeed, detailed identity of the vectors -- particularly during the winter months -- is a subject in need of in-depth study."

February 16 2008 ~ Vaccination is likely to be "a farmer hands-on voluntary operation"

The Farmers Guardian quotes Peter Morris, chief executive of the National Sheep Association: "What is for sure is that if this disease beats us then the entire British livestock industry will be in real trouble." He has said that making vaccination compulsory was not likely "because then it would become yet another bureaucratic and costly procedure" and that administering the vaccine would also likely be "a farmer hands-on voluntary operation - with the industry itself making sure there was the maximum uptake"

February 16 2008 ~DEFRA is unlikely to consider it worthwhile applying for co-funding.

Farmers Weekly in the article Producers face £20m bluetongue vaccine bill "Even taking in to account the effect of any possible co-funding, the costs of a compulsory programme still significantly outweigh the costs of a voluntary one. In addition to extra enforcement and administration costs, the terms of the UK's rebate as outlined under the Fontainebleau agreement mean the real value of any co-funding is only around one-third of anything awarded, further reducing the incentive to apply. The document also notes that any funding could only be claimed after the programme has been delivered and would be subject to audits."
(Or, as a rather more cynical emailer puts it, " It will be voluntary as this means less paperwork and less cost to Defra - they have lost the capacity to cope with exotic disease....")

February 15 2008 ~ Fort Dodge: "It's so difficult to pluck numbers out of the air"

The UK Managing Director of Fort Dodge is hoping that once factories in Ireland and in Holland are working to capacity as well as the factory in Spain, the company will be able to go full-steam ahead on BTV-8 vaccine production. But vaccine companies cannot use their own knowledge of how many doses they think are required if governments are then not going to pay for them. And the UK position on payment is still very unclear - (even, we understand, to the point of querying whether vaccine companies themselves would be prepared to charge farmers directly and then pass money on to DEFRA.) John Hanley today spoke of the need for firm orders to be placed and the reluctant necessity of supplying vaccine on a first come, first served basis:
"There is still time to sort it out, but only if decisions are made by the end of March or early April. After that it will be too late for 2008."
The company is hoping to receive the go-ahead for production in Sligo within the next few days. Fort Dodge is already supplying vaccine for serotype 1 and 4 to combat Bluetongue in Spain and Southern France from its factory in Spain. (See also www.farminglife.com for Feb 11) As we say below using only one vaccine producer has drawbacks. Batch failures can happen. It is essential to reach the percentage coverage necessary to halt the disease - but the UK has ordered, from Intervet alone, 22.5 million doses. Many are wondering if this can possibly be enough.

February 15 2008 ~ Another imported case. This time, Northern Ireland

BBC
"....a dairy cow in County Antrim imported from the Netherlands. "This investigation will help determine if disease is circulating but at this time there is no evidence to suggest that it is. Therefore at this time the north's bluetongue free status remains."
The news comes just 9 days after the Ulster Farmers Union said that the current controls in place to prevent the disease emerging in Northern Ireland needed to be reviewed.

February 15 2008 ~ Bluetongue: DEFRA has updated relevant pages

Latest information (updated yesterday on the DEFRA site) of the premises infected during January and February. Summary here (without map references) We note that the DEFRA notifiable disease page does now make a distinction between confirmed investigations (final positive result) "for January" (two) and for "February" (fifteen)

February 15 2008 ~ "While livestock is suffering, the bureaucrats are fighting over budgets."

Many now watch in growing dismay the difference in approach shown by France, Germany, Wales, Scotland and England to the growing threat to Northern Europe's livestock farming from Bluetongue - and the need for timely, full, vaccination coverage. "I am fuming with rage," writes a correspondent, "there are more stupid press releases out.. uncertainties will considerably delay a vaccination campaign".
In Germany, according to www.bmelv.de (in German)
the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute, as the German national authority responsible for the evaluation and licensing of bluetongue vaccines, is reluctant to grant a marketing licence for inactivated BTV8 vaccines. The institute claims that the documentation, provided by vaccine manufacturers so far, is inadequate.
At Wednesday's meeting of the agricultural workgroup of the Bundestag, the federal German Ministry (BMELV) is quoted by participants as questioning the safety and efficiency of the vaccine. The Ministry is considering a field study but details are not known yet. These uncertainties will considerably delay a vaccination campaign on a broader scale.
Our correspondent's irate opinion: " The Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute can't be bothered to conduct the necessary research into the ongoing BTV epidemic - for alleged lack of funding. The approach towards the licensing of the vaccines is merely a way to put the heat on again and secure research grants. While livestock is suffering, the bureaucrats are fighting over budgets."

February 15 2008 ~ France - "has launched a nation-wide vaccination campaign"

France, on the other hand, seems to be getting prepared for a well funded campaign to begin in April. Reuters " ...Vaccination will start in April and all cattle, goats and sheep should be treated against serotype 8...by the end of the year, the ministry said in a statement. The campaign will also target serotype 1.... The French market was split in three lots, two for vaccines against the serotype 8 and one against the serotype 1.
Fort Dodge Animal Health, a division of U.S. pharmaceutical company Wyeth .., won the first lot for the serotype vaccine and the second lot was to be attributed this week, a farm ministry spokeswoman said. As for the serotype 1 vaccine, France chose the company Intervet..... She did not immediately have the volume for each of these lots but said that by the end of August some 30 million doses would be available to vaccinate 15 million cattle and more than 10 million small ruminants, including goats and sheep."
UPDATE Reuters has got it wrong, Fort Dodge is producing Zulvac1 (BTV1) and Intervet Bovilis BTV8

February 14 2008 ~ "NBA Scotland cannot understand the risk the Scottish Government is prepared to take by not ordering bluetongue vaccine for general use on livestock farms this summer."

The National Beef Association continues to be aghast at Scotland's continuing Canute approach. See also article on www.land-care.org.uk
".... alarmed that while the Scottish Government says it would be prepared to spend up to £10 million on financing a national vaccination programme, should bluetongue rampage towards the Scottish border later this year, it is ready to gamble on only 100-200 Scottish animals being infected over 2008 - and prefers to hold back its funding until 2009 instead. .....
"NBA Scotland has no doubt that adequate supplies of vaccine should be available to beef and sheep farmers this summer because it not only shields their animals, and their business, from a debilitating disease but also prevents farmers who have not vaccinated their stock facing additional cost through being cut off from regular markets in those areas of Britain where vaccination has taken place."
Scotland's Mr Lockhead says he will order BTV8 vaccine "when necessary" but, like the National Beef Association, one wonders whether this means that vaccine can be delivered when needed at the right cost. If coverage is to be achieved for Scotland vaccine stocks should be ordered immediately - and one can only repeat what the ProMed moderator said a month ago: "...The 3rd disease season is expected to commence in the due spring 2008, when large populations of susceptible animals may be exposed to BTV-8 for the 1st time, particularly in areas such as Wales and Scotland.... their timely vaccination is essential.").

February 14 2008 ~ First case (imported) in Wales "We remain free of the disease" says Christianne Glossop

An imported sheep has tested positive for the disease in the Llandysul area in Ceredigion. BBC "The sheep, which was one of a group of 14 from the Netherlands, tested positive for the virus following routine post import testing. The assembly government said it was an isolated case and it was not confirmed the disease is circulating in Wales. Chief veterinary officer Dr Christianne Glossop said: "There is nothing to suggest the virus is circulating in Wales and we remain free of the disease."
The Farmers Guardian adds that "the restricted zone includes a section of Powys, cutting the Brecon Beacons in half; along with all or parts of: Monmouthshire, Torfaen, Caerphilly, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Vale of Glamorgan, Bridgend, Neath Port Talbot, Cardiff, Blaenau Gwent and Merthyr Tydfil."

February 13 ~ By 14:00 on 13 February 2008 there were 79 confirmed premises

The DEFRA notifiable disease page last updated today, February 13, shows that confirmed investigations (final positive result) "for January" now stand at 11. Since this is two more "for January" than were confirmed on Monday - and would seem, assuming they have merely forgotten to update the month, that the two more infected cases were confirmed in February. The BBC - who always gets the news before anyone else, it seems, says " A new bluetongue protection zone has been set up after a fresh case of the animal disease was identified. The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the case was found near Poole, in Dorset. The zone covers Dorset and the New Forest. Three new cases have also been found in Sussex, Essex and Norfolk. Protection zones there have been extended. ..." The new map is now on the DEFRA update page.

February 12 ~ Meetings in Wales

"An expert analysis of how bluetongue could affect the industry in the year ahead will be a centrepoint of two important regional conferences for stakeholders that will be staged by Hybu Cig Cymru/Meat Promotion Wales in the next eight days. The events take place tomorrow at Clunderwen, Pembrokeshire and the following Wednesday, February 20, at Llanwrst...appraisals on how it may influence 2008 will be provided at the Pembrokeshire event by Roger Daniel, of Veterinary Laboratories Agency, Carmarthen and a week later by Les Eckford, the Welsh Assembly Government's veterinary adviser, at the Llanwrst venue...
...Tomorrow's event at the Nantyffin Hotel, Llandissilio, Clunderwen, Pembrokeshire, starts at 10am with a talk by Dr Prysor Williams, of Bangor University, on seeking an alternative method to deal with fallen stock...." Details at icwales.icnetwork.co.uk

Monday Feb 11 2008 ~ Two more cases over the weekend?

According to DEFRA's notifiable disease page last updated today, February 11, confirmed investigations (final positive result) now stand at 9 Bluetongue cases whereas they were at 7 on Friday. Nothing has yet changed on the "Bluetongue Latest" page however. Once again, we do not know for certain how things stand.

Monday Feb 11 2008 ~ "For regions affected for the first time in 2007, saving the costs for blood tests, whole herd vaccination would be the preferred option"

Informed comment from Sabine Zentis Extract
"... in Germany...in the regions affected for a second time during 2007, seroprevalence in cattle is high enough to go for vaccination of youngstock only. But this is dependent on good surveillance and one has to take into account different farming systems. Cattle in open barns on straw and access to fields/pasture show a seroprevalence of 95-100%. But in cattle kept on slats/slurry systems and in regions with a lower than average livestock density only up to 50% of animals are seropositive. In these cases it is either test every animal and vaccinate accordingly or vaccinate the whole herd without testing. For the regions affected for the first time in 2007, saving the costs for blood tests, whole herd vaccination would be the preferred option All sheep (and maybe goats) should be vaccinated as seroprevalence is, compared to cattle, rather low..."
Frau Zentis also says, ".. That farmers are forced to pay for surveillance (pre-movement testing) is an issue that should be questioned by the NFU, NBA etc. Countries can claim back expenditure for surveillance so farmers shouldn't pay the bill..."

Monday Feb 11 2008 ~ The vexed question of EU funding to help us eradicate disease...

did not get much further enlightenment when, last Thursday, Jim Paice asked the Secretary of State "whether he intends to apply to the European Commission for an emergency vaccination programme for bluetongue disease; and how he plans to provide for the remaining costs of such a programme.." Hansard.
We note that EU contributions to endemic or high risk areas
"for the cost of carrying out the laboratory tests for virological, serological and entomological surveillance and the purchase of traps and vaccines... "
were agreed last November. The UK is not included.

February 11 2008 ~ what is really behind the UK reluctance to apply for EU funding for Bluetongue?

It is hard not to feel confused and informed comment would be most gratefully received.
The Commission Decision of 12 October 2006 (pdf) shows maximum contributions offered to qualifying Member States for various animal disease related costs. Thus we see that towards costs connected to the eradication of BSE, scrapie and TSEs, for example, the UK ( the Fontainbleue Agreement notwithstanding) seems to have been allocated a maximum of almost 100 million euros in total . How much of this was received - and over how long a period? Can anyone tell us? If for BSE why not for Bluetongue? (Fears about scrapie as a cause of BSE were finally admitted to be unfounded and last February Ben Bradshaw admitted "... the prevalence of BSE in the UK sheep population is most likely zero, or very low if present at all." see Warmwell's scrapie pages)
Last November the European Commission approved 187 million euros to fight animal diseases in 2008. (This is less than last year and is not likely to be anywhere near enough even to cover the cost of BTv vaccination as offered to Member States.)
The programmes for the eradication and monitoring of bluetongue submitted by Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Luxembourg the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Romania and Slovenia were approved for the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2008. Where was - or is - the UK's programme? Why the UK reluctance to apply for funding for Bluetongue? Many are now saying that DEFRA wants a voluntary scheme paid for by farmers simply because this means less paperwork and less cost to the severely cash-strapped Department. The grim suspicion remains that Defra has lost both the will and the capacity to cope with exotic disease. Although they refer (as below) to experts consulted, the names of those "experts" consulted never seem to get revealed.

Sunday 10th Feb ~ Infection predates "non vector period"?

ProMed moderator: "The interpretation of official data on detected BT-positive animals during the so-called "non-vector period" is debatable. If, as suggested in the above report, the infection had taken place before the start of the period, these are not new cases but just reflections of last year's (2007) outbreak. .....According to this moderator's understanding, to detect virus/vector activity during the declared "no-vector season," at least one of the following should be met:
1. Clinical cases observed, confirmed by virus isolation (during the viraemia);
2. Virus isolated from subclinical cases (possible by weekly blood sampling in sentinels);
3. Infected vectors trapped;
4. Seroconversion clearly demonstrated in sentinels which have been tested negative at the start of the season and became positive later.
It seems that the same doubts on the out-of-season BTV-8 activity are encountered in continental Europe..... An official view of EU's BT experts panel on the current situation -- "active or not?!" -- will be helpful...." Read in full

February 9 2008 ~ More surveillance testing is needed.

The experts at Pirbright themselves have said they would like to carry out much more surveillance for Bluetongue but no funding appears to be forthcoming. While it is of course true that DEFRA is as short of funds as the rest of the UK government it is hard to understand how ignorance and parsimony have been allowed to direct such vital disease control strategies. The horse of brucellus testing bolted in 2007 (without prior consultation . See letter in The Veterinary Record) but what great dividends such routine surveillance to test a selected population for several pathogens at once would now be reaping. As it is, DEFRA's reluctance to spend any money on extra testing means we are in real danger of losing much of our livestock farming. Cheap farm produce from far away will be imported - for as long as this remains possible. The UK government's evident wish to shrug off its responsibilites for farming ignores the fact that recession looks more of a reality with every passing week.

February 9 2008 ~ "Surveillance must be targeted effectively ... we are making good use of data from existing infected premises, tracings, report cases and pre-movement testing"

So said Jonathan Shaw on Wednesday. When David Drew (Hansard) asked what plans there were to improve surveillance against bluetongue disease, Mr Shaw said " We have taken advice from the National Emergency Epidemiology Group and are actively discussing the detail of our bluetongue surveillance strategy with other experts and stakeholders." But who are these people and what are they saying? Meanwhile, we remain in the dark about whether a voluntary vaccination campaign is still seriously being contemplated and whether livestock farmers themselves, reeling from recent hardships, will be expected to foot all bills. If such is still the plan, it will fail. We, as a nation, have something worth defending. There is so much at stake that it is frustrating to fear that the Treasury fails to understand the issues.

February 9 2008 ~ The number of cattle infected in 2007 in the UK will be in the thousands.

Dr Ruth Watkins thinks it would be safe to move sheep without testing during the so-called "vector free" period Since they are infectious for a shorter period than cattle, they are unlikely to be playing a role in re-emergence of the virus next Spring nor are they the preferred target of female midges. Dr Watkins believes that very few sheep will be found to have been silently infected in comparison to cattle since the proportion of infected sheep that become visually ill is roughly 10 times that of infected cattle.
" The EFSA report in Spring 2007 showed that the infection rate in sheep flocks in 2006 was 1-2 % whilst in cattle it was 10% or more where one instance of clinical infection had been documented." (See EFSA report (pdf))
The actual number of infected farms is, she feels sure, more than 10-fold the current reported number. The number of cattle infected in 2009 in the UK will be in the thousands.

February 8 2008 ~ Midges dancing in the vector-free period

The UK has, it seems, detected 8 cases of BT during January when, according to DEFRA, the midges are not present. The DEFRA site now reads "As at 16:00 on 8 February 2008 there were 75 confirmed premises" - but information is as sparse as ever and one wonders if Defra still "believe they were infected prior to a vector-free period being declared".
Locks Park Farm in Devon has shown a photo on its blog with the caption "Midges flying over Hanaborough Moor 7th February 2008"
"...It is hoped, according to DEFRA, there will be enough BTV-8 vaccine ready to carry out vaccination in the South East during May. There is no indication of a more comprehensive vaccination programme this year, next year or ever..."
and the writer comments wearily: "It seems extraordinary to me that some people appear to be acting as if it's a mild inconvenience. This disease is potentially devastating; especially to an already beleaguered livestock industry. And I don't know if I have the heart or energy left to cope with a farm of sick and dying animals. This could be the death-knoll for Locks Park Farm."
(The new case was discovered in Greater London, and a new 20km zone around the latest case covers parts of west and north London as well as extending into Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire in the UK Defra said. Sure enough, they also opined that "All of the animals are thought to have been infected before the ''vector-free period'', which was declared in December")

February 7 2008 ~ Using only one vaccine producer has drawbacks

Intervet expects "to have more insight in the overall production capacities by March" (see below) but there are drawbacks to putting all our eggs into the basket of one producer alone. The BTV-8 vaccines are being rushed through because of this emergency but it is important that dose volume is confirmed and, as we imply below the efficiency of the vaccine shown through appropriate challenge studies. Reactions to vaccine in animals can be affected by their age, species, size of dose and whether they have had some measure of acquired immunity. Batch failures can happen. It is essential to reach the percentage coverage necessary to halt the disease. (See note on Corsica)
Fort Dodge and Merial are, of course, also producing vaccines to fight Bluetongue. As we know, Merial's efforts to accelerate production of BTV-8 vaccine were held up by the revocation of their licence (see below) by DEFRA itself. Fort Dodge is to supply the serotype 1 vaccine to France in its combat against Bluetongue serotype 1 in the southwest corner of France. The company expects to start delivering the vaccine in the coming months. We hope to have news shortly about Fort Dodge's development of BTV-8 vaccines and also news on Merial.

February 6 2008 ~ Surveillance Zone extended further into Dorset.

See Dorset Daily Echo "The latest areas to be brought in include North Dorset, Purbeck and Poole, which join farms in East Dorset, Christchurch and Bournemouth which are already in the zone. The main requirements are that animals must be tested as disease-free or immune for movements to farm or market. Farmers need to call their vets to arrange the test..."

February 5 2008 ~ No problem vaccinating outside the Protection Zone - provided the area is then designated "Protection Zone"

We are told that the question of where to vaccinate was raised at the Brussels conference of January 16th. Although no commentators seem to have picked up on it, Albert Laddomada (head of the unit responsible for animal health and relevant EU standing committees) told the conference that this was not a problem: i.e. if a country wants to vaccinate outside the PZ it has only to declare the region where it intends to vaccinate as a Protection Zone. All the restrictions, surveillance, vector monitoring etc. will have to be applied in this region.

February 4/5 2008 ~ A presentation by Intervet given in Germany has raised some concern about the immunity of cattle

(see pdf slide (in German))
BTV8 - Efficiency-Profile cattle:
• Two injections at the age of 2 to 4 months
• 2 weeks after 2 vaccination- challenge by injection
• Detection of viraemia using PCR
  Results:
• All control-animals viraemic, no clinical symptoms
• Some animals no viraemia only low level viraemia and shorter duration of viraemia in vaccinated animals that were positive
There was no information available on the number of animals in the vaccine trial but our understanding is that in some animals the vaccine may not be inducing a strong enough immunity to prevent them from becoming infected. Emailed comment would be gratefully received.
We understand that Merial should have the Pirbright licence restored from today. One wonders how their vaccine trials compare with those of Intervet.

February 4/5 2008 ~ There are no cheap short cuts to eliminate the disease and prevent its spreading to the whole of Europe and Northern Asia.

Markos Kyprianou asserted that "Prevention is better than cure" and urged a harmonised attack - but where are the Member States' policies to achieve this?
Even though the UK's particular case (because of the Fontainebleau Agreement) means we can't expect anywhere near the full 100% compensation for vaccine and 50% costs, the UK government would be tragically short-sighted not to insist on a compulsory campaign. Farmers must be helped to vaccinate their stock. A voluntary campaign restricted to the Protection Zone and in which farmers themselves are made to pay would be useless. Unless the UK Bluetongue policy allows vaccination outside the Protection Zone (a grave error by the EU to limit it to the PZ) and unless it covers at least the necessary percentage of susceptible animals, we have, to put it bluntly, had it.
In Corsica's fight against BTV 2 in 2001, as this French Ministry ppt presentation (in French) shows, when coverage was less than 70% the virus spread. When, however, in the winter of 2001/2002, coverage was better than 85%, there were no further cases. Can we not learn from others? Here, for example, is Dr Ruth Watkins' strategy We have not seen anything better.

Monday February 4 2008 ~ The 4 new cases are in Kent, Essex and Haywards Heath

According to the Farmers Guardian Defra still "believe they were infected prior to a vector-free period being declared"... (A faith that could, perhaps, move mountains and one that at least serves to attempt to absolve the authorities of premature action. The idea of a "vector free period" has no scientific basis at all as far as we can see. )
The Protection Zone has now been extended into Sussex whilst the Surveillance Zone has been widened to cover parts of Dorset (see below). The FG quotes Paul van Aarle, director of institutional sales at Intervet "We can now provide a safe and efficacious vaccine helping to fight this devastating disease. We are currently optimizing the production process and we expect to have more insight in the overall production capacities by March."

Friday February 1 2008 ~ "We desperately need the vaccine but Defra won't tell us what its intentions are."

The Cumbrian vet David Black is quoted today in the Cumberland News
"Some people would pay the money to vaccinate their animals; but if they're outside the protection zone it will be illegal. We need the vaccine available by March. Cattle need two doses while sheep need one."
David Black is putting into words the bafflement and frustration felt by many who want to know what the present situation really is. Are doses to be restricted to areas of the country already within bluetongue protection or surveillance zones? Will DEFRA order more vaccine as the NFU are now requesting? Are we really to have a voluntary campaign with sheep farmers expected to find the money (using separate needles each time) to vaccinate their sheep?

Friday February 1 2008 ~ The new zones following today's announcement of Bluetongue

DEFRA announced today the extension of the Bluetongue Protection and Surveillance Zones, following confirmation of disease on four premises within the current Protection Zone. See website "The zones have been extended further into Sussex and Dorset, in accordance with the UK Bluetongue Control Strategy and EU legislation. The infected animals were found as a result of pre-movement testing currently required in the vector-free period. All evidence suggests that these animals were infected before the vector-free period commenced..." (One wonders what "evidence" is referred to.)

Friday February 1 2008 ~ Not enough doses ordered...dawning realisation

When the first Intervet doses of vaccine are ready, in May we hope, the first 2-3 million doses will be used in the Protection Zone that exists then. Then, according to the Farmers Guardian, the focus will shift westwards, ".. with the south coast a possible early target, due to the risk of the virus spreading from France.... There is no clear picture at this stage as to how much of the country will ultimately be covered. This will depend on demand and the disease situation. But with 60 million livestock resident across the UK, cattle having to be vaccinated twice and a predicted high demand among farmers, despite vaccination almost certainly being voluntary, the NFU council called for an urgent review of the numbers ordered so far..."

Friday February 1 2008 ~ New scares in Herefordshire, Hertfordshire and Sussex. NFU urges more vaccine to be ordered

As the Farmers Guardian went to press today, "there was still a degree of concern as PCR results were awaited from a number of other farms in the Surveillance Zone, where blood tests on livestock appeared to be positive. It is understood these include farms in Herefordshire, Hertfordshire and Sussex. Thousands of animals have been pre-movement tested so they can be moved out of the Bluetongue zones since the start of the vector free period just before Christmas. Meanwhile, members of the NFU council have urged Defra to consider ordering more Bluetongue vaccine now because of fears the 22.5 million ordered so far might not be enough..."

Thursday January 31 2008 ~ 60% infection among Dutch cattle.

The Dutch agricultural newspaper www.agd.nl is reporting (in Dutch) that 60 percent of cattle are infected by bluetongue. The information comes from Gezondheidsdienst voor Dieren GD and is based on the monitoring of 250 test farms. One of their experts is Daan Dercksen who is currently a speaker at the bluetongue information meetings in the UK

Tuesday January 29 2008 ~ "huge turnout of farmers for the East Midlands NFU bluetongue meeting

Farmers Guardian "Dutch vet Daan Dercksen outlined how rapidly the disease had spread in Europe....because there was more of it in circulation. ....we had an 18-month advantage - as a vaccination programme would hopefully be implemented soon....
Mr Dercksen said that as bluetongue was a blood-transmitted disease a separate needle would be required for each dose of vaccine. This caused concern ...
...Dr Ian Frood, chairman of the NFU East Anglian Livestock Board... said it was likely that vaccination would be voluntary not compulsory but would only work if at least 80 per cent of livestock was vaccinated..... a possibility funding might be available from the Rural Development Programme for England (RDP) to educate and, possibly, train farmers to administer the vaccine. The audience questioned how voluntary vaccination would be policed and recorded. ... unable to give a definitive answer as to the cost, but said that it is likely to be between 50p to £1 per dose, and hopefully closer to 50p." Read article

Tuesday January 29 2008 ~ mass-vaccination should be adapted to the unfolding situation - "beyond the declared protection and surveillance zones"

"Planning for the shortly due mass-vaccination should be adapted to the unfolding situation, targeting protection by the immunization of susceptible animals within broader areas than initially suggested, namely also in BT-receptive areas beyond the declared protection and surveillance zones. The vaccination should preferably cover more than 80 per cent of the susceptible stock." Moderator's comment ProMed

Tuesday January 29 2008 ~ "The next stage should be to persuade the EC to bring its rules pertaining to vaccination against Bluetongue (and indeed other viral diseases of livestock) up to date and relevant to the current situation."

Dr James Irvine www.land-care.org.uk on the NBA Press Release stating that they want to have a meeting with the Scottish Government in order to get BT vaccine ordered for Scotland before the virus gets there.
".... At present, inappropriate regulations stand in the way of effective disease control. Specifically, the EC rule that forbids Bluetongue vaccination in an allegedly Bluetongue-free zone must be changed. Using the device to artificially designate a Bluetongue-free zone as a Protected Zone, in order to get around this rule, is folly. It would, under other EC rules, allow a free flow of potentially infected cattle from high risk areas to come into the Bluetongue virgin territory of Scotland during the six weeks before vaccination could be fully effective. That would be a recipe for disaster."
Dr Irvine will be addressing the Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in early March on the application of science (or rather the lack of it) with regard to Scotland's livestock industry. See also Bluetongue meetings offer a chance to learn from European experience

Monday January 28 2008 ~ National Beef Association wants vaccine ordered for Scotland

The NBA " has written to cabinet secretary, Richard Lochhead, calling for an urgent meeting at which it will ask the Scottish government to buy stocks of bluetongue (BT) vaccine. The move comes after the Association's Scottish Council unanimously agreed that without access to suitable quantities of vaccine Scotland would be unable to protect itself against a virus which could create severe economic and welfare problems for all its livestock farmers...." See www.meatinfo.co.uk

Monday January 28 2008 ~ SVS vets expected to confirm Cheshire and Shropshire scare was false alarm

Welsh Daily Post "...Routine pre-movement blood tests on two farms gave inconclusive results over the weekend. One is believed to have been in the Oswestry area involving cattle. The other is thought to have been in Greater Manchester involving sheep. The tests provoked widespread alarm because, if confirmed, the existing bluetongue restriction zone would have been extended to cover much of Wales. .... Defra has since performed a second set of tests using the PCR system and it is understood these were negative. This is likely to be confirmed later today."
UPDATE Bluetongue relief for Wales and Farms get bluetongue all-clear Manchester Evening News

Sunday January 27 2008 ~ Scotland: Bluetongue meetings offer a chance to learn from European experience

Farmtalking.com has organised this and has full details. "On Friday 22nd February 2008 at 7.30pm, the Scottish Borders at Berwickshire High School, Duns Friday 22nd February at 7.30pm (prompt) (venue changed from Grantshouse Village Hall) Program:
Chairman: Frank Langrish - The Chairman of the British Wool Marketing Board and a farmer in the BT Protection Zone in the South East who has also had Bluetongue in his flock
Speakers: Dr. Ruth Watkins - The Virologist and a farmer in Wales. The author of a Bluetongue Vaccination policy circulated to DEFRA and the EU
Dr. Dan Dercksen - The veterinarian from Holland who has experienced the diagnosis and treatment of Bluetongue
George Milne - The Regional Secretary and Development Officer for the National Sheep Association (Scotland)
Followed by Questions "
Space is limited Phone 01361-850324 or 0795-7811-463

January 26 2008 ~ new cases of bluetongue in Shropshire and Cheshire

Farmers Weekly "...A source close to DEFRA told Farmers Weekly that the cases which had been discovered in the last few days were not believed to have been found in imported animals, suggesting the animals had been infected by UK midges carrying the disease. .... it could mean the extension of the protection zone into Wales and further towards the south west of England, possibly as far south as Bristol. It will also have an impact on vaccination plans, with more farmers likely to be in the zone due to receive vaccine first."

January 25 2008 ~ The vaccination campaign in Holland will start in May

www.agd.nl (in Dutch) says that the Dutch department for agriculture has ordered six million doses of bluetongue vaccine from Intervet. The vaccination campaign in Holland will start in May and the first one million doses of vaccine will be available in that month. A month later Intervet will supply another million with the full order to be delivered completely by August. The costs of the vaccine will be paid for by the EU which will also pay a maximum of 50 percent of the vaccination costs (perhaps less than this). It will be a voluntary campaign but Warmwell is told by a Dutch stakeholder that "in Holland 80% will not be difficult to get, because all involved want no repetition of last year".

January 25 2008 ~ "While nothing has been finalised, vaccination will almost certainly be voluntary....and lack of surveillance is worrying.

"....vaccination will almost certainly be voluntary with farmers having full responsibility for paying for and arranging it for their livestock." Farmers Guardian today.

January 25 2008 ~ "Surveillance and vaccination are two sides of the same coin"

"Defra urged to step up bluetongue surveillance" says ythe Farmers Guardian which today quotes Dr Chris Oura (IAH) who said at the NFU/IAH meeting that the UK was not yet complying with European Commission rules on surveillance.
"The EC is demanding certain levels of surveillance and we have to move towards it. Surveillance and vaccination are two sides of the same coin. We need to know exactly where to vaccinate,"
Dr Oura says proper surveillance is necessary to identify the extent of the outbreak and "pinpoint where infection is located in order to formulate an effective vaccination strategy". Frank Langrish said at the meeting that surveillance in South East England had been 'non- existent', and the Essex farmer, Ian Frood, is quoted as saying farmers representatives had been 'singularly unsuccessful' in persuading Defra to put sufficient resources into surveillance.

January 24 2008 ~ "...practically compulsory by creating pressure on farmers..."

The pdf file (Defra website) of the vaccination working group on Tuesday 8 January 2008 reports that Kevin Pearce suggested the scheme should be promoted as practically compulsory, by creating pressure on farmers regarding the importance of vaccination to protect the country."
Creating pressure on farmers?
One reads, ".....On compulsory vaccination, even retrieving the additional costs back from industry require an additional cost. Retrieving and redistributing funds from the Commission would also be a complex process. Kevin Pearce suggested the scheme should be promoted as practically compulsory, by creating pressure on farmers regarding the importance of vaccination to protect the country.
Action: Philip Reed to produce a short paper on the reasons behind the decision made for a voluntary and not a compulsory scheme....." (Read as HTML) There was another meeting of the group yesterday. It will be interesting to see what progress was made.

January 24 2008 ~ Farmers still to be " offered the opportunity to purchase vaccine from the bank.."

On Monday (22 Jan) when David Drew MP asked Jonathan Shaw (Hansard) why the decision was taken to source and supply the anti-bluetongue virus vaccine from one supplier only, Mr Shaw replied ".... we chose Intervet as the preferred bidder on the basis of technical specification, delivery timetable and price...." Unfortunately, he then went on to repeat:
"Livestock keepers will be offered the opportunity to purchase vaccine from the bank ..."
One can only hope that the government comes to see that if they were financially to support the scheme necessary to achieve 80% coverage in the Protection Zone - and it must be a compulsory scheme - the price paid to support our farmers would be insignificant compared to the potential losses. Sheepfarmers are now so battered financially by recent hardships that if they are required to pay, many will simply fail to vaccinate or else just leave farming. The lost farming expertise would be irreplaceable, the effect on the landscape would be irreversible and the hold taken by the virus would be even harder to get rid of when vaccines are more plentiful in 2009.

January 22 2008 ~ Intervet's news about its vaccine

Our attention has been drawn to Intervet's own news release about the bluetongue vaccine serotype 8, for sheep and cattle. "The vaccine has been taken into production now. Intervet is aiming to deliver the first quantities of vaccine in May."

January 21 2008 ~ "mild symptoms suggesting that infection occurred in December and even early January.."

Dr Watkins writes with her usual grasp and succinct style. Extract:
My sister's herd is having PCR testing by Micropathology Ltd UK- the 12 adult cows and 3 bulls, to see how many in addition to (the infected cow) Duchess have been infected. Some have had mild symptoms suggesting that infection occurred in December and even early January. No surprise if you look at those European epidemiology results published by EFSA As Osinga and others have suggested, it may be more effective to apply limited vaccine summer 2008 in the surveillance zone to prevent spread. There seem to be no veterinary clinical virologists who have generated plans for vaccination that can be looked at and adopted. There are politicos and research scientists and no one in between. I wonder what will happen by 31st of January .."
Read in full

January 21 2008 ~ the beginnings of a ground swell for vaccination in Scotland

Dr James Irvine writes to warmwell that he has "put a piece up on www.land-care.org.uk in relation to a recent meeting in Scotland when the Scottish Government Senior Veterinary Adviser made comments on his Department's policy on Bluetongue vaccination in Scotland. At least at this meeting there was the beginnings of a ground swell for vaccination. Most of those present had reservations about the approach taken by the Scottish Government authorities." A fascinating article. Extract
"...Frankly, if an adviser on human health had stated such an approach towards the risk of arrival of a disease that affected humans he would be out of office by public demand within hours....I fear that the SVS may have been unduly influenced in their approach by the epidemiological modellers. Remember how they got things so very wrong in Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) UK2001?"
Read in full One Scottish farmer is quoted: "We are waltzing into a disaster here. Surely we need a vaccine available for 2008. It is wishful thinking that Bluetongue will not be here soon".

Jan 20 2008 ~ Report of the conference at the IAH laboratory at Compton, Newbury

The IAH/NFU conference last Thursday January 17 covered how bluetongue arrived in the country last year, how it spread, the impact of the virus on livestock, vaccination, the control strategy, and what producers can expect in 2008. The IAH webpage has links to the presentations
• Climate Change - Philip Mellor
• Wind Spread - John Gloster
• The Midge - Simon Carpenter
• Impact of BTV on livestock - Chris Oura
• BTV vaccines - Peter Mertens & Chris Oura

Jan 20 2008 ~" they have to opt for compulsory vaccination because otherwise they won't reach the target and Brussels won't pay"

Sabine Zentis cuts through the talking in circles that seems to have gone on last Wednesday.
"...The Commission says : we will co- finance mass emergency vaccination so everyone knows money is available if at least 80% of susceptible animals are vaccinated. To achieve this you have to implement compulsory vaccination.
The countries say : we will vaccinate but we have to decide yet whether we make the campaign compulsory or voluntary because we don't know yet what programmes the Commission is funding
This is the cat chasing its tail and this sort of discussion can go on till the cows come home or unless someone has the brains to stand up and tell the plain, simple facts :
THE COMMISSION WILL FUND A VACCINATION CAMPAIGN IF IT COVERS A MINIMUM OF 80% OF SUSCEPTIBLE ANIMALS IN COUNTRIES AFFECTED.
Why the representatives of Member States attending are still dragging along beats me. They have to opt for compulsory vaccination because otherwise they won't reach the target and Brussels won't pay."
It seems that Wednesday's Brussels meeting did not quite achieve the "a harmonised approach to vaccination across the entire European Union" and the " the outline of a European strategy for vaccination against bluetongue, based on the support and contribution of the experts" pleaded for by Markos Kyprianou. But one thing to be pleased about is that the UK has at least actually ordered vaccine while many others continue to dither.

Jan 19 2008 ~ Scotland -"rigorous monitoring"

The Herald quotes Nigel Miller today:
"it is reassuring to know that there will be rigorous monitoring to ensure that all animals entering Scotland from any restricted zone are properly tested before leaving the bluetongue zone in England. "However, NFU Scotland still has concerns that, as we move nearer to the end of the vector-free period and the temperatures start to rise, this will not be enough. We have, therefore, called for post-movement testing of animals coming from restricted zones in England to be put in place to ensure that we have further safeguards to help ensure that Scotland can remain bluetongue free."
(King Canute comes to mind again. Scotland needs to order vaccine as soon as possible. As the ProMed moderator's comment explains: "...The 3rd disease season is expected to commence in the due spring 2008, when large populations of susceptible animals may be exposed to BTV-8 for the 1st time, particularly in areas such as Wales and Scotland.... Their timely vaccination is essential.")

Jan 19 2008 ~ First hand report - Brussels Bluetongue Conference

We are very grateful to have received this succinct and clear report from Christine Bijl of the European Livestock Association. The report includes a brief description of the views of each of the six stakeholder groups who were given ten minutes each to give presentations.

Jan 18 2008 ~ Conclusions - Conference on "Vaccination strategy against bluetongue" Brussels, 16 January 2008

The "conclusions"pdf file opens in new window and a page of links and pdf files relevant to the conference can be found at ec.europa.eu - including a very interesting presentation by Klaas Johan Osinga, Vice Chairman, COPA-COGECA Working Group "Animal Health & Welfare" which includes, (in a presentation worth reading in full), the following:
Common EU-wide strategy on vaccination needed
1. What will be the rules of the game in 2008 and beyond? Need for a long-term BT vaccination and monitoring strategy - farmers need clarity and up-to-date relevant information (e.g. BT-Net)
2. .Train and trust the farmers enough to allow them to vaccinate themselves their animals
3. .Are the rules for EU co-financing in 2008 clear to Member States and stakeholders ?
4. .What EU financing will be available in 2009 and beyond?
5. .Does the strategy take into account that many animals have built up sufficient immunity after infection / maternal immunity?
Read in full

Jan 18 2008 ~ "vaccination will, almost certainly, be on a voluntary, rather than compulsory, basis"

..is the pronouncemenrt of "the DEFRA observer" present at the joint NFU/IAH conference, according to Farmers Weekly today, "and producers inside the protection zone would be the first to be offered the chance to protect stock.
Then, livestock in a "buffer zone" outside the protection zone (probably about 20km wide) would be treated next and the buffer zone would gradually edge west until England is covered. However, no one in attendance could estimate how long it would take to cover England or that the minimum 80% coverage needed to ensure success would be achieved." Read article.

Jan 18 2008 ~ the UK government is adamant that farmers must pay. It is called "Responsibility Sharing"

We understand that "Responsibility Sharing" means the government never having to face compensation bills again ( and it looks as though the Conservatives agree). As one correspondent writes today: "The mass upheaval that will be caused with the reorganisation of DEFRA, particularly financial, won't help. Brown has taken 1 billion pounds from that side to spend on climate change issues." A familiar story echoed on the other main warmwell page today.

Jan 18 2008 ~ Conditions to achieve eradication are not met, says Dutch Chief Vet

See ProMed. A Dutch news article is translated by the moderator, AS, quoting Peter de Leeuw, chief veterinarian in the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture (they still have one) , who considers that to attain the goal of eradication "...a common policy of affected countries is required, with the necessary financial support secured for several years. Currently, these conditions are not fulfilled"

January 18 2008 ~ "timely vaccination is essential," says ProMed moderator

Moderator's comment "...The 3rd disease season is expected to commence in the due spring 2008, when large populations of susceptible animals may be exposed to BTV-8 for the 1st time, particularly in areas such as Wales and Scotland, but also in other vast regions. Their timely vaccination is essential.
To help close the gap between gained information and its early field utilization, ProMED-mail has offered its services for the early publication of preliminary results, provided they address field-related issues and are of a problem-solving nature."
(The moderator also gives a link to an EU map of BTV restriction zones, updated on 14 Jan 2008. Since then we have the new outbreak of BTV-8 in Northern Spain.)

Jan 18 2008 ~ "necessity should be readily explainable in order to convince the farmers"

"The introduction of compulsory vaccination must have a clear reasoning; its necessity should be readily explainable in order to convince the farmers" says Dr. de Leeuw "Past experience regarding compulsory vaccination -- as related to IBR -- was rather negative; therefore, I support voluntary vaccination," and, if financial support is anticipated, "I am convinced that we, in the Netherlands, can achieve 80 percent even on a voluntary basis", said De Leeuw.
Dr. de Leeuw stresses "A main question is the necessity to include in the plan the vaccination against bluetongue of animals which are immune, since they have already undergone infection." ( For them to be safely excluded requires the accurate registration of animals which have been infected.)

Jan 18 2008 ~ Are these indeed new cases, within the period which is expected to be "non-vector"?!

ProMed moderator AS: " Information on the incidence of new BTV-8 cases in Europe since the middle of December is rather scanty and seems to lack accuracy. According to EU's Animal Disease Notification System (ADNS, last updated 11 Jan 2008, see at http://ec.europa.eu/food/animal/diseases/adns/table_11_2008/adns_110108_en.pdf a total of 3 new cases have been recorded since 1 Jan 2008, all in France. Are these indeed new cases, within the period which is expected to be "non-vector"?!
Since the publication of Sabine Zentis' remarks concerning the need for experts' and researchers' contributions (see in posting 20071219.4080), the scope of (publicly available) knowledge has not widened. Enhanced research efforts addressing the epidemiology of BTV-8 within the European realm, in particular related to its entomological aspects, over-wintering mechanism and genetic susceptibility, seem to still be needed. Animal breeders in 8 European countries have been severely affected by BTV-8 since its initial discovery (Belgium, August 2006). Animal suffering is another issue."

Jan 18 2008 ~ BTV-8 in Spain for the first time - and rather close to the BTV-1 outbreaks

Yesterday BTV-8 was reported in Spain for the first time. Seven cases were found on a cattle farm. See Wahid interface for details and map.

Jan 18 2008 ~ French livestock farmers want the right to vaccinate their own animals

The article in www.paysan-breton.fr says that Intervet's vaccine already has temporary authorisation (ATU) for use and that of Fort Dodge is on the way.
"As for that of Merial, the hold-up caused by the UK's blocking of their work at the Pirbright site means that their vaccine won't be available before the date initially forecast."
Although France has decided on an order of precedence for animals to be vaccinated between the end of April and the beginning of August and expects 30 million doses to be available for cattle (ie allowing the vaccination of 15 million) and close to 12 million doses for sheep (hence 6 millions small ruminants can be vaccinated) there is concern that this will not be enough - and the French have not yet finalised their vaccination plan.
Farmers cannot see why they should not vaccinate their animals themselves but are coming up against EU rules that vaccination should be carried out and certified by vets. Discussions are continuing between the French Agriculture Ministry (they still have one) and the livestock farmers about this - and about who will pay for the remaining 50% of the costs incurred. There seems to be no question in France of farmers being asked to pay for using the vaccine bank itself. (article in French)

Jan 18 2008 ~ " This is a catch 22 situation..."

Sabine Zentis sends this preliminary comment about Wednesday's Brussels meeting.
" Member states are reluctant to plan for compulsory vaccination of all susceptible species as there still is resistance from some farmers and trade organisations. This is a catch 22 situation; Member States aren't committing themselves to a definite plan for emergency vaccination which would mean, to my understanding, compulsory vaccination of a minimum of 80% of susceptible populations - and the Commission isn't giving a clear statement about the actual amount of funding available.
Trade organisations (meat/livestock) and farmers unions were again dragging their feet and came up with the usual nonsense like trade restrictions for vaccinated animals and a reluctance to accept governmental interference..."
Vaccine manufacturers continue to feel frustrated about the lack of clear signals from countries about how many doses they're prepared to buy - so cannot give a clear statement on number of vaccine doses.
There seems to be some disastrous dithering going on - on vaccination plans, on who will pay, on who will be prepared to vaccinate what... Meanwhile, the farmers wait hopefully for informed guidance, the weeks tick by and the midges are gathering.

Jan 17 2008 ~ "Our government must not always be so timid when it comes to asking for our money back from the EU."

Neil Parish MEP, too, has called on the British Government to take the Commission's offer by declaring an 'emergency' vaccination programme www.conservativeeurope.com Mr Parish said: "The European Commission will pay most of the costs associated with an emergency vaccination plan, but the British Government must classify the vaccination as an emergency first.
"If the EU is offering to pay towards the bill, it would be nonsensical to reject it. Our government must not always be so timid when it comes to asking for our money back from the EU. The only long-term solution to Bluetongue is a vaccination programme."
It is surely going to be embarrassing for DEFRA if they still insist on farmers paying for vaccine in 2008 - a payment that the sheep farmers, in particular, can ill afford.

Jan 17 2008 ~ "I urge the British government to apply for this funding immediately.." Robert Sturdy

Robert Sturdy, MEP for Norfolk and Cambridgeshire, can apparently can see no good reason for the UK not to apply for the EU grant for 100% vaccine and 50% costs. He is quoted at elleeseymour.com: ".... Outbreaks of animal disease are no longer a case of 'if' but 'when' and the agricultural industry will need assurances that there are sufficient stockpiles of vaccination available.
I am delighted with the announcement of the EU's Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou and hope the British government will take full advantage of his offer. Our government has repeatedly failed its agricultural community. Today is a chance to restore faith in the sustainability of the livestock industry."

Jan 17 2008 ~ Useful website for Wales on Bluetongue and FMD

See www.businesseye.org.uk .g. "Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones has written to Hilary Benn to join the tendering process and order 2.5 million doses of bluetongue vaccine which will be made available for purchase by livestock keepers in Wales on a voluntary basis. It is difficult at this stage to predict the extent to which bluetongue will be present when the vaccine becomes available next year. The European Commission has declared that vaccination will be permitted only inside a bluetongue Protection Zone. The Welsh Assembly Government has the power to declare a Protection Zone within Wales if it is considered that enabling vaccination would benefit disease control."

Jan 16 2008 ~ "We count on all of you," says Markos Kyprianou, "This is a shared endeavour."

The speech given today by the European Commissioner for Health might perhaps be thought a little lacking in actual content: ".... A full commitment from all competent authorities and stakeholders is vital for the emergency vaccination initiative to succeed.
Only a harmonised approach to vaccination across the entire European Union will give rise to the outcome that all of us want to see. I expect that key issues such as the coverage of this vaccination campaign, the calendar of implementation and the vaccines to be used will be addressed by this conference in a productive way. . ...." Read in full
(Any actual information about a calendar of implementation and the vaccines to be used that may have emerged from the conference would be most gratefully received.)

January 16 2008 ~ First hand from Brussels. The experienced countries are "pushing for compulsory vaccination".

"The conference was really interesting but I am not sure it got us any further. Germany has published a tender for 24.4 million doses of vaccine - but are still dragging their feet on a vaccination plan. Countries such as Spain and Italy, with plenty of experience, are pushing for compulsory vaccination to make sure vaccination is conducted properly. They are afraid that BTV 8 might move south and they see vaccination as the only means to stop the virus from spreading. I will send more details shortly..."

January 16 2008 ~ nothing on the DEFRA website about any restoration of the SAPO licence at the Merial site.

After the Pirbright leak in August, Merial's SAPO licence was finally restored, as Defra reported, on November 6th last year - only to be revoked again on November 23 (although there was no mention of this on the same Defra page that time), following the bio-security 'incident' at the Pirbright site. The Farmers Guardian quoted a Merial spokesman at the time who said, "We are still confident Merial will be able to supply BTV vaccines in time to protect cows and sheep effectively in Europe next year,"
One can only - three months after he said it - repeat the words of Professor Spratt in October. As the expert appointed by the government to report on the leak, he told the World at One that there was at Merial
"no risk involved in their continuing work on this so vitally needed vaccine for the whole of Northern Europe".
Since vaccine was acknowledged to be the only logical way forward a year ago and that, according to Bernard Vallat in March, it would be "very, very useful to have a vaccine ready to be used in all Europe by the Spring of 2008", the way governments and the EU have responded to this issue seems extraordinarily relaxed. One hopes, at least, that the SAPO licence is about to be restored at Merial in the UK.

January 16 2008 ~ Commissioner Kyprianou tells States to get on with ordering vaccine and that costs will be met. But will they in the UK, or will farmers have to pay?

The Reuters report makes one wonder if the UK, even now, will even ask for 100% vaccine compensation and 50% costs
" ....EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou, ....speaking at a one-day conference, said central EU funding would meet the costs of buying the vaccine, likely to be available by the spring, and half the costs of administration.......that funding would be subject to certain ceilings that would be set once the vaccine's final cost was known, Kyprianiou said, adding that between 150 and 200 million doses would probably be needed for an emergency vaccination campaign during 2008.
European Commission experts have estimated the cost of one vaccine dose at around 0.50 euro (this is currently about 37p). While that price will probably be fixed, administration costs vary widely across the EU's 27 countries, mainly due to differing vets' salaries. .."
Can the UK claim this compensation for the vaccination campaign? Warmwell has heard that the Fontainebleau Agreement might put a spanner in the works as well as the UK's record on surveillance. In 1984, the Fontainebleau Agreement gave the UK its "abatement",or rebate but it may be that this very rebate means that the UK cannot now claim its vaccine funding. We should very much appreciate informed comment on the issue of who pays for bluetongue vaccine the England - and why.

January 16 2008 ~ "We must not allow this problem to drift."

Norman Baker, MP, met farmers in Firle (Sussex) yesterday,
"Blue tongue was a problem the Government should have got to grips with a lot earlier. With that, foot and mouth and TB in cattle, livestock farmers are really up against it and are asking how they can carry on. The Government has a blue tongue restriction between some areas in Sussex, so I have spoken to farmers who can't move their own sheep from Wealden back into Lewes. It's ridiculous. I am collating information and views from local farmers at the moment. We must not allow this problem to drift."
And a report by the South Downs Joint Committee said that the Sussex countryside is being devastated by the blue tongue outbreak and may never recover. The Argus reports that the Committee, "predicted a shift to arable production, meaning the sight of lambs grazing on the South Downs could become a rarity within years.....Martin Beaton, the committee's South Downs officer, said: "Blue tongue has had a significant impact on the economics of sheep farming, which was already under significant economic pressure. ...Poor sheep prices coinciding with improved arable prices are likely to drive the expansion of arable production."

January 15 2008 ~ The agenda for tomorrow's Brussels meeting is now online

pdf file here. The introduction will set the "EU context for bluetongue vaccination". Scientific and stakeholders' views on bluetongue vaccination will then be given by speakers who include Declan O'Brien and Klaas Johan Osinga. The afternoon session will focus on experience of bluetongue vaccination in South Africa and in the USA. Only at 3.00 pm will the the issue of "EU harmonised approach for bluetongue vaccination" be introduced (by Alberto Laddomada, the very commissioner who seemed to me in October to be so opposed to any revision of the rules concerning vaccination against FMD). 20 minutes of general discussion will then be allowed - and between 4 and 5 pm the conference will hear from each Member State's CVO and from "stakeholders". We will post as soon as possible any further information after the meeting.

January 12/13 ~"The whole integrity of regulations ... very much in the melting pot..".

The frustrations are summed up in comments by livestock auctioneers, McCartneys in www.ludlowadvertiser.co.uk :".... the Bluetongue saga ... Europe says don't draw lines on a map, get a vaccine as soon as you can. This is the only thing that will work, and so DEFRA as soon as Bluetongue comes in, draws lines on a map and says this is what the Europeans want us to do.
Who are you to believe? Do you believe government at all now? The regulations have become so devoid from what is reality on the ground as to become laughable. It is a pity that Gilbert and Sullivan are not alive because it would have made a marvellous story for a comic opera...."

January 12/13 ~ "Top priority is getting vaccination off the ground - and later they can do their research till the cows come home..."

Sabine Zentis, who is going to the Brussels meeting on Wednesday, nevertheless found time to write this email to warmwell about one aspect of research she feels is important to pursue once vaccination is underway ... ".All of us are still puzzled...It was established as a fact that
a) the vector is not active below 12 ^C
b) virus replication does not occur below 15 ^C
a) I am rather sure that these findings only relate to C. Imicola as our midges involved (and suspected) in transmission of BT are active at much lower temperatures. The question remains why they bite at low temperatures - because the female midge only needs a blood meal for egg laying. But whether the midges actually lay eggs during the colder time of the year must be researched. ..... I have learned from Intervet that they tried to set up a field trial on the use of Butox pour on some place in Spain. They had to bring different species of midges to this place and interestingly the midges refused to cooperate. They didn't attack the animals, not even the ones that hadn't been treated...." Read in full.

January 12/13 2008 ~ "are they waiting for a barn door clinical case before they go out to test?"

Dr Ruth Watkins' email today suggests ways of making things for farmers a little more equitable
"If DEFRA will refuse to be responsible for a compulsory blanket vaccination campaign with refunding at least partially from the EU.....DEFRA should pay for the tests on animals to be moved out of the restriction zone this winter, and other tests ruled necessary for movement (ie to autumn sales within the UK).
Also, as in France, when bluetongue is confirmed on a farm, the farmer should not have to pay the NFSCO for removal of any fallen stock during the 2008 bluetongue season - (it is worthless once dead and it adds insult to injury to pay for removal as well - especially for sheep farmers) - but on condition that the farmer vaccinate all his stock immediately upon diagnosis. .."
A question for written answer she would like asked by one of the stakeholders at the next meeting concerns details of their results of "surveillance in the Surveillance Zone- both with regard to the testing of animals and of captured midges for BTV-8. A corollary to that is how many entire herd or flock tests have they done in the protection zone and what are the results (you will need dates of the testing)..." Read in full

January 11 2008 ~ Intervet's Bluetongue vaccine is ready.

From an article in Agrarisch Dagblad (in Dutch) "Pharmaceutical company Intervet announced that the first vaccines against BTV-8 are ready. Sales Director Paul van Aarle says: "We have developed a safe and effective vaccine. We are now in the process to optimize production. For instance the company has to establish how many doses can be made from the inactivated virus. By March Intervet expects to know more about production capacity. "We are aiming to have the vaccine ready for use in May." The vaccine was developed one and a half year quicker than normal.... "Sheep are worst affected which makes their vaccination a priority. We also have developed a safe and effective vaccine for cattle and a vaccine for goats is currently in the testing stage."

January 11 2008 ~ A note of the Bluetongue Stakeholder Meeting, 18 December 2007 has now been published on the DEFRA website

It helpfully names all the attendees and their organisations, including those who were in telephone contact during the meeting. The pdf file can be seen here. The vaccination working group was at that time in December preparing the detailed vaccination plan which needs to be submitted to the European Commission by "the end of January". The major question seemed to be the issue of whether vaccination could be compulsory or not. Detail in the pdf file. Attendees were told that the EU Commission would not be purchasing a community Bluetongue vaccine bank but there seems to have been little mention of the EU offer (see below) of funding and the conditions attached to that offer. It will be interesting to discover what further emerges at the meeting in Brussels on January 16th (next Wednesday)

January 11 2008 ~ Scotland wants compulsory post-movement testing of susceptible animals

Herald "NFU Scotland, together with the National Sheep Association's Scottish region and the Scottish Beef Cattle Association, have written to the Scottish Government calling for compulsory testing of susceptible animals arriving in Scotland from the bluetongue (BT) zones in England. Whilst a post-movement test is a requirement for any animals imported into Scotland from BT zones in continental Europe, no such requirement exists for animals coming from bluetongue zones within the UK..."

January 10 2008 ~ DEFRA advises worried farmers to get hold of "disused refrigerated vehicle body or a shipping container "

No further mention of sticky nets in this piece of "protect and survive" advice from DEFRA entitled Guidance on protection from vector attack
"Openings for light and ventilation must be provided including fan ventilation if necessary (sic) ...
..in order to minimise traffic through the entrance, piped drinking water should be provided and enough feed and bedding should be stored within the vector proof unit to supply the animals through the complete protection from vector attack period. If possible, storage for manure should also be provided within the facility... it is advised that you use a double door entry system. ..."
One tired and despairing farmer writes,
" So Defra are now advising livestock farmers to procure 'obsolete refrigerated shipping containers' out which to fashion 'air lock vector proof housing'... They shouldn't be in charge of a stuffed parrot...."
It is increasingly difficult not to agree.

January 8 2008 ~ "These meetings give everyone the opportunity to learn more about the problem and the existing movement restrictions."

Farmers Weekly tells of meetings in the South West next Wednesday, organised by NSA, NBA, LAA and the NFU and supported by Farmers Weekly and Intervet. "Two meetings will be staged next week, one at Exeter Livestock Market at 1pm on 16 January and another at the new Sedgemoor Livestock Market at 7pm on the same day." Anyone wishing to attend either meeting should notify NSA in advance by telephoning 01684 892 661.

January 7/8 2008 ~ Imported animals ~ a small paragraph on page 22 of the UK Bluetongue Control Strategy of August 2007

Unfortunately, we now discover the existence of a small paragraph in UK Bluetongue Control Strategy of August 2007 (page 22) that says
"Compensation would not be payable in the following circumstances: • Imported infected animals slaughtered on a discretionary basis (under Import Regulations) as a disease risk, and the remaining herd monitored."
One outraged emailer feels that the Worcestershire farmer concerned "should sue the import company for compensation as the animals certainly did not meet the criteria laid down in the health certificates " but the DEFRA spokeswoman quoted below suggested that compensation was not payable for Bluetongue at all. Undeniably however, the Statutory Instrument, approved after confirmation of the UK outbreak, certainly does allow for compensation where slaughter is demanded by the authorities. In the case of Bluetongue, of course, this is useless anyway. Suggesting that ruminants should be killed "to prevent midges becoming infected" really is akin to locking the stable door after the horse has bolted. The UK postponed the inevitable declaration of disease (see below) until September 28 but infected midges were shown to have been circulating since August 4th. In late September, all the earliest Bluetongue-positive cases in Suffolk were killed. (DEFRA's most Canute-like attempts to impose similar "robust" controls on the midges themselves were soon - sticky nets notwithstanding - also seen to be doomed to failure.)

January 7/8 2008 ~ "a reservoir of infected blood even if all the diseased farm animals were killed off...."

Matters of compensation, vaccination policy, import regulations and movement restrictions are still horribly unclear to many farmers. Compulsory slaughter can do no good in controlling Bluetongue and widespread vaccination is accepted by all reasonable parties as our only viable hope. Matthew Baylis, professor of epidemiology at Liverpool University, recently quoted in the Economist, said,
" ... Britain's population of wild deer - bigger now than it has been for hundreds of years - would provide a reservoir of infected blood even if all the diseased farm animals were killed off...."
However, the other reason for compensation - apart from compulsory purchase - is that if the authorities want people to report disease and co-operate with policy, there needs to be far more carrot than stick. At present, just at the time when farmers need reassurance and clarification, what there mainly is, is ignorance.

January 7 2008 ~ BTv infected animals imported from the Netherlands to Worcestershire - culled but no compensation payable?

The Worcester News reported that the owner of the 20 imported cows, culled at the demand of DEFRA, (see below) was not to be compensated. The DEFRA spokeswoman is quoted:
"The farmer did the right thing but sadly for him there is no compensation for animals that have bluetongue."
"Sadly there is no compensation"? It was only in October that a Statutory Instrument for both England and Wales was approved stating clearly:
"....compensation payable by the Secretary of State in respect of the animal shall be its market value immediately before it was slaughtered had it not been affected or suspected of being affected with, or had it not been exposed to the infection of, bluetongue."
One wonders how DEFRA can interpret this to mean that the Worcestershire farmer must now face unaided the losses following the imposed slaughter of his 20 cows. The importation was legal and the Dutch furnished certification. That the farmer alone should shoulder the financial loss seems to be an arbitrary decision on the part of officialdom backed neither by fairness nor legislation. We can find no legal document that says imported animals are ineligible for compensation. There seems to be nothing on this point in the November Bluetongue Order 2007. Individual farmers cannot possibly afford to fight this sort of injustice in the courts.
Any informed comment on this issue would be extremely welcome. UPDATE See small small paragraph in the August Bluetongue Order

January 7 2008 ~ The EU has yet to decide what costs are eligible.

Efforts have kindly been made to try to explain to us that the UK only gets back only about 1/3rd of additional EU expenditure (a side-effect of the Fontainebleu Agreement) and could therefore get only about 16.5% of funding available for any "costs" involved on vaccination. The EU has yet to decide what costs are eligible. They have made it clear that the funding is for "approved programmes" only. "Surveillance" would have to go further than the basic surveillance requirements in the EU directive - and it seems likely that funding would be limited to lab/testing costs. We are told that funding would probably also exclude farmers' own costs.
It seems that not one single Member State has yet submitted a plan for vaccination for BTV8. The deadline is the end of January but perhaps all are waiting to see what decisions are reached in Brussels at January 16th's meeting.. The Commission as not yet decided what constitutes a eligible vaccination plan and whether or not it must be compulsory. As James Irvine says in his article, "What a muddle".

January 7 2008 ~ "What has happened to the concept of creating an effective barrier to the spread of the virus by using timely vaccination?" asks Dr Irvine

An article on the Land Care website expresses concern that there may be some "ill-conceived EC rules as to what the EC will allow to be vaccinated..
"...What Scotland desperately now needs is its own laboratory facilities, licenced to carry out Bluetongue and other viral diagnostic work using modern technology that does not require the highest level of biosecurity. RT-PCR technology that is mobile and can be taken to the farm gate from any of the 11 established veterinary laboratories in Scotland is what is needed. And it cannot come soon enough.."
Amazement is being expressed widely in all parts of the UK that Defra is not moving quicker on sorting out a strategy. The funding situation remains unclear even to the inner circle of core stakeholders.

January 4 2008 ~ The country "sliced up" by restrictions

The Farmers Guardian writers today are pessimistic here about the long term effects of Bluetongue. " ...The restrictions accompanying it have sliced the nation up as far as animal movements are concerned and will be there for the long run. The industry may never be the same again."
And in a further article, they quote Dr Ruth Watkins
"In 2008 we will see the virus spread much wider and many more animals will become infected. The disease is very difficult to stop spreading. It doesn't make every animal keel over and symptoms can be difficult to spot. We are unlikely to notice any sick animals in May or June, but the midges will be back biting animals by then.
It will take a few weeks for the virus to replicate in the midges and then in the animals so by July we can expect to see it spreading again."

January 4th 2008 ~ for a vaccination programme to be successful every ruminant will need to be vaccinated....we should have started vaccination by now

On the subject of vaccination, Dr Watkins is quoted in the Farmers Guardian again today: "They are talking about a vaccine being available by May or June. The problem is that in order for a vaccination programme to be successful every ruminant will need to be vaccinated.
Unless this happens, the virus will keep spreading. The vaccine will be administered in two doses so it will be three weeks from vaccination by the time we see resistance to the virus.
I think that 2008 will still see the virus spread to the rest of the country, because we should have started vaccination by now if we were going to stop it."

January 3 2008 ~ Bluetongue Pre-movement testing 2008: Sample submission forms

Pre-movement testing samples for PCR testing must - apparently - be sent to IAH Pirbright and samples for antibody ELISA testing must be sent to VLA (Weybridge). This monopoly strikes many as rather absurd when the private sector could be carrying out such testing competitively. Many sheep farmers, anxious to move stock, are going to find the prices charged by the IAH and VLA very high - with the PCR at £15 per sample tested and ELISA test at £2.95 per sample tested. Prices apparently include the cost of up to two re-tests, if required, "as defined in the approved testing protocol" but the guidance to vets where this information first appeared now links to an error message. The appropriate DEFRA page was updated yesterday but the link is dead . The correct page can be found here.
A submission form for PCR tests can be obtained from Pirbright here and for Elisa tests from the VLA here. (Pdf forms open in new windows)

January 3 2008 ~ More demands for ban on imports from Bluetongue areas of Europe

Following the discovery of the infected cow in Dumfries and Galloway (Kirkcudbright), the Herald today quotes Richard Lochhead who is calling for an urgent review of EU export controls "in order to prevent the virus spreading" He says, " It continues to remain vital that livestock keepers consider carefully where they source their stock from."

January 1 2008 ~ Declaration of Bluetongue Zones from Dec 31

The new pdf file gives the areas, towns and counties placed in both zones and, in its inimitable language, tells us that "the Restricted Zone is divided into a protection zone comprising the area described in Annex 1 of the Schedule and delimited in blue on the map in Annex 3 of the Schedule ; and a surveillance zone comprising the area described in Part A and delimited in black on the map in Annex 3 of the Schedule and the areas described in Part B of Annex 2 of the Schedule."
As has been pointed out before, it seems rather illogical that part of the South Coast of England is not included in the restriction zone when it is within 150 km of France (the map shows cases at Dec 27th) in view of the nearness of BTV cases in Northern France.

January 1 2008 ~ The costs of tests to move from the Surveillance Zone

We understand that IAH Pirbright is offering PCR tests for £15 each and Weybridge is offering the ELISA test for £3 . As in the dark days of 2001, these government funded labs are the only labs to be licensed to do these tests even though there seems no valid reasons at all why the private sector could not be included. If the private labs were included, prices would be far more competitive and allow the far less well-off sheep farmers to afford the pre-movement tests. Such a situation seems much more restrictive even than in human medicine.
As far as vaccination itself is concerned, while DEFRA controls the vaccine bank, farmers and owners will have no say in the cost of the vaccine. Again, there will be no competition for a low price from the 7 manufacturers that will be coming on line next year because permission for use must be sought from DEFRA. Although the farmers and owners will be paying the piper, the tune will be called - yet again - by the government. This seems patently unfair. It is to be hoped that Parliamentary Questions will be asked and the answers critically examined and followed up.

December 29 2007 ~ "the movement regulations are not clear.."

"LTO Netherlands recognizes that there are different points of view over cattle movements from Bluetongue areas..." The Agrarisch Dagblad article quotes Klaas Johan Osinga from LTO North:
"We are dealing here mainly with movements from Protection Zones to Free Zones. Not just England but also to Italy and Spain (who) had similar situations. This happened because the movement regulations are not clear. For instance, the UK requires that cattle are quarantined for 60 days before they can move to Bluetongue free areas. Other countries require insecticide treatment. "
The LTO (Dutch Organisation for Agriculture and Horticulture) is asking for clear regulations from the OIE to harmonise rules across Europe.

December 29 2007 ~ "The NFU's position on this would let down not just the exporters but also the buyers"

As for the NFU's call for a ban, the same article quotes Johan van den Berg, the Director of Exporters Veepro. He points out that there is a demand for breeding stock in England and NFU's position on this would let down not just the exporters but also the buyers. He says, "The call for a ban on imports is unrealistic. There are European rules and everybody needs to stick to them."

December 29 2007 ~ " EU countries depend on each other.. I'm completely underwhelmed by all this hypocrisy..."

It is to be hoped that a situation that may be affecting relations between the UK and Holland can be swiftly resolved. We have already heard from one contact in the sheep industry who, having read about the NFU's stance, says in exasperation,
"Which organisation is so dead against vaccination because IT WILL STOP TRADE for their powerful members?
Holland is a trading nation and Holland buys 1000s of calves from this country. In the four days between the first and the second FMD outbreak this year there were 8000 calves exported from the UK (all to be tested yet again at great cost and effort for potential FMD). EU countries depend on each other and animal diseases are increasingly a Pan European problem. I'm completely underwhelmed by all this hypocrisy..."
It is interesting that there is no news yet about any firm vaccine order from Holland. We should appreciate any information on this.
The EU vaccine requirements are that member states have to provide an audit trail. It is difficult escape the conclusion that the reason why the UK is to "go it alone" is because it is cheaper for DEFRA to fund the vaccine (and then get livestock keepers to pay). As we say below, stakeholders are waiting for some explanation from DEFRA about what is to happen and why.

December 28 2007 ~ The Dutch say that the 20 Worcester heifers were correctly certified

A new article has appeared on www.agd.nl saying the animals were from Vion Lifestock. They too are stating that the animals were certified according to the existing EU regulations and that they have done nothing wrong. Agrarisch Dagblad, as the newspaper is called, opened today's edition with the comments from Defra and the comments from the Dutch authorities. The case is attracting a lot of attention in Holland at the moment.
UPDATE Translation of the latest article can be read here

December 28 2007 ~ Scotland's first case of bluetongue virus has been found in a cow imported from Germany.

The BBC reports
"...One of 35 cattle imported from a farm in Bremen tested positive for the virus following routine post-import testing undertaken by the Animal Health Agency. . Movement restrictions have been imposed on the farm near Kirkcudbright, Dumfries and Galloway. The infected animal will be culled to minimise the risk of disease spreading. ..."
This case will inevitably increase anxiety among livestock farmers everywhere. At present, of course, there is no question of a free for all in the distribution of vaccine when it finally arrives. At present, EU rules state that vaccine is to be restricted to the Protection Zone. As for the UK strategy, all concerned are having to wait for someone in DEFRA to make a public statement to clarify the situation.

December 28 2007 ~ How did the Worcester bluetongue cows end up in the Surveillance Zone?

We understand that the 20 dutch heifers (below) were destined for a holding in the protection zone but were sent "accidentially" to a holding in the surveillance zone. According to the Dutch authorities the certification was appropriate for movement between protection zones - so there must have been a "misunderstanding" of some sort. Whether this happened in the Netherlands or the UK is under investigation. See the story (in Dutch) at www.agd.nl According to a spokesman of the Dutch ministry of agriculture (our somewhat free translation): "The animals had been certified for transport to the bluetongue Protection zone in Great Britain. Owing to a misunderstanding, the animals however ended up in the Surveillance Zone"

December 28 2007 ~ So many unanswered questions about the vaccination strategy

The vaccine has at last been ordered (see below) but no one seems to know how the 22.5 million doses are going to be distributed and whether vaccination is going to be voluntary or compulsory. Farmers are being told they must buy the vaccine from a UK vaccine bank (in spite of the EU offer, apparently not applicable to the UK, that the first year's costs will be covered in Member States whose policy is acceptable)
Demand for the vaccine is likely to outstrip supply. Peter Morris, (NSA) is quoted in the Farmers Guardian today. He says, "... that although vaccine will not initially be available to everyone, it is essential that all farmers vaccinate their animals as soon as possible to stop the spread of the virus.
"....Despite the cost - which we will do our utmost to keep as low as possible through what must be a very transparent pricing process - NSA believes that it makes business sense for all sheep keepers to vaccinate their animals when they have the opportunity to do so."
See Farmers Guardian.

December 28 2007 ~ anxious farmer is denied a Defra derogation to ease his welfare and economic concerns.

The Farmers Guardian describes how the farmer, Robert Gray, has "written to Defra to ask for a derogation to move his cattle but Defra have so far failed to respond, despite their two week response promise having elapsed." He wants to move the cows from their muddy conditions just one and a half miles back to the home farm in Great Bookham, Surrey. But the cows are in the Protection Zone and his farm is in the Surveillance Zone. It is precisely for such situations as this that derogations exist.

December 27 2007 ~ Blood test costs are inhibiting movement

The value of sheep has plummeted, but the cost of getting them 'pre-movement' tested according to the DEFRA rules is a real problem for farmers in Wales who need to return stranded sheep over the border in the English Bluetongue zones (See also www.dailypost.co.uk )
Dr Ruth Watkins recently expressed puzzlement at the apparent illogicality of a VFP and expensive pre-movement tests: "...If DEFRA have decided that we are essentially in a period when no further transmission is taking place because their surveillance within the protection zone and within the surveillance zone shows no transmission, and there have been no new reports of clinical cases, so that they feel it is safe to forego the declaration of new control and surveillance zones around the Middlesborough cow (nor the Worcester ones), then people ought to be free to move animals out of the Surveillance zone into the unrestricted areas without expensive testing..." Read in full

December 27 2007 ~ Temporary authorisation of use given to Intervet's first vaccine against serotype 8 in France

A french press release (Dec 21) from the French 'Agence de Securite Sanitaire des Aliments' (See gds18.org) tells us that the marketing authorization section of the AFSSA has approved the authorization of Intervet's BOVILIS BTV and has given it a Temporary Use Permit (In France known as an ATU) This means that the vaccine will now be usable in France under official veterinary control. Bovilis BTV is inactivated vaccine of Bluetongue serotype 8 for sheep and cattle.

December 23 2007 ~ ProMed moderator wonders what scientific advice was sought for establishing VFP

ProMed "It will be interesting to note the scientific background for the decision; it is to be hoped that the advice of Pirbright's IAH (Institute of Animal Health) experts was sought. Pirbright and Onderstepoort laboratories have been world leaders in BTV research and diagnosis for decades. In particular, the study of the transmitting midges, culicoides, has been thoroughly addressed. For IAH's Guide to the British Culicoides, go to http://www.iah.bbsrc.ac.uk/bluetongue/culicoides/index.html"

December 22 2007 ~ Commission Decision of 30th November - but where is the UK?

" The programmes for the eradication and monitoring of bluetongue submitted by Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Luxembourg the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Romania and Slovenia are hereby approved for the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2008. ..." The EU pdf file is here. We cannot understand why the UK does not feature in contributions towards the eradication of the mentioned diseases (including Bluetongue and bovine TB) and would welcome any explanation. See also Blog

December 21 ~ DEFRA confirms VFP

The vector-free period for Bluetongue disease has been declared from Thursday 20 December, "allowing relaxation of certain movement restrictions in relation to the control of Bluetongue". See Defra website and Farmers Guardian

December 21 ~ "We deserve an explanation"

We understand that Defra has said that if the UK took up the offer of EC funding for vaccination, there would be "other costs" that would probably be greater. "Other costs" - to what does this refer? An emailer writes,
"We deserve an explanation. Does this refer to traceability, surveillance and accountability, all dependent on a competent government department capable of communicating and handling data?
If Defra reject the offer and make livestock keepers pay while at the same time allow low levels of vaccination putting all at risk, without true and comprehensive consultation, then Defra must take full financial and moral responsibility for the consequences to all livestock keepers."
The way DEFRA is reacting to the crisis is irregular to say the least. Its officials are behaving as if wholly unaware of the real feeling in the farming community, and the policy threatens to pose far more risk than it aims to solve.

21 December 2007 ~ "It is understood that following an extensive surveillance programme, Defra will announce the amnesty on restrictions in the coming weeks."

The Farmers Guardian reports that Defra will announce the amnesty on restrictions in the coming weeks.
"....The relaxation will allow farmers in the zones to move animals into disease-free areas, both in the UK and the EU, easing the immediate pressure on the livestock industry. With no new cases of the disease in domestic livestock for almost a month, many farmers are now urging Defra to scale back the restrictions and allow farm-to-farm movements....."
The article repeats that farmers will have to pay for the vaccine and that "With demand likely to outstrip supply, Defra are currently consulting with stakeholders on how a vaccination strategy can be put in place."

21 December 2007 ~ 20 imported cows on premises near Worcester have tested positive for Bluetongue

The farm is within the current bluetongue surveillance zone. The cows came from within a Protection Zone in the Netherlands. DEFRA's routinely carries out post-import testing on all bluetongue susceptible animals entering the UK. See FWi

21 December 2007 ~ "Defra are currently consulting with stakeholders on how a vaccination strategy can be put in place"

21 December 2007 ~ German exporter's checks for Bluetongue before exporting the Middlesborough cow

We have been sent a pdf file that the 35 dairy cattle for breeding that arrived on December 1st had certification that appeared correct. One cow was PCR and Elisa positive The importer said there had been insecticide treatment on the 5th and 11th of November. PCR carried out on the sample on 23rd November was negative. As Sabine Zentis says below, " The only way animals can be moved safely is either to buy a vaccinated animal or an animal that has tested positive for antibodies but negative for the virus."

20 December 2007 ~ More imported Bluetongue infected cows - from the Netherlands

20 imported cows on a farm in Worcester. They have all been killed - but this does not seem to have been done in order to avoid enlarging the zones (Worcester is already within the Surveillance zone). It seems a pity that it was thought necessary to kill these cows. In winter, the chances of a midge biting one, becoming infected and passing the infection on are surely very remote? Were the cows actually still infectious as well as previously infected? (Comment welcome - comment received) What is certain is that infected livestock cannot spread the disease to other animals directly.
The Farmers Guardian reports that "...The NFU have now called on Defra to ban imports from EU bluetongue zones until they have developed a strategy to ensure that imported livestock can be properly policed..." and the Worcester News also has the story. (The news was not on the DEFRA website at when we reported on this at 2 p.m.....and still had not, nearly three hours later. Now, this evening, it has appeared.)

20 December 2007 ~ "How is infection maintained during the colder time of the year?"

asks Sabine Zentis on ProMed ".......BTV-8 is different in that many more cattle show severe clinical signs of disease in a way not experienced in any other outbreak of bluetongue. What are the long term effects on cattle health and productivity? What are the effects on the fetus, depending on the state of pregnancy of the dam when infected? Is re-infection with the same serotype on a wide scale possible, as allegedly experienced by some farmers?....."
In reply to her questions and comments, the moderator says
"... Direct and closer contact between field and laboratory, farm and researcher is required. The livelihood of thousands (probably more than 10 000; the absence of exact figures is another manifestation of the deficient investigation effort) of animal breeders in 8 European countries has been severely affected by BTV-8 since its initial discovery (Belgium, August 2006). Animal suffering is another issue.
.... prospects for 2008 are rather bleak, particularly in areas -- such as Wales and Scotland, but also in other vast regions -- where large populations of susceptible animals may be exposed to BTV-8 for the 1st time next year [2008], while their preventive vaccination has not yet been secured....."
Read posting and commentary in full on ProMed

Dec 20 2007 ~ "with new tags it is asking flies to attack sheep as soon as they smell blood "

Traceability of sheep. The EU decision to bring in electronic tagging for sheep at the end of 2009 is discussed on the opposite page For most UK farmers, as Neil Parish says, the cost is going to be out of proportion to the financial value of the animals. " We are simply not there yet with the technology needed to make this work. Cast ewes are worth only a few pounds, so how can farmers afford to tag them with microchips and purchase expensive readers?" he says. An email today points out that ear tags not only hurt the animals when they are put in or torn out, they also attract midges. " I always used antiseptic spray but I doubt very much that the commercial farmer will spend even more money buying spray for every ear they tag .... ear tags in any animal can only be a danger in attracting all sorts of flies and midges in warm weather." (email)

Thursday 20 Dec 2007 ~ UK sheep are not traceable in the way cattle are - but it is vital that they are vaccinated.

One of the conditions for EU funding for vaccination would seem to be the traceability of the vaccinated animals. (As we noted below this is a possibility for UK silence on the subject of the EU's agreement to fund the first year's vaccination programme. The EU took away our derogation on double tagging because the European Union's Food and Veterinary Office considered neither UK sheep identification nor the UK's enforcement of the system adequate ) Sheep are not traceable in the way cattle are - but, as Ruth Watkins has pointed out,
"this did not stop the Italians and others from achieving over 80% vaccination against BTV and showing this was sufficient to control the infection (they suffer from repeated reintroduction by midges on the wind)."
The ratio of cattle to sheep in Germany and France is probably almost 80:20 anyway so if they vaccinated all cattle sheep may hardly be sufficient to maintain BTV. In the UK, however, the ratio of cattle to sheep is more like 25:75, - ie the other way round. It is essential for us to vaccinate our sheep.

19 Dec 2007 ~ The German veterinary organisation is requesting compulsory vaccination for all bovines

UPDATE We see that the french press have publicised the Commission's agreement to finance the bluetongue vaccination campaign - and yet, like the UK, Germany too appears to be ignoring this and is planning to make cattle farmers pay for the vaccine and administration themselves.- There are about 2.4 million sheep and 13 million cows in Germany. In the UK there are 10.3 million cattle and over 33.3 million sheep. (Cattle have to be vaccinated twice) One wonders how on earth any vaccination "plan" that tells farmers vaccination is voluntary and must be paid for can reduce disease or have any impact on the spread of the virus. We understand that the German veterinary organisation is requesting compulsory vaccination for all bovines - and wonder if our own veterinary societies will manage to speak out.

19 Dec 2007 ~ Firm UK vaccine order placed for 22.5 million doses. Farmers to be asked to pay for it in spite of EU agreeing to contribute costs

DEFRA has at last placed a firm order for 22.5 million doses of Bluetongue vaccine . The order has been placed only with Intervet. See News release. We note with some concern the sentence: "In keeping with the principles set out in the Bluetongue Control Strategy, which was developed in partnership with the farming industry, livestock keepers will be offered the opportunity to purchase vaccine from the vaccine bank. " - this seems odd when we now know that the EU is underwriting the cost of vaccine and half the cost of the administration next year. See below. Does DEFRA consider that, because the "control strategy" was developed "in partnership" with those members of the farming industry who make up the "core" stakeholders, that this entitles DEFRA to continue to ask all affected farmers to pay? We'd welcome any emailed comment or explanation about why DEFRA still feels it necessary to ask farmers to pay for the vaccine.

Dec 19 ~DEFRA "more likely they will want farmers to pay for it from the start and get used to doing so, as the EU won't pick up the tab for ever .."

"...and UK Govt. certainly don't want to either." One of several answers to the question above came from Jane Barribal: "The whole thing is so damn ridiculous and becomes more farcical by the day. The farmers I speak to now (in and out of the zones) are totally sick of all the restrictions and rubbish from DEFRA. They just want the vaccine manufactured ASAP and to be able to buy it wherever they are without any restrictions. Basically, just want to be left alone to get on with farming."

Wednesday 19 Dec 2007 ~ questions over the safety of allowing animals from EU bluetongue zones into free areas of the UK.

The Farmers Guardian reports that an investigation is underway to determine how the infected cow passed a veterinary inspection in Germany before being exported here. It is surprising that so few seem to understand the nature of the disease, spread only by the bite of an infected female midge of the culicoides family. It does not pass from animal to animal and the only viable way to prevent its spread is vaccination with the appropriate BTv-8 strain of vaccine. As Sabine Zentis points out below, "I am sure the blood test done on this animal prior to export would have returned a negative result. But, as always, between sampling and export there are approximately 10 days and during this time a lot can happen...."
The only way animals can be moved safely is either to buy a vaccinated animal or an animal that has tested positive for antibodies but negative for the virus. Read Frau Zentis' email in full.
It will be interesting to see what the meeting convened by the EU Commission in Brussels ( in the Charlemagne building) on 16 January 2008 will bring forth. We are very relieved to know that Frau Zentis and another eminent member of ELA will be attending this meeting.

Tuesday 18 Dec 2007 ~ The EU committee agreed yesterday to contribute to the costs for vaccination.

We understand that Markos Kyprianou has agreed that the EU will contribute to the costs of vaccination. Countries have to submit their vaccination plans before the middle of January. We are told, "This is for 2008, it is not clear if this is also for 2009"
We wonder whether DEFRA will be communicating this information. The Commission's article 3 of 90/424/EEC provides 100% compensation for vaccine and 50% of costs for the first year of emergency vaccination at least, but this somehow never seems to be mentioned in DEFRA news releases. Instead, we read in the November 13th Statement by Mr Benn, that "......we are developing a detailed vaccination plan for approval by the European Commission and livestock keepers will be offered the opportunity to purchase vaccine from the bank. to buy vaccine."
Perhaps this will now change.

Monday December 17 ~ BVA says rules make no sense

"We're taking a huge risk.." Vets are questioning how it can be that livestock can still be imported from the continent where there have been thousands of cases of bluetongue disease, while farmers are restricted over where they can sell animals within this country. On Farming Today (Listen again) Anna Hill hears the concerns of the British Veterinary Association which believes the current EU rules just don't make sense. (Warmwell transcript Nick Blayney says "We have a small window of opportunity where with proper use of vaccine we may be able to eradicate this disease." but can anyone tell us whether the 20 million doses have yet been actually and definitely ordered and if so, from which companies? )
UPDATE One emailer writes,
"Are you sure that Nick Blayney's last word was "culled"? Or was it "cold"? I've played it over and over and can't tell! " …Thank goodness it was culled." I would also challenge Defra's lack of willingness to attempt to change EU and OIE regulations."

Dec 15 2007 ~ "If DEFRA feel it is safe to forego the declaration of new control and surveillance zones around the Middlesborough cow, then people ought to be free to move animals out of the Surveillance zone into the unrestricted areas without expensive testing."

It is difficult not to be in full agreement with this email - which continues,
"This is not allowed to farmers . Yet is allowed for DEFRA, without explanation given. (They have also missed part of the South Coast of England off the restriction zone when it looks like it is within 150 km of France. The edge of the red area on the EU map should be continuous across the channel.)"
Animals are, at present, allowed between premises in the protection zone, and from the surveillance zone to the protection zone but no animals have been allowed to move out of the zones. After the onset of the vector free period (and see below that Germany is not declaring one at all this year) UK animals can only move out of the surveillance zone to an unrestricted zone when expensive tests for virus or antibodies have been done at prescribed times (14 days for PCR testing and 28 days for antibody testing after the start of the VFP).

Saturday Dec 15 2007 ~ Vaccine for Wales

"Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones has written to Hilary Benn to join the tendering process and order 2.5 million doses of bluetongue vaccine which will be made available for purchase by livestock keepers in Wales on a voluntary basis....The European Commission has declared that vaccination will be permitted only inside a bluetongue Protection Zone. The Welsh Assembly Government has the power to declare a Protection Zone within Wales if it is considered that enabling vaccination would benefit disease control. The Minister said:
"There have been no cases of bluetongue in Wales to date but given the unpredictability of this disease I am determined that we have resources available to us should they be required."
www.egovmonitor.com

Saturday Dec 15 2007 ~ email received from Sabine Zentis about the imported cow found to be infected with Bluetongue in Middlesborough

Extract: "I am sure the blood test done on this animal prior to export would have returned a negative result. But, as always, between sampling and export there are approximately 10 days and during this time a lot can happen....... with regard to the vector free period, for Germany the Government has declared there will be no vector free period this year..... People should get real; the only way animals can be moved safely is either to buy a vaccinated animal or an animal that tested positive for antibodies but negative for the virus...." Read email in full.

Friday December 14 2007 ~ UK imports Bluetongue infected cow.

The unfortunate cow came from inside a Protection Zone in Lower Saxony and, says DEFRA, "was detected through routine post-import testing carried out on all bluetongue susceptible animals entering the UK"
DEFRA announces that the farm near Middlesbrough has been placed under restrictions, adding that the BTv Protection Zone is not going to include the area at present and there will be no changes.
" the cow will be culled as it potentially provides a source of infection for the local midge population, and therefore other animals." ,
Comments about this, (and in particular the decision to kill the cow and its likely infectivity to any hardy midges,) would be welcome.
UPDATE See below. (We also hear that the cow has been there for 2 weeks)

Friday December 14 2007 ~ The cow "..should never have received papers for export."

Once again, we are very grateful to Dr Ruth Watkins for her view, sent to warmwell this evening:
"If the midge free period has not been declared, the period when there is no transmission, then the farm should be in a control zone surrounded by a surveillance zone. There is no mention of when the cow entered the country. She should never have been exported from the protection zone anyway. She should never have received papers for export. Culling her does not preclude the epidemiological steps that should be taken.
I notice that part of the South coast of Britain should really be in a surveillance zone, 150 km from France but is not.
When DEFRA insists British farmers keep to rules that it flouts without explanation it loses further credibility."

Friday December 14 2007 ~ "Member States agreed that the deadline for submitting their vaccination plans for 2008 to the Commission could be 31 January 2008"

Here is the report of the Working Group on an EU harmonised strategy on vaccination against Bluetongue, Brussels 3 December 2007. It includes each Member State's preliminary estimates on vaccine needs against Bluetongue.

Friday December 14 2007 ~ "Vaccines producers provided assurance that they have enough production capacity to supply vaccines for mass vaccination in the EU "

Short report of the meeting on November 21st with the vaccine producers. The report conatins a preliminary indication of the capacity for vaccine supply of each producer.
A report from the meeting on November 5th on an EU harmonised strategy on vaccination can be seen on this pdf file.

Thursday December 13 2007 ~ Most recent UK bluetongue report (No. 10) does report 66 confirmed BT outbreaks.

We reported 66 on December 8th. The OIE "Wahid Interface" shows the latest update from Fred Landeg, sent on the 6th December, confirms this number.
As an emailer drily remarks, "DEFRA's people who are charged with updating the website probably haven't been told yet. ..."

Thursday December 13 2007 ~" it will be impossible for the Scottish Government and Welsh Assembly to enjoy the benefit of having a full range of options at its disposal if it has not ordered vaccine and there is none to hand.."

Kim Haywood of the NBA is quoted in Stackyard today in an article that also suggests that Defra may be prepared to extend the current protection zone to cover all of England's counties so that any cattle or sheep farmer can take part in a cross-England vaccination protection programme.
Kim Haywood said, "Decisions are easier in England because the disease is already circulating within its borders while in Scotland and Wales there is still debate on whether there will ever be a bluetongue outbreak and the Scottish Government and the Welsh Assembly has yet to decide whether to order any vaccine." (More)

Thursday December 13 2007 ~ "Get vaccine for bluetongue now" Daily Post

The Welsh newspaper quotes a Belgian sheep farmer, Jan Van Grinderachter, who has been talking to members the Suffolk Sheep Shropshire and Montgomeryshire Club "Some animals you see and think will die, but they survive. Others look OK and two days later they are dead," he said and added that treatment should not be started until symptoms are seen because fever is needed to kickstart the immune system. New needles for each case is essential. He urged farmers not to get stock too fat and ensure they receive adequate vitamins and minerals to strengthen immune systems. He said: "If they have a reserve of vitamin E and selenium it helps."
"Symptoms include excessive saliva - a "white beard" - and bulging of eyes. Often there's blood in nasal mucus, inflammation of the mouth, oedema, lameness and stiffness, doziness and loss of appetite.
Read article ( the writer's reference to "inactive vaccine" means , of course, "inactivated" vaccine.)

Thursday December 13 2007 ~ ProMed's BTV-8 Update for week 48 (26 Nov - 2 Dec 2007)

Sabine Zentis has compiled for ProMed an update of the situation in Europe which can be seen on ProMed here 44 271 outbreaks of BTV serotype 8 have been reported in Europe since the beginning of July 2007.
Frau Zentis' report from Germany describes the severe losses in one flock of dairy sheep. It also suggests strongly that fallow deer, reported not to have shown symptoms, can throw off the disease quickly. A letter from Germany to the Vet Record reports the death of an alpaca and, although the cause of death is not definitively proved, "PCR revealed sequences of bluetongue virus in tissue samples (blood, lymph nodes and spleen), whereas no sequences of ovine herpesvirus type 2 were detectable"

Wednesday December 12 2007 ~ Has vaccine been ordered or not? The government still "plan to make an announcement on the outcome shortly."

When Bill Wiggin asked what effect the decision to suspend the SAPO licence at Merial would have on the production of a bluetongue vaccine, Jonathan Shaw's reply was virtually the same as that given before - that it was "too early to say", that the suspension of the SAPO licence didn't prevent Merial from conducting "development of a bluetongue vaccine" and that "We are currently considering bids from all three companies that were submitted following our recent tendering exercise and we plan to make an announcement on the outcome shortly."
Yet we knew in the middle of November that Merial had already produced the 'master virus seed', used to make the active part of the finished vaccine and that the large scale production of finished vaccine was to switch to its Lyons plant. European Commission health spokesman Philip Tod said Brussels was working with the relevant authorities to 'speed up the marketing authorisation process'.
Since vaccine was acknowledged to be the only logical way forward and that it would, according to Bernard Vallat in March, be "very, very useful to have a vaccine ready to be used in all Europe by the Spring of 2008", the way governments and the EU have responded to this issue can hardly be termed "speeded up".

Dec 12 2007 ~ Animal disease cost sharing consultation launched yesterday

In spite of the widespread view that the government's decision to press on with this is "divorced from reality" DEFRA has launched its "Consultation on responsibility and cost sharing for animal Health and welfare: next steps - your views matter ".
The aim is to get farmers to contribute to the cost of diseases such as foot-and-mouth and bluetongue.
"....This comes at a time when the whole of the livestock sector is in severe economic crisis. To suggest now that the industry should be picking up additional costs from government is divorced from reality."
The statement from 28 organisations including the National Farmers' Union, National Pig Association, British Poultry Council, National Beef Association and National Sheep Association (See FWi) says that costs must be minimised and a genuine joint responsibility for animal disease policy must be established before there is any question of sharing them.

Dec 12 2007 ~"....it is surely crazy for Defra to suggest that it should achieve its spending cut targets simply by transferring costs to the industry..."

In the Lords on Thursday, the Earl of Caithness asked why farming should pick up the cost of managing an outbreak from a body that cannot even manage its own laboratory safely and whose management skills and efficiency are so lacking:
"...I understand that it costs the Government nearly six times as much per head to collect sheep for TSE testing as it does for the National Fallen Stock Company to collect equivalent casualty animals. If Defra needs to save a lot of money, which it does, it should look to more efficient ways of carrying out the work, rather than simply handing a bill to the industry..."
Again, we quote Dr Roger Breeze in the paper "Industry Cost Sharing"
"Industry cannot negotiate meaningfully if its "negotiation" comments are only responses to proposals and goals of the government."
Since it is virtually impossible for farmers to get insurance against exotic animal disease, the present consultation simply adds to the burdens and worries faced by so many. As we saw in August, (www.financemarkets.co.uk) "insurers are failing farmers by not offering insurance cover for the impact of foot and mouth disease....there is little insurance protection for loss following an incidence of foot and mouth..."

Dec 10 2007 ~ Accuracy of Bluetongue presentations reporting is questioned

The official presentations on the ScoFCAH meeting in Brussels last week can be downloaded here - but one of our correspondents from Germany is sceptical and says he is
".... quite angry: the numbers are completely out..! There you can read: 17,091 sheep ill, 32% letality, 3% "stamped out", - which would mean nearly 6,000 dead sheep in the whole of Germany.
As far as I know, estimated by officials from its regional ministry, there are more than 20,000 dead sheep and 2,000 dead cattle in North Rhine-Westphalia alone!"
(Letality is a word we do not recognise. For the benefit of fellow ignoramuses we'd very much appreciate a definition. Is it exactly the same as "mortality"?)
UPDATE kind emailer writes, "I think the word letality must come from "lethal" and if you look at page 4 of the document attached (sorry about its size) this would appear to mean mortality. The term stamping out really shouldn't be used here. Did this not come from culling to stamp out further spread of a disease - FMD? I think the German document means by stamping out to destroy (or put down) animals rather than animals that died."

Dec 8 2007 ~ There are now 66 premises on which Bluetongue has been found (Defra website not yet updated) in the existing Protection Zone.

There are no changes to the zones. UK zones will be aligned to mainland Europe zones and this should facilitate movement between zones when live export resumes. By Monday 10th DEFRA expects to have news on its website about permission for movements between premises on the same holding but which are within 5 miles either side of a restricted area border, since at present the border line sometimes actually cuts through farms.
Official news of the vaccination order is imminent. We hear that announcements are nearly ready on the potential declaration of a vector free period and the allowance of movements of animals to live out of restricted zones. Testing requirements for such movements and the associated measures will make them unviable for many if not all commercial flocks but it might be of help for high value pedigree animals. (Our thanks for this to the NSA's update. The information above is partly paraphrased from it.)

Dec 7 2007 ~ Worries that BTV-8 in the north of France and BTV-1 in the South might meet and cause even more problems are probably groundless

Expert opinion seen by Warmwell has this to say: "I tend to lean towards Ruth's view that the co-circulation of 2 serotypes does not mean increased virulence or heightened disease risk. There can be exchange of genetic material (recombination) between 2 serotypes in the field but as far as is known these will, firstly, be minuscule (in evolutionary terms) and, secondly, have never spawned a "supervirulent" new serotype of BTV (nor led to sudden elevated virulence within a known serotype) i.e. the genes linked to virulence are highly conserved."

Dec 7 2007 ~ 20 million doses have been ordered by DEFRA for England

Latest information (unable to find this yet on the internet) is that the UK has ordered 20 Million doses for England, and that vaccination - according to current legislation - will only be allowed in the protection zone (the blue bits). More as soon as we hear.

Dec 7 2007 ~ "Let them eat hay"

The Daily Post reports,
" the industry is beginning to think the unthinkable.....crisis-hit Welsh farming has evoked the spectre of the Scottish Clearances as the industry "fights for its life" amid spiralling gloom."
The unthinkable indeed - but when there is so evidently an irritated disdain for farming among several powerful, urban politicians, it is a thought that keeps recurring. As Newbury's Richard Benyon said in Tuesday's debate: "... one of my constituents telephoned the DEFRA office to ask what he should do with the 1,400 lambs that he had to move that week. He was asked, "Well, haven't you got any hay for them?" ..." (Tuesday's debate on DEFRA)

December 7 2007 ~ "work is being done at Tetracore to develop test reagents for on-site Bluetongue testing.."

An American emailer from Kansas, concerned that portable, on-site rapid RT-PCR does not seem to be being used in his country either, asked the reagent company about prices for the test kits for animal diseases. They can be used with the portable on-site machines to detect animal disease at the actual site of possible infection before symptoms appear - as well as in fixed-base RT-PCR equipment. He was told that the basic reagent kit price is 12 dollars for each and they are sold in sets of 64. They are working on a reagent for BTv.

December 7 2007 ~ " if you think education is expensive then try ignorance."

For diseases such as FMD, bovine tuberculosis, H5N1, Bluetongue - and soon, no doubt, Equine Influenza and many more, the UK's continuing ignorance of state-of-the-art rapid diagnostic technology is incomprehensible. As Roger Breeze said in an email yesterday (in response to a query about the price of the test reagents quoted by Tetracore to our American correspondent,)
"... There is an old saying that if you think education is expensive then try ignorance. I cannot believe that 12 dollars is excessive for a test for the world's most dangerous livestock disease that finds infected animals before signs of illness (and infectivity to others), that is produced in a facility licensed by USDA and FDA and manufactured under good laboratory practices, and that finds as few as 10 dead virus particles compared to the 1000 particles necessary to detect by cell culture." (more)
The harping on about "validation" may be a way of deflecting challenge - but validation for rRT-PCR is not required by the OIE for its use in an emergency like an FMD outbreak. We can only hope that things change very soon. As for Bluetongue policy, is DEFRA listening to the experts at IAH and elsewhere - or listening only to those who consider that ignorance is a positive asset when it comes to giving scientific advice? Latest Blog.

December 5 2007 ~ The Dutch Ministry has already sent a report of the meeting to all those concerned in its own country

SCoFCAH Meeting, Brussels, Dec 3 and 4. It would appear from early reports that only 3 Member States have tendered for BTV8 vaccines so far. We hear that the Commission believes the vaccines will certainly be available in May/June - but if insufficient amounts have been ordered it is going to be a problem for Member States to decide which animals and which areas should be vaccinated first. Although the Commission's article 3 of 90/424/EEC provides 100% compensation for vaccine and 50% of costs for the first year of emergency vaccination at least, this is somehow never mentioned in the UK. What is mentioned is that farmers themselves are to pay for vaccines. We are hoping to publish a translated report from Holland of the SCoFCAH meeting very shortly. The Dutch Ministry has already sent the report to those concerned in its own country by email. We, on the other hand, do not yet know for certain if the UK was even represented at the meeting and would much appreciate any information on this point.

December 5 2007 ~"not only has DEFRA offloaded on to unions, charities and advisory groups the problems of responding at farm business level to bluetongue and foot and mouth, but it has not had the decency to tell them that it has done so."

The final self-congratulatory resolution notwithstanding, last night's debate raised example after example of DEFRA's lack of communication, understanding and management skill. One heartfelt speech by Malcolm Moss gave examples from his constituency of the problems caused - not by the disease itself - but by DEFRA's handling of people and regulations, that would take the breath away were it not for the fact that we are now used to such tales of woe.

December 5 2007 ~ "As far as DEFRA is concerned, there are 21 drowning cattle and their newborn calves."

The extraordinary case of Mr.Frank Harris' stranded cows, raised in yesterday's debate by. Malcolm Moss (North-East Cambridgeshire), makes for miserable reading.
"I rang my office to say that he had 21 suckler cows in calf on the Whittlesey washes on the Nene river. We had telephone contact the same day from other farmers who confirmed that there were a further 200 suckler cows on the same washlands.... Knowing that the land would be flooded, Mr. Harris asked whether we could intervene on his behalf and asked for his cattle to be blood tested so that they could be moved into a protection zone on his farm about 3 miles away, but outside the zone. The same day we wrote on Mr. Harris's behalf to Lord Rooker's office asking for an exception or relaxation to be made on the grounds of animal welfare. We left messages at Lord Rooker's office again on 6 November. A week later on 12 November, we spoke to an official who said that he would chase the matter up, but we have never, to this day, received a response or even an acknowledgement from DEFRA. Mr. Harris has repeatedly tried to obtain permission from the State Veterinary Service in Bury St. Edmunds to move his cattle, but to no avail. Since our inquiries, the land has flooded and some of the cattle, we are informed, have given birth. As far as DEFRA is concerned, there are 21 drowning cattle and their newborn calves."
The debate lasted from 7.25 to 10.15 pm last night. Here it is as a pdf file for ease of searching.

December 5 2007 ~ The case of the stranded cattle. Is the SVS liable under the new Animal Welfare Act for allowing unnecessary suffering?

A vet contacted warmwell today to remind us that a study of the 2006 Animal Welfare Act might prove interesting. We agree. The Bury St Edmunds 'Animal Health' Office (SVS) might be liable under the AWA in that they knew animals were likely to suffer. Although the Act considers "whether the conduct which caused the suffering was in compliance with any relevant enactment or any relevant provisions of a licence or code of practice issued under an enactment" it also, in the same section, considers
"whether the conduct concerned was in all the circumstances that of a reasonably competent and humane person."
Under the Act one does not actually have to prove suffering. The case is one that should never have been allowed to happen. The farmer's premises are only three miles away. He has not even been permitted to prove via testing that his animals are safe to be moved back to the farm. Such inflexibility is neither competent nor humane. How can we have come to this?

December 5 2007 ~ "I rather doubt that many who have had to contend with DEFRA over the years will share in the general air of back-slapping. .."

said Peter Ainsworth, but after the party faithful came trooping back to the Chamber to divide (but not to listen) the voting resulted in the following extraordinary resolution. However, the Yorkshire Post today publishes Peter Ainsworth's thoughts on DEFRA's competence. Punches are not pulled.

December 5 2007 ~ "It's vital that an effective vaccine is widely available as soon as possible, ideally before next Spring.." Peter Barr CBE

www.meatinfo.co.uk"Speaking the annual MLC Chairman's Reception in Brussels last night (4 December) Barr told members of the European Commission and Parliament and representatives of the UK meat and livestock industry that the industry faces a number of challenges, not only in the UK but across the European Community. "The challenge of Blue Tongue is widespread and one with which many Member States are only too familiar. It's vital that an effective vaccine is widely available as soon as possible, ideally before next Spring," he said. "Without a vaccine I'm seriously concerned that the costs of this disease will start rising exponentially."
Warmwell is still hoping for news of what was actually said in relation to Bluetongue at the Brussels SCofCAH meetings on Monday and Tuesday this week. As we say below, the vaccine producers maintain that getting vaccine in sufficient quantity is not a problem - provided that adequate orders are firmly made. But this has been being said for well over a month now and the apparent inaction seems extraordinary.

December 4/5 2007 ~A chance to put questions to Merial

David Biland, managing director for Merial (UK and Ireland), has agreed to answer questions from Farmers Weekly readers during an interview to be carried out later this week. " If you have a question - or just want to read what others have already suggested - look at the Merial Animal Health discussion thread on the forums. To post a question you will need to be signed in to the forums."

December 4 2007 ~ Tests for the bluetongue disease on a Scottish cow returned negative results.

The results are reported by the BBC on the cow on a farm near Dumfries as negative. It would be interesting to know what tests were used and what other diseases were included in the screening test.
The SCoFCAH meeting in Brussels today and yesterday may have produced some interesting information on several issues and we look forward keenly to news. See agenda.

December 3 2007 ~ Who is advising the government on Bluetongue?

It would be interesting to know many of those vets advising DEFRA on Bluetongue are specialists in that disease in any sense of the word. Are they even partially informed or merely working in a fog. It is a deep worry that partially informed advisers take no responsiblity, cannot take any decisions, and hide behind a tangle of rules and regulations to defend their inaction. As far as we know, not one of the people advising the UK government is a specialist, not one of them, as far as we know, is a farmer. Any email to tell us our fears are groundless, that there are experts in the disease giving sound advice and that they are indeed taking responsibility for their advice - would be reassuring and very welcome.
UPDATE We have been reminded that there is indeed expertise at the Institute of Animal Health-
"There is real expertise at the IAH - and they advise DEFRA - what DEFRA does with the advice is another matter ...."

December 1 2007 ~ "....The increased budget for 2008 from €52.97.000 in 2007 is mainly due to an increased allocation to counter Bluetongue disease in many Member states."

www.europa.eu"The European Commission has approved a financial package of €186.57 million to support programmes to eradicate, control and monitor animal diseases in 2008" ........ For the year 2008, 61 annual or multi-annual programmes to eradicate 10 important animal diseases have been granted Community financial support. The total EU contribution to these programmes is €70.075.000. The increased budget for 2008 from €52.97.000 in 2007 is mainly due to an increased allocation to counter Bluetongue disease in many Member states."
How much of this will the UK be asking for, one wonders.

November 30 ~ " the PZ will be expanded west and vaccination will follow it. Apparently, the PZ can be expanded to cover the whole SZ"

A sheep farmer from Gloucestershire writes, " As I understand the situation, at the moment, vaccination can only be done within the Protection Zone and then, when completed, the PZ will be expanded west and vaccination will follow it. Apparently, the PZ can be expanded to cover the whole Surveillance Zone. The decision has to be made about then moving into the 'clean' zone. Hope this is of help. When I hear more next week I'll let you know."
We very much appreciate information like this and hope that next week's SCOFCAH working party meeting will help enlighten us all further.

November 30 ~ "There is no timescale currently for any reinstatement of the SAPO licence," Defra spokeswoman

November 30 2007 ~ Bluetongue has now reached the Czech Republic

Movement restrictions are in place. A cow in the far west has been diagnosed with BTV-8 making the Czech republic the ninth Northern European country to be affected. See www.boerderij.nl/
UPDATE - On the ProMed page reporting this outbreak (not yet accessible on the server) , the Moderator (AS) says, "It is likely that the virus will overwinter over this year's (2007) winter as it did last year. Results of entomological surveillance in the affected countries, to identify the vector species responsible for the striking spread of the disease, are anticipated with great interest and concern."

November 30 2007 ~ " To hold up vaccination for sheep and cattle until the appropriate vaccination strategy has been decided for goats would not only be highly irresponsible, it would endanger all three species."

On the subject of the vaccination of goats, an emailer asks,
" It has not yet been established what is the appropriate course of vaccination for goats using the new BTV8 vaccine. Have you not considered the obvious - that adequate vaccination for sheep and cattle in the UK would go a long way towards safeguarding goats, as the number of infected midges would be greatly reduced?Once an appropriate vaccination strategy for goats has been established, they too will be able to be included in any UK vaccination strategy."
All informed comment is welcome. (What we do know from Holland is that goat holders who have been affected and their colleagues want to vaccinate next year. One does not hear them complaining about the vaccine not being suitable for goats.)

November 29 2007 ~ "get out the word that goats will not be spared.."

It is with consternation that warmwell heard that in the UK goats may not be included in the initial marketing authorisation for vaccine " as the work required might delay release for cattle and sheep". The level of cover given to goats is being investigated by at least one of the three manufacturers, according to a member of the GVS. A correspondent writes from Holland
"Most small-scale keepers an hobby holders thought up till two months ago that BT was not for goats. But we know now of 26 infected farms (dairy goats); and through some goat holders I know that more and more goats do get affected. Most of them are dull, hazy, have difficulty walking. And an occasional dying by suffocation. If you then consider that last year not one goat was reported, then one can only fear for next year. So get out the word that goats will not be spared."

November 29 2007 ~"at this time of year I would not expect to find the virus on the move significantly out of the control or protection zone" Dr Ruth Watkins.

Our expert virologist correspondent writes "..I would not expect there are any infected animals inside the surveillance zone. It seems disproportionate at this time of the year that animals a mere 50 yards the other side of the surveillance zone on the Welsh border cannot be moved for 60 days after the start of the midge free time is declared - they might declare it at after the start of January.
I would like to see the results of surveillance inside the surveillance zone. On balance I think we should not introduce infected animals into Wales at this juncture before vaccination is available and has been given. I hope they will vaccinate essentially all of England (to include the buffer of some 200km beyond the control or protection zone line)" We are always very grateful for informed comment.

November 29 2007 ~ "CLA Wales is urging the Assembly Government to stop dallying and order in stocks of bluetongue vaccine to create a firebreak along the border."

And as the Welsh Daily Post points out, "For this to happen it would first need to apply to the EU for consent to vaccinate in a bluetongue-free area."

November 29 2007 ~ "There appears to be no intelligible strategy as to how the 10 - 20 million doses would be deployed."

James Irvine, writing from Scotland last week at www.land-care.org.uk
"....On the basis of these numbers Scotland would clearly get none. It would just have to wait, as England did, until the disease arrives. And wait in the long queue for more vaccine to be made by the vaccine manufacturers. A long queue because most of the EU will be trying to play catch up with BT vaccination which they should have planned long ago.
One really has to wonder just who is giving advice to Defra. Or is Defra over-riding advice that it is being given? Are the epidemiological modellers at work here, with their apparent lack of understanding of how vaccination works? Or are the selfish, short-term commercial interests of pedigree breeders being favoured over the industry as a whole?
No scientist worth his/her salt would recommend voluntary vaccination in the case of Bluetongue. Likewise, no scientist worth his/her salt would recommend waiting until a predicted disease arrives, rather than vaccinating before it arrives. But other so-called "stakeholders" might, their ears deaf to science."
Dr Irvine adds, "Valuable time was wasted by the EC as it argued interminably over the consequences to trade from the spread of Bluetongue within EU Member States. Only now does the EC appear to be tackling the obvious task of putting together a coherent vaccination policy."

November 28 2007 ~ Bluetongue situation in the EU and Bluetongue vaccination strategy for 2008 - items 5 ande 6 on Monday's Agenda in Brussels

Warmwell is grateful to have been sent the agenda for the STANDING COMMITTEE ON THE FOOD CHAIN AND ANIMAL HEALTH Section Animal Health and Welfare Section Controls and Import Conditions Section Biological Safety of the Food Chain to take place on Monday and Tuesday of next week (see also below) . The pdf file of the agenda for those two days may be viewed here.

November 28 2007 ~The vaccine industry has indicated they can together produce sufficient vaccine for the whole European market.

The leadtime is 6-8 months. They need orders (either direct or by tenders) if there is to be any hope that vaccine is available by May/June/July but if they do get orders, it is looking as though 260 million inactivated vaccine doses could be available by May/June 2008 and a mass vaccination programme will be able to happen. Why, in that case, should it be necessary to exclude animals from the mass vaccination?

November 28 2007 ~ When will vaccine be ordered? Which animals will have priority? Why cannot zones be widened?

One looks in vain at the DEFRA website to find the answers to questions such as the details of a vaccine strategy for when a vaccine becomes available.
There will not be a meeting in Brussels to discuss vaccination until January 16th UPDATE (Apologies for the sentence in italics. We meant no full conference dedicated to this subject. In fact, as we mentioned below, there will be a ScofCah meeting on Monday and Tuesday of next week. See above) but if there is to be a scramble for the vaccine, Member States are likely to be jostling for position when it comes to establish who has priority and an EU wide strategy agreed by every Member State is surely urgently needed.
If, as some believe, Defra wants the option to vaccinate the now-called "surveillance zone" first, it will leave the 9,890 premises with ruminants in the Protection Zone unprotected (and so likely to suffer similar losses as experienced in Belgium and Holland this year). Is DEFRA thinking in terms of what presents the lowest risk and the most 'acceptable' losses? Any information would be gratefully received. Dr Watkins' advice (see her proposed vaccination policy) is that "Vaccination should begin where the infection will first emerge in 2008 and be most intense, that is in the control zone (now called the protection zone)..."
A pdf file showing clinical signs (Netherlands last year) can be seen here.

November 28 2007 ~ "The movement restrictions and the UK export ban have had a particularly heavy impact on hill sheep farmers."

www.n-e-life.com/forbusiness"Businesses in North East England hit by the restrictions caused by Foot and Mouth Disease and Bluetongue are being offered a route to specialist support through Business Link North East. Firms affected by the restrictions can now call 0845 600 9 006
.... "Although the practicalities of moving livestock are slowly returning to near normal, this will have an impact for years to come. At a regional level, we want to help farmers and other affected businesses to recover as best they can and perhaps make their business less susceptible to this type of crisis.

November 26 2007 ~ Is the EU offer to pay for bluetongue vaccine dependent on EU-approved traceability?

When the UK lost its derogation on the double tagging of sheep it was because the European Union's Food and Veterinary Office considered neither UK sheep identification nor its enforcement of the system adequate.
The EU Commission's offer to pay 100% of vaccine and 50% costs in the first year of Bluetongue vaccination is likely, according to a reliable source in Suffolk, to be linked to a proper national traceability scheme. Is this why DEFRA has kept so quiet about the Commission's offer?

November 26 2007 ~ What happened to plans for a National Livestock database?

In 2003 a report, "Identifying and Tracking Livestock in England " was published by the National Audit Office (pdf) . Pages 45 and 46 show how previous reports from several different concerned bodies, had followed one another for years all urging an efficient system of traceability. In spite of this procession, the NAO's 'Timetable for introduction of the Livestock Identification and Tracing Programme' optimistically predicted that there would indeed be an "Introduction of EID in 2006 ..." In February 2004, following the NAO report, the Public Accounts Committee gave Sir Brian Bender and co rather a hard time (A Treasury Minute response to the PAC conclusions also makes fascinating reading); the Oral Evidence makes one wince both at and for the DEFRA witnesses. Mr Gerry Steinberg, ( Labour MP for the city of Durham), prophetically asked Sir Brian Bender: "You will not be coming back in two years' time and saying 'Well, the IT was difficult, we could not get the software'....?" and commented drily,"I will read about it in two years' time in the newspapers or find it on the web."

November 26 2007 ~ Three years later, the UK has no viable Livestock database along Dutch or Irish lines.

The "Draft partial Regulatory Impact Assessment on sheep and goat EID" (pdf file) favoured Option 3 - to "implement minimum level EID from 1 January 2008" but even this is not now likely to be introduced - and no new date has been set for its implementation.
One does wonder how much money has been spent on NOT setting up a workable register - and whether this failure to get to grips with the IT required is going to deprive the UK of the funding for a vital bluetongue vaccination programme. Any information or comment would be most gratefully received.

November 25 2007 ~ Extraordinary rumour

A rumour has reached the warmwell website that the British government is now intending to organise some sort of an "E auction" for Bluetongue BTV-8 vaccine - in other words an attempt to get companies to vie with each other to reduce prices. Vaccines on the cheap. It seems unlikely that any reputable vaccine company would want to participate in such an auction. What matters is the efficacy and safety of the vaccine. The UK's obsession with cost cutting, taken together with today's news about such bizarrely inappropriate golden handshakes, causes us the gravest concern. Any information about the truth or otherwise of this would be very welcome.
What is in no doubt is the dangerous almost unbelievable level of dithering. It is now a month ago that we wrote, "Merial and Intervet say that, between them, they could meet demand in 2008, provided there is a plan. If there is no coherent plan, they will have to produce vaccine based on 'first come - first served' .... "Don't let people confuse you," we are told by the insider who told us the above, "It is just a matter of political will"...."

November 24 ~ "Vector-free periods"

DEFRA is understood to be consulting with stakeholders on the scope to introduce "seasonally vector-free periods" in the UKin which animals can move between zones. The criteria - stated in typical EU language in Annex V of the Oct 26 pdf file have been put into plain English by Farmers Weekly. They add the conditions specified by the new regulation for live animals to move out of zones. Interestingly, permitted animals include those who have naturally acquired immunity without vaccination.

November 24 ~ "We know that properly vaccinated animals do not present any risk." EU commission official

The article in FWi details the EU's new rules that will allow the movement of livestock from bluetongue "restricted zones" to bluetongue "free zones". It is cheering to see that the EU commission official quoted said that "We now have a better scientific knowledge. We know that properly vaccinated animals do not present any risk."
One can only hope that this "better scientific knowledge" at the EU soon extends to a realisation that some rules, particularly those in the FMD Directive that penalise vaccination with an extra three month wait for trade, make no sense. See also EC No 1266/2007 of 26 October 2007 "on implementing rules for Council Directive 2000/75/EC as regards the control, monitoring, surveillance and restrictions on movements of certain animals of susceptible species in relation to bluetongue."

November 24 ~ No mass vaccination until 2009?

According to the Farmers Weekly, all we can hope for is to "identify priority cases for vaccination in all member states." The commission is holding a major conference in January "to develop this strategy". FWi quotes an EU official who said that the BTV8 type affecting northern Europe "had spread too far and too fast."
However, here at last is a newspaper confirming what we have been saying for months but the UK Government has not mentioned at all as far as we are aware - that "there would be financial help in the early stages, with the EU meeting 100% of the cost of the vaccine in the first year, and 50% of the cost of applying it."

November 23 ~ Bluetongue numbers

Numbers in Northern Europe are still growing:
10, 215 cases in France of BTV-8 and now, the bad news that the first case of BTV-1 was confirmed in the southern french region of Pyrénées Atlantiques on November 15th.
Numbers in Germany on Nov 21 were up to 18,796.
The Netherlands, like the UK, seems to calculate according to actual holdings affected. At present the number of Dutch holdings stands at 6300 holdings.
In Luxembourg, a press release of Nov. 15th states that a total of 1200 farms have had cases of BTV 8 (in 2007) Belgium, according to this map of November 22, has 5,842.
A presentation made at the meeting of SCOFAH last Monday explained the newly implemented European BT Network. Commission Regulation (EC) No 1266/2007 introduces the obligation for the Member States to carry out bluetongue monitoring programmes in the restricted zones and surveillance programmes outside the restricted zones. These programmes must include clinical, serological and entomological components. Many may wish the pdf presentation had been lighter on pictures of doubtful relevance and stronger on detail.

November 23 ~ Why are the CVOs dragging their feet on ordering vaccines?

We have been aware for months that the only weapon we have against Bluetongue is a strain specific vaccine. It seems perverse in the extreme that firm vaccine orders have still not been placed. Perhaps the uncertainties about the financing of the whole campaign have not been adequately answered, or the CVOs of Member States may be being held back by anxieties that the absolute safety of vaccine cannot yet be guaranteed. If vaccine companies cannot in the end fulfil the given specifications there can legally be no problem about Member States then cancelling their orders. Surely, it is more reasonable to get on with ordering the vaccines, trusting the experience of the vaccine producers and making sure that we have the vaccine ready as early as possible. This is a disease that is NOT going to go away. Next year's cases, like those in Northern Europe this year, are going to cause far greater losses.
Is this not a case for Brussels to be taking a lead, making clear that most costs will be met centrally and giving the green light for CVOs to act together? Leaving the CVOs to negotiate with each other does not seem to be working.

November 23 ~"If Brussel decides on compulsory vaccination..."

The vaccine manufacturers have once again made it quite clear that, without definite orders, they are not prepared to invest heavily in the production of vaccine. If affected countries could only be definite about what they want to order, the vaccine companies could start production straight away. It seems that it is the dithering of the CVOs that is causing the delay. As we saw yesterday, the UK seems very vague. The Netherlands says that there are cases of BT on 6300 holdings and the Dutch CVO plans to order 2 million doses "to give sheep breeders the opportunity to have their flocks vaccinated on a voluntary basis". But if Brussel could declare that compulsory vaccination is required, the Netherlands would have an option on 10 million doses of vaccine. (link in Dutch)
We very much hope that the Brussels meeting on December 3rd will lead to some decisive action being taken.

November 21 2007 ~ "The zones to control movement of animals do not prevent the spread of the infection,"

writes Ruth Watkins, "as we have witnessed in Europe this summer. The partial vaccination that a voluntary scheme would lead to will also likely make no difference to the spread of BTV-8 either.
I think all the countries at risk have an interest in the control of BTV-8.
It is unfortunate that the economic interest - even temporary advantage - appears to make neighbouring areas so ill disposed...." Read in full

November 21 2007 ~ Vaccination to be voluntary or compulsory? The decision "has not yet been taken"

James Paice asked four questions about the government's vaccination plans yesterday. Jonathan Shaw (Hansard) was not able to give a definitive answer to any of them - but he did say that no decision has yet been reached about whether the plan should involve voluntary or compulsory vaccination and we do not yet know in what areas of the UK it is intended that vaccination should take place. There was no mention at all of the EU paying for vaccination if a compulsory and effective scheme were to be adopted. At least Mr Shaw mentioned that "Discussions are also taking place with the European Commission and other member states" - but, as usual, gave very little detail.

November 21 2007 ~ That "bluetongue virus can be sustained over the winter period" is officially admitted

Mr Paice's questions yesterday showed that DEFRA has at last taken on board the fact that winter is very unlikely to kill off the virus. It seems that virtually the only animals being tested are those already exhibiting clinical signs. See Hansard

November 21 2007 ~ DEFRA pleased with its communication with farmers

Daniel Kawczynski MP asked yesterday about the mechanisms in place to provide assessments of the (a) effectiveness and (b) proportionality of restrictions. He also asked what steps were being taken to ensure that farmers and their representative organisations have the most up-to-date information available on the (a) details, (b) implications and (c) likely timetable of measures to control the bluetongue outbreak. Answers given by Jonathan Shaw assured Mr Kawczynski that "DEFRA works closely with a wide range of farming industry stakeholders on a daily basis to ensure effective communication with farmers" (Yesterday's Blog questions this.)
Good but vague intentions are given as if they were actual achievements. ("DEFRA has put in place measures to minimise the risks of disease spread") But as a Dutch emailer points out, "Infection only shows after a week or ten days" so how on earth can "risk" be "minimised"?.
It would be helpful if, in such anxious times particularly, the Ministry could abandon the back-covering obfuscation of DEFRAspeak and communicate to all in clear English.

November 19 2007 ~ A basic grasp of virology and maths makes compulsory rather than voluntary vaccination the obvious choice

We hear with some consternation news that the Netherlands farming union, the LTO, has mixed views towards whether bluetongue vaccination should be voluntary or compulsory. While the sheep and dairy sectors are in favour of compulsory vaccination because they, like their British counterparts, have such a great deal to lose, the goat, beef and veal farmers are saying that they would prefer vaccination to be undertaken on a voluntary basis (i.e. the sector who don't see BTV as a major problem for themselves and, because in Holland, such animals are mainly kept inside instead of out in fields, they think their animals are less likely to be infected by midges.) The report suggests that the LTO would favour compulsory vaccination if it could be sure of eventual success - and since this depends on the amount of vaccine available and whether other countries are prepared to opt for compulsory vaccination too, uncertainty is preventing them coming out strongly in favour of compulsory vaccination.
The losses in 2006 in the Netherlands alone for Bluetongue were 53 million euros, (about 38 million pounds) while costs for vaccination of all animals is estimated to be about 31 million euros (about 22 million pounds) The EU Commission's scheme (see below) to pay for the first year of compulsory vaccines and half the costs of administering them in a Member State should surely be allowing a more robust approach throughout the EU? As for the UK, we still do not know how they responded to the faxed request for estimates to be made. The UK is still saying that farmers themselves should pay for vaccines.

November 16 2007 ~ Farmers or their vets are not being sent copies of the laboratory report, merely informed by telephone

Dr Ruth Watkins is ".... disturbed to note that the farmers or their vets are not being sent copies of the laboratory report. Instead they are phoned from a DEFRA office and being given a result over the phone, positive or negative, by a vet or person they have never met, not even the one who came out to see their ill animal and take the specimen...."
Dr Watkins' own sister has had BTV confirmed in one of her Longhorns today. Dr Watkins describes the cow's symptoms, the treatment, the stoicism of the cow - and, in our view, the extraordinary lack of professionalism shown by the authorities.

November 16 2007 ~ "....you cannot count on the winter season. The only means of coping with it is vaccination," Stanislav Jas, livestock policy adviser at Copa-Cogeca

Quoted in the Guardian, Mr Jas said that there is only as outside chance that cold weather will get rid of the midges, particularly in a country like England where winters tend not to be very severe. The only weapon we have is vaccination and we are still worried and baffled by the UK's apparent ignorance of the EU's offer to pay 100% of the costs of vaccination and half of the administration costs. As Alastair Driver points out today in the Farmers Guardian, Merial has produced the 'master virus seed', which will be used to make the active part of the finished vaccine. Large scale production of finished vaccine will switch to its Lyon plant. Merial's Philip Connolly was quoted as saying that manufacturers would increase capacity over time if the demand - and the opportunity to make money - was there. European Commission health spokesman Philip Tod said Brussels was working with the relevant authorities to 'speed up the marketing authorisation process' He added that the Commission's view was that it was likely to take until 2009 before supply met demand.
All this points yet again to the EU's reluctance to vaccinate against notifiable disease. The basis of this would seem to be mere protectionism rather than any concern for protecting human and animal health. If vaccine producers had been given assurances that the vaccine would be ordered and paid for, then there would certainly have been enough. All we can hope for is that the vaccine companies now pull out all the stops in getting enough doses ready for the Spring - and that countries realise just how much they actually need.

November 16 2007 ~ Amendment Regulations coming into force tomorrow

The Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) (England) Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/1471) have been amended by the Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2007 (SI 2007/3277) "the Amendment Regulations" to give legal effect to EC Regulation 1266/2007 relating to bluetongue. These Regulations come into force on Saturday 17 November 2007. DEFRA page complete with details of "New offences"

Tuesday November 13 2007 ~ Mr Benn on BTV vaccination. He does not mention the EU Fax requesting numbers of doses to be ordered

His Ministerial statement says, " "......we are developing a detailed vaccination plan for approval by the European Commission and livestock keepers will be offered the opportunity to purchase vaccine from the bank. I am sure the benefits of vaccination will make real economic sense to many farmers. The vaccination plan is being developed with scientific experts (including those external to Defra), representatives of the farming industry and others. Discussions are also continuing on possible approaches to vaccination with the European Commission and other Member States affected by Bluetongue..." Any information from other countries about their own governments' response to the move made in Brussels on November 5th would be most gratefully received.

Tuesday November 13 2007 ~ Britain's pastoral landscape risks going to seed unless consumers buy more British beef and lamb

Jamie Oliver said today "Now is the time to call for action to help our British farmers. It's been a tough year for them and for many it's just getting worse." If farmers go out of business, landscapes such as the Yorkshire Dales and Dartmoor would be marred by dereliction and undergrazing, he said. See Reuters

Monday 12 November ~ The preferred option for the EU harmonised approach towards Bluetongue Vaccination is "Mass vaccination using all available types of vaccine in 2008"

A Fax was sent to all the appropriate CVOs - to be filled in by today, of the numbers of doses required.
The objective is two-fold: reduce clinical disease and losses and to contain the disease. However, each Member State must decide on its own vaccination plan - although it is hard to imagine what arguments could possibly justify any decision in the UK not to follow the chosen strategy. All this was discussed at the CVOs' meeting on November 7th. A report of the outcome of the Working Group's 5November meeting is attached to the Fax.

Sunday 11 November ~ Farmers in Europe have spent a fortune on repellents without any assured protective effect... no benefit."

Comment on ProMed from Dr Ruth Watkins ".... there are no studies on our northern European midges implicated in transmission of BTV-8 or on the effects of any repellents, egg, larvae or midge poisons, such as avermactins or sheep dips, organophosphate or cis-pyrethroid.
Farmers in Europe have spent a fortune on these without any assured protective effect, and, judging from the intense infection in 2007, no benefit.
Though the EU has funded some basic epidemiology and entomology investigations, which were reported upon in April 2007 by EFSA, research into the clinical questions concerning BTV-8 infection of the ruminants and vaccination of the immediate and practical kind -- inactivated vaccine -- have not been funded by the EU to my knowledge..." Read in full at ProMed

Sunday 11 November ~ Talking head talking through hat?

We recommend readers to look at ProMed's posting on Bluetongue yesterday, in which it is tactfully confirmed by Pirbright experts that the much respected Prof Pennington, so often wheeled out by the media for anything to do with virology, (he is not a virologist) seems to have got it wrong about the UK vector of Bluetongue. The moderator comments:
"For information on the vectors involved in the BTV-8 epizootic, subscribers are referred to posting 20071030.3526 and to the paper "Potential new Culicoides vector of bluetongue virus in northern Europe" by R.Meiswinkel et al., The Veterinary Record, 20 Oct 2007"
(Warmwell has Dr Meiswinkel's Brussels presentation, given on October 18, here. Because of the coloured pictures, it is a very large pdf file and takes some moments to load.)

10/11 November 2007 ~ What we can expect next year without vaccination

Dr Ruth Watkins, whose vaccination policy can be read here, sends this comment about the infectivity of animals next year compared to this first year of Bluetongue in the UK. Extract:
"......The reason why it is worse this year in any country where it appeared before is that this year instead of 10 - 15% of the cattle herd being infected as in 2006 in N France, in 2007 90%of the herd was infected. For sheep, in 2006 the infection rate was perhaps1% and now it is 80 to 90%. All farms in the areas of intense infection will have infected ruminants whether they are documented so or not. That is why so many more animals were sick this year..."
Read in full

Saturday 10 November 2007 ~"The French government pay to collect fallen stock, which encourages farmers to report cases"

The online paper new.edp24.co.uk reports on a fact-finding journey to France made by East Anglian farmers including Roger Long, the regional member of the National Farmers' Union's livestock board, Suffolk farmers' leader John Collen and East Anglian sheep producer, Andrew Foulds. They found out that the French have a rather more common sense way of getting farmers to report disease than the mere stick-without-carrot methods of the UK.

Saturday 10 November 2007 ~ The farmers seemed surprised to be told that next year's bluetongue infection will be worse -

"I think we all thought that animals would build up immunity once they had been bitten," John Collen is reported as saying. (Please see comment here from Dr Ruth Watkins) But why is it a surprise? Why has DEFRA not warned farmers properly about the impact Bluetongue is going to have next year - why did DEFRA not foresee that vaccine was going to be needed as early as physically possible? The inescapable conclusion is that although websites such as this have been fully aware of the threat since August 2006, DEFRA has not been or has chosen not to be. It is beyond parady that a government department - whose mismanagement has led to such cuts in funding that neither research nor any real protection for the countryside and farming can be hoped for - and which delayed vaccine production at Merial for reasons that can only be guessed at, now appears to want to recoup money from farmers buying vaccine. The vaccines and half administration costs are recoverable from the EU. It is beyond belief that DEFRA does not know that. One cannot help wondering about their plans for this voluntary vaccine bank when all the signs are now that the EU favours the only policy that has a hope of eliminating bluetongue - compulsory vaccination, largely paid for by the EU itself.

Friday 9 November 2007 ~ Bluetongue strain BTv-1 in Spain and Southern France

The massive spread of the strain that is affecting the UK, BTv-8 is not the whole worry. If - as the green mass on the map shows - BTv-1 is creeping up into Europe as well, then this disease really is, as the vet Paul Roger told Wednesday night's bluetongue information meeting (see below) "potentially the most devastating disease to hit". The full size map can be seen here. Dr Watkins writes to say, "I believe that they have had BTV before in the south of France. What is interesting is that the BTVs around the Med have never spread in the same way as BTV-8; that is why Rudi Meiswinkel was so astonished at the N European outbreak. I believe most of the Med BTV has been in C imicola, though C obsoletus has also been implicated in Bulgaria and Italy."

Friday 9 November 2007 ~ The tender for vaccines applies only to England and DEFRA still thinks it is up to farmers to pay

We continue to be baffled by what DEFRA is doing in the matter of bluetongue vaccine. As we report below, it is looking as though the EU is moving towards a compulsory scheme for affected countries. This would allow the available funding provided by the EU to cover all vaccines and half the vaccination costs. Yet the latest overview of the situation by Alastair Driver in the Farmers Guardian says:
"Defra Secretary Hilary Benn said farmers would pay for the vaccines from a 'vaccine bank' when they became available. A Defra spokeswoman said the Department was seeking 'total cost recovery' - meaning farmers will cover the full cost of the vaccine and of administering it."
Can DEFRA really not know, as Alastair Driver clearly does, and as we have been reporting for months, that there is a generous compensation package? The Farmers Guardian piece does say "A European Commission working group is discussing an EU-wide policy that could see Brussels fund the entire vaccine costs and half the administration cost " and one wonders why DEFRA is behaving as if this were not so and that the whole costs shuld fall, yet again, on the farming community.

Friday 9 November 2007 ~ "Defra appears reluctant to opt for compulsory vaccination, partly because this would require new legislation."

"As it stands, it will be an economic decision for farmers about whether they want to use the vaccines or not," the Defra spokeswoman said ( Farmers Guardian) It is very hard to understand why DEFRA is taking this line - unless they are indeed balking at the "new legislation". But even this is hardly going to be a problem when Statutory Orders seem able to flow like water from Westminster. The article also quotes Dr Ruth Watkins on the subject of bluetongue vaccination: "Without a thorough vaccination programme, starting where infection would first emerge next year, the virus would become 'hyper endemic' in East Anglia and Kent and 'would surely spread' to the rest of the country, in the way it had in Europe in 2007, she warned."

Thursday November 8 2007 ~ Cases still increasing

Sabine Zentis has sent information from Europe and some useful links. In Germany there are now 17,701 holdings confirmed as being infected with BTV 8. 51 cases have been confirmed in wildlife. In Belgium there are now 5,463. 36,537 in Holland Numbers in France have not yet been updated. In the UK there are now 62 confirmed holdings. (In the same way that they do not seem to want to stay obediently within DEFRA's clearly delineated zone boundaries, the midges may not realise that they are supposed to be dying out for the winter.)

Thursday November 8 2007 ~ "Mr Drecksen said he personally favoured compulsory vaccination aimed at eradicating the disease, but this would need the cooperation of Holland's neighbouring countries."

The Dutch vet whose experience and advice we can read about in this Farmers Weekly article, also mentioned how those farmers who are against compulsory vaccination are those farmers who "are still relatively naïve about how bad the disease could get." The article also mentions the English vet, Paul Roger, who told farmers at last night's bluetongue information meeting organised by Farmers Weekly, NSA, LAA, EBLEX and NBA that Bluetongue was potentially the most devastating disease to hit the UK.

Thursday November 8 2007 ~ Animal health budgets are cut because of a funding shortfall

Large county councils such as those in Surrey and Suffolk - which have been at the heart of this year's FMD and bluetongue outbreaks - are going to have to cut 12% from their annual budgets for controlling animal disease in the last five months of the financial year. The Local Authorities Coordinators of Regulatory Services (Lacors) said councils had been promised a total of £9.77m this financial year but they have now been told only £8.5 is available. This means that Animal Health teams are facing cuts of up to 12% because of this £1m funding shortfall - which could leave attempts to cope with bluetongue "compromised". The Lacors chairman, Geoffrey Theobald, said:
".... It is simply unacceptable that at a time when resources are being stretched to breaking point, Government should force local councils to pick up the pieces caused by its own financial mismanagement."
See Guardian and www.dailypost.co.uk

Wednesday November 7 2007 ~ Moves made towards a common compulsory vaccination programme throughout the EU

In Brussels on Monday all 27 EU Member States were represented in the technical committee that advises Scofcah. The remarkable result of the meeting seems to be that the first moves towards a common compulsory vaccination programme have been made.
The next meeting has been scheduled for early December.
As we have said several times below, and as early as June this year, the EU Commission agreed to pay 100% for the vaccines and 50% of the costs that Member States incur when carrying out vaccination. This is likely to top one hundred million euros ( a rough guess is that 90 million animals will cost about 3 euros per animal). A Member State taking risks would get a lower percentage of its costs reimbursed than a Member State taking prevention very seriously.

Wednesday November 7 2007 ~ " it should be no problem to send animals to the free area if bloodsampled"

An email received from Betty Sikkers in the Netherlands expresses amazement at the harshness of restrictions imposed by DEFRA. She says,
"Till the end of June we in the Netherlands were divided in a restricted area and free area. We had a show in the free area in June and had to bloodsample our sheep; they could then go to the show and return the same day. I don't understand the behaviour of Defra. Especially in this season there should be no problem in sending animals to the free area if bloodsampled. "
Warmwell's Emails page

Wednesday November 7 2007 ~ The vaccines will be funded by the EU if there is a policy to control BTV-8 in England and Wales

Dr Watkins has sent warmwell her second draft suggested Vaccination Policy for England and Wales. She writes, "If we don't vaccinate we will have a hyper-endemic area of infection with BTV-8 in East Anglia and Kent next year as it has been in Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Northern France and North West Germany in the summer of 2007, and infection will surely spread into the North of England, Wales and the South West of England like it has spread in Europe in 2007. The animal welfare problem created by this relatively pathogenic bluetongue virus strain especially in regard to sheep, and the serious economic loss make control and eradication of BTV-8 necessary.." Read in full.

Tuesday November 6 2007 ~ "key decisions apparently not yet been made as to how we are to control its inevitable resurgence in the south of England, and its vicious spread northwards, next year."

Dr James Irvine, in this article on Land Care www.land-care.org.uk, is understandably irate. Not only was no timely decision on vaccination taken but also there "appears to be indecision as to how extensive that vaccination should be."
He quotes Richard Lochead that "there is a degree of ambiguity about vaccination. EU member states can use it within the disease protection zone but it is not clear whether it would be allowed in disease free areas" This, says Dr Irvine, is all of a piece with EU thinking on all animal disease policy
" What kind of Animal Health Policy makers do we have at the EC who can persist with such an ambiguity.....Quite apart from the economics, the ethical argument for preventative vaccination throughout Scotland in terms of humane management of our livestock is overwhelming.
What all this is revealing is that none of the contingency planning that has been done (be it for Foot and Mouth Disease, Avian Influenza or Bluetongue) has ever, to my knowledge, addressed the problem of vaccination. It has been left "to be considered when an outbreak occurs". We are paying a sore price for such neglect."

Tuesday November 6 2007 ~ Work on bluetongue vaccines at Merial resumes

"Defra has today restored the Specified Animal Pathogens Order (SAPO) licence to Merial Animal Health to permit the use of Foot and Mouth Disease and Blue Tongue viruses for vaccine production. Following further inspections and documentary evidence from Merial Animal Health, Defra is now satisfied that they comply with all of the required licence conditions and have in place all the necessary measures to ensure strict biosecurity throughout the site." http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2007/071106b.htm

Tuesday November 6 2007 ~ "No-one can control the midges that spread the disease. It's a very painful thing to work out where the protection zone boundaries should be.."

The Chief Vet in Wales, Christianne Glossop, is quoted icwales.icnetwork.co.uk It is rep[orted that Dr Glossop has received hundreds of phone calls from farmers over moving the zone from the Welsh border into Wales. Farmers need to be able to move their animals across the border to winter pasture. At present they can move into England, but then cannot come back.
"We know people are desperate to sell stores and there are people with animals in England. I don't know what the answer is but I do know that the day the zone moves into Wales is the day we give up hope of trying to keep bluetongue out of Wales."

Tuesday November 6 2007 ~ Wales and Scotland - hoping and waiting?

Hopes of safeguarding Welsh livestock from a disease that has spread so relentlessly across Northern Europe look as doomed in Wales as the pronouncements coming out of Scotland. However, the Welsh CVO herself adds,
" If you say we are not worried about it, we want to move livestock into Wales, then we can talk about it. We may decide that we have to live with bluetongue."
One wonders how far the Welsh farmers are aware of the inevitability of bluetongue's arrival and the urgent need for vaccine against BTv-8 to be ordered. The winter weather is no more likely to wipe out the disease than has proved to be the case in Europe.
We don't yet know what Wales and Scotland are doing about placing vaccine orders and would appreciate any information on this.

Monday November 5 2007 ~ The Bluetongue Order 2007

Here is the pdf file of the new Bluetongue orderwhich came into force on November 2nd at 6 p.m. which "provides for the separation of a restricted zone into a protection zone and a surveillance zone, and controls movement between these zones. It provides for surveillance for bluetongue (article 17) and prohibits vaccination against bluetongue without the consent of the Secretary of State (article 18)." A correspondent from Suffolk writes,
"The recent commission decision, written in Brusselese, is indeed a little heavy. Much easier to understand is the new Bluetongue order, written in plain Defranglish? It is so peppered with astonishingly clear statements that I can visualize a team of grim faced DEFRA officials arriving at my farm to confiscate my JCB, steal my sheep race and abduct my husband."
True enough. An Englishman's castle can be invaded by anyone dressed in a little brief authority in these interesting times. In this Statutory Instrument , we read, "...an inspector or an officer of the Secretary of State acting under the direction of a veterinary inspector, upon entering the premises may...... (h) require the destruction, burial, disposal or treatment of any thing.."

Monday November 5 2007 ~ Deeper and deeper into the mire

The sixteen page pdf file Commission Regulation (EC) No 1266/2007 on implementing rules for Council Directive 2000/75/EC as regards the control, monitoring, surveillance and restrictions on movements of certain animals of susceptible species in relation to bluetongue is not a document for the fainthearted. Indeed one wonders exactly who will be able to make head or tail of it. The language is labyrinthine. One sympathises with the french farmers' union, the Confédération Paysanne. They say in a news release (in french)
"We must stop making a difficult crisis worse, a disaster whose commercial economic consequences far outweigh the effects of the disease itself. As we have already said, BTV has become an endemic disease; it is illusory and counter productive to deal with it via a zoning policy."
They want Bluetongue to cease from being a List A disease.

Sunday November 4 2007 ~ Scotland rejects bluetongue survival plans

Today's warmwell blog looks at fierce attacks from Scotland on the proposal backed by four large organisations that the whole of Britain should encompass the BT zone.

Sunday November 4 2007 ~ DEFRA's 'arbitrary lines' bring chaos to sheep farmers

Booker's Notebook in the Sunday Telegraph uses Frank Langrish's situation to illustrate
".... the "unmitigated chaos" the Government has inflicted on their industry by its response to two animal diseases that lately infected a handful of farms in southern and eastern England.
....What every intelligent farmer is crying out for is vaccination, that scientific remedy used all over the world, but of which, as we know from the foot and mouth catastrophe of 2001, Defra still has such an atavistic fear. Work on a bluetongue vaccine was well under way but had to be suspended until Defra sorted out its drains at Pirbright (even now it has only tendered for a fifth of the doses required). Ever since BSE, some livestock farmers have suspected that Defra's hidden agenda was to eradicate their industry altogether. Even if this is untrue, its officials are certainly making a pretty good job of it."
Read in full

Sunday November 4 2007 ~ Surely with a negative blood test result and stringent precautions, livestock should be able to move to all parts of the country?

A letter from a prizewinning breeder of pedigree Bluefaced Leicesters is on the emails page.
".... if they are made homeless in a couple of months and I can't get them to Wales, it will bankrupt me and my family having to commute backwards and forwards to rented grazing and buildings so then I will be forced to either sell up or slaughter my sheep..."
It appears from the letter that DEFRA is failing to understand the situation, as is the Welsh Assembly. We hope that someone can suggest a possible solution here. With the colder weather, is not a negative bood test a belt and braces solution? The salient points can be summed up as rules will kill more animals than the disease itself :
1. Have bought a property in North Wales which is outside the BTV zones
2. Now 3 miles as the crow flies within the BTV surveillance zone but about 120 miles away from nearest infected premises
3. Cannot move sheep to the new place and have sold current property but purchasers need a vacant possession on our place
4. Was told by DEFRA and Welsh Assembly (week of 17th Oct) option is to slaughter the flock as currently no movements out of BTV zones permitted
5. Have filled in an EXD100 form but have been refused movement exemptions
6. Pedigree flock, mainly homebred with high genetic merit, not a commercial flock that I can replace easily
7. Could not sell flock even if I wanted to as Carlisle (in-lamb ewe sale) is outside BTV zone
8. No movements on to farm except for 4 unsold sheep brought back from Welshpool (outside BTV zones) society sale on 10th Oct since first F&M outbreak 2007
9. More than willing to have entire flock blood tested to prove not infected pre movement to Wales
10. Extremely angry and upset by inflexibility of rules which will cause suffering to and kill more animals than the disease itself will
11. Extremely worried that all of England made in to protection zone, so no chance of us being able to move to Wales, let alone sheep moving there
12. Situation causing great stress and anxiety for the whole family, not just me
13. . Have emailed MP and Shadow Agricultural MP with problem and am awaiting replies, NFU informed of situation as have breed society
14. Case being heard on Thursday 8th November by Stakeholders and the Welsh Assembly
15. I cant afford to live in Wales and commute in to the BTV zone to rented grazing and buildings every day for a minimum of the next 2 years post last BTV case
Read letter in full

Saturday November 3 2007 ~ Bluetongue Order 2007

Not an order for vaccines but a new legal document. In its rather less than helpful version of the English language, DEFRA's introduction to the new Bluetongue Order(pdf) reads thus:
"This Order makes provision for a purpose mentioned in section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972(a) and it appears to the Secretary of State that it is expedient for the reference to Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1266/2007 (on implementing rules for Council Directive 2000/75/EC as regards the control, monitoring, surveillance and restrictions on movements of certain species of susceptible animals in relation to bluetongue(b))to be construed as references to that Regulation as amended from time to time.
The Secretary of State makes the following Order in exercise of the powers conferred by paragraph 1A of Schedule 2 to the European Communities Act 1972 (c) and sections 1, 7(1), 8(1), 15(4), 17(1), 23, 25, 28, 32(2), 34, 35, 36, 83(2) and 88(2) of the Animal Health Act 1981(d):"
So you can't say you haven't been told.

Saturday November 3 2007 ~ New EU amendment to Bluetongue controls

The EU decided to change the names of the BT zones yesterday. The current Bluetongue Control Zone will become known as the Protection Zone and the current Protection Zone will become known as the Surveillance Zone. This brings things more into line with the FMD zone names and may avoid confusion.

Saturday November 3 2007 ~ "I think everybody is reducing their flocks, or going out of sheep, if they can."

Dr Watkins is at the sharp end of sheep farming in the Welsh hills. One of her neighbours may be thought representative of the general feeling there:
"His reaction to bluetongue was no-one is telling anybody much about it... how could he treat ill sheep when he did not know if they would ever get better... to add insult to injury one would have to pay the National fallen stock company individually for each sheep to be taken away for incineration at £12.50 a sheep over 12 months, £10 lambs 2 - 12 months and £5 a lamb under 2 months.
So he said if one didn't go bankrupt when a 100s of one's ewes died and you got nothing, you would go bankrupt when you had to pay the fallen stock charges. ..
He would vaccinate his sheep even if he had to pay because he couldn't afford not to."
Read in full. Dr Watkins also gives her opinion of DEFRA's tendering plans

November 2 2007 ~ "...wasting endless time arguing about trade matters"

Today's warmwell blog summarises our personal take on the Ministerial statement about vaccine tenders

November 2 2007 ~ "The vaccination should be carried out before the expected onset of next year's (2008) BTV season. 2007's season started in north western Europe in June"

Beneath DEFRA's vaccine tender news release yesterday, ProMed's excellent moderator, 'AS', puts the terse statement above . Getting the vaccine, arranging for injections to happen - these are the vital things and they need to be completed before June.
Those who talk about next Summer, those politicians who continue to repeat - as did the Farming Today presenter also today - that "such a vaccine hasn't yet been developed" show a frightening ignorance of the real situation. The vaccine has been developed by Merial, and Intervet are not far behind - but, as Paul van Aarle of Intervet made clear last week, " we need to know somewhere where we are. So we need some commitments for quantities in order to make the vaccine available in Spring time 2008."
Have high level phone calls to ensure that all European countries who need it are working together and actually ordering enough doses - and making a firm commitment so that Merial and Intervet can go full steam ahead on production - have those conversations yet taken place? "Allowing" its core stakeholders to "decide how they wish to proceed" may sound as if DEFRA wants to hand responsibility to farmers. To us though it sounds more like dumping responsibility, ducking accountability, avoiding hard decisions. All this applies only to England. The other countries of Britain must plough their own furrow, say DEFRA. This is even now only beginning to sink in.

November 2 2007 ~ "The vaccine is going to be priced at a level where even with low beef and lamb prices one would assume that people will still do it."

This was Terry Jones of the NFU on Farming Today. Mr Jones did not say how he knows what the price level will be. He also said,
"What isn't clear of course at this stage is whether vaccination will be compulsory or voluntary, which areas we'll be allowed to vaccinate in - because of course this is a European control strategy that we've got for Bluetongue and the Commission will have a lot to say on what areas can be vaccinated. It's quite likely that it will be just the control zone and the protection zone..."
This is the first we have heard that any vaccination policy will have to follow an EU pattern.
Has anyone any helpful information on this? The bluetongue vaccine issue took up the first half of Farming Today. Not mentioned was the fact that DEFRA's vaccine tendering is for England alone. We await definite confirmation of this rather bizarre information which echoes that contentious decision to make FMD compensation apply to England alone. (UPDATE : a participant at yesterday's meeting has now confirmed this. The devolved administrations were to take their own action.) Our Farming Today transcript is here.

November 2 2007 ~ Merial to resume production "within the next few weeks"

With many thanks to Anne Lambourn, we hear (Hansard link) that "Detailed inspections are urgently being completed at the site and, provided these are fully satisfactory, and that the new heat treatment system is operating satisfactorily, we hope to be able to permit the use of large amounts of live virus within the next few weeks. This would enable Merial to re-commence vaccine production, but only under strict controls."
We note that the exact wording also appears on the DEFRA bluetongue vaccination page.

November 2 2007 ~ the breeding sheep sector faces disaster before the end of the year.

One of the several sensible letters in the Farmers Guardian is by Jack Lucas, pointing out that while the slaughter lamb industry may be looking slightly better now that the restrictions cover so much more of the country, "it is nowhere near sustainable for the breeding sheep industry". It is questionable whether many at DEFRA know that there is a difference. It seems that Frank Langrish has been the only desperate voice to have been heard - and, as we know, it is courageous to speak out when dealing with DEFRA.
Meanwhile hundreds of cattle are still stranded on the Whittlesey Washes - and in some danger - because of the 20km control zone thrown around Peterborough when one ram was found to be infected with Bluetongue.

November 1 2007 ~ Still no indication of when production could resume at Merial in Pirbright

The agriculteral press have reacted to the latest statement from Hilary Benn. We see from Politics.co.uk that Peter Kendall has said: " livestock farmers... will be greatly relieved to see the Government's commitment to secure a vaccine bank. Vaccination will be the key tool in protecting English livestock farmers from the devastating impact bluetongue has had across much of Northern Europe.... a welcome first step but there are still a lot of practical issues regarding vaccination that need to be addressed urgently."
Farmers' Weekly reports the text of the statement.
The Farmers Guardian reminds readers that Merial will not be allowed to manufacture large quantities of finished vaccine at Pirbright until fears of live virus getting into the drains are allayed.
"A Merial spokesman said talks on getting the green light were 'moving in the right direction' but there was no indication of when production could resume."
(We very much welcome any information on this - particularly the meaning of the word "tender" here - and we wonder what is the reaction of Intervet and the still languishing Merial. We are still wondering about the assurances we received (below) that it is the EU Commission that was to shoulder the major part of the costs. Is DEFRA trying to get UK farmers to commit to footing the bill and make their own decisions about vaccinating? Could this be in order to avoid putting in place a coherent vaccination strategy for the country that would meet the EU conditions for payment? Nothing seems clear at the moment.)

November 1 2007 ~ "livestock keepers will be offered the opportunity to purchase vaccine from the bank.."???

In view of the fact that we are assured that the EU have promised to pay for Bluetongue vaccines and for half the costs incurred in the practicalities of vaccinating animals we are nonplussed by this afternoon's announcement by Hilary Benn that Defra is " to issue a tender for a Bluetongue vaccine bank" and that livestock keepers will be paying for vaccines from such a bank.
"Defra will tender for between 10 and 20 million doses, subject to an assessment of the anticipated demand. Discussions on this are currently underway with the industry."
The Defra News Release can be viewed as HTML here. We should appreciate any comment from those who know more. Both Merial and Intervet have prototypes of vaccines available and need only firm orders in order to get producing. After production, they need time for safety testing of vaccines. It should be possible to produce vaccines by May 2008.

November 1 2007 ~ " The Government must get a grip of this problem and a vaccine produced."

Cambridge News quotes the sympathetic County Council:
"The control zone that is now in operation in Cambridgeshire is very rigid and does not reflect the unique nature of the county and the problems we face in the Wash areas. The boundary means cattle could be left on flooding fields unless something is done. The Government must get a grip of this problem and a vaccine produced."
One wonders if they are aware of the shut-down at Merial and the difficulties faced by the vaccine companies if firm orders for specific amounts of vaccine - in millions of doses - are not received.

November 1 2007 ~ The park requested extra time to await the complete results of the blood test but this was not granted and all the sheep were culled.

We were outraged to hear of the killing that has been taking place in Gibraltar. The story of the sheep at the Alameda Wildlife Park is distressing. The vet's actions are inexplicable.
"Hannibal, Clarise, Jodie and Foster, our four miniature sheep, were all culled on the 11th October. ... The decision to kill the sheep was presumably made on the strength of the possibility that they had the strain of blue tongue, which has no vaccine. This will not be known for certain until the results of the tests are through. The park requested extra time to await the complete results of the blood test to check if the parents were covered, but this was not granted and all the sheep were culled....we miss them terribly..."
BTv-1 does not yet have a vaccine, but like the animals in Northern Europe who are infected (with BTv-8 of course), it is accepted that culling is useless and that many sheep will recover and be protected with their own antibodies. Our correspondent from Gibraltar added, "... I have found out that now not only is he culling ALL the sheep and goats .. he has also slaughtered a pony and donkey in case they had Bluetongue as well. I really need advice as to whether this is right and what we should do." Any comments would be most gratefully received.
UPDATE We are grateful to have received email confirmation that the vet's actions are
"quite wrong - he needs a copy of the Defra Contigency Plan. Slaughter is not part of the policy (despite the early Defra efforts) except for infected imported animals - so he must stop forthwith. He might respond to the owners threatening to report him to the RCVS if he is a UK graduate .."
A copy of the BTV Contingency Plan (pdf)can be seen here.

November 1 2007 ~ ".. the Government has been unprepared. They should have developed a vaccine and the restrictions they are imposing are ludicrous."

Robin Page is quoted in the Cambridge News following the A 20km control zone imposed around Pymoor on Monday (see below) after a positive test on a Hereford cow in a herd owned by Haddenham-based AG Wright and Sons. Robin Page said, "They are restricting animal movements because of a condition which cannot be spread from cow to cow - the restrictions are completely bizarre."
The Pymoor farm manager told the Cambridge News that he has not received the final test results on the 22-strong Pymoor herd from Defra, but is expecting the case to be a one-off. "Half of our stock are breeding stock. It cuts off half the country. In those terms, it is pretty devastating. It is a massive blow for the business "

November 1 2007 ~ Neigbouring auctioneers co-operate to beat bluetongue controls

The Farmers Guardian reports that Cheshire based auctioneers, Marshalls and Wright Manley, are to share their respective premises for a number of sales, whilst the current bluetongue restrictions are in place in order to allow farmers to continue to trade as normal business as possible, In a joint statement, they said:
"Both of us recognise the extreme difficulties faced by all within the livestock industry, particularly at this important time of year for sales of breeding stock. We are both badly affected by the control measures now in place and need to ensure that both firm's clients in each of the zones are able to conduct their business in as normal a way as possible....We hope that other sectors of the agricultural industry will see this as an example of how co-operation between parties can work to the benefit of all involved".
The changes to the Bluetongue Protection Zone have placed Chelford inside the zone, while Beeston Castle remains outside it. Both firms have a large number of sales of pedigree breeding stock to re-schedule and want farmers to be able to continue to trade as normally as possible.

Wednesday October 31 2007 ~ "With every passing day, this map looks more like the opening credits of Dad's Army..."

  The NFUS comments on the (epidemiology-report ) but, like the vast majority of articles in newspapers today, there is no mention of the urgent need for btv-8 vaccines to be ordered. Yet vaccines are the only possible way of protecting animals and avoiding the welfare issues that have got steadily worse in Northern Europe.

Wednesday October 31 2007 ~ Marks and Spencer has now announced that the price it pays to "some of its farmer suppliers" will return to pre-FMD levels.

In a letter sent to Asda, the Co-op, Morrison, Sainsbury's and Tesco, the NFUS quotes Meat and Livestock Commission figures that show an average retail price for lamb is 2.2% higher than it was before restrictions while prices to farmers have dropped by nearly a quarter.
Nigel Miller of the NFUS says," Farmers are increasingly angry and disillusioned at seeing a year's work come to nothing. It is unbelievable that supermarket shelf prices have actually risen during the same period....the current crisis could force many out of the industry."
The NFUS update yesterday publicised an NFUS petition saying in essence that since taxpayers have been protected by the sacrifices made by farmers in complying with the standstills and since the problems were not of the farming industry's making, it is only right that costs should be met by the UK government.

Tuesday October 30 2007 ~ The epidemiological report on bluetongue is excellent

www.defra.gov.uk....epidemiology-report301007.pdf As Ruth Watkins remarked today, it illustrates the gulf between the laboratories and DEFRA. We are fortunate to have such good laboratory testing on bluetongue. The bluetongue pages and links produced by the IAH are informative too. But this is for Bluetongue and Dr Watkins is absolutely right when she says,
"I only wish that IAH would do the same for FMD; to give out the information on its screening by RT-PCR and their work on the sequencing of the FMD virus from every infected premise so that the timeline of infection is confirmed. It might also rule out intervening infections ie in deer between IP1 and IP2 and IP 5."
The good work at IAH Pirbright is not communicated because DEFRA wants to control and hoard the information. DEFRA's institutionalised secrecy and their wish to be solely in control are indulgences that are actually dangerous when it comes to zoonoses and emerging exotic diseases.

Tuesday October 30 2007 ~ Journalists still suggesting that the disease "can be controlled" and that it may not overwinter, still talking of 70% mortality in sheep

The latest discovered case in Cambridgeshire has prompted an article in the Cambridge News which makes one wonder where journalists and others are getting their erroneous information from. We read, "on the Continent there is a 70 per cent mortality rate..." a wildly inaccurate figure that may be suggesting to people that 70% of a flock could die. In fact there are some places in Northern Europe where there have been cases where half of the infected sheep died - usually lambs. But the percentage of the flock infected varies. We also see the doomed hope expressed yet again that "we are still very much of the opinion that it can be controlled". Without vaccination it most certainly cannot- and it beggars belief that DEFRA are still not allowing Merial at Pirbright to be working on vaccine when Merial was so well in advance of the other companies. The other sad inaccuracy is that "There is a danger that the insects may over-winter in our region and that come next year, we may have further problems" It is extraordinary that it is still not realised that the midges will overwinter, the virus will survive and the number of infected animals will increase in the UK next yearbecause there will be far more infected midges. Vaccines are vital. There is absolutely no question that the disease can be controlled without it. It is our only weapon against this virus.

Tuesday October 30 2007 ~ Bluetongue epidemiology

The epidemiological report pdf can be downloaded now from www.defra.gov.uk....epidemiology-report301007.pdf

Monday October 29 2007 ~ Zones merge

"Following a new case of Bluetongue in Cambridgeshire, Defra has also today merged the Bluetongue Control Zone in Peterborough with the Bluetongue Control Zone covering East Anglia, Kent and East Sussex. There is now one Bluetongue Control Zone, surrounded by a larger Protection Zone."

Monday October 29 2007 ~ Royal Veterinary College and BBSRC hoping to fill the veterinary skills gap in disease control

The Times reports that the Royal Veterinary College says there is an urgent need to fill a skills gap - and indeed there is. While in human medicine there are now specialists trained for every aspect of health, in the veterinary sector, training has fallen way behind during the past decades. Tragically few vets have any depth of knowledge of virology or vaccines, for example. But with emerging zoonoses, the connection between animal and human health is ever closer and cooperation between specialists of equal skill is needed. The Times quotes Mandy Nevel, the course director
"Bluetongue will come back next year and I don't doubt that in the next couple of years we could get something else ...which is having a massive impact worldwide."
The Times continues, "Students who graduate from the course will be ideally placed for key jobs in government departments, guiding policy on how to manage and control outbreaks of disease." Guiding policy? From key jobs in government? One can only echo the blogger this morning who wrote, "Only five bursaries? Why not fifty? Or five hundred?"

Sunday Oct 28 2007~ A first farm in Switzerland has been confirmed positive for Bluetongue

Sabine Zentis tells us that 6 out of 19 bovines tested positive for BTV; one animal had to be put down because of severe clinical disease. The holding is located in Basel, in the Kanton of Basel. A 20 km zone has been established around the affected holding. It is nearly November but the midges are still spreading the virus. See www.news.admin.ch ( in German)

Sunday Oct 28 2007 ~ Defra 'puts UK last' for bluetongue vaccine

Telegraph.co.uk "Angry farmers are warning that Britain will be at the back of the queue for a new vaccine that protects livestock from the deadly bluetongue virus." The article draws attention to the petition started by Jane Barribal. But the article does not seem quite to understand the situation. It is not that the vaccine companies "say they should be able to start producing a vaccine next spring but that demand will be high, with 150 million cattle and sheep across Europe likely to need it". As Intervet's Paul van Aarle made very clear in Brussels and as he said on Farming Today last Friday too, it's not a matter of difficulty. If the quantities required are made clear and certain - if and when the vaccine producers get firm commitment from the government, they can go full steam ahead.
" The main question is about quantities ... we are talking about quantities in the range of perhaps hundreds of thousands, to maybe over a hundred million. And in that range we need to know somewhere where we are. So we need some commitments for quantities in order to make the vaccine available in Spring time 2008. We need them right now."
If what we have heard is correct, the UK government appears to be in defeatist mode, telling people that vaccine is not available - or that even if it is, there won't be enough.
For the urgency of the situation, see latest warmwell blog. As for the EU Commission's promise to pay for the vaccines themselves and 50% of the practical costs during the first year, the UK seems oddly unaware of this too.

Saturday Oct 27 2007 ~ Ann Widdecombe: "the authorities handled recent foot and mouth and blue tongue outbreaks badly"

The MP Ann Widdecombe has signed a local vet and farmer's petition calling for the development of a policy on blue tongue vaccination, compensation for stock lost to the disease and financial aid for the disposal of dead animals. See www.thisiscourier.co.uk/

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~ Robert Forster: it's the EU regulations that need to be changed.

Farmers Guardian
"... if BTV8 infected midges re-emerge next summer, then the live export market will be limited to Belgium, the Netherlands, and only sections of northern Germany, Denmark and France - unless of course the European Commission, and then the OIE, can be persuaded to modify their view."
(We are increasingly amazed by the repeated phrase "if the infected midges re-emerge next year..." There is nothing short of a widespread vaccination programme that can possibly prevent them. Both the midges and the virus itself can withstand extremes of cold even if midges are not biting in the depths of winter. See the paper on BTV biosecurity sent to Paul Sutmoller by Geoff Letchworth, DVM, Ph.D
"...The bluetongue virus (BTV) has amazing environmental stability. It survives essentially forever when frozen. It can survive for years in wet blood kept in a refrigerator. And it survives as long as 50 days in circulation after infection of a ruminant. It apparently survives freezing winters, presumably in Culicoides larvae....... the past year's experience has shown that not having a vaccine is a major risk."
Meanwhile it has been confirmed that DEFRA have NOT put in any order for BTv-8 vaccine because, they said, it wasn't available yet. One hopes that someone at least was listening to Paul van Aarle on Farming Today and realising how catastrophically unnecessary it is to keep Merial from functioning at Pirbright.

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~ "killing the industry in a misplaced determination to control the virus"

Stackyard News quotes the deputy president of the CLA who has called on the Welsh Assembly Government to consider including Wales in the Bluetongue Protection Zone, imposing less stringent licensing requirements "as is the case in France, except for longer and potentially riskier east to west movements", and pressing for urgent action on " developing a vaccine". This last is oddly phrased. It is clear that the vaccine is being developed but that firm orders from governments are now urgently required. See transcript from Farming Today.

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~ "the first thing is to have the facts" Transparency and clarity in disease reporting

Ruth Watkins sends warmwell an email today: extract
"I think it is very important that defra release the percentages of seropositives in the flocks and herds they are testing together with the date and the county. It is typical that they hoard information that they should not. ...There seem to be unexplained variations in the numbers of sick or dead animals in infected holdings both this year and last in Europe, but the first thing is to have the facts... " read in full
Interestingly, on the same afternoon, we get this communication from Gary in Kansas on the same subject, praising the way the Minnesota State Veterinarian communicates with those who need to know - and comparing this reporting with DEFRA's, to the latter's great disadvantage.

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~ Farming Today - the bottom line on vaccine production by Paul van Aarle

Transcript of what Mr van Aarle said. "... It's not a matter of difficulty. We have a good production capacity and can handle quantities (that are certain). The main issue there is when we get the commitment from the government..." read in full.
And we hear that Merial at Pirbright are still not operational.
There was also Julian Salmon from the CLA on why he believed the only way forward is for Wales to declare itself a Bluetongue area so restrictions can be lifted "I don't think people have really appreciated, by having this protection zone, this artificial barrier, quite what a dislocation it is making to an industry that has already been severely disadvantaged by depressed prices..."
Anthony Gibson spoke on cost sharing. Listen again to today's programme.

Friday Oct 25 2007 ~ ~ The ELA resolution on a BTV-8 vaccine plan - signatories invited

The ELA resolution opens in a new window here. It urges European Governments to act swiftly and decisively in order to ensure large scale vaccine production as soon as possible. Further, it urges Governments, European Commission/ European Parliament, and the various stakeholder groups to develop Plans of Action regarding the species to be vaccinated, vaccination schedules, required vaccination coverage and allocation of available vaccine stocks within Europe as soon as they become available.
Additional signatories are needed. If you would like to sign it in support, please could you contact European Livestock Association or warmwell.

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~~ Ruth Watkins' proposal for a vaccination plan

Ruth Watkins' own coherent vaccination plan is already prepared. It can be seen in a new window here. The powerpoint presentation she gave yesterday at Stoneleigh can be viewed here. (Please do let me know if you have any difficulty accessing these files)

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~ Are the livestock controls are actually playing any useful part in preventing spread of the disease?

The key question is this. It seems to be being assumed in the UK that Bluetongue in Holland and Belgium, where they extended the control zone to the entire country, spread faster than in France, where control zones were adhered to as far as possible. But with the wildfire spread of BTv in Europe - and the fact that the infected midges have been around since early August- it would seem very unlikely indeed that the control zones are not going to have to spread out wider and wider in the next days and weeks - but time is of vital importance to those stuck.

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~ 'If the Bluetongue Control Zone is not extended to the whole of the country, we in the CZ are all finished'

..is the view of Frank Langrish, chairman of the British Wool Marketing Board (Frank the Wool). The Farmers Guardian quotes Mr Langrish:
"...I have spoken to people in Holland and Belgium about it. They all said it's just a waste of time trying to control it. You just accept you have got it and if we are confident we are going to have a vaccine by next summer, we can live with it until then. The disease is not going to kill animals but the restrictions are going to kill thousands unless we move to one CZ."
It is a very persuasive view. All the same, there are those, such as the NFUS' Nigel Miller, who are very loath to share the restrictions even if their extension would alleviate much of the problem: "Scotland has no intention of becoming part of a UK-wide Bluetongue Control Zone, unless the disease situation changes significantly..." However, BTV is very close to Scotland now, having been discovered in Denmark, Poland and Scandinavia. Sabine Zentis remains deeply sympathetic but adamant in her advice:
"... they really shouldn't extend the zone but rather give permission for all movements directly to slaughter. .. once the vector activity ceases, animals for breeding can be moved after blood tests giving a negative result for the virus. We have been living with these restrictions for 14 months now - and they are not as bad as watching animals go down with BT in large numbers..."
But in the UK, a desperate situation for so many is made worse , as Private Eye's Muckspreader says this week, by the ill advised closure of so many small local slaughterhouses. Watching healthy animals slaughtered and wasted (as below) because there is nowhere for them to go is also very bad indeed.

Friday Oct 26 2007 ~ "We have no hesitation in calling on all the UK governments, and the European Commission, to commit to immediate vaccine development"

Kim Heywood, director of the National Beef Association, and at the Brussels conference last week, is quoted in the Scotsman
"We have no hesitation in calling on all the UK governments, and the European Commission, to commit to immediate vaccine development and to making sure there are enough doses on hand to cover the entire population of vulnerable livestock before BTV8 re-emerges next summer. Sadly, we understand that no moves have been made to kick-start this process. The NBA has been advised by leading pharmaceutical companies that up to eight months is needed to secure a go-ahead, develop an effective vaccine, acquire the licence and organise distribution."
It is encouraging to see the organisations finding a strong voice. The NBA are joined by others such as the NFU, CLA and others now adding their voices strongly to the urgent need for firm committed orders.

Thursday Oct 25 2007 ~ Ruth Watkins: "I would like to find out in detail what the diagnostic testing is on bluetongue at Pirbright."

She writes to warmwell,
"The neighbouring cattle in Norfolk are recovering and I think they had a wrong negative diagnosis. My sister went to see them and the vet they share is 98% certain it is bluetongue. If they had malignant catarrh, that's ovine herpes virus type 2, they should be dead. The farmer can't afford another vet visit to ask for a retest as I suggested. Frank Langrish has a lamb he thinks is also falsely ascribed negative. co
I am sure the lab is having a difficult time trying to finish the FMD testing and do the bluetongue outbreak testing.
In human medicine another specimen would be sent. Ideally immediately and, if the patient lives, 14 days after the onset so that antibody formation can be checked out (it might not be detectable in the early stages of the clinical illness.)"
(Our understanding from the WAHID reports is that for cattle, antibody detection ELISA is used and we note a report of one example of the use of what is described as "real-time PCR" on Oct 19th. For sheep, we see reverse transcription - polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and antibody detection ELISA. )

Thursday Oct 25 2007 ~ Jan Mulder says good vaccines "crucial" in combating disease

We hear from Betty Stikkers at ELA that Jan Mulder, as rapporteur of the agricultural budget, has proposed amongst other things more money for development of marker vaccines and testing methods for infectious diseases as FMD, CSF and BT. Good information to consumers on 100% safety of meat from vaccinated animals should be emphasized he said and he reaffirms that the availability of good vaccines is crucial in combating infectious diseases."

Thursday Oct 25 2007 ~ The website of the German ministry has been updated, case numbers (infected holdings !) are 16.222 and an additional 40 cases in wild ruminants.

www.bmelv.de Sabine Zentis tells us "From what I have learnt today, the Ministry is still working out how much vaccine to order and where/how to use it.... I have made them aware of Ruth Watkins' vaccination strategy"

Thursday Oct 25 2007 ~ A third company, Fort Dodge, is developing a BT vaccine

We hear from an organic sheep farmer in Germany that he had been told by a spokesman of the Fort Dodge Germany the company is indeed developing a inactivated BT vaccine. When he asked
" ..if it was true that the production is to start in Spain, she answered that she had heard so. Interesting and encouraging is the fact that the three involved companies are sitting around one table and talking. "We are aware, that there is an urgent need for vaccine and we would be happy for you, if we already had one. We can only succeed in producing the necessary amount of doses by working together," she told me."
Working together does seem the only possible way for Europe to emerge from this and it certainly seems, from what we are told above, that the vaccine companies are prepared to work in collaboration to prepare adequate doses of vaccine in the face of a threat that involves us all.

Thursday Oct 25 2007 ~ Merial and Intervet say that, between them, they could meet demand in 2008, provided there is a plan.

If there is no coherent plan, they will have to produce vaccine based on 'first come - first served' basis, which is most certainly not the best strategy for the EU. Merial indicates they will not raise vaccine prices in case of shortages. If the NFU are successful in bringing DEFRA to the point of ordering vaccine, Europe countries will still have to work together towards an EU wide vaccination plan.

Thursday Oct 25 2007 ~ Holland orders 1 or 2 million vaccine doses for sheep -decision will be taken on the 6th of November for cattle

The cost impact of bluetongue for the Netherlands last year was around 54 million euros and 77 million euros this year, and this excluded labour costs.
DEFRA is at the very bottom of a steep learning curve.
This, says an observer at the meeting in the Hague in early October was very apparent. Any suggestion that DEFRA was told by vaccine companies that it was then too late for an order to be delivered in the spring is not the case. It is simply a matter of political will.
Talk of a mere 'firefighting' amount or that vaccines will be terribly expensive "due to demand" or that since the EU is offering support out of a "very limited pot" - all this is just DEFRA defeatism and bewilderment. In short, an excuse to sit on its hands.

Thursday October 25 ~ "Don't let people confuse you, It is just a matter of political will".

If the EU Commission is short of funds, they should go to the European Parliament (Jan Mulder, member of the budget committee, who spoke kindly to me in Brussels) and ask for more.
The key point to make is:
• The Commission promised to pay for the vaccines themselves
• The Commission promised to pay 50% of the vaccination costs during the first year
Both Merial and Intervet have prototypes of vaccines available and need only firm orders in order to get producing. After production, they need time for safety testing of vaccines. It should be possible to produce vaccines by May 2008. The 2007 outbreak of BTV-8 has killed at least 15,000 sheep in the Netherlands and 20,000 sheep in Belgium. Without vaccine this will be repeated in the UK in 2008.

Thursday Oct 25 2007 ~ "Fit, clean and off the hills, they are going for burial. Only the sheep-fat will be used, for biofuel."

Many emails have directed warmwell this morning to this Telegraph piece by Michael Wigan, farmer and environmental writer. Of Frank the Wool, who has been "preparing his burial pits" he says,
" His farm is stripped of grass. Unless he removes grazing mouths, his breeding sheep will lose condition and be unable to produce the lamb crop for 2008. Stuck in one of the three bluetongue control zones: "As we couldn't get sheep to the slaughterhouse owing to movement restrictions, there was no conceivable way to look after them."
Looking after them, however, intones Defra, is his legal responsibility. ..."
As Michael Wigan says, this Government ducks responsibility. As far as farming is concerned, it always has. Prevarication, killing not curing, arrogant ignorance, and bureaucratic tyranny of a kind we never thought possible before 2001. But where are the voices of the Opposition? It really seems as though no one will lift a finger to ensure vaccine is ordered in time. "The controls are more devastating than the disease itself." says John Thorley, but those not concerned with farming carry on as if the death of farming is only as serious as a midge bite.

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ Bluetongue Talk "It went well"

Dr Ruth Watkins gave a talk today to the Pedigree Beef Society Group at the emergency Bluetongue meeting at Stoneleigh. She kindly sends the Powerpoint presentation that she gave as an illustration to her talk. The slides are colourful and useful even if some are rather technical for the layman. It really is a crash course in 'all you need to know about Bluetongue'. She concludes that the CVO needs to order the inactivated vaccine as soon as possible.

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ France orders 33.4 million doses of vaccine

Michel Barnier, the French Minister of Agriculture, has put in an order for 33.4 million doses of vaccine. "We will thus be able to buy these vaccines, without delay, as soon as they become available commercially", said M, Barnier in a letter to local officials of which AFP has seen a copy . "We have done all we can to obtain the vaccines as fast as possible when they become available" the letter emphasised. AFP continues that on 25 September, the European Commission announced that it wanted to accelerate the development and market authorization for this latest strain.
"Two laboratories, Intervet (Holland) and Merial (French Swiss), indicated that they ought to be in a position to make vaccine available at at the beginning of 2008." See (in french) AFP report

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~Germany plans to order 5 million doses of BTV8 vaccine

"eradication of BT can only be achieved by vaccination of all susceptible farmed ruminants..." says Germany. A working group of the German federal ministry has met and agreed that eradication of BT can only be achieved by vaccination of all susceptible farmed ruminants. As it is quite clear that only a small fraction of vaccine required can be produced (for the whole of countries affected) and that the EU is not in a position to cover the costs for a vaccination programme of this scale the German position is as follows :
All (2.5 Million) sheep in Germany shall be subject to a compulsory vaccination campaign. During the next couple of days Brussels will be notified that Germany plans to order 5 million doses of BTV8 vaccine.

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ British MEPs not up to speed

we hear with alarm that Conservative MEPs have got it into their heads that
"there simply will not be enough vaccine available by 2008 to provide an effective defence. Therefore, the European Commission, with whom Mr. Parish has raised this issue directly, is working towards a goal of being able to use full vaccination as a way to control Blue Tongue from 2009..."
They are also under the entirely erroneous impression that "vaccinated animals lose a huge amount of their value on the market" apparently applying FMD rules, which are not applicable, to the Bluetongue situation - and unaware that in Spain, for example, a BTv vaccinated calf makes on average 100 EUROS more on the market than an unvaccinated one.

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ New Bluetongue Zone

Defra today" confirmed the extension of the Bluetongue Control Zone in Kent and East Sussex, following a new case of Bluetongue in Sevenoaks. This is in accordance with the UK Bluetongue Control Strategy and EU legislation. As a result, the Control Zone covering parts of Essex and East Anglia will now merge with the Control Zone in Kent and East Sussex to become one single Control Zone. The Protection Zone has also been extended slightly in the South West of England. The Control Zone in the Peterborough area remains unchanged."

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ "We therefore conclude that:- the disease situation does not allow further inaction...."

The European Livestock Association resolution on Bluetongue (pdf) can be seen at www.ela-europe.org It urges European Governments to
"act swiftly and decisively in order to ensure large scale vaccine production as soon as possible "
and that " Governments, European Commission/ European Parliament, and the various stakeholder groups" should "immediately develop Plans of Action regarding the species to be vaccinated, vaccination schedules, required vaccination coverage and allocation of available vaccine stocks within Europe as soon as they become available."

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~"not having a vaccine is a major risk"

"The unfortunate situation of one of the world's preeminent vaccine companies being precluded from producing a bluetongue vaccine to protect animals against an ongoing epidemic prompts me to weigh in on the subject of bluetongue biosafety."
From the paper on BTV biosecurity sent to Paul Sutmoller by Geoff Letchworth, DVM, Ph.D
".... I feel that animal experiments can be done quite safely with minimal containment in the winter. And quite obviously, when the virus is endemic, rigorous biocontainment requirements would be counterproductive if they delayed or prevented the use of vaccine.
On balance, it seems to me that manufacturing a bluetongue vaccine creates a very small and mostly theoretical risk, but the past year's experience has shown that not having a vaccine is a major risk."
The paper can be read in full as a pdf file at the ELA website or as a html file here Professor Letchworth makes it clear that the bluetongue virus (BTV) "has amazing environmental stability. It survives essentially forever when frozen." It is not, therefore, going to be killed off by a hard winter.

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ The Midges have Landed

"Overnight on 4/5 August was considered ideal in respect of conditions for midge take-off, safe transit and landing." The culicoides, then, evidently enjoyed a carefree journey.
We now have IAH Bluetongue statement 4. It says "...John Gloster, on secondment from the Met Office to the IAH Pirbright Laboratory, and colleagues has (sic) been monitoring wind direction in western Europe on a daily basis since August 2006....the air plume that is believed to be the one that brought bluetongue virus-infected midges to eastern counties during the night of August 4/5.... . Hourly observations of temperature, wind speed and direction, relative humidity and precipitation are being regularly accessed from Pirbright. The data will be used to monitor the likely midge development in the area and help to identify areas for further spread of disease in the area..."
So, excellent observation, analysis, prediction - but what action?

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ "When those who rule us go off their heads, it is often the tiny detail rather than the big picture which brings home just how far into the realms of lunacy they have travelled...."

Private Eye looks at Defra's response to bluetongue, "...the latest plague to be inflicted on our farm animals. Having reduced much of our livestock industry to paralysis by declaring a vast tract of eastern England a 'surveillance zone', out of which it is illegal for animals to be moved, Defra then comes up with its recommendations... here is Defra's brilliant master plan: that every afternoon the farmer should round up all his animals and keep them safely tucked up indoors until the Midge Menace has receded. As for those 'sticky nets', as one bluntly-spoken Cornish dairy farmer Pat Bird delicately enquires, how are they going to be suspended - 'from every bloody tree from Lincolnshire through Leicestershire down to Suffolk?'' ...
... The worst problem for farmers within the '150 kilometre survelliance zone (set up under EU rules) is that they can only move their animals within the zone. And here they are caught up by one of the government's earlier blunders: the mass-closure of our slaughterhouses pushed through by John Gummer when he was agriculture minister in the 1990s. No part of the country lost more abattoirs than that now within the bluetongue surveillance zone.."
As Anne Lambourn, also at the Brussels conference, writes,
" One of the world experts on Bluetongue, Rudy Meiswinkel, stated in Brussels that it has been found from field evidence/research that the midges move indoors with the cattle, so moving the cattle indoors does not provide the protection that Defra claims - just another example of poor quality and out of date information."

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ bluetongue straitjacket

502 Welsh farmers who also have land in England, and another 132 English farmers with land in Wales, cannot move their livestock across the border.
icwales.icnetwork.co.uk "... no animals can be moved from England into Wales, although the Welsh Assembly Government has relaxed the restriction to allow the movement of animals straight to slaughter. .... Wales Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones said, "There are now quite considerable pressures on a number of farmers who trade between the two areas and who have land in both countries… I would be happy for those farmers to raise any particular issues with me..."

Wednesday October 24 2007 ~ " the cost of prevention of these diseases ....extremely low compared to the cost of crisis."

Reporting on the global conference "Global Animal Health Initiative: The Way Forward" the OIE website quotes Dr. François Le Gall of the World Bank.
".. the international community will be required to take an increasingly active long-term role in a global system of animal disease prevention and control."
The need for a new "collaboration between public health and animal health key players" is at last realised. An "improvement of the quality of Veterinary Services" is to be encouraged - and funded. Although "some of these diseases only affect livestock" - this can be catastrophic enough, said Kathy Sierra, Vice President, Sustainable Development, World Bank, "just look at the recent outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the UK"
"Healthy animals are crucial for the future of human race" said Dr. David Nabarro, United Nation System Influenza Coordinator
Rumour has it that DEFRA still clings to the notion that Bluetongue can be eradicated without vaccination. A notion that must rest on ignorance of the science and ignorance of the experience of our EU colleagues. Bernard Vallat, Director General of OIE, made clear in Washington the urgency of the need to eradicate the serious viral diseases: "only one country which does not comply may endanger the entire planet" .

Tuesday October 23 2007 ~ New map of control zones

See DEFRA pdf file - or for the map alone, click here.

Tuesday October 23 2007 ~ Affected holdings across Northern Europe

The Netherlands : 5,776 affected holdings
Belgium : 5,041
Germany : 15,404 Map attached
France : 5,149
Luxembourg : 1,107
UK 50

Tuesday October 23 2007 ~ "a range of speakers, covering topics including disease diagnosis, treatment, vaccination and control"

It is cheering to see the initiative taken by Farmers Weekly in teaming up with the National Sheep Association, the National Beef Association, EBLEX and the Livestock Auctioneers Association in order to learn from the experiences of our fellow Europeans - something the official UK Bluetongue Control Strategists may be failing to do. (For example, the insistence that animals have to be moved in time for slaughter to take place "well before dusk when midges are particularly active" would be questioned now by some of our European colleagues who say that research being carried out shows that midges are actively biting animals at all times of the day. Also, the strategy of taking animals in under cover has been shown to be useless since the midges get in with them and are virtually impossible to exclude in a outbuilding that has air circulating.) The three meetings will be held at
Kettering Conference Centre, Northamptonshire on Wednesday 7 November,
Thame Market, Oxfordshire on Thursday 8 November
and Ashford Market, Kent on Wednesday 14 November.
Meetings will start at 7pm. Attendance is free . For more information contact NSA on 01684 892 661. See www.fwi.co.uk

Monday October 22 2007 ~ These disease controls are killing animals

" If the government will not order the BTV8 vaccine this week (and pay for it) then we might as well accept that there is little point in trying to continue sheep farming..."
Essential reading on Bluetongue is the latest instalment today of Frank the Wool's Control Zone diary at www.fwi.co.uk/Community/forums As he says, if, as is all too likely, it becomes impossible to sell sheep on Friday
".... we will be forced to resort to on farm slaughter and burial for the store lambs.I doubt we will be given the luxury of a £15.00 disposal scheme as they have in Scotland and Wales. We will also have to make the hard decision to slaughter the ewe lambs and assess the maximum number of ewes that we have a chance of putting to the Tup. The surplus ewes will also have to be killed."
The last part of what he says is of vital importance and concerns the fact that if farmers feel they are going to be stuck and stymied as a result of reporting notifiable disease then they are going to stop doing so.
".. if any other notifiable disease appears then it will never ever be notified."
As in 2001 we are seeing something that the public is not being told: the "cure" is killing hundreds and hundreds of healthy animals.

Monday October 22 2007 ~ Germany holds emergency meeting to order BTV-8 vaccine

We understand that Germany has realised the urgency of the situation and an emergency meeting has been held so that firm orders for BTV-8 vaccines can be dispatched. (This information is not available online as far as we know and thus not officially confirmable yet.)
The CVOs of all affected European countries are the ones who are responsible for giving vaccine companies a firm commitment for vaccine orders - and getting adequate supplies will depend on those firm orders. Vaccine production is a slow process even in an emergency and the producers cannot be expected to work blind without knowing how many million doses are actually going to be required as soon as possible next year. It is to be hoped that pressure is being applied from all quarters to remind the UK of its responsibility. (See email links to CVOs below)

October 21 2007 ~ Vitally important to vaccinate against BTV-8 - for more than the UK

Britain is well known in the rest of Europe for its rather insular approach - but animal disease does not respect geographical boundaries. As was discussed in Brussels, the vector midge has the potential to spread BTV-8 throughout the palaearctic and the mediterranean basin. Northern Europe - if it can take this opportunity to try to control and eradicate BTV-8 -will be able to protect those regions and has a moral duty to do so. But vaccine companies are not funded as a public service. We should all be lobbying the CVO to order supplies of the vaccine right now. Supplies of vaccine do not magically appear. There has to be a firm commitment. The EU will be generous in funding - but it is not down to the EU to order supplies. Contact Debby Reynolds or Fred Landeg to request that a firm commitment for supplies be ordered - if this has not already been done. Merial at Pirbright is furthest on with this work and it is to be hoped that the green light has now been given for work to recommence.

October 21 2007 ~" Issues of trading in the case of vaccination have no logical reason to hold up vaccination policy."

A very important section of Dr Watkins' paper is the section where she asks, "Why is there no vaccine ready for use? She describes the chicken and egg situation as the vaccine companies will not make the vaccine unless an order is firmly made and the costs underwritten.
"Ordering on a voluntary basis has led to indecision about the number of doses required, further delaying ordering. ... it has taken all summer to thrash out trading rules within Europe ...Why should this agreement have taken precedence over forming a policy to control and eradicate infection?
There seems to be a complete lack of any transparent well argued and reasoned vaccination policies for bluetongue serotype 8 control and eradication..."
Read this part in full It is very unfortunate that veterinary medicine has no equivalent specialism as that of the consultant clinical virologist in human medicine. Dr Watkins - who now runs a viable livestock farm - has both the knoiwledge and the expertise. Her generous offer to apply her knowledge and skills to the veterinary field should be most gratefully received.

October 21 2007 ~ Vaccination policy for the UK

Dr Ruth Watkins has produced a clear and practical plan for the UK. In the addendum, sent this morning, she says that in the case of vaccination policies for zoonotic epidemics, the policy should be set out by two groups: first, a panel of professionals in virology and infectious disease, and a second group which should address the practical issues of carrying out the policy. Here, the practical group are in regular communication with the professional group and the interests of the stakeholders are paramount. As she says,
"A few individuals from one laboratory should not have control over the policy. Clinical and field experience must be represented by appropriately chosen vets as well as the science of virology and epidemiology."
(See both policy and addendum in new window for printing)

October 20 2007 ~ The chairman of the British Wool Marketing Board, Frank Langrish, is one of the latest farmers to have livestock infected with bluetongue.

His diary, posted on the farmingforum.co.uk website makes for fascinating although grim reading. It also makes clear just how far from having its feet on the ground DEFRA can be - both with its rationale for restrictions and also with its belief that farmers will necessarily comply with orders that they do not respect.

October 20 2007 ~ New cases in the UK, first case of BTV-8 in Italy - urgent need for appropriate vaccine to be ordered now

The new UK zone map - destined surely to be of as short duration as the others - can be seen here. The only reference to the Italy outbreak so far available is on edp24.co.uk but if true, the demand for vaccine is going to be even greater. Our own CVO appears to be strangely absent. If she is ill we wish her well - but, even without her, the UK must not sit on its hands expecting the vaccine producers to be clairvoyant about the numbers of doses needed. Firm orders and a clearly expressed commitment to use the vaccines when available need to be made by all the CVOs in the relevant countries.
As for who pays: Article 3 of EU Decision 90/424/EEC provides for the Community's financial contribution - a Community contribution provides up to 100% of the costs of the supply of vaccine doses and 50% of the practicialities of vaccination.
Interestingly, it also provides for a Community financial contribution where, on the outbreak, two or more Member States collaborate closely to control the epidemic particularly in carrying out an epidemiological survey and disease surveillance measures. (pdf source)

October 15 2007 ~ "containment of slaughter animals is a step too far"

Stackyard.com quotes the National Beef Association director, Kim Haywood on the subject of DEFRA demands about movement from BT zones to slaughter (see also below)
" the industry does not yet know exactly is required of abattoirs before they are approved by the MHS....This means that permission to slaughter these animals will not be automatic. It is also possible that approval will require the compulsory use of insecticides and acquisition of these, if it is required, could take time......the clearance of the huge backlogs that have already built up behind the BT line will have a much slower start than expected and it has to be hoped that Defra's demands on chemical use, and other conditions, will be sensible and proportionate.
Ms Haywood added that the NBA's view is that Bluetongue controls should not prevent any feeder or finisher from being able to move specifically selected slaughter stock directly to their first choice processor. As she points out: "BT is a disease that is spread by midges, not by animals, and containment of slaughter animals is a step too far. "

October 15 2007 ~ German cases now over 14 thousand

The figures are out and since June this year the number has reached 14.174 0 divied fairly eveninly between cattle and sheep with 71 goats and some wild cases. THis, I'm afraid is what we must expect if vaccine supplies cannot be expedited. Is anyone aware of any movement on the DEFRA/Merial front?

October 15 2007 ~ "a fair number of these tough, resilient men tell me that they have had enough..."

An article today in the Herald warns that hill farmers in Scotland, men well able to withstand one of the harshest environments in Europe, are not going to be able to withstand the ravages of Bluetongue if it become endemic. They are talking about giving up. And, as the article predicts, if hill farming dies out there will be "one of the biggest environmental and demographic disasters yet". Many will remember the miserable (and tragically unnecessary) Brecon Beacon cull of hefted sheep in 2001 - and this will be the same - only magnified. Hefted sheep know their area and the shepherds are highly skilled. When this knowledge goes, it goes for ever. And BTV-8 vaccine production at Merial is still languishing under the intransigent command of DEFRA.

October 14 2007 ~ Bluetongue hits goats in Holland

From ProMed update email "...In a group of more than 100 goats, 10 have been found to be seriously sick. Up to now, it was not known if goats, infected with BTV-8, would develop a clinical disease, says CIDC.
According to the animal-disease service [GD], the main clinical sign observed in the goats, was high fever (up to 42 deg C / 107.6 deg F). Several of the goats had slightly swollen lips and small subcutaneous hemorrhages on the udders. The high-yield goats with elevated temperature had a sharp drop in their milk production.
According to CIDC, there was only one earlier recording in the Netherlands of a BT positive-tested goat, in February this year (2007). However, the goat's PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test was negative; the goat did not show clinical signs." Read ProMed bluetongue update in full

October 14 2007 ~"by a malign stroke of fate....work there is now at a halt while the clapped-out buildings are brought up to scratch."

".....The Dutch and Germans, with thousands of cases of blue tongue, compared to the handful so far discovered in the UK, must be weeping at the delay. But when a vaccine is ready, there is no doubt that it will be used."So says Clive Aslet in the Sunday Telegraph.
The UK would do well to learn from our European neighbours. We have, also in the Sunday Telegraph, the misleading headline "Bluetongue spreads from cattle to sheep" which suggests that cattle can pass the disease on to sheep. Nothing in the body of the article explains clearly enough that the only vector is the midge. Bluetongue is not contagious and it is worrying that there are still journalists writing about animal disease in the UK who do not understand much about it and who can mislead the public in this way. Sheep can be infected only if an infected female midge feeds on it while in the viraemic stage. They cannot be infected by cattle.

October 13 2007 ~ Bluetongue outbreak detected in Denmark

Denmark has its first case of Bluetongue in a sheep herd near Sakskobing on the island of Lolland, south of Zealand, the European Commission said today (See Alertnet.) It has reported this first case as an outbreak. It will be remembered that the UK dithered from the time of its first case on September 22 until on September 28 Defra, in the person of Fred Landeg, finally accepted that the UK had an outbreak.

October 13 2007 ~ Approved" slaughterhouses means that those outside the Bluetongue Zones have to apply to the Meat Hygiene Service

to be allowed to take animals from within the Control and Protection Zones. The conditions under which animals are going to move to slaughter are looking very stringent. They have to move before dusk and the time limits, soon to be announced, look very difficult to fulfil. This contrasts greatly with the situation in France where animals from the PZ can be sent into the BT free zone for breeding or finishing after they have been serologically tested and a "desinsectisation" begun at least 28 days before being removed. Abattoirs in France must give priority to animals from PZ and ensure slaughter before 48 hours has elapsed after they leave the restricted zone. See (in french) Fièvre Catarrhale Ovine (FCO) Note d'Information N° 7

October 12 2007 ~ Astonishing and alarming spread in Europe

Warmwell is very grateful to Sabine Zentis for this overview of present numbers of BTV-8 cases in Europe. As she says, ".. the official case numbers have reached a staggering 30,000+  it is incomprehensible that so far no common strategy for the countries affected has been published." We also are wondering what conclusions can be reached about possible future strategies from the various consultations that have been going on throughout Europe to combat "this major crisis for the livestock sector of Western Europe"

October 12 2007 ~"We welcome this announcement and are grateful for all the work that has been done to make progress in reaching this important stage".

"new measures to relieve pressure within the Bluetongue zones" Today DEFRA announces "Markets within the Bluetongue Control and Protection Zones will be permitted from midnight Sunday 14 October. The movement of susceptible animals from within the Control and Protection Zones to approved slaughterhouses outside the Bluetongue Zones will also be permitted from this time."
This news is goods and was greeted by the "Core Stakeholders" as above.

October 12 2007 ~ Movement to slaughter outside the Zone must be allowed - urgently

Rather than extending the BT zone the government should give permission for all movements directly to slaughter to be allowed outside the zone to the nearest abattoirs. When midge activity stops in the colder weather, in a few weeks at most, animals for breeding, once blood tests have given a negative result for the BT virus, should also be allowed to be moved.
Unfortunately Fred Landeg continues to appear to be unaware that moving cattle directly to slaughter would pose no problem or risk to other animals. Bluetongue is not contagious. Even if - an unlikely scenario anyway - a bluetongue infected animal were to travel outside the zone there would be no time for a midge to bite it since it would be transported straight to the abattoir.

October 12 2007 ~ Killing business

When a group of Livestock Auctioneers took a deputation to DEFRA Headquarters to explain the difficulties in getting stock slaughtered within the Bluetongue restriction zone they were shown a list of slaughterhouses in the area. The DEFRA list included abattoirs that had been closed for 5 YEARS and some of which were small private slaughterhouses killing only 5 or 6 animals a week. If DEFRA thinks their list is current, are they still paying for the countless Meat Inspectors to police these non-existent slaughterhouses, so many of which succumbed to the lunatic demands of EU legislation and whose disappearance is now the root of so much hardship.
An estimated 8,000 cattle inside the bluetongue control zone are normally killed for meat every week but within the zone there are only enough slaughterhouses to process 2,500. On the other side of the imaginary line abattoirs are operating at only 25 per cent capacity because so many of the cattle they need are on the wrong side of the line.

October 12 2007 ~ "a vital section of our national industry will be suffocated"

Thes are not idle words. DEFRA - in its incarnation as Fred Landeg - has said that current control and protection zones will remain in place until the end of summer 2008 "at the earliest"
The Farmers Guardian quotes the National Beef Association vice-chairman, Frank Momber:
"Government seems to have no appreciation of just how many cattle are on big feeding units in the East of England and just how meagre the slaughter facilities are. It must, at the very least, allow finished cattle to be transported out of the BT zone for processing...."
Something must be done or farmers and feeders will go out of business in droves. Supermarket shelves will be stocked with imports and, as Frank Momber says, "a vital section of our national industry will be suffocated"

October 11 2007 ~ "Entomological research deserves to be prioritized."

says the ProMed moderator today. The "red dot" map (see below) and posting from the Swiss Veterinary Office, also mentioned on ProMed, shows that in Switzerland at least
" Surveillance activities have been undertaken for several months in more than 160 sentinel cattle holdings. This will now be extended to include insect monitoring throughout the country.."
The moderator AS says,
"The rapid and massive spread of BTV-8 in Europe is amazing. ...Nobody anticipated that a bluetongue strain, hitherto exotic to Europe, would be threatening central Europe from the north carried by a highly efficient vector, a cause for grave concern, indicating the need for enhanced epidemiological effort to uncover the source and dynamics of the BTV-8 epizootic and to assess the potential of the wide array of insectborne diseases of man and animals, which may follow a similar route."
He also recommends http://www.te.izs.it/vet_italiana/index.html

October 11 2007 ~ A coming national catastrophe - but consigned to the Letters pages

"We must seriously consider vaccination - soon..." writes a farmer, Sarah Birchall, from inside what she calls "Bluetongue Island". This is in the Telegraph - but the crisis she describes which is no less than the possible end of farming in the UK is still confined to the letters pages
".....Does anybody care or even begin to understand the predicament the industry is now in? Customers for these animals lie to the west of the zone, as does the winter grazing. Normal trade has ceased. Ten livestock markets are unable to trade, and risk extinction. Countless jobs and livelihoods will be lost. Do those who spend their whole lives working the land count for so very little? Is most of our food destined to come from abroad? ....The aid announced following the foot and mouth crisis has done nothing to help those in the bluetongue zone. Bluetongue is much worse, and will probably never completely go away. We must seriously consider vaccination - soon..."
While people are so cut off from the realities of food production that they never give farming a thought it will be too late before the general public understands the dire position into which we are sliding.

October 11 2007 ~ "....more than 30 animals have been put down."

/ukpress.google.com Animals put down? The lack of information from DEFRA is disgraceful - see latest Declaration (pdf). All we are getting from the egregious Mr Landeg is an inappropriate tone of command. "I continue to urge all farmers to remain vigilant, check their animals twice daily and report any sign of disease immediately." The impertinence of this is truly staggering. Farmers are to report immediately - but DEFRA's communication with them is virtually non existent.
What species are infected? What is the mortality rate? Where are the confirmed cases? Why should animals be being put down when culling serves no purpose? Why does the DEFRA map not show confirmed cases? Why is DEFRA information so at odds with others we have seen such as that on the Swiss veterinary website (see below)? Why hasthe lack of proper testing and surveillance led to such ignorance of the true picture?
There may be perfectly adequate and reasonable answers to these questions - but without those answers one is left with a question that towers over all the rest: Why is this distressing situation being exacerbated by an incompetent, secretive Ministry that seems to be doing as much harm as good? Why is this distressing situation being exacerbated by an incompetent, secretive Ministry that seems to do far more harm than good?

October 10 2007 ~ Four cases near Folkstone?

The pdf file from www.bvet.admin.ch in Switzerland that we mentioned earlier today, clearly shows four "confirmed cases" in Kent. It looks like the Folkstone area. One doubts whether the Swiss vets' knowledge of geography would be that faulty and wonders if they have information that has not been revealed. Has anyone any information about this? DEFRA merely says "further cases in Essex and near Lowestoft". Nowhere near. And as the ProMed moderator says, "It would help if these commendable daily updates included information on the species affected as well as the morbidity/mortality data."
UPDATE We hear from a reliable source that there are no cases in Kent. Some crossed wire it seems - but we hope this is going to be made officially clear.

October 10 2007 ~ "I have written to Elin Jones our Minister for rural affairs about bluetongue vaccination and ordering some 40 million doses for Wales"

Elin Jones seems to be living proof that it is possible for a rural affairs Minister to be worth more than their weight in broken biscuits. Ruth Watkins writes, " 40 million doses....if that should be enough to get our animals vaccinated by the end of next July.... (Some of us) feel that most welsh farmers don't understand what impact bluetongue will have and they will certainly not be able to afford pain killers, antibiotics and dexamethsone for thousands upon thousands of ill sheep. I think they are stunned by the present financial crisis.
Most farmers in Wales are livestock farmers and according to the NFU local rep, (a wonderful farmer's wife who is at the NFU Mutual premises in LLandovery where I have all my insurance for the farm) are below the poverty line. There are 45 farms in LLanddeusant, there are probably 20,000 breeding ewes and 1500 breeding suckler cattle and so there will be 1500 calves each year and at least 30,000 lambs. There are no dairy farms (none had more than a dozen cows) any more...."

October 10 2007 ~ Unbelievable

Commenting on the announcement that the PZ for Bluetongue has indeed been expanded, deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg, quoted in Farmers Weekly, said: "Finding further cases is not unexpected, particularly given the nature of the disease, and we expect to see more cases before the end of the active midge season this winter. If we are to contain the disease within the Control and Protection Zone, we must have an accurate picture of how far the disease has spread." But even for Fred Landeg midges will not behave in a regimented and acceptable manner. Unlike the rest of his department midges dare to cross red lines. Which is precisely why random blood checks around the control zone, preferably in cattle, should have been carried out long ago. Surveillance and testing has been woeful and this applies to Foot and Mouth too. DEFRA's position is still "wait and hope" and their location - according to commentators at one EU meeting who must remain anonymous - is "dreamland". Will Mr Landeg be ordering men in white suits to place sticky nets around the perimeter of the new zone?

October 10 2007 ~ " It is a Don Quixote fight...because of the vast numbers of midges these measures don't work ."

"...unless one plans to concrete the whole country these isolated measures won't have any influence on vector numbers," writes Sabine Zentis from the heart of midge infested Germany. While one would not put it past the present incumbents to want to concrete over the whole country, the unfortunate fact remains that bluetongue is not going to be fought off by anything short of vaccine. There may be some short term measures and an interesting article appeared in the Farmers Guardian today on the subject - but Frau Zentis, about as experienced as we're going to find, has written a commentary which warns
"....the use of these products only had a very minimal, if any effect on infections....The problem is the vast amount of culicoides, there are gazillions around and because of their numbers these measures don't work satisfactorily. My private view: The whole insecticide exercise gave people the feeling of at least doing SOMETHING but the use as a means to prevent Bluetongue is questionable. We did it all - from as early as April, - pour on, ear clips containing deltamethrine, Ivermectine - but with approx. 20% of animals clinically affected and an unknown number of subclinically infected animals I don't see this as a big success..."
And as Ruth Watkins writes,"It is concerning that Hiliary Benn seems unaware that Merial are ready to start manufacture of bluetongue 8 vaccine. Since Prof Spratt has said why not allow manufacturing right away - why has this not reached Hilary Benn?"

October 10th ~ The massive accumulation of red dots says it all

This map (pdf) (link mended but large file that opens very slowly) - available on line as a pdf file from the Bvet. admin site in Switzerland, shows the extent of the march of bluetongue across Europe. Switzerland is anxiously awaiting its first case. The new cases in Britain are shown and the scale of the potential disaster is clearly visible.

October 10th ~ unconfirmed reports that the Bluetongue Protection Zone has been expanded following the discovery of the disease in Essex.

Alistair Driver writes in the Farmers Guardian
"If confirmed by Defra today, it will be the first clear indication that the disease has spread beyond the local area near Ipswich where it was first discovered. While this is a worrying development, particularly for those now drawn into the zone, it will reportedly bring two more abattoirs into the Protection Zone. This would help to alleviate the desperate shortage of slaughtering capacity in the Protection Zone."
The current number of cases is 34 and the latest case is indeed in Essex. See map above.

October 10th ~ " If it indeed it is a true case of infection in situ in England, I would fully expect the epidemic to take off next year."

Professor N. James MacLachlan of the School of Veterinary Medicine University of California Davis says that the virus proved between 2006 and 2007 that it could overwinter in northern Europe, "so I don't think the English winter will exterminate it." (See egghead Blog at UC Davis) MacLachlan says that the btv-8 strain is unusually virulent in cattle and goats and also
"appears to have found a new insect partner to transmit itself. This is important because Culicoides (midges) occur in staggering population densities on all continents except Antarctica - bottom line is that the current outbreak in northern Europe already is considerably further north (53 N) than bluetongue had ever previously been recorded (about 50 N). So with a new vector and climate change, who knows how far north this will go and where else.... The sobering reality is that this might just be a portent of things to come regarding climate change and the spread of vector borne diseases, especially other Culicoides transmitted viruses like African horse sickness."
Meanwhile, another sobering reality - the mass killing of light lambs and the price crash for lamb both at the abattoir and the sale of breeding ewes and ewe lambs is a portent of miseries to come. The media are steering well clear of reporting distressing scenes and so the general public have simply no idea of the desperate seriousness of the present situation for all livestock farmers - not only those completely stalled in the various zones.

October 10th ~ "Will the Secretary of State confirm that, by a cruel twist of irony, work on a vaccine to protect against bluetongue has been put on hold..."

asked Peter Ainsworth on Monday (Hansard) "When does he now expect a bluetongue vaccine to be available?"
But answer came there none
Hilary Benn's stolid and stodgy replies throughout the next hour gave no hint that he was even aware that his Department had stopped production. So what about the "rigorous Improvement Plan" for the Pirbright site, to be "implemented before full operations with live viruses can recommence"? Apparently unable to see that his rigorous plan was putting an indefinite stop to production he blithely followed Henry Bellingham's warning that bluetongue had the capacity totally to devastate the livestock industry with this:
"the best route for preventing the with this:
"the best route for preventing the situation that the hon. Gentleman describes is to develop a vaccine as quickly as possible, and to make sure that it is used to protect livestock."
In the course of the hour long debate on FMD and Bluetongue, nothing more was said to answer Peter Ainsworth's questions. We learnt only that the review Sir Bill Callaghan is to carry out does not even report until December

October 9th ~ DEFRA - "sharing responsibility"

Statement:
"..... requires farmers in the zones to be vigilant and, for the sake of their industry, to report all new cases, so that we can monitor whether spread is occurring. We will keep this approach under review with the industry, not least because the effects of Bluetongue movement controls mean that decisions on control should be taken by the industry and not just by Ministers."
If, by its constant mantra about vigilance and decision sharing DEFRA is hoping to shift responsibility away from its own failings in surveillance and testing, our worst suspicions about DEFRA's cynical shrugging off of responsibility would seem to be being realised. We have already seen in Surrey a furious turning on farmers for failing to spot the same mild signs of foot and mouth infection that its own vets failed to detect. Once the bluetongue virus is seen to be spreading out of the present restricted area the livestock sector will be blamed. But the NFU and others may well be running towards this very danger by urging decisions that are based, not on expert advice about this real disease, but on the wishful thinking and denial - which is just about all we have seen so far.
Where is the informed risk analysis of the options carried out by experts? Indeed, where are the British experts in Bluetongue?
As for the vaccine that all now agree is so vital: "....a rigorous Improvement Plan has been developed for the Pirbright site to be implemented before full operations with live virus can re-commence" said the Minister
Just exactly what this "rigorous Improvement Plan" is going to entail and how long it will take, is worrying those who anxiously wait for work to resume on the BTV 8 vaccine at Merial. One can only hope that work be allowed to restart before the last susceptible animal in Northern Europe has raised its eyes to heaven and given up the ghost.

October 9th ~ "Epidemiological data should be complete, including locations, species, morbidity, and mortality".

says the ProMed moderator AS - He was speaking of Bluetongue in particular but the same holds true for FMD, In trying to keep track of numbers and locations one is stymied by sloppy and inaccurate reporting by the CVO to the OIE - information that does not tie up with other reports and DCVO presentations because the premises are not consistently named, numbers and species of animals killed is not accurately reported and morbidity rate usually has to be worked out for oneself. ProMed makes clear that the criticism, applies to more than Bluetongue
"...The delay in the notification of some BTV-8 outbreaks (particularly in the UK, where the 1st notification was delayed until "circulation" could be demonstrated), and the differences between the data from the 6 affected countries -- as apparent in the various lists above -- underlie the need for a centralized, fast, reliable and comprehensive data-base which would apply homogeneous, uniform criteria for data collection from all countries.
Epidemiological data should be complete, including locations, species, morbidity, and mortality. Monitoring and reporting the BTV-8 epizootic, which has already affected 6 EU member states and is threatening to spread further, could have been a useful rehearsal tool, providing an opportunity to improve the reporting system as stated above. Such improvements become indispensable for the timely and effective handling of highly infectious or zoonotic animal diseases, if and when they make their own appearance. We are grateful to Sabine Zentis for taking the trouble to try narrowing the gap, searching for such information from available sources. "
If the UK could cooperate in a "centralised, fast, reliable and comprehensive data-base which would apply homogeneous, uniform criteria for data collection from all countries" it would certainly be a much needed first step in the professional approach to disease control so lacking at present .

October 8th ~ "living with these restrictions not as bad as watching animals go down with BT"

DEFRA announced that "under strict conditions" an abattoir in West Sussex and another in Lincoln will take animals for slaughter from within the Bluetongue protection zone due to the immense strain on abattoirs inside the zone. Farmers Guardian "The decision to grant a general licence to move animals to these abattoirs has come after a veterinary risk assessment concluded that the move would not risk a spread of disease. "
As for the desperate pleas from those in the Zone for it to be extended to the whole of the UK, Sabine Zentis remains deeply sympathetic but adamant in her advice:
"I can understand exactly that something must be done, otherwise farmers will go out of business in droves but they really shouldn't extend the zone but rather give permission for all movements directly to slaughter. This will only have to be for a couple of weeks at least: once the vector activity ceases animals for breeding can be moved after blood tests giving a negative result for the virus.
We have been living with these restrictions for 14 months now - and they are not as bad as watching animals go down with BT in large numbers"
. The closure of so many small local slaughterhouses for spurious "health and safety" reasons is now reaping its miserable reward -

October 8th ~ Vaccination for Europe?

Although the UK may still only be waking up gradually to the potential nightmare and the necessity of vaccinating against Bluetongue, other European countries are very much further along in their thinking and the question now is simply whether to go for full eradication or for voluntary or ring vaccination. It would appear that France favours eradication and - since Spain is now watching the southwards advance of BTv-8 with increasing alarm - at least ring vaccinate in order to try to protect the South as soon as possible. Belgium and Luxembourg are both anxious to get vaccination moving.
As for the costs of the vaccines and the process, according to the Working Document on "Harmonised and enhanced response to Bluetongue outbreaks in the EU" (Feb 07), we read that Council Decision 90/424/EEC on expenditure in the veterinary field provides for the Member State "to obtain a Community contribution for the eradication of the disease up to 100% of the costs of the vaccine doses and 50% of vaccination." Of course, this all presupposes a supply of vaccine and since Merial was far ahead of the field on this we can only hope, yet again, that the hold-up is quickly resolved.

October 8th ~ Bluetongue Research cost UK taxpayers 4,000,000 euros (sic)

We see in DEFRA's Bluetongue Surveillance in the UK SCoFCAH 20 October 2006 (link mended - apologies but the pdf file takes several moments to load in a new window) that this money went on
• Survey of the distribution of Culicoides and species profile and vector competence in the UK
• Molecular epidemiology - Virus characterisation to determine virus relationships and sources of incursions
• Modelling using - Remote sensing, GIS and Satellite Imaging -Traditional modelling to obtain Ro -Meteorological data - wind, temperature, humidity
• Development of new BTV vaccines - sub-unit vaccines and delivery systems
Nearly £3 million pounds? Where is the provision for adequate surveillance and testing? Taxpayers money used towards new BTV vaccine development - only for the Merial producers to be held up by DEFRA's intransigence when, as Professor Spratt shows below, there is no risk involved in their continuing work on this so vitally needed vaccine for the whole of Northern Europe.

October 6 2007 ~ " UK farmers haven't understood the implications of declaring GB as a BT zone..".

The problem, says Sabine Zentis, (not only an expert in this disease but also a prize-winning breeder of English Longhorns) is that UK farmers haven't understood the implications of declaring GB as a BT zone so that internal movements can happen. Next year things are going to be very much worse.
Frau Zentis writes,
"This might be due to the fact that Fred Landeg was quoted as saying that the disease might die out during the winter. The NFU chairman of the Suffolk National Farmers' Union (see edp24.co.uk) should look over his fence; he's seen only the start of BT but by next year he's going to have to prepare himself for real losses. Landeg is repeating the same wishful thinking that has been the main policy in Germany and he seems to ignore the fact that this disease just doesn't go away because a vet says so..."

October 6th 2007 ~ "movements straight to abattoirs outside the restricted zones should be permitted as soon as possible."

Sabine Zentis says," There is no risk involved if animals are slaughtered within a short period of time, say 24 hours."
But plans to resume movement country wide without vector surveillance showing that no culicoides are active because of low temperatures are extremely unwise. While it might seem fine in the UK this year with a low viral load and perhaps not too many culicoides infected, it would be a recipe for disaster next year. Such free movements would increase the spread of BT enormously.
The consequences of a massive outbreak as in Northern Europe this year have been an absolute disaster for the sheep sector. On dairy farms even cows are dying of BTV 8 with some farmers losing on average 2 animals per week.
Since it is so important to prevent regions from getting infected by multiple serotypes, BT affected farmers can't export into free regions or regions under restrictions for another serotype. There is no cross protection between the 24 different serotypes. A different serotype can cause severe losses to cattle. However, between the regions affected by the same serotype there are no restrictions in trade. Once the FMD restrictions are lifted the UK will be able to export animals from the BT restricted areas to all areas within the EU affected by the SAME serotype ( zone F). A note of caution from Frau Zentis:
"The legislation is very clear on lifting of restrictions to regain the status: country or region free of BT: a country has to prove by surveillance that for TWO YEARS no virus has been circulating."
Thus the UK must be free from BTV circulation during 2008 and 2009 if restrictions are to be lifted in 2010.

October 6th 2007 ~" I pushed very hard for slaughter on suspicion because I felt at the time that it was the right thing to do."

edp24.co.uk reports that the NFU chairman of the Suffolk National Farmers' Union - whose two bluetongue infected cows have survived and are still hat the NFU chairman of the Suffolk National Farmers' Union - whose two bluetongue infected cows have survived and are still milking quite well - had, at first, thought that his cows ought to have been slaughtered - but they are recovering well. He is now going to "brief the NFU's ruling council on Monday on why the current bluetongue control zone should be extend to cover the whole of the country."

October 6th 2007 ~ A midge repellent recipe

has been sent to us from Jane Ross She says, "In reply to readers with small flocks/herds, the following pour-on (which I make up as a fly repellent for my horses) might be of interest..." Very much worth a try.

October 6th 2007 ~ From ProMed Mail - Moderator comment

ProMed ".... A continuous spread of the virus in south-eastern England is expected during the coming weeks. It remains to see if the disease will subside during the winter months.
During the meeting of EU's SCFCAH (Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health), section "Animal Health and Animal Welfare", held in Brussels earlier this week (3-4 Oct 2007), the UK delegation presented the report "Bluetongue type 8 in East Anglia: Situation on 1st October". It included, among others, data on herd prevalence, namely 0.5 - 10.0 percent. Unfortunately, no case fatality data, in the various affected species, were included. The report is available at http://ec.europa.eu/food/committees/regulatory/scfcah/animal_health/bt_23102007_uk.pdf .... - Mod. AS].

October 5th 2007 ~ General licence for the movement of ruminating animals out of a Bluetongue Protection Zone to slaughter

A printable licence may be found at www.defra.gov.uk/

October 5th 2007 ~ Mr Landeg said that vaccination could lead to the eradication of bluetongue.

"Vaccination would be a very suitable control strategy," he said. Farmers Guardian

October 5th 2007 ~ Don't try using flea repellents

We have been asked if Frontline etc might be worth a try on sheep. The answer is, unfortunately, no. Again, our German expert comes to our aid:
" It is very doubtful whether Frontline, Stronghold etc would have any use as a repellent because sheep have large amounts of wool fat (lanolin) This is the reason you can't use Ivomec pour-on on sheep; the lanolin prevents Ivermectin from being absorbed through the root of the hair. Flea and tick repellents are not licenced for use on farm animals and they are only safety tested for cats and dogs. If people with only one or two sheep are concerned, they should try repellents that are sold for horses - the fouller the smell the better. But this stuff is usually so expensive that it doesn't make any sense for larger flocks, especially as it has to be applied on a daily basis."

October 5th 2007 ~ Pressure to allow bluetongue vaccine production to restart.

FWi "..... If the ban is lifted and work begins again immediately, it is possible that a vaccine for bluetongue type 8 could be available before the height of the next midge season. Merial spokesman Philip Connolly told Farmers Weekly: "Provided we can resume virus production in October, we should be able to supply vaccines to the market by early summer next year, in time for farmers to vaccinate at the crucial time." Merial is already at the stage of transferring production of a vaccine for BTV-8 from research and development to full-scale manufacturing. However, because of the projected demand for vaccines, Mr Connolly said having adequate time to produce thousands of doses would be crucial...."

October 5th 2007 ~"Environment secretary Hilary Benn will consider extending East Anglia's bluetongue disease controls to a national zone

if the country's farming industry can make a united case, he told the region's farmers last night. A high-level delegation of a dozen farmers told Mr Benn at a meeting in Newmarket that the livestock industry needed urgent practical help to survive the bluetongue disease crisis. Mr Benn, who spent more than 90 minutes being briefed at the National Farmers' Union's regional headquarters, had earlier visited a re-opened livestock market at Skipton, Yorkshire. His visit to East Anglia came as the one more case of bluetongue was confirmed in Suffolk, taking the total to 25." See eadt.co.uk
However, we hear from a German expert that
"It would be more clever to keep the zones in place but permit movement for slaughter out of the restricted areas after clinical inspection. They can further relax regualtions once vector surveys shows a minimum activity of midges. I know this isn't really what people want to hear especially as so far no really severe cases have been experienced. But this will change rapidly after a couple of virus replication cycles - and with the vaccine hold-up (i.e. at Merial in Pirbright see below) the prospects are even worse"

October 5th 2007 ~ UK midges and the wonders of research

The UK sometimes shows an astonishing refusal to learn from others abroad. We read in the denbighshirefreepress.co.uk that work done on midges by the University of Liverpool's faculty of veterinary science in conjunction with the Government research centre at Pirbright had produced the theory that keeping cattle housed would reduce the risk of the spread of the disease. However, research taking place in Europe too in the past two years of bluetongue misery has upset their conclusions. As the weather gets colder the midges follow the animals indoors.
These intrepid Welsh midge trappers "at the forefront of the fight against the deadly bluetongue disease" and the professor supervising the project, are helpfully warning farmers in North Wales about "very large numbers" of midges - but until they saw some French research they were unaware that midges do not like the cold either and make for the barns along with the animals.

October 4th 2007 ~ "People are getting very agitated....we have just got to hope that there's a vaccine by the spring."

Mr Mike Giffin, chairman of the Surrey branch of the NFU, is quoted in SurreyOnline
"....Once again the farming industry suffers because of the condition of the Pirbright site. Anger is increasing because it's getting very difficult, both financially and in terms of livestock management. Nobody wants to see their livestock suffer. People are getting very agitated."
Farmers in the south-east of England and the Home Counties are restricted from moving their existing stock or buying new stock (see DEFRA map) and the NFU is opposed to enlarging the zone to cover the whole country. (see below)

October 4th 2007 ~ The EU has insisted on a ban of meat exports from inside a 200 kilometre exclusion zone around the FMD cases

The EU release says, "The export of fresh beef and sheep meat would be allowed to resume from the parts of Great Britain which fall outside a 200km delineated area around the surveillance zone in South-East England." This, even though, at the slaughterhouse, animals have to be killed immediately, and "ante- and post-mortem inspections for possible signs of FMD would have to be carried out. The meat would then have to be quarantined for 24 hours and could only be dispatched if there was no suspicion of disease in the holding of origin".
Deep apologies for our premature assumption below that the EU would exclude from the relaxation of the export ban only the zones DEFRA says it considers to be at risk. By this action, the EU appears less than confident that the disease is being contained inside Surrey.

October 4th 2007 ~ DEFRA's report from three days ago to SCoFCAH

Pdf here

Total BTV8 cases to 12:00 Monday 1 October•18 confirmed holdings - 8 were detected by active surveillance - 11 had clinical disease•30 negative - clinical or laboratory•11 under investigation •45 positive cattle + 1 goat•Within herd prevalence 0.5% -10%

October 4th 2007 ~ The NFU leaders have rejected the calls for expanding the zone saying "tackling the disease must be the top priority" Without a vaccine?

The BBC today reports that farmers in the control and protection zones which stretch from East Sussex to Lincolnshire are cslling for the whole country to be included in order to make movement possible. NFU leaders are those who have much to gain if live exports take place - but their assertion that "tackling the disease must be the top priority" looks wholly unrealistic without the vaccine so urgently needed and production of which DEFRA seems so reluctant to allow to resume. Europe has been trying for two years but the disease is relentlessly spreading. The BBC is still clinging tenaciously to its 3000 since July figure. Pure fantasy. In Germany alone since July (see pdf file) there have been over ten thousand new cases since July while in France the zones are creeping ever southwards. (The BBC's photo of the unfortunate and rather over-blue sheep is due perhaps for a change. The map however is very useful)

October 4th 2007 ~ "a live-attenuated BTV-8 vaccine, tested for its safety, has been recently mentioned and remains a subject for discussion"

From the ProMed moderator "Though -- for reasons that are in need of scientific explanation -- the use of live-attenuated BTV vaccines has not been sanctioned by the EU, this issue seems to deserve reconsideration if there is a genuine wish to diminish this year's (2007) losses. From a reliable source we noted that the availability of a live-attenuated BTV-8 vaccine, tested for its safety, has been recently mentioned and remains a subject for discussion. - Mod.AS]"
What is needed - as all agree- is a safe vaccine such as the vaccine made from killed bluetongue virus that was being developed at Merial, Pirbright. A live-attenuated BTV-8 vaccine might be made available earlier - but safety is paramount and no one in their right mind wants vaccination with a vaccine that has not been through stringent tests.

October 3rd 2007 ~ "The need for urgency cannot be over estimated"

Douglas Chalmers, Director CLA North quoted in www.farminguk.com : ""implications are too dreadful to contemplate, with animals in distress and the full burden of loss being placed firmly on the farmers...
.....Bluetongue in Northern Europe is now an epidemic. There are now reportedly over 20,000 cases and more are being notified every day. The need for urgency cannot be over estimated. The prospect of an effective vaccine would at least offer some hope to a beleaguered industry."

October 3rd 2007 ~ Bluetongue zone can export beef and beef products with NO restrictions, the only restrictions are for susceptible live animals, semen and embryos

There seems to be some confusion about today's announcement from Brussels about adding the four counties Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire to the existing bluetongue restriction zones in place in Europe. The Associated Press seems to think that these counties will not be able to benefit from the Oct 12 lifting of the meat export ban (the ban will be lifted for most of the UK if FMD remains contained in its PZ). But of course - as this EU legislation (pdf) makes clear - there are no restrictions on meat or meat products for Bleutongue areas - the ban only applies to live animals. Who was advising the PA one wonders. Not DEFRA, surely?
UPDATE It seems that the EU has indeed excluded those counties. Why - when the EU legislation seems so clear - we are trying to find out. If it is true we are very sorry if we have falsely raised hopes.

October 3rd 2007 ~Michel Barnier, Hilary Benn's French counterpart, calls for laboratories to produce a bluetongue vaccine ready and available for spring 2008.

See (in french) /www.pleinchamp.com
"With regard to the key question of exports, the minister hopes for that the committee of experts of the European Union on this question will decide, today, in Brussels, a new medical protocol simplifying the rules of exchange and export"
UPDATE The EU's Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (SCOFCAH) (the "committee of experts" referred to above) has indeed reached a decision today that will rationalise conditions for Bluetongue vaccination and surveillance. Trade agreements have also been included that should make life easier. Monitoring for bluetongue will now be compulsory in all infected countries. More detail as it emerges. Alastair Driver's article in the Farmers Guardian seems to be giving the best information so far.

October 3rd 2007 ~ Farming Today asks "Should the whole of Britain be place under Bluetongue disease restrictions?"

No one can move their animals out of the Bluetongue zone, but if the whole of Britain were under the same restrictions, as in parts of Europe, things would at least be easier for those who don't carry out live exports. If this happens then present rules ( which, like all such rules, are not set irrevocably in stone) do not allow the export of live animals for at least two years. See Farming Today page for comments - or add one.

October 2nd 2007 ~ the number of cases of bluetongue in the UK has now reached 19 ....... (20 this evening BBC )

(across the North Sea there are many thousands of cases more than the 3000 cheerfully reported in much of the UK press. See below)
At least animals are no longer being needlessly slaughtered - a useless undertaking except when an animal is suffering excessively. Now that Fred Landeg has finally confirmed that we do indeed have the disease circulating, we must concentrate on getting the BTv-8 vaccine into fast production.
That the midge problem is increasing is apparent to anyone who has walked into what looks like small localised smoke clouds to find a coat-covering, mouth- and nose-smothering haze of the insects. According to www.midgeforecast.co.uk, a single trap near Glencoe returned a total of 3.6 million midges last week. (The site is sponsored by what they call an "innovative portable midge repeller". Intriguing - and not one mention of a sticky net in sight.)

October 2nd 2007 ~ "the decision needs to be based on science.... if they think they need a vaccine and they need it urgently, then I don't really see why they can't start to produce a vaccine at the Merial site for Bluetongue"

It is worth looking closely at what Professor Spratt actually said on yesterday's World at One (warmwell transcript) In the most diplomatic language, Professor Spratt asks that DEFRA's actions be based on science. Having made it clear that the faulty pipes are now lined, and the bluetongue virus not directly transmissible to livestock, he says,
"If the risk assessment says the pipes are lined, if the bluetongue virus is not directly transmissible to livestock, I suspect it would get past the risk assessment fine - but I think that's what you need to do, a risk assessment based on the science."
DEFRA's reply that "current suspension is for work on ALL live viruses" indicates that the scientific basis for their refusal may be of questionable worth.

October 2nd ~ The NFU is now calling for "every non-scientific obstacle to the development and the deployment of a vaccine" to be removed

The NFU sees this "as a matter of urgency". While DEFRA grimly asserts that "the current suspension is for work on ALL live viruses and it's not the case that work could be allowed to restart on just one" let it not be forgotten that our North European colleagues are even more desperate for this vaccine. Any decision to prolong the hold up is being watched by over twenty thousand European farmers. Their animals are stricken with disease and their only hope, at present, is the stalled vaccine at Merial in the UK.

October 1 2007 ~ "Checks to ensure that the site is now safe, risk delaying vaccine production."

It is encouraging to see the BBC quoting Anthony Gibson again today. He says
"We don't want to run a risk of a further release of virus from the Pirbright facility but we must have this vaccine ready for use before the midges become active by the middle of next summer."
The BBC report also quotes Professor Brian Spratt who says (and said also on the World at One) that there was no reason why Defra could not allow Merial to begin production now - pointing out a basic veterinary fact that may perhaps have escaped DEFRA - that even if bluetongue virus were - the height of improbablity - to escape from the site "Bluetongue is not directly transmissible to livestock, it needs midges." The article concludes that if farmers are let down over vaccine they are likely to blame DEFRA. It is worth reading in full.

Monday October 1st ~ Different clinical symptoms between bluetongue and FMD

FWi has this useful paragraph: "Dutch surveillance vet Daan Dercksen warned UK livestock producers that bluetongue symptoms can often be similar to many other livestock diseases, so vigilance is key. "In some outbreaks of orf in adult sheep, swelling of the lips and muzzle occurs, which may be confused with bluetongue," explained Mr Dercksen. Single or multiple legions may be mistaken for foot-and-mouth disease, but the classical sign of bluetongue is a swollen face which is absent in cases for FMD. In cattle, "FMD could also be confused if oral discharge is excessive, but cases of FMD present with drooling saliva - which is absent in bluetongue infected animals."

Monday October 1st ~ BTV-8 vaccine development at Intervet

A reader has contacted Intervet International bv to enquire about the current status of vaccine development with regard to BTV-8, and has received (for warmwell) this reply dated 1st October 2007:
"Intervet is aware that the problems in the field are serious at this moment and we are working hard to develop a vaccine against the specific strain of Bluetongue (serotype 8). Bluetongue is a relatively new disease in this region (NL, FR, GER, BELGIUM and now the UK) with the first cases only occurring in 2006. Immediately after the first problems occurred in the field in 2006, Intervet initiated the development of a vaccine against this serotype of Bluetongue. The demand for the development of a vaccine for this strain of Bluetongue is, therefore, also fairly new. In addition, the development of new vaccines is a lengthy process. Intervet understands there is a priority to produce a vaccine quickly and currently has a full-time team working hard to develop one.
Intervet expects to have prepared a concept vaccine by the end of 2007 or the beginning of 2008, at which time the composition of a safe and effective vaccine will have been determined. After that, we will be dependent on the government's registration procedure as to how quickly our vaccine can be made available to the market. The vaccine still needs to be manufactured, which, including EU-prescribed testing procedures, can take another 6 to 8 months. According to normal European requirements, the full development of a vaccine usually takes 5 to 7 years. The fact that we will have developed a concept vaccine by the end of 2007 or the beginning of 2008 is, therefore, very quick."
Warmwell is grateful to both Intervet and our correspondent for providing this information.

Monday 1st October ~ "It wouldn't surprise us in the least if there are quite a few more cases..."

There is a great deal of denial surrounding Bluetongue. When Fred Landeg finally admitted on Friday 28 Sep 2007 that the disease was now "circulating" in the country - it had evidently been circulating for quite some time. Tests are at long last taking place in counties beyond Suffolk to establish how far the disease has spread. Surveillance in the critical months was not carried out - as we say below. Eleven cases have been confirmed so far - mainly around Ipswich. The Telegraph quotes Anthony Gibson, the director of communications for the National Farmers' Union: "It wouldn't surprise us in the least if there are quite a few more cases over the course of the next month."
Well, no. Nor us neither...A glance at the latest case map in Germany gives a hint of what we could be up against soon. As of Sept. 28th, numbers in Germany had reached 11,106.

Sunday September 30 2007 ~ "deltamethrin can be used as a repellent, again as a pour-on or perhaps as eartags..."

Dr Ruth Watkins, the expert virologist whose advice is so welcome since she too is a livestock farmer, offers here some thoughts and advice to farmers wondering if there is anything at all they can do to try to protect their own animals. Extract:
".....Doramectin and Ivermectin pour-ons may prove useful in killing the midges that suck the blood of treated animals and in killing the midge larvae as they hatch from eggs laid in their dung. However I have not seen any papers to show that the doses normally given are effective in the case of the C obsoletus complex and the C dewulfi (assuming that it will be the same midges in the UK that are responsible for spread of BTV-8 as in Northern Europe), it may be that the levels achieved are too low....). A contact in Germany in the midst of the epidemic, is using ivomec pour-on for all her longhorn cattle 3 times a year and immediately a cow is sick with bluetongue she gives her an additional pour-on treatment, presumably to reduce the likelihood of local amplification of virus through the production of a newly infected swarm of female midges....The only method of control will be vaccination. A killed vaccine for BTV-8 has been trialled and found to be protective and its use can be fast forwarded... ...." Read the whole paper
This is why it is so cheering to find several of the Sunday papers taking up the story about Merial vaccine production having ground to a halt and implying that, for the benefit of all countries suffering from BTV-8 as well as our own, vaccine production should be completed as soon as possible. Once BTV vaccination gets the go ahead in Brussels (imminent) together with workable rules for intra community trade in vaccinated animals, each Member State will have to produce a BTV vaccination programme and send it to Brussels for approval. Cooperation with our North European neighbours is of vital importance

Sunday September 30 2007 ~ DEFRA won't say how many farms have been affected by the new cases.

The Sunday Telegraph:"Tests for bluetongue were being carried out on dozens of animals as far inland as the east Midlands last night amid growing concerns that the illness has already begun moving towards Britain's main livestock farming areas."
Warmwell was saying a year ago, when the RPA fiasco led to financial cuts that hampered the very agencies responsible for research, diagnosis and surveillance on livestock diseases, that this was a disaster in view of the ever present threat from FMD and Bluetongue. The tests that are finally being carried out now should have been done as soon as it was evident that we were falling into the bluetongue surveillance zones from Northern Europe. The entire country is now viewed by the Government as being at risk of either bluetongue or foot and mouth - with many farms now falling within both zones.

Sunday September 30 2007 ~ Advice from an expert

The pedigree breeder, Sabine Zentis, has been studying bluetongue for some time and, in answer to our question about what precautions farmers can take, writes
"Sadly, there is not a lot to do as the protective measures like insecticides or repellants have, if any, only a very limited effect on the biting midges. Try to keep animals in the best possible condition, good feed, plenty of minerals and in case of suspicion move them inside to shelter from sunlight. Treatment of symptoms with antibiotics (to prevent secondary (bacterial) infection and Antiphlogistica (NSAID's Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-steroidal_anti-inflammatory_drug ) or, if the animal is not pregnant, Dexamethasone. Good care is essential, soft feed (freshly cut grass or silage) and water should be provided close to the animal as most have difficulties walking (laminitis) and grazing (swollen tongue, oedema)"
She also mentions Ivermectin. A homely remedy comes from a Romany voice from the past. See an email today from Stuart Brown.

Sunday September 30 2007 ~ DEFRA says live virus work may resume at Pirbright "within weeks"

Under the headline " Vaccine Woes", the Sunday Times takes up the story of the stymied vaccine work at Merial.
"Attempts to produce a vaccine to combat bluetongue disease are being hampered by the security cordon around the Institute for Animal Health (IAH) at Pirbright.... Livestock that has been vaccinated can be sold into the European market, so an effective treatment is vital for farmers...a spokesperson said Defra was working to ensure the safety of Pirbright and that live viruses could be permitted there "within weeks".
The Independent adds, "Britain's battle against the bluetongue virus is being hampered ..."and the headline goes even further, "... Research centre leading the fight against the latest threat to British farmers is powerless to act."

Saturday 29 September ~ a retired Veterinary Surgeon warns that bluetongue could be spread by contaminated needles

"Spread is normally by midge. However, surely it would be spread by contaminated needles - in which case", he writes to warmwell,
"Why are Farmers with the sheep vaccination season upon us not being advised not to use automatic multi injectors? It should be a requirement to use clean disposable needles for all susceptible species. This will not stop the outbreak but should lower the in-flock spread."
This seems very sound advice and we have seen it nowhere else. Today's letter to Livestock keepers from the SVS ("Animal Health") gives instructions but offers no such advice as that above.
Using needles more than once is evidently dangerous. However, we are told that although many vets in Europe have blamed the repeated use of needles by farmers for cases of Bluetongue it should be remembered that to infect an animal a midge must take up the virus and the virus must multiply in the vector to reach such a virus-load that the next animal can be infected. It therefore seems a little unlikely that a needle can infect an animal in the case of this particular disease.
"I take the point about virus replication," replies the vet, "However I would suggest an 18 or 16 gauge needle will carry far more material and cause more tissue damage than the proboscis of a midge! However the midge will inject a small amount of infected toxin. I still feel basic 'biosecurity' requires clean needles." Absolutely.

Saturday 29 September ~ presentations from the April 2007 BT symposium in Lelystad - interesting papers

This link goes to the CIDC Lelystad Bluetongue symposium on serotype 8 held on April 19, 2007 The Central Institute for Animal Disease Control Lelystad, CIDC-Lelystad (CIDC) has specific expertise in the control of notifiable animal diseases related to Dutch and European legislation. As national reference institute CIDC is responsible for the diagnostics for export certification and supervises diagnostic standards for other Dutch veterinary laboratories. The BTV vaccination presentation (pdf) by is particularly interesting and graphic for the expert and layman alike and concludes: " Regulatory framework for authorization of emergency vaccines is under development"

Saturday 29 September ~Speeding up the licensing of vaccines

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Veterinary Use (CVMP) "strongly supports the advantages of Bluetongue vaccines being submitted via the centralised procedure in the interests of achieving a harmonised pan-European approach to such vaccines.
The CVMP is, therefore, publishing this reflection paper (publicised in London in April) "on such minimum data requirements in order to provide information on the current state of discussions on this topic"
Extract "....In consideration of the urgent need to make authorised products available, the CVMP decided that it is appropriate to make use of the provisions of Article 26 of Directive 2001/82/EC, as amended, and Article 39(7) of Regulation 726/2004 (the exceptional circumstances clauses) to facilitate rapid authorisation of vaccines in advance of generation of data to meet the full requirements of Annex I to Directive 2001/82/EC as amended."
The point is that there is always a way to speed up licensing of vaccines in case of emergency.

Saturday 29 September ~ We now have the map

There is now an updated page on DEFRA "Legislation is currently being prepared to replace the existing Temporary Control Area with a Bluetongue Control Zone around the area where cases have been identified. In addition, a larger Bluetongue Protection Zone, covering parts of the counties from Lincolnshire to Sussex, will be put in place. An illustrative map sets out the areas.." (...or, for those who cannot read pdf files, we reproduce the map here)

Saturday 29 September ~"Hilary Benn will within the next few days consult with the farming industry all over the country."

Gordon Brown, quoted in Cheshire online
"He will look at the financial consequences of what's been happening, he will look at what the European Commission is going to be able to do to help us. He will look at the market position of the industry and he will make a statement not least about what we can do to relax regulatory requirements on the farming industry."
(The political novelty of the new disease should not blind us to the fact that there have been no special efforts made with regard to what the European Commission is going to be able to do to help us in reforming the outdated foot and mouth regulations but they are still urgently in need of review. (Unlike the case with Bluetongue, marker vaccines for FMD have proved their worth over many years. EU rules and the resulting political and economic pressures have stifled their use. Successive DEFRA Ministers have allowed this sorry state to continue.)

Saturday 29 September ~ "They also told me if I had the internet I could check out their website...."

A warmwell reader has just sent this.
" I think Defra are asleep, I received an automated call from Defra today saying I was in the Bluetongue Control Zone and they would be sending me info by snail mail...... I am in Newbury Do they know something I don't? They also told me if I had the internet I could check out their website.... been checking all day and I am still not in the bluetongue control zone!"
Communication has never been DEFRA's strong point, alas, but this is beyond parody. (Still no new information on DEFRA's bluetongue "latest situation" page and it is now approaching 3.00 p.m)

Saturday 29 September ~ Eleven cases have so far been detected.

But this information is not available on the DEFRA bluetongue "latest situation" page (it is now an hour after it appeared in UKPress) The BBC has reported that Gordon Brown has pledged that the government will take action against the disease at "a very high level" - the government would do all it could to "contain, control and eradicate" the UK outbreak. How, is not explained. As one emailer puts it drily, "let's send Mr. Brown a golden fly swat... I have sent a comment to the BBC asking that they should please reveal the secret plan. I hope this plan contains the immediate go ahead for vaccine production at the Pirbright lab"
And so do we. Merial at Pirbright seems, as far as we can ascertain, the only hope for an early supply of the appropriate, safe vaccine. And if production cannot now resume after action taken at "a very high level" then any pledge to "contain, control and eradicate" is mere tilting at windmills.
UPDATE Still no new information on DEFRA's bluetongue "latest situation" page (3.30 pm) but EADT reports
" Rachel Carrington, of the NFU in East Anglia, said "a number" of other potential bluetongue cases were being investigated. She said: "The majority of reports are being received in Suffolk but there have been unconfirmed cases in Norfolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire and the East Midlands." She added the outbreak had left farmers in a "confused state". "We desperately need things clarifying so we can tell people what they can and can't do," she said. "We need a detailed map of the movement restriction boundaries."

Saturday 29 September ~ BBC still sticking to "nearly 3,000 cases of bluetongue"

The BBC today repeats the wholly wrong estimate of "nearly 3000" cases in Europe. Whether this is DEFRA's estimate or the BBC's, the fact remains that the situation is way beyond this. Our own information yesterday (below) concludes that the total in Northern Europe - a number that is growing daily - is at least 20,402 and since July, in Germany alone, there have been well over ten thousand cases (German report pdf file takes a moment to load) .
The report from the BBC quotes Fred Landeg as saying "test results had shown the disease was being transmitted by biting midges" but no test results were ever needed in the UK to reproduce the information known for at least two years that BTv-8 is spread by midges not by animal to animal contact. The knowledge of our more experienced European neighbours far outstrips any understanding at DEFRA. When information is so lacking that it takes 5 cases before an outbreak is confirmed and 5 recovered cows are slaughtered just before an announcement, finally getting it right, that culling is of no use in stopping the spread of disease, it is a worrying prospect that disease control remains in the political arena. It should be: under the control of decent expert veterinary authorities - not in the uncertain but unrelenting grip of DEFRA.

Friday 28 September ~ "The hope must lie in vaccination"

says Charles Clover in the Telegraph adding, "There the Dutch are in the lead. They say there should be a vaccine for the type 8 strain of the virus available by early next year. We can only hope they are right."
Well they will not be right unless pressure is brought to bear on DEFRA with whom power seems unaccountably to rest in the case of Merial production of the BTV-8 vaccine as well as foot and mouth vaccine. It is surely not possible that Mr Clover can be unaware of this.

September 28 ~ Bluetongue Outbreak confirmed

DEFRA has finally informed the OIE that we have an outbreak www.oie.int/wahid-prod/public The media are still very unaware of this disease and its accelerating progress in Northern Europe. If the BBC is quoting Fred Landeg today then it seems he has not got access to accurate information. The "nearly 3000 cases" is a ludicrously out of date estimation.
The extent of Bluetongue among our neighbours - 10,348 cases in Germany up to yesterday (German report pdf file takes a moment to load)
In France there have been 2,246 cases, the French Agriculture Ministry said on Friday (Reuters), Belgium 3,758, Netherlands: somewhere over the 3,500 mark by now and in Luxembourg: at least 500. That is actually a total of 20,402 and most of these are recent. Vaccine is considered the only hope for so many of these stricken farms.
It is important that farmers are not given wrong information. Some repellants for mosquitoes actually attract midges. We will post up information from reliable sources in Europe as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the European Livestock Association statement on vaccination can be viewed here.

September 28 ~ "A Control Zone will be set up in east Anglia, as well as a 150km Protection Zone over a wider area stretching west."

Alastair Driver in the Farmers Guardian writes that DCVO Fred Landeg has admitted that the killing of bluetongue infected animals
"would not play a part in the control strategy as a it does not help limit spread of bluetongue, which is an insect borne disease."
One wonders if the owners of the 5 cows already killed are comforted by this rather overdue statement. Mr Landeg's performance on Sky news can be viewed here. When he says there is currently no effective vaccine available he fails to add it is the fact that DEFRA's permission has been withdrawn from the company whose preparations are furthest along that is responsible for its not being "currently" available.
Unless DEFRA gives Merial the go-ahead this month the vaccine will not be ready for the start of the next midge season in early 2008. The suspicion is inescapable that all this is part of DEFRA's hope that the watching world will conclude that the blame for the escaped virus can still be placed at Merial's door - but this is a doomed hope - as is the hope that midges will simply die in the cold weather. (Meanwhile the name of the UK sinks further into the slurry. Those watching the way DEFRA has been vainly slaughtering animals and clinging to the hope that they would not have to declare an outbreak are beyond being merely bemused and our reputation has been disastrously affected. Hope for the vaccine centres on Merial among the stricken farmers of Northern Europe. As for today's announcement, since the OIE demands immediate notification upon discovery of infection, one wonders what DEFRA thought they were doing in holding back - and whether there will be repercussions there too.)
The Farmers Guardian article concludes - somewhat unnecessarily some might feel: ".... laboratory tests indicate there will be more cases and that bluetongue is circulating in the animal and the midge populations"
DEFRA's latest statement can be read here.

September 27 ~ Fifth case

4th distinct premises, at a farm near Burstall, east of Ipswich, says the BBC. This unfortunate cow will be killed too. One comment already received, " For DEFRA, it seems, even four cases, separated by distance, doth not an outbreak make. If not an outbreak, we must assume perhaps that one terrorist midge, on a suicide mission and acting alone, disembarked at Harwich and went on the rampage?"

September 27 ~ "Nor is culling sick animals likely to be effective against bluetongue, says Matthew Baylis, a professor of epidemiology at Liverpool University."

Economist "...Farm animals can be cooped up, albeit at a price, but the midges that transmit the bluetongue virus cannot. Nor is culling sick animals likely to be effective against bluetongue, says Matthew Baylis, a professor of epidemiology at Liverpool University.. Spotting them can be tricky, since many animals display few overt symptoms. And Britain's population of wild deer - bigger now than it has been for hundreds of years - would provide a reservoir of infected blood even if all the diseased farm animals were killed off...."

September 27 ~ "When I hear stories of milk having to be poured away, calves assembled for export having to be slaughtered and high quality breeding pigs unable to be shipped, I am not just dismayed, I am furious."Peter Kendall

The NFU president is quoted in new.edp24.co.uk as is Peter Ainsworth: "After four confirmed cases, the government should now make clear on what basis they will declare an official outbreak of bluetongue."
However, reports EDP, Defra insisted last night: "At this stage, there is not sufficient evidence to confirm an active outbreak of bluetongue as it cannot yet be demonstrated that the disease is circulating. Epidemiological investigations are on-going to establish whether bluetongue disease is circulating in the UK."

September 27 ~ "Sticky nets?" Reaction to the Farmers Guardian article

Reaction to the Farmers Guardian article revealing that "vaccination will not be used as a front-line defence against the bluetongue virus" has been vociferous One example fired off in all directions reads:
"... how the hell am I going to use large sticky nets to trap insects, and who might pay for them anyway?...God only knows how we are going to put up 'sticky nets', just what kind of thinking at DEFRA is going on???!!! " and the writer says that one has only ever had to try to herd sheep back into buildings to know the stress to the animals, "particularly on a daily basis as is being suggested".
In a more sombre tone is this extract from a letter by Ruth Watkins sent off this morning to the author of the article, pointing out some misguided statements
" the only bluetongue virus in Northern Europe is the serotype 8, therefore there is no other bluetongue virus that it can recombine with. Recombination can only take place when an animal is simultaneously infected with two different serotypes. Therefore this cannot happen in Northern Europe.
It is not proposed to use the live vaccine developed for use in Africa because this is not sufficiently attenuated for european livestock...."
It is lucky we have some experts - She concludes " I would suggest your editor makes sure that what you say is run past a virologist first. The team at Pirbright would be glad to help I am sure or you could ring me and I will guide you where I have the knowledge."
Expert opinion consulted? Dum spiro, spero.....

September 27 2007 ~ DEFRA have revealed that vaccination will not be used as a front-line defence against the bluetongue virus.

Farmers Guardian "....Instead, the contingency plans for dealing with an outbreak will see movement restrictions and controls on the midge population imposed to deal with the threat..."
It really does seem time to call in the kindly men with the strait jackets.. "Controls on the midge population"? Swatting with DEFRA leaflets about biosecurity and vigilance?
Of COURSE no one in their right mind is suggesting using the South African vaccine - nor indeed any other inappropriate vaccine. In our case it would be a disaster. But Merial's Philip Connolly is quoted as saying that the BTV-8 vaccine has "come through the trials".
Is DEFRA seriously saying that it is not going to make production and licensing of this appropriate vaccine a top priority, as the Europeans now are? One emailed comment today was, " Looks as if the UK is pretty good in making vaccination impossible, not only for their own people but for others as well."
(DEFRA's notifiable disease page says there has never been a case of bluetongue in the UK)

September 27 2007 ~ Brussels says yes to BTV vaccine speed-up

An article in yesterday's Dutch language www.telegraaf.nl reveals that Brussels is indeed prepared to allow the production of BTvaccination to be speeded up. They hope to have the vaccine around Christmas.
"Brussels declares support for speeding up licensing for Bluetongue vaccine
The European Commission is prepared to speed up the process of licensing a vaccine against Bluetongue, at least this is what Commissioner Kyprianou yesterday has said to the Dutch minister Gerda Verburg.
The Netherlands are hoping to implement preventive vaccination against the disease for sheep next year . By Christmas time development of the vaccine against the circulating serotype should have been completed.
"This serotype (BTV 8) is now found in 6 EU member states " says Verburg " The situation is much worse than last year. The virus is spreading faster and the disease is more severe".
The minister is still evaluating the costs and the trade implications. It might be possible that some non European countries could ban trade in meat of vaccinated animals. At the moment an estimated 10.000 farms in Europe are said to be infected with the virus which is more deadly to sheep; about 2000 holdings in the Netherlands alone are infected. In the Netherlands, where there is a sheep population of approx. 1.4 million animals, 1000 more dead sheep than usual were recorded last week. There is also benefit for Belgium, Germany and France in obtaining this vaccine." www.telegraaf.nl
We are most grateful for the translation, just received.

September 27 2007 ~ An animal, infected by a virus-carrying midge, remains infective only in the period of high viraemia

After this period has passed there is not sufficient active virus left to infect any midges that subsequently bite the animal. Killing animals that were infected some time ago pleases no one but the ignorant. A presentation by MacLachlan (link repaired) is worth studying here. It ends with a quotation attributed to Lister,
" New theories don't make progress by their eloquence or through their greater explanatory power, but simply because their opponents eventually die."
A very solemn thought. We see that Berwick MP Alan Beith is calling for further support for farmers in the wake of both foot and mouth and bluetongue. Quoted in Berwick Advertiser, Mr Beith said: "The case of bluetongue is another bitter blow for British farming. Culling does not help as it is spread from midge to animal, not animal to animal, and the surveillance zone is much wider as a result. It is now essential that ministers look at a welfare package...."
In France, the support package for farmers is generous; Michel Barnier announced last Thursday a support package of 13,5 million euros for producers hit by the disease. (See www.petites-annonces-agricoles.com) And once again we repeat for those who may have read Nigel Millar's remarks, that in France cases are mounting daily and culling was useless in preventing spread. The only hope is vaccine - and production in the UK Merial site, it appears, has not been allowed to continue by our government.

September 27 2007 ~ NFUS Nigel Millar thinks bluetongue has been stopped in France by culling?

Stackyard reports that the NFUS Vice-President, Nigel Millar, has said that in France, "...a tough cull approach in the initial phase of the disease...has controlled its spread"
No it has not. The cases in France are mounting every day. One wonders where Nigel Millar is getting his information from. Certainly not here - and that figure of 1156 has increased now to 1718. Culling is useless in stopping the spread of bluetongue. So are movement restrictions (except perhaps that moving animals between the warmer south and the colder north might be considered unwise) and so is virtually everything else except the vaccines that are so desperately wanted. Production in the UK has ceased. DEFRA has not given permission for Merial to resume work on the vaccines that are the final chance for so many farmers in Northern Europe now. Bernard Vallat, Director General of the OIE said of the vaccines that failure to act could cause a "disaster for all European nations." while an EU Commission spokesman is quoted as saying "There is, or will be, considerable demand for this vaccine. We will do all we can to speed up its approval .."
Are they aware that BTV-8 vaccination production has been stymied in the UK?

September 26 2007 ~ Merial cannot resume production of BTv-8 vaccine without DEFRA's "permission"

The New Scientist:
"... to stop a bigger outbreak next year [2008], animals must be vaccinated in spring before infected [ culicoides ] which spread the disease start swarming. And the vaccine may not be ready, because the plant in the UK that makes it has been shut..."
After making an astonished query, we have just received Merial's confirmation that this is indeed the case " We need DEFRA permission before we can work with live FMD or BTV"
After the escape of FMD virus from somewhere on the Pirbright site - and no one yet knows for certain how it happened or from where - vaccine production at Merial has indeed been halted. Such a slamming of the stable door is going to do a great deal more harm than good. Production of the vaccine that is the last hope for farmers in Northern Europe and now, potentially, the UK as well, has hit the brick wall of DEFRA's power. As Reuters reports, "Vaccination is the best way to fight the specific strain of bluetongue virus rampaging through cattle and sheep in northern EU countries and vast amounts of vaccine may well be needed, the EU executive said on Monday."

September 26 2007 ~ "Movement restrictions won't help at all. They do nothing against this fly"

Farming Today spoke to a Ministry vet in Belgium who said,
"In the beginning we tried to limit the spread of the disease by the transport restrictions - but in fact the virus was spreading anyway and our transport restrictions did not avoid the spread of disease. It's clear that severe restrictions on infected farms are not that important, A country or authority can do very little to avoid the spread of disease nor to protect animals and so the only solution will probably be vaccination."
A farmer of 75 sheep just outside Brussels who has lost nearly half to Bluetongue said morale was very bad. "... we have done a lot of preventive things but it doesn't work at all so it is a lot of work and cost - it doesn't help so don't do it. The only thing you can do, that is worth the cost in my eyes, is giving them (sick animals) liquid feed. Movement restrictions wouldn't help at all. They do nothing against this fly"
Recovered animals are allowed into the food chain. This is not a disease like FMD where diseased animals can very easily infect each other by emitting virus in breath or fluids. Killing the recovered bluetongue victims is unnecessary. Scientific advice given by experts in the field of vector-borne diseases in Europe has convinced the countries affected that culling is useless. It is not done unless the animal is suffering. All those in Suffolk had recovered - which is why the disease was not evident. No country anywhere has managed to get on top of BT by culling. All are waiting and hoping for the vaccine - and now we discover that this cannot resume production at Pirbright until DEFRA "gives permission". It is beyond belief.

September 26 2007 ~ Defra has also today received positive test results for Bluetongue for a fourth animal on a third premises near Ipswich, Suffolk. This animal will be culled

"At this stage, there is not sufficient evidence to confirm an active outbreak of Bluetongue as it cannot yet be demonstrated that the disease is circulating. Epidemiological investigations are on-going to establish whether bluetongue disease is circulating in the UK. Action will be in line with the UK Bluetongue Control Strategy, published in August, but will also take account of the current FMD restrictions."

September 26 2007 ~ "Midges cannot be quarantined or restricted within protection zones, and there are no really practical methods to prevent livestock from being bitten by them."

The Farmers Guardian repeats too the misleading statement about there being "no vaccine" Journalists should be reassuring farmers that the BTV-8 is most certainly being developed - and with the urgency of its becoming widely available so apparent - will be ready in a very few months. See below "A vaccination strategy will be the best bet, but as yet, a vaccine has not been developed that could be used safely to protect European livestock against the type of bluetongue virus responsible."
Very sadly, warmwell understands that there is not a lot that worried farmers can do as the protective measures like inscticides or repellants have, if any, only a very limited effect on the biting midges. We understand that one must try to keep animals in the best possible condition, good feed, plenty of minerals and - in case of suspicion move them inside to shelter from sunlight. Treatment of symptoms with antibiotics (to prevent secondary (bacterial) infection and Antiphlogistica (NSAID's Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-steroidal_anti-inflammatory_drug ) or, if the animal is not pregnant, Dexamethasone.
Good care is essential, soft feed (freshly cut grass or silage) and water should be provided close to the animal as most have difficulties walking (laminitis) and grazing (swollen tongue, oedema)

September 26 2007 ~ "Perhaps Defra thinks that the virus bearing midges come on solo missions rather than in a swarm..."

Private emails about bluetongue are sounding more and more frustrated at the present handling of Bluetongue. Here is an example from Cumbria:
" I am assured that the only way Bluetongue can be passed to an animal is if it is bitten by a virus bearing midge.
It cannot rub off, be passed on via Defra misleading statements or by any other spurious means.
It was interesting ( but sad) to see the poor cow's carcass being dumped in a perfectly normal animal transport truck for carting off to disposal. Where that would be God knows - probably Bristol again.
It would seem from the casual method of disposal that the vets are comfortable with the fact that the carcass could not infect anything else.... .unless there was another midge lurking in that extraordinary coat of a Highland cow. Perhaps Defra thinks that the virus bearing midges come on solo missions rather than in a swarm."
As ProMed pointed out in connection with the first Highland cow to be slaughtered "Even if the animal discovered to be infected is the index case (which is most unlikely), the culicoides vectors had already had their chance for meals of infected blood."
That the slaughter of these first cases is pointless seems an inescapable conclusion - and it is, moreover, highly misleading to the public's understanding of this disease - so very different from foot and mouth.

September 26 2007 ~ Council Decision 90/424/EEC5 on expenditure on the veterinary field constitutes the legal base for EU financial support to Bluetongue control measures

. Are farmers being made aware of the document following the meeting of the Chief Veterinary Officers of the EU Member States in Brussels, 7 February 2007? We read that its purpose is to "lay down guidelines for the establishment of enhanced , harmonised, proportionate and effective disease control measures
"..... to reduce direct and indirect economic losses caused by BT EU expenditure on BT is specifically foreseen under Article 3 and Article 24: - Article 3 of 90/424/EEC provides for the Community's financial contribution towards the emergency measures in the event of occurrence of BT in the territory of a MS. The Member State shall obtain a Community contribution for the eradication of the disease up to 50% of certain cost (compensation for slaughter, destruction of carcasses, disinfection…) incurred by the Member State and up to 100% of the costs of the supply of vaccine doses and 50% of vaccination."
This, together with the comments by both Bernard Vallatt and EU Commission officials that interested parties are doing all that they can to speed up production and availability of the relevant inactivated vaccine, ought to be informing what the public is being told by the BBC. To imply that "there is no vaccine" is very unhelpful. Ironically, vaccine production for this bluetongue strain was held up at the Merial premises, Pirbright, by the very foot and mouth investigations that found such inconclusive evidence.

September 26 2007 ~ "The discovery of a 3rd bluetongue-virus (BTV) infected bovine will not surprise our subscribers..." ProMed

and the moderator cites the commentary in the earlier posting, (referred to on warmwell below) including the assessment of the outbreak's official definition.
"...Clinical symptoms of bluetongue will appear after the peak of viraemia; even if the animal discovered to be infected is the index case (which is most unlikely), the culicoides vectors had already had their chance for meals of infected blood. Wide-scale serological surveillance is required to exclude the more likely scenario, namely that there are other, subclinically infected bovines in the area or, in other words, that the virus is already circulating.
The current UK policy, including refraining from calling the outbreak an outbreak, are based upon EC legislation.....This legislation dates back to the days when Europe, particularly northern Europe, viewed bluetongue as an exotic disease.... all this has drastically changed, while the legislation is lagging behind.
In this context, it is worthwhile to cite from OIE's Terrestrial Animal Health Code, APPENDIX 3.8.10. "GUIDELINES FOR THE SURVEILLANCE OF BLUETONGUE", article 3.8.10.4., "Surveillance strategies": "The use of a vector surveillance system to detect the presence of circulating virus is not recommended as a routine procedure as the typically low vector infection rates mean that such detections can be rare. Other surveillance strategies (e.g. the use of sentinel animals of domestic ruminants) are preferred to detect virus circulation". - Mod. AS].
ProMed's views on DEFRA's response to the current crisis are diplomatically phrased but very evident.

September 25 2007 ~ "farm to farm movements will be permitted under strict conditions and subject to high levels of biosecurity?"

DEFRA's oft repeated mantra on the phrase "high levels of biosecurity" is sadly inappropriate in the case of Bluetongue. There is no "strict biosecurity" to prevent Bluetongue - unless, as one emailer suggests, " these DEFRA people have an idea how to make midges start sucking disinfectant instead of blood..."
As for advice on short term measures; the best advice we have read or heard is that "Ivermectin" (see Wikipedia) is the best broad-spectrum anti-parasite medication. Midges will follow their hosts into the warm so keeping cattle in the cool outside is better than trying to keep them in.
Meanwhile, the LandCare.org website run by Dr James Irvine in Scotland, is scathing on the subject of DEFRA's "we have to wait to see if other animals are infected" wittering. He says, "even following their own mantra of "vigilant surveillance and biosecurity" the handling of the UK's first case of Bluetongue is descending into farce."

September 25 2007 ~ "Hear, hear! It is encouraging to note these timely, realistic, science-based and refreshing observations of the "Commission officials".

ProMed moderator today on the Reuters article below and the EU Commission official who announced of the BTV-8 vaccine , "We will do all we can to speed up its approval .." The moderator continues
"The specific BTV-8 vaccine is urgently needed; unfortunately, too late for the current disease season but hopefully ready for wide-scale field application at the beginning of 2008, and in any case before the renewed activity of the vectors, particularly, in view of the spread of the BTV-8 into the UK with its multi-million sheep population."
Read about the Reuters article and link here

September 25 2007 ~ Third case found - Beehive Farm in Lound, near Lowestoft

DEFRA still does not seem to be able to decide whether bluetongue is "circulating" or not and wondering whether perhaps three cases do not constitute an 'outbreak'. With animals that were infected at least a fortnight ago this sounds like the most wishful of wishful thinking.
Valerie Elliott in the Times this afternoon:
"Government vets are understood to be ready to declare an official outbreak of bluetongue in the UK after a third case was found in a cow in Suffolk... Other suspect cases of bluetongue virus in cattle and sheep are also being investigated in the county..... new statutory control zones might be in force by the end of the day.
A third case, once confirmed, is understood to trigger the need for surveillance zone to be imposed on a legal footing..."
Unfortunately, Valerie Elliot's information about vaccination is misleading. She says that a suitable vaccine "has not yet been developed for the virus strain BTV serology 8" - as if no work has yet been done on a BTV-8 vaccine but there are, as Reuters points out and we report below two companies porducing the vaccine that is likely to be available for general in early 2008. Astonishingly we also read that "Dr Reynolds has warned that it may be another year before a vaccine is approved for use in the European Union" One wonders where the CVO is getting her information from. Her assertion seems unduly pessimistic when OIE Director General Bernard Vallat himself (see below) says
".. it will be very, very useful to have a vaccine ready to be used in all Europe" and that failure to act could cause a "disaster for all European nations."
On the subject of compensation, the Times also fails to mention that in the case of vaccination the EU will cover the costs for the vaccine and up to 50% of vaccination costs. The Times says merely that "There is no automatic compensation available for farmers with animals suffering the disease. Animals can be treated and some recover and their meat can go into the food chain without any impact to human health."

September 25 2007 ~ Dairy cows have been tested for BTv in neighbouring Suffolk farm

www.eadt.co.uk
Robin Richards, owner of a dairy farm next to the rare breeds' farm in Baylham, near Needham Market, where the disease was detected on Saturday, is waiting to learn if any of his 186 animals has contracted bluetongue. Two of his cows at the Rodwell Farm Diary were tested by Government vets yesterday, after showing signs that could have been hit by the midge-transmitted disease....the rest of the animals on Mr Richards' farm will also be tested this morning..."
Once again, one wonders why, when the Baylam farm animals were being tested for FMD and then, days later, for bluetongue, the tests for both FMD and Bluetongue are not being carried out together when the threats from both are known to be so real. Why, was it only yesterday (Monday) that Mr Richard's cows were tested? Why are yet more of his animals being tested today when all could have been tested at once? All this to-ing and fro-ing wastes time and money in the most extraordinary way - and causes an agony of waiting.
Moreover, we have yet to have it adequately explained why DEFRA felt it necessary to slaughter the two cows that tested positive at Baylam House farm. They had been infected more than a fortnight previously and any attempt to stop the midges by killing the host is doomed. Midges cannot be controlled.

September 25 2007 ~ "a media campaign, leaflets and dissemination of information..."

Fred Landeg, the DCVO, has countered criticism that the UK was unprepared for Bluetongue. Quoted in the Western Morning News Mr Landeg said:
"We have been working in partnership with the farming industry over the past year to raise awareness of bluetongue and its clinical signs. This has included a media campaign, leaflets and dissemination of this information through various farming organisations and the veterinary profession. Any farmer not sure of the clinical symptoms can get this information from the Defra website or contact their vet."
Swatting the midges will be so much easier, given the preparations made by the UK government department responsible for care of our livestock.
Of rather more use would be adequate and extensive up-to-date surveillance, joint testing for FMD and BTV, on-site RT-PCR which detects virus before clinical symptoms appear - and the new European thinking reported below.

September 25 2007 ~ "More than 12,000 cases of bluetongue... Using a vaccine could prove key in avoiding devastation for European farmers" Bernard Vallat

The Reuters has this to say on vaccination and quotes Bernard Vallat, director-general of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).
".... the situation could worsen again when warmer weather returns next year...The risk is high to have new activity of the infected virus in the spring and at that time, it will be very, very useful to have a vaccine ready to be used in all Europe," Mr. Vallat told Reuters in a telephone interview.
"If correctly applied, it (the vaccine) can be a great help to minimize consequences of the disease in animals...Compared to last year, we see that the disease is expanding in more and more new territories," he said, adding that failure to act could cause a "disaster for all European nations."
An EU Commission spokesman is quoted as saying "Costs of the vaccine itself would be met by EU funding while the Commission would pay half the expenses incurred by farmers who chose to vaccinate their herds or flocks"
Although, as Reuters says, the inactivated vaccine is not yet commercially available for serotype 8, two companies are now developing a vaccine, likely to be available in early 2008. As we say below, the French Agriculture Minister, Michel Barnier, served as a European Commissioner for regional policy in the Prodi Commission from 1999 until 2004 and is now using all his influence to speed up production of the appropriate vaccine for BTV-8 so that it can be used as soon as possible. He has the support of the Belgian, Dutch and German Ministers. "This vaccine must be ready before Christmas".

September 24 2007 ~ Getting clearer on vaccination for bluetongue

Now that the EU is letting it be known that vaccination for Bluetongue is the only effective strategy the UK press is reporting the true situation. As here Reuters this afternoon, "Two companies are now developing a vaccine for serotype 8, likely to be available in early 2008. Officials at the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, say considerable amounts may be needed to meet demand from farmers in several EU countries.
"There is, or will be, considerable demand for this vaccine," one official said. "We will do all we can to speed up its approval ... it's preventive vaccination so you'd have to do it on quite a wide scale to be effective."

September 24 2007 ~ DEFRA's "Integrated Strategy" does not seem to involve joined up thinking on testing

Many will be wondering how it was that the Baylham House Farm had to live through such an appalling week from the initial report by the farmer of suspicion of FMD on Monday to confirmation on Saturday of Bluetongue. Tests should surely be being carried out for both FMD and BTV at the same time at present. More samples to test for BTV were required after Baylham House Farm was given the all-clear for FMD. Then more samples yet AGAIN were taken from the other animals on that farm. This is an integrated strategy?

September 24 2007 ~ Second cow in Suffolk

Why on earth has it been culled, we wonder. On whose advice and on what grounds? The East Anglian Times reports that "the infected animal has now been put down" but this slaughter is not going to stop the disease. It does not spread from cow to cow and hoping that killing a Highland cow in order to stop other midges feeding on it and getting infected is absurd. There must be thousands of midges in the area and the fact that bluetongue has only just been noticed does not mean the infected midges have not been with us for a fortnight or more. Removing these unfortunate animals is not going to stop the problem.
Defra's update can be seen here.

September 24 2007 ~"Interested in how the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) obtains its scientific advice?"

http://www.defra.gov.uk/science/how/advisory.htm "The Science Advisory Council (SAC) is Defra's most senior science non-departmental advisory body offering independent, strategic, expert advice to the Department's Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA), who in turn advises Ministers. Members of the public are invited to SAC's next open meeting on 17 October 2007, to observe how their work is conducted, and network with Council members and Defra's new CSA, Professor Bob Watson." More detail from the Defra website or here.

September 24 2007 ~ The UK was planning for Bluetongue?

We read eadt.co.uk that
"Agriculture Minister Lord Rooker told a Labour party fringe meeting that ministers have been planning for the possibility for some time. Officials had even mapped out possible dates in the summer when conditions would be just right for midges carrying the disease."
As we said at the end of August "Either the resources are simply not there to carry out adequate surveillance and testing or else the "core group of veterinary stakeholders" do not think such surveillance is necessary." The government's idea of "planning"against invasion was waiting and hoping rather than sending out the Spitfires.
"... I do object to the exclusion of the use of the more sophisticated and sensitive technology of real time RT-PCR as a first line screening test."
said Ruth Watkins when voicing her concerns about surveillance and testing for bluetongue in the UK
"... Now in the second year of bluetongue infection in Europe and with the midge numbers favoured by the weather, this year the exposure of animals will probably be different because there will be a greater number of infected midges and a greater number of bites - so that infected animals this year might be exposed to an inoculating dose of virus that is on average a thousand fold say greater than last year. ... When it comes to bluetongue diagnosis I hope we will be doing what our European colleagues do and that is RT-PCR as well as serology.
( For more on the UK public sector's diagnostic capabilities, see Pirbright's Statement 10 on September 20th. We are grateful to the IAH for this openness - but deplore the lack of understanding and funding from central government, and particularly from the top at DEFRA, that has deprived the public sector of the best hi-tech equipment available and has limited the expertise available to the UK in times of crisis.)
As for the deployment of police around the farm, presumably requested by Mr Landeg, one emailer writes, ".. I do worry that the police were not carrying fly papers. or UV executor lights. But pehaps the DCVO really does believe that midges and mosquitos willl observe the police presence and keep away? DEFRA science always once step ahead. God help us."

September 24 2007 ~ The female needs a blood meal every three days

From emails and information received we are sure that the cull of this BTV infected cow was not necessary.. The incubation period in animals is 5-20 days and it takes at least 2 weeks for the virus to replicate in the midge to reach the level to infect a Highland cow. The conclusion is that the virus has already spread. (Valeris Elliott's mention in the Times of two to three week old "lesions" seems a confusion with FMD. After 2 weeks you hardly see any lesions at all.)
ProMed's commentary within the other Times article should also be read (not easy to pick out but look for the square brackets. Mention of the Ferry port(s) of Felixstowe and Harwich is particularly important we feel). The cow had not been brought in from any infected zone abroad. The presence of police, as in press photographs, around the farm seems wholly unnecessary and inappropriate too.
Culicoides midges, once infected, remain so the rest of their lives and they can live up to 70-80 days approximately. They remain active (breeding) at temperature above 15 degrees. The female (egg producing) need a blood meal every three days.
The Farmers Guardian reported in March that the NFU livestock chairman Thomas Binns "would rather see a more robust approach". Was DEFRA trying to demonstrate robustness by killing the Highland cow- a much-loved and star attraction at Baylham Rare Breed Farm in Suffolk? To many it seems the result of official ignorance - an unnecessarily brutal slamming of the stable door after the horse has bolted. One wonders if journalists are ever going to question the policy that prefers killing to the efficient deployment of rapid diagnostic tests and adequate surveillance.

September 24 2007 ~ "Once the existence of local circulation (host-vector-host) of the bluetongue virus (BTV) is established, vaccination becomes the main and apparently only effective BTV control and prevention measure." ProMed

The Moderator at ProMed adds. "This can be deduced also from Defra's "UK Bluetongue Control Strategy," available at www.defra.gov.uk (pdf) - Mod.AS]
There are also links to photos of sick sheep at at www.themoneytimes.com and goats goatdairylibrary.org> and a photo of probable vector Culicoides obsoletus (midge) at groenekhmer.nl

September 23 ~ Confirmation that the strain is BTV-8 - and some doomed wishful thinking

The Press Association and many others who use and elaborate upon its basic report say that the BTV-8 strain has been identified.
At least the BBC has now changed its " 70%" guess to a more rational 30-35% mortality see below.
On vaccination, the BBC has also now reported
"the "killed" vaccine is being developed by Meriel, who have facilities at Pirbright, and is predicted to be ready by the new year."
And even the type of midge, wrongly reported yesterday, has been corrected. yesterday, has been corrected. This is encouraging - but when newspapers and the media tend to follow each other closely, in this sort of situation it is always as well to be a little wary of what one reads in the press. In particular, we're afraid, the kind of wishful thinking displayed by Professor Peter Mertens of the Institute of Animal Health at Pirbright. He told the BBC that the midges "may not be able to survive the British climate".
"The only thing saving us from bluetongue is our climate. There is hope," he said
This was also the fervent prayer of veterinary "experts" in Northern Europe in 2006 - a prayer doomed to disappointment with the return of the midges and the disease. Debby Reynolds, when declaring FMD under control earlier this month, was also guilty of wishful thinking rather than using the evidence of adequate monitoring and surveillance. The stark reality is that we are now yet another Northern European country facing the consequences of a growing global problem of disease. Our island boundaries did not save us. Cooperating with our European counterparts is essential if we are to make progress against an ever increasing threat.

September 23 ~ Praise for DEFRA's vets from the bluetongue affected farm

From the website of Baylham House Farm "....we would like to say that the veterinary teams from DEFRA have been wonderful, both in their dealings with us and the care and consideration that they have shown for our animals. The police have also been most helpful and we could not have asked for this incident to have been handled in a more professional and sympathetic way." Many thanks for this link from a fellow blogger who adds, "who could remain unmoved by their dignity and strength which is amply demonstrated by their generous and warm-hearted press release?"

September 23 ~ "There is no practical way to remove culicoides or prevent them from biting domestic animals. The sad truth is, that the only efficient way to prevent losses, which -- particularly in sheep -- may be very heavy, is vaccination.

Other measures may somewhat diminish the losses but will not prevent them." ProMed today on the bluetongue situation in the UK.
The BBC reports that David Catlow too says, "vaccination ultimately is what we would have to do if the disease becomes established in the UK"
One can sense the frisson of incredulity from warmwell readers given the way that Mr Catlow has been reported with reference to FMD. But it is only fair perhaps to say that in his position he feels that he must act in the best interests of the livestock industry even if he is in favour of vaccination in theory - and the industry leaders feel, as they did in 2001 (unfortunately for the country as a whole), that the present rules that discriminate against vaccination might leave them with unwanted products.
We can sympathise with this view but caving in to slaughter will not get the rules changed. Rubbishing vaccination when there is no scientific basis from which to do so has had a catastrophic effect on public - and political - understanding. If DEFRA could be more open about what it is doing and if the livestock industry would only put pressure on the government to back European moves to get the legilation changed we could start using the available technology to fight back at these viruses instead of wasting the lives and livelihoods of so many innocents.

September 23 ~ Tests done last night on the other animals at and around the farm near Ipswich should be available soon

From the IAH website www.iah.bbsrc.ac.uk
".....A blood sample was sent from Suffolk to the Institute for Animal Health, where it was received during the night. Immediately IAH scientists set up tests, looking both for antibodies against bluetongue virus, and for the genetic material (RNA) of the virus (using the polymerase chain reaction test, PCR). The results, reported to Defra, were positive for both tests."
It went on to say that more samples from animals on the farm and neighbouring premises were going to be received by IAH Pirbright Laboratory during late Saturday night, for immediate testing.

September 23 ~ "Officials are testing midges to establish the extent of bluetongue infection"

icealing.icnetwork.co.uk reports that "The Government confirmed scientists were conducting tests on midges around the farm "
Since only a very limited number of midges are actually capable of transmitting the disease (estimated at about 1 in ten thousand) this exercise is mere needle seeking in the area of a haystack. To look for disease one has to take blood samples. Chasing that midge among thousands is hardly a sensible option. According to DEFRA's revised Bluetongue Disease Control Strategy , an outbreak cannot be confirmed until one more animal has tested positive. Only then will Defra impose a 20km control zone around the farm.
When Fred Landeg told Sky News that the authorities had a strategy to limit the disease if there was an outbreak and that they had "braced for it after the disease hit livestock in The Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and northern France" he did not add that monitoring and surveillance was pretty much limited to asking farmers to look out for it. Once again, taking control away from experts, underfunding resources and a continuing lack of understanding of what is really required has left Britain's livestock and farmers horribly vulnerable.

September 23 ~EFSA report says that the EU Commission is in need of further scientific advice on bluetongue

While FMD is well understood and appropriate vaccines have been shown to give solid protection, there is far less certainty about bluetongue. Its vectors are still being investigated. According to the EFSA Scientific Report of the Scientific Panel on Animal Health and Welfare on request from the Commission on Bluetongue this year (pdf) the EU Commission
".....is in need of further scientific advice on ......
• Role of the vector in the transmission of BTV:
  The transmission of BTV takes place via a bite of certain species of Culicoides midges, which are biological vectors. The midges become infected by feeding on viraemic animals. The virus can be transmitted again to a vertebrate host during a blood meal. Infected midges remain infective for life. The central role of the insect in BT epidemiology ensures that prevalence of the disease is governed by ecological factors and climatic, temperature, humidity and soil characteristics, which favour insect survival. In many parts of the world therefore, the disease has a seasonal occurrence. Measures to control and eradicate the disease include control of vectors (by use of for instance insecticides in the animal premises and in the areas where these insects live, insect repellents onto animals, mosquito nets, etc.).
• Vaccination against BTV
  Vaccination against BTV is a very important tool for the control of the disease and is also used to permit 'safe' trade in live ruminants in accordance to OIE standards and EU legislation....."
The meeting this Wednesday of the EU Agriculture Ministers will undoubtedly be discussing Bluetongue. The learning curve for the UK is going to be steep.

September 23 ~ Inaccuracies in the media

The Independent on Sunday calls Bluetongue a "lethal" disease, suggesting that it kills all animals infected - but even the 70% we are seeing on the BBC and in most papers is too high an estimate. In some places in Northern Europe there have been cases where half of the infected sheep died - usually lambs. Mortality seems higher in areas where the Culicoides midges prosper, near forests, swamps and so on. The IOS and others also say that Bluetongue is spread by the 'Culicoides imicola' midge but that is the subtropical midge. In Northern Europe the vector is thought more likely to be Culicoides dewulfi
or Culicoides obsoletus See LandCare.org and probably others too.
The media are reporting that "no vaccine is available currently for the strain of the disease" - but this is highly misleading; Merial has received what it calls a "breakthrough conditional licence for our new Bluetongue vaccine (BTVPUR AlSap™), developed in only 18 months of development" (that vaccine is against BTV 2 and 4 but the vaccine for BTV-8 is also being developed) It is likely that the strain found will be BTV-8 (UPDATE: It is BTV-8 ) and although stocks against this strain are not yet available, the vaccine.is hoped to be ready before Christmas and used in the Spring before the next onslaught of the disease. French, Dutch, Belgian and German Agriculture ministers are anxious that a vaccination programme should begin as soon as possible in 2008 and will discuss the issue on Wednesday.
Northern Europe is now rapidly approaching 20,000 farms with at least one infected animal and Bluetongue disease is spreading in all directions including towards Austria, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and Denmark, in all of which restriction zones are now in place. This is hardly "several outbreaks" - as reported by the Observer.
In cattle, there are generally no real problems, but milk production can drop for some days. So far in Northern Europe, a few goat farms have also been infected.
Now we have a case in Ipswich and it is quite possible that there already more animals at or around this farm whose symptoms have not yet been noticed. "One infected animal will be culled" reports Reuters - but there was no need to kill the cow. Bluetongue can't be transmitted directly between animals without the presence of the midges and culling is not a strategy. Unfortunately the effect of insecticides or repellents is very shortlived.
There is only one solution: vaccination.

September 22/23 ~ "Looking for cattle as a first warning sign might distract from the fact that another serotype can get into the population"

More from Sabine Zentis "...As the diagnostic tests usually are serotype specific, testing for BTV 8 might miss other serotypes. Doing surveillance of bulk milk for BTV as an early warning system is another stupidity, ... by the time you get a positive result the virus has spread already.
One word of caution : everyone is focusing on the BTV 8 outbreak. This outbreak is unique in that you see so many cattle involved showing clinical signs. Other serotypes will involve cattle but without clinical disease. Looking for cattle as a first warning sign might distract from the fact that another serotype can get into the population that produces clinical disease only in sheep. As the diagnostic tests usually are serotype specific testing for BTV 8 might miss other serotypes. Doing surveillance of bulk milk for BTV as an early warning system is another stupidity, by the time you get a positive result the virus has spread already. This disease is much more difficult to understand than other diseases as so many factors beyond our influence are involved." Read in full

September 22/23 ~ "I don't want to go into the details but surveillance and lab diagnosis of Bluetongue in Germany is non existent.... There is no follow up and no screening, the authorities are just trying to enter the daily numbers into the database....."

Before we heard about the BT case in Ipswich, the German expert Sabine Zentis, who has been giving information to ProMed, wrote for Ruth Watkins a commentary on her email of this morning. (Read Frau Zentis' comments in full ) Extract: At the moment , in case of suspicion, the vets are advised to take only 1 blood sample per holding and this is only tested for antibodies (ELISA) The labs can't deal with more samples as the numbers of infected animals are increasing every day and no funding is available. They do the ELISA because it is "much easier and cheaper" and the opinion is that detectable antibodies show up at a very stage of infection. To me this is utter nonsense, the antibodies might be a result of last year's infection and the animal might well be suffering from another disease. There is no follow up and no screening, the authorities are just trying to enter the daily numbers into the database."

September 22/23 ~ "... years of breeding, selecting good animals, is all gone in a couple of weeks."

A forwarded email from Holland:
"We are also in middle of it, I have already lost more then 10% of my flock ewes; lambs I don't know at the moment, and 40% of my Charollais ewes and 80% of my shearling rams and ramlambs.
Lots of them were already sold!
In our shed there are about 170 sheep who are recovering at the moment; they have been very sick, very high fever, lost a lot of weight and possibly also lost their lambs.
We check our sheep twice a day now, when you a sheep standing on her own, head and ears down, an empty belly, sometimes a thick head, thick ears and nose, they can't swallow any more, so water is coming out of their mouth, you have to take her, inject with antibiotic, something for pain and fever, put her in the shed out of sunlight.
When they have all this, you are too late.
Sometimes, I'm with the sheep in the morning, everything OK - in the afternoon, one ill, take her home and in the evening she is already dead. There are so many varitiations about the disease, lots of them get thick legs, the legs are not strong enough to keep the water inside.
As you can see, years of breeding, selecting good animals, is all gone in a couple of weeks. And from our Ministry we don't get any compensation at all, its at our own risk"

September 22 2007 ~ "This cow could have been infected a fortnight ago...."

A correspondent writes:
" I've just spoken to friends, they had moved some of their cattle to a farm for a sale a couple of weeks ago. Last week they tried to get a movement licence (cattle stuck on markets?) and called the DEFRA helpline. They were refused the licence but offered instead : slaughter on welfare reasons.
This is beyond belief.
And now they are killing a cow because of Bluetongue? It would be interesting to know whether they tested for virus or for antibodies. This cow could have been infected a fortnight ago.
I wish them luck chasing the midges..."
We note that the microbiologist, Hugh Pennington rather than a virologist, is being asked to give his opinion on the virus Bluetongue. But virology is a very specialised subject. We do need experts to be advising those "in charge" and telling people a little more than the often repeated and fairly meaningless sentences appearing in every newspaper at the moment.

September 22 2007 ~ First UK case is in Ipswich

Sky News
"The case is at a petting farm near Ipswich, Suffolk, which is now under restrictions. The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs says laboratory tests have detected the presence of Bluetongue - which is insect-borne - in one cow. Defra's website says: "Bluetongue is a very different infection to Foot and Mouth Disease and the strategy to control it is therefore also different. "This is not a confirmed outbreak unless further investigation demonstrates that disease is circulating."
We note on the Sky page that it is Fred Landeg who gave Sky News "the full details" about the UK's first recorded case of the bluetongue virus. You can listen here "What we need to do is carry out some surveillance... We need to show that there is virus circulating" Before confirmation there are only some "restrictions" in place. "We have worked with stakeholders to prepare for this... it can be quite serious..." Poor Mr Landeg does not sound as though he has heard much about this disease. He says it was found in Europe "...er last Autumn". It first appeared in Holland in July 2006. What a performance. Heaven help us all.

September 22 2007 ~ "... I do object to the exclusion of the use of the more sophisticated and sensitive technology of real time RT-PCR as a first line screening test."

Ruth Watkins has concerns about surveillance and testing for bluetongue in the UK
"... Now in the second year of bluetongue infection in Europe and with the midge numbers favoured by the weather, this year the exposure of animals will probably be different because there will be a greater number of infected midges and a greater number of bites - so that infected animals this year might be exposed to an inoculating dose of virus that is on average a thousand fold say greater than last year. ...It does of course change the focus of attitudes to vaccination even to FMD
I am glad to hear the German vets advocating FMD control by vaccination to live without penalties greater than stamping out by culling. When it comes to bluetongue diagnosis I hope we will be doing what our European colleagues do and that is RT-PCR as well as serology.
None of this penside testing with a lateral flow device to the exclusion of RT-PCR as the first line test for FMD. I don't have any objection to their use of the penside lateral flow device but I do object to the exclusion of the use of the more sophisticated and sensitive technology of real time RT-PCR as a first line screening test. "
For more on the UK public sector's diagnostic capabilities, see Pirbright's Statement 10 on September 20th. We are grateful to the IAH for this openness - but deplore the lack of understanding and funding from the central government, depriving the public sector of the best in hi-tech equipment and limiting the expertise available to the UK in times of crisis.

September 22 2007 ~ DEFRA's Bluetongue page last updated August 30

And yet there are real fears that BTV is being suspected. The diagnoses are similar to FMD as we know. More as soon as we hear news. What is depressing is the woeful lack of hi-tech and knowledgeable surveillance in the UK. As Ruth Watkins writes this morning, "....I think DEFRA should bring its ideas of good diagnostic practice up to date. I agree with Roger Breeze. (here)
Reliance should not be placed upon visual examination in the protection and surveillance zones (which may anyway be not the correct size). Sampling should be done. We have heard nothing of faecal sampling or milk sampling where essentially pooled specimens can be submitted to PCR and culture. Nose swabs and lesion swabs and blood can all have PCR done on them. Again nose swabs can be pooled. This appropriate test is looking for the presence of virus. If there are lesions then the penside test can be done as well. Obviously they have not invested in a. mobile laboratory. Any animal susceptible to FMD should be sampled in this way......"

September 21 2007 ~ No let up of the disease in Northern Europe

Information is difficult to obtain but it seems that there is no slowing of the epidemic, cases for Belgium: www.favv-afsca.fgov.be (pdf)
The Netherlands : (no numbers but a map) www.vwa.nl/portal
Germany : www.bmelv.de/

France :

See agriculture.gouv.fr
Luxembourg : (map only) www.ma.public.lu .JPG
In Germany restriction zones are extended again and in addition, part of Czechia is now within the 150 km zone. (see pdf document)

September 19 ~ Austria now included in Restriction zone

Part of Austria (Vorarlberg) has been declared part of the Restriction zone (150 km zone) after cases of Bluetongue in Germany http://vorarlberg.orf.at/stories/222898/
Meanwhile in France, the Departement of la Saône-et-Loire is now also part of the surveillance zone for Bluetongue. Today's news repeats that Michel Barnier, the Agriculture Minister, has asked for the subject to put on the agenda prochain of the next EU meeting of the Council of Ministers of Agriculture on 26 September 2007.

September 19 2007 ~"The vaccine must be ready before Christmas"

We now see on ProMed that Holland has obtained the support of Belgium, Germany, and France to raise bluetongue vaccination as subject for EU Agriculture Ministers' discussions in Brussels on 26 Sep 2007.
" The vaccine must be ready before Christmas, [so that] veterinarians will be able to carry out preventive vaccination in spring [2008]."
The Dutch MP, Krista van Velzen, wants to see preventative vaccination against Foot-and-Mouth Disease made compulsory. The Belgian minister Laruelle (Agriculture) is already willing to provide the government's partial financial coverage of the vaccination costs. And the French Agriculture Minister, Michel Barnier, is solidly behind the move to an EU-wide vaccination programme.

September 19 ~ Moderator comment on ProMed

" According to information derived from German and Swiss sources and kindly forwarded by Sabine Zentis, BTV-8 spread, which has recently been recorded in Germany, is affecting also neighbouring countries as follows:
1. Bluetongue has been confirmed in a bovine in Schleswig-Holstein (northern Germany). The 20 km (12.4 mile) surveillance zones have been extended accordingly, similarly to the 150 km (93 mile) restriction zones. The latter are now covering part of Denmark in the provinces of Jutland, Funen, and Lolland.
2. Due to confirmation of bluetongue in Baden-Wurttemberg (southern Germany), less than 100 km (62 miles) from the border with Switzerland, a restriction zone has been declared covering the Swiss canton of Schaffhausen. As from Wednesday [19 Sep 2007], ruminants destined for other parts of Switzerland have to be bloodtested with a negative result prior to transport.
See www.baz.ch " For full posting see ProMed

September 18 ~ Bluetongue widespread in Europe. Early next year could see the start of a vaccination campaign

From the Netherlands "....An expert of the Europen Union states that nearly 10.000 farms in Europe are affected by Bluetongue. Numbers in the Netherland are close to 2000, in Germany more than 4000 cases are reported and Belgium counts ca. 2200.
Last year saw the first occurence of Bluetongue in Western Europe with mostly cattle affected. This year more sheep are suffering from the disease. The disease is more serious in sheep with a mortality of nearly one in five animals.
By the end of the year a vaccine should be available. Early next year could see the start of a vaccination campaign. "

September 18 ~ Graphic picture of the extent of Bluetongue now in Germany

The accumulation of dots is telling a very grim picture. Yet the map is already out of date and there are now new cases reported north-east of Hamburg and in all other directions. See outline map of Germany. It is very much to be hoped that French Agriculture Mionister, Michel Barnier, will succeed in getting a bluetongue vaccination programme across northern europe set up as soon as possible. M. Barnier served as a European Commissioner for regional policy in the Prodi Commission from 1999 until 2004 and is now using all his influence to speed up production of the appropriate vaccine for BTV-8 so that it can be used as soon as possible.

September 17 ~ Bluetongue cases in Germany top 6113

The website of the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection's page Anzahl der bestätigten Blauzungenkrankheits-Fälle in Deutschland 2007 shows the figures for the whole of Germany since January. Seven states are badly affected and the total is rising.

September 15 ~ Cases of Bluetongue in France reach 549. Agriculture Minister calls for EU-wide Vaccination programme and accelerated production of vaccine

Several new cases of BTV known in the EU and Bluetongue have been discovered in the North, East, Centre and West of France bringing the total to 549 as opposed to the 246 reported on Thursday...
( http://www.web-agri.fr/actualite-agricole ) The Minister (Michel Barnier ) has called upon the EU Commission to put in place an EU-wide policy of vaccination and to accelerate the production of the suitable vaccine so that a programme of vaccination can take place before the Summer of 2008

September 15 ~ "If an Easterly wind doth blow we will be blown away."

An email to warmwell from Dr Ruth Watkins, the virologist and farmer. "Just to respond to some of the thoughts on Warmwell- the next slap in the face will be bluetongue. Further slaughter? To no avail. Will we be exporting live animals then? The NFU should be a powerful voice urging and facilitating a bluetongue vaccine for serotype-8, the strain which is at present dealing such a blow to Northern Europe- at least 10,000 herds and flocks affected in the last 2 months- that we have heard nothing about it on the news whilst we bicker over FMD vaccination. If an Easterly wind doth blow we will be blown away...."

September 14 ~ "case numbers are already history by the time they are published.."

Sabine Zentis is tracking numbers and sends this:
" Numbers of BTV 8 infections have again surged during the last couple of days. An update on case numbers notified by the authorities can be found at the EU-ADNS website. In addition, information of member states affected were presented at the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (SCFCAH) meeting (11/12Sept.)
A press release issued by the Dutch, Belgium and German farmers unions states that a coordinated action within the affected member states is essential in terms of a future vaccination policy and related trade issues. As disease related losses of the livestock industry are increasing the unions are urging the EU Commission and the respective Governments to support the development of a safe, inactivated vaccine against BTV 8 as quickly as possible. The organisations welcome a draft setting the frame for EU wide harmonized legislation on Bluetongue. In the light of the spread of the virus a protection of yet uninfected regions in other parts of Europe should become a priority. http://www.bauernverband.de/index.php?redid=152813&mid=180320 "
Warmwell is very grateful to Frau Zentis. Finding information is time-consuming and - in English at least - very difficult. One thing we have noticed however as a speaker of French is the very different tone used by the French authorities towards their stricken farmers. It is supportive and friendly. Amazing.

September 14 ~ More Bluetongue in the US

"....EHD, or Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease, has been discovered in deer found dead or dying in Highland County in southwest, Ohio, northeast of Cincinnati. The disease is also called "blue tongue," ...Potential cases of EHD have been reported in 12 southern Ohio counties. The disease can only be confirmed from fresh specimens of deer. Deer infected with EHD are often listless, lose their appetite, have no fear of humans and may have difficulty breathing. In eight to 36 hours, EHD will cause a shock-like state and death.."www.cleveland.com
Is all EHD a form of bluetongue or must it be diagnosed (as below) before we can assume that what is happening in Ohio is another strain of what is happening, at such speed, throughout Northern Europe?

September 13/14 ~ Luxembourg. All those dots......

The map of infection for Tuesday 12th September is like a demented "join up the dots" puzzle for children. But these dots each means sickness for the animals, misery for the farmer - and an inexorable spread getting closer and closer to the UK. See full sized map.

September 13 ~ 256 cases, confirmed by virological analysis to be BTV 2007 in France

Several cases of BTV were confirmed by the Agence Frangaise de Sicuriti Sanitaire des Aliments on the 11th September in the Departments of l'Aisne, l'Aube, e Meurthe-et-Moselle, Moselle, l'Oise, Somme and l'Yonne.
In total, 256 cases, confirmed by virological analysis to be BTV 2007 have been listed to date in France. Several dozen suspicious cases are being analysed. Plusieurs cas de FCO ont iti confirmis par l'AFSSA Maisons-Alfort le 11 septembre 2007 dans les départements de l'Aisne, de l'Aube, de la Meurthe-et-Moselle, de la Moselle, de l'Oise, de la Somme et de l'Yonne. Au total, 256 cas confirmis par analyse virologique de fihvre catarrhale ovine + 2007 ; sont ripertoriis ' ce jour en France. Plusieurs dizaines de suspicions sont en cours d'analyse.agriculture.gouv.fr

September 13 ~ We owe the NFU Scotland an apology

Warmwell has just heard from NFU Scotland, putting the record straight about what was actually said. We are very glad to see that there is no mention in the statement, used by the Scotsman, of there being no vaccines nor that culling is the only effective control measure. Our apologies. We are grateful to know this. Extract: " Because bluetongue is spread by vectors (i.e. midges), and not through animal to animal contact like foot and mouth disease, culling is only really effective in small localised outbreaks."

September 13 ~ No vaccine. Culling is the only effective control measure.

We despair to read such nonsense in the Scotsman. Please see above. This comment did NOT come from NFU Scotland

The Scotsman is the first paper for several days even to mention the threat of Bluetongue in the UK.
"....Diseases, whether in animals or the human population, have increasingly become internationalised. Frontiers mean nothing to the vectors of a wide range of pathogens. ... FMD is clearly a huge threat, but just yesterday NFU Scotland, before the confirmation of the latest case, warned of the growing threat of bluetongue .."
It is misleading and mischievous of NFU Scotland if they really did say there is no vaccine (they did not. See above) - many vaccines exist and a good source of information is European Technology Platform for Global Animal Health Action Plan (pdf) July 2007.
While it is true that a vaccine for the current strin, BTv-8, is not yet widely available, it does exist and certainly will be available - and sooner rather than later if responsible people support it. To say "culling is the only control" suggests that pre-emptive killing, as is the UK's extraordinary medieval way of dealing with FMD, would be used. But even the UK wuld not be so idiotic as to cull contiguous animals in the case of Bluetongue. At least Nigel Miller, vice-president of NFUS, who is also a qualified vet, said:
"The thought of having another serious animal disease within these shores is totally demoralising. Bluetongue is far harder to control than FMD because we cannot restrict the movement of midges. The hope had been that when the insects on the continent died out over last winter, the disease would then die out with them. This has not happened and the stories of the disease on mainland Europe are horrendous."
And we wholly agree with Miller and his colleagues in England and Wales who "believe that the authorities have still to grasp the full extent of the dangers facing the industry"

September 12 ~ in Germany there are now more than 4500 cases of bluetongue

At least 1600 holdings are affected in the Netherlands elsevier.nl
In Belgium there are now 2485 cases while in Luxembourg : 350 (animals) are affected www.wort.lu
In France there are : 214
But in Germany there are now more than 4500 and first cases have been confirmed in Baden Wuerttemberg.

September 11 ~ In North-Rhine/Westphalia there are now 2248 cases of bluetongue

Warmwell has been contacted with figures up to yesterday. When one considers that this region is only part of Germany, the red dots on the map of North-Rhine Westphalia paint an alarming and depressing picture.

Meanwhile in the US " sheep producers might have the opportunity to vaccinate their sheep"

The disease Epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) has been reported widely recently but now that it is realised that bluetongue and EHD are closely related and have similar symptoms, the outbreak in Musselshell, Montana has been provisionally diagnosed as bluetongue by the State vetrinarian, Dr Marty Zaluski. www.billingsgazette.net "About 100 sheep in Musselshell County have died in the past two weeks, according to the Montana Department of Livestock. Several sheep initially tested positive for the virus in a screening test, and when whitetail deer were also tentatively diagnosed, Zaluski decided to protect other livestock with the order. "The sheep from this flock had clinical signs and death loss that is consistent with bluetongue," Zaluski said. "But we still need to confirm that diagnosis. Also, several deer in Musselshell County tested positive for bluetongue".........Zaluski said he wants to limit movement of infected sheep so gnats will not have the opportunity to bite an infected sheep and then bite a healthy sheep, spreading the disease.....
Once the national lab identifies the specific serotype in this potential outbreak, Musselshell County sheep producers might have the opportunity to vaccinate their sheep. "

September 10 2007 ~ Disturbing news

A new case of Bluetongue has been diagnosed near Metz in the Moselle region of France and 19 departements are now either partial or full Protection Zones: Aisne, Ardennes, Aube, Côte-d'Or, Marne, Haute-Marne, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse, Moselle, Nord, Oise, Pas-de-Calais, Bas-Rhin, Seine-Maritime, Seine-et-Marne, Somme, Val-d'Oise, Vosges, Yonne. This brings French cases now to a total of 204.(source) In Germany cases are thought now to have hit 3000 (sic) and there are very disturbing developments in Luxembourg too. News in English is very sparse indeed.

September 7 2007 ~ OIE figures for Bluetongue up to today

(As we have said before, the figures show a very conservative estimate of the current situation.) See OIE Table 11 pdf.
The map of Belgium here, showing bluetongue outbreaks (pdf) for sheep, cattle, goats and the position of sentinels, gives a graphic reminder of the scale of the problem,

September 6 2007 ~ Latest OIE maps of BTV-8 outbreaks

The OIE updates have maps at the bottom of the reports of outbreaks. Latest for Belgium is here, France here . Germany has not yet been updated on the OIE site but "more than 1500 new cases of BT have been registered in cattle and sheep Germany between 1 Jun 2007 and 3 Sep 2007" according to the first hand report by Dr.Thomas Mettenleiter, President of Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, sent to ProMed.

September 6 2007 ~ France: Generous compensation - and a preferred vaccination strategy once vaccine is available in 2008

The French Minister for Agriculture, Michel Barnier, travelled on Tuesday to the Meuse district of France affected by Bluetongue and pledged continuing government support for the sheep farmers of North-East of France . He announced that compensation for losses in the protection zones would be increased. 2 million euros is being made available. (From what we understand, up to 15 million euros (about £10 million) has already been earmarked for support and compensation for those affected by the disease). In addition, M. Barnier said that, once vaccines become available next summer, vaccination will be the preferred strategy for controlling bluetongue in France. M. Barnier also wants to initiate an EU wide debate on Community response to the disease. See (in french) www.agrisalon.com for more detail.

September 5 2007 ~ "efforts to develop a vaccine in time for this year's outbreak seem to have fallen short"

comments a ProMed moderator in the latest Bluetongue posting Such a comment brings into sharp relief the recommendations of the European Technology Platform for Global Animal Health Action Plan (pdf) July 2007 Extracts:
Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) Recommendation 12
Objective: There is a rapid advance in new technologies and techniques which could be used to develop more effective tools for the control of priority diseases. These newly developed technologies should be reviewed regularly to assess their potential and to ensure that they are being used to maximum benefit. By evaluating the relative value of the individual technologies and their potential capacity for the development of vaccines, pharmaceuticals and diagnostics it will be possible to focus research in those areas which will provide the greatest benefits.......
funding for innovation has a lower priority than appropriate, resulting in difficulties in filling knowledge gaps..."

September 5 2007 ~ "no single group has an overview to ensure an integrated and coordinated Research and Development (R&D) programme across Europe".

A further extract from the European Technology Platform for Global Animal Health Action Plan (pdf) July 2007 "The development of a comprehensive, riskbased sourcing strategy for vaccines, pharmaceuticals and diagnostic tests to meet EU animal health priorities linked to the important diseases is a priority..... An EU-wide review of the current state of fundamental science as it impacts on the development of vaccines, pharmaceuticals and diagnostics is required for the major diseases....
Priority: High and immediate
Target research funding to those areas of fundamental science critical to the development of prioritised vaccines, pharmaceuticals and diagnostic tests."

September 5 2007 ~ " In such a rapidly evolving situation, the animal health authorities must feel like they have been hit by a major windstorm...

Comment from a ProMed moderator on Bluetongue reports ".. so many critical key activities they must accomplish including choice of disease control tactics, definitively establishing the breadth and scope of the outbreak, communicating with the public and responding to questions from the responsible political structures, to name only a few. So there is no wonder that updates lag behind the actual situation ....
It would be valuable to understand the likely course of events as the efforts to develop a vaccine in time for this year's outbreak seem to have fallen short and it will clearly be quite some time until the first frost occurs stopping the Culicoides activity and disease transmission."

September 4 2007 ~ Bluetongue in Europe : "lack of effective disease control weapons at present..."

The most recent ProMed posting on Bluetongue contains a letter from the Project leader of Exotic Viral Diseases at the CIDC-Lelystad Department of Virology, Piet A. van Rijn, PhD. In addition to giving the news that "the 1st clinical case of bluetongue in goats reported during the ongoing BT-epidemic in North-West Europe was confirmed at 31 Aug 2007 in the Netherlands", (confirming that goats can develop distressing clinical signs after natural infection with BTV-8 ) he also gives the total of at-risk animals in the Netherlands: approximately 300 000 goats, 1.4 million sheep and lambs and 2.5 million cattle.
The moderator comments:
"....With the rapidity of spread seen in other countries and the lack of effective disease control weapons at present, such estimates are invaluable for gauging the magnitude of the animal problem at hand and the ensuing economic consequences."
This is a disease that is keeping us guessing. The excellent and graphic explanatory page for Bluetongue on the IAH website says "Other animals such as goats and cattle rarely show any symptoms. The infection is therefore mostly 'silent'..." ; a statement that must now be open to question in the light of the new information coming form Northern Europe.

September 3/4 2007 ~ 1600 cases in Germany, now Bavaria is affected and suspect cases in Northern Germany

In addition to giving us the updated figures for Germany today, Sabine Zentis writes, "The true extent of virus spread can't be determined as, at least in Germany, no whole herd screening is done. Cases are notified on suspicion and blood tested subsequently. As mortality is rising proportionally to the high numbers of infections farmers in the affected countries are urging their respective Governments to investigate the use of a vaccine to protect sheep and cattle against infection with BTV 8. To prevent more financial losses for farmers as well as animal welfare problems a joint effort of Member States to deal with the situation is of utmost importance."
ProMed (Sept 2) also quotes Frau Zentis:"The last week saw a remarkable increase in numbers of bluetongue infection in livestock. ... It has to be noted that the authorities can't keep pace with the developments, a recent update on the website of the Belgium FAVV states that as of 30 Aug 2007, 1338 cases have been confirmed .... German figures only been updated on 21Aug 2007, when 596 cases notified. Information given by the local veterinary services indicate that numbers now have reached nearly 1400 cases. For the 1st time a case of bluetongue has been confirmed in a cow on a holding in Eastern Germany (Thuringia).
The situation is very different from last year [2006], as farmers are describing the disease as more "aggressive". In addition, in 2006 most farms experienced single cases ,whereas this year in cattle herds and sheep flocks multiple cases are occurring."

September 3 2007 ~ "How much funding has the UK government put into EU collaboration - or indeed wider international collaboration - directed at producing BTV vaccines that are relevant and promptly available?

Or do they simply leave such matters to market forces, whilst proclaiming their devout interest in animal health and welfare?" This was a question asked by James Irvine on Land Care.org.uk in April . With farmers in Northern Europe now clamouring for protection for their animals, the question of mutual support, help and collaboration is ever more relevant. It seems mere common sense that a coordinated Europe wide plan for research into disease control be properly funded.
Unfortunately, the same powerful voices in the UK and Europe that decry vaccination are still at it. It was a dreadful mistake ever to allow vaccination to be regarded as justification for a trade barrier. The mutually beneficial effects of vaccination in our globalised world must be pointed out and reflected in trade rules.
In spite of the less than lukewarm messages coming from EU governments, the vaccine manufacturers have an understanding of the reality of the situation. As Dr Carolin Schumacher, of Merial ( says here) "In Europe it is now expected that BTV8 is here to stay. This may result in significant economic losses for livestock farming, animal trade and exports. Since the start of BTV work in 2003, MERIAL has developed substantial expertise, modern vaccine technology, production sites and a fully dedicated Veterinary Public Health Team working on BTV solutions to support the Veterinary Services of infected countries in responding to major Bluetongue virus outbreaks."

September 3 2007 ~ "... This policy would eventually lead to the eradication of BTV from affected areas."

From last month's European Technology Platform for Global Animal Health Action Plan (pdf) Annex 5 Bluetongue Gap Analysis Extract:
....vaccine availability (globally) Attenuated virus vaccines are cheap, easy to produce and are administered in a single dose. Potent, purified inactivated bluetongue vaccines achieve similar efficacy while non-purified inactivated vaccines usually require two or more injections to achieve similar results. Modern inactivated vaccines are better controlled for extraneous agents and safer, but not available for all serotypes. Both vaccine types, if used according to label instructions, are very effective in controlling clinical outbreaks of bluetongue in areas of endemic disease and in the face of outbreaks.
Commercial vaccine authorised in Europe Conditional: Inactivated and attenuated vaccines under conditional/temporary license....
Effectiveness of vaccines Live attenuated and purified inactivated vaccines are effective and provide long lasting immunity with a single dose (in sheep)
Non-purified inactivated or recombinant vaccines need two injections to afford protection.
Commercial potential for vaccines in Europe Inactivated vaccines offer significant advantages over attenuated vaccines because absence of replicating virus eliminates concerns about viraemia, vector transmission and reversion to virulence
Recent recombinant DNA technology has provided novel approaches to developing safe vaccines. This technology offers advantages both in terms of safety and the potential of developing a marker vaccine. The latter could be used as a prophylaxis in areas at risk, without endangering the "free" status of the region. An accompanying serological test would allow the distinction between vaccinated and infected animals.
DNA recombinant technology involves the synthesis of immunogenic proteins and particles that elicit highly protective immune responses. Naked DNA vaccines may have a similar potential....."
The Action Plan is very much worth reading in full even without specialist knowledge. One wonders how many of those who direct policy in the various countries of the EU, including our own, have any real understanding of the difference, for example, between an "attenuated" vaccine and an "inactivated" vaccine. The experts who do, can only, as Dr Irvine above implies, carry out the necessary research if adequate EU funding and collaboration reflect the urgency of the situation. Only then can we hope that, to use the language of the ETPGAH Action Plan:
"... With a high efficacy and safety, vaccination could be extended to all ruminant species in order to stop transmission of the virus. This policy would eventually lead to the eradication of BTV from affected areas."

September 2 ~ " a reliable and rapid detection of BTV"

In the future, when rapid on-farm testing to keep livestock disease-free has become the norm, we may well look back on the years of reluctance to pursue efficient surveillance with disbelief. Bluetongue - in a new aggressive form - has become rampant in Northern Europe this summer. The fatality percentage is higher than in 2006 and whereas in that year farmers were noticing just a few cases we are now seeing multiple cases in both sheep flocks and cattle herds - with many, many more cases likely to be remaining undetected. Yet whole herd screening is not taking place. Indeed, what we have at present in the UK, apart from the testing of certain imports, is no screening at all. What is required is rapid on-farm testing that can be done within a few hours, not a few days. As James Irvine wrote on Land Care.org.uk back in April this year,
".... blood samples taken from anywhere throughout the UK have to go to Pirbright, Surrey in the south of England for testing. While this may be fine for establishing the serotype of the first case, it is far from satisfactory when it comes to checking whether a beast on a farm is suffering from BTV or from some other condition. What is required is rapid on-farm tests that can be done within a few hours, not a few days. RT-PCR technology is available for that internationally.... Modern RT-PCR testing should be able to rapidly test for a spectrum of diseases all in one go, on farm."
And, as an example, we see from Bluetongue virus detection by two real-time RT-qPCRs targeting two different genomic segments Toussaint et al, Journal of Virological Methods Volume 140, Issues 1-2, March 2007, Pages 115-123 Abstract:"....The detection of the bluetongue virus (BTV) by conventional methods is especially difficult and labour-intensive. Molecular diagnosis is also complex because of the high genetic diversity between and within the 24 serotypes of BTV. In the present study, two laboratories joined forces to develop and validate two new RT-qPCRs detecting and amplifying BTV segments 1 and 5. The 2 assays detect strains from all 24 serotypes. ...these two methods are complementary and could be used in parallel to confirm the diagnosis of a possible new introduction of BTV. An RT-qPCR amplifying a fragment of the beta-actin mRNA was also developed and validated as internal control for the bluetongue specific assays. The three assays described allow a reliable and rapid detection of BTV. "

September 1 2007 ~ Latest from France, with map

OIE page of information received from the French Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is dated 31/08/2007. This shows the latest 35 outbreaks and a map of their position - their proximity to the English coast is vividly brought home by this with some cases in the Pas-de-Calais.
The source is identified only as "vectors". A similar report from Germany, dated 24/08/2007 remarks that the source of infection is "Unknown or inconclusive" Both reports show "Vaccination permitted". No animals have been slaughtered or destroyed as a result of the disease in France or Germany according to these reports. Cases officially confirmed in the countries affected (see below) is now about 4000 - but we are told that it is highly likely that this number represents a small fraction of the real extent of the problem and many cases are simply not being spotted.

August 31 2007 ~ The latest official OIE table puts EU bluetongue cases at 2452 - but this is already out of date

The ANIMAL DISEASE NOTIFICATION SYSTEM TABLE 11 : ANIMAL DISEASE SITUATION PER COUNTRY AND PER DISEASE (pdf file here) showing the situation so far this year gives a global EU figure of 2452. It shows 1021 in Belgium (as of 21st August, the true figure yesterday was 1338 cases for Belgium ), 137 in France and 32 in Luxemburg (as of yesterday) , 401 in the Netherlands (as of the 23rd Aug), and 856 in Germany (as of 27th August). However, we hear that the real figure for Germany as of today is at least 1400.

August 31 2007 ~ uncertainty about whether -and which - infected animals show clinical disease

With the incursion of bluetongue into the UK looking so likely we continue to wonder why the updated Bluetongue Disease Control Strategy lays so little stress on active surveillance by testing, preferring to wait for someone to report clinical signs. The trouble with this approach is the uncertainty about whether -and which - infected animals show clinical disease. We read in Epidemiological analysis of the 2006 bluetongue virus serotype 8 epidemic in north-western Europe (Elbers et al)
"...since in infected cattle herds only a small portion (if any) of the animals tend to express clinical signs of the disease, but a large proportion of cattle are PCR and seropositive in infected cattle herds (even when no clinical signs at all are seen), a monitoring system based on serological screening of cattle seems to be more effective in cattle herds."
The Northern Ireland DARD Question and Answer page says,
"In the northern European outbreak cattle, unusually, have shown clinical signs. Cattle and goats which appear healthy can carry high levels of the virus and provide a source of further infection."
It appears that the UK really is intending to rely solely on the vigilance of farmers to alert them to the first case if it arrives in the UK as a result of infected midges. In their Making better use of technological advances to meet stakeholder needs, Marshall et al wrote,
"The willingness of livestock-keepers to report suspicious signs depends on a variety of factors, in addition to the direct veterinary costs:
• education
• awareness (including alerts)
• incentives
• compensation
• safe, rapid and affordable disposal of carcasses
• trust.
  .....while it is in the interest of neighbouring holdings to have an outbreak quickly identified and controlled, the resulting imposition of prolonged movement restrictions discourages reporting."
One wonders how far DEFRA feels confident about all of these - particularly perhaps, the last.

30/31 August 2007 ~ Depending on "vigilance" - Bluetongue

There was no mention of vaccination, sampling or surveillance when Debby Reynolds spoke today about the Bluetongue threat on Farming Today She said of BTV-8 that
"..not only has it overwintered, it has started to spread in quite an alarming way ..the risk is low but it has clearly heightened...whilst we can stop imports or test imported animals what we cannot do is prevent the vector, the midge, blowing across the Channel."
When she was asked about whether her statement about "monitoring the wind carefully" meant that there would be sampling to see if midges were in the air she said,
"No we're not. We are using the Meteorological Office tracking of wind and we are simply reflecting that as a risk in particular areas. We are clearly depending on what has been the very good vigilance of farmers ..."
Culling would be appropriate "on a pretty tiny scale if we think we've caught it early enough" and she was at pains to say that culling would not be one of the control measures - rather there would be large "control areas" one or two of which ".. could encompass large tracts of the country".
Dr Reynolds said that the new plan had been developed in partnership with the "core group of veterinary stakeholders".
However, she was not even asked about possible future vaccination nor why testing is not happening immediately in the areas of the UK nearest to outbreaks across the Channel. Either the resources are simply not there to carry out adequate surveillance and testing or else the "core group of veterinary stakeholders" do not think such surveillance is necessary. The 'wait and hope' approach would appear to be, as for other disease threats, the first step of our current policy for Bluetongue.

Tuesday 28 August 2007 ~ "Bluetongue a real threat to UK livestock"

Farmers Weekly "...Bluetongue disease is just 60 miles away and presents a growing threat to the UK livestock industry, according to scientists. Reports suggest that officials in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany cannot keep pace with new outbreaks, with Germany recording more than 100 cases a day. In response to the quickening disease path, DEFRA have published a revised Bluetongue Disease Control Strategy (pdf)

Monday 27 August 2007 ~ The first case of bluetongue in France was recorded on 27 July. On Tuesday the ministry said 36 cases of the virus had been recorded.

Forbes "The number of recorded cases of the bluetongue virus in sheep across France has risen to 54, the ministry of agriculture said on Saturday. The area in which the movement of live ruminants is restricted has been increased to cover 19 regional departments from 17, the ministry said. The ministry said the discovery of two new cases in the north east of the country close to the border with Germany led to the widening of the restricted zone. The departments of Yonne and Val d'Oise are now included. .."

Saturday 25 August 2007 ~ 272 herds in Germany alone

ProMed today give a flavour of how serious is the bluetongue epidemic in Europe. DEFRA is still calling the threat "low" for the UK. This may perhaps be unduly optimistic. Read the ProMed posting

Friday 24 August 2007 ~ Bluetongue - on the march in Northern Europe. The German Government: "At the moment culling doesn't take place...nevertheless..."

Charles Clover in the Telegraph yesterday wrote, "reports of new outbreaks which are coming in at more than 100 cases a day" This confirms what we have heard from other sources. Somewhat alarming too is the update on the German Government's BT website which translated says,
"At the moment culling of infected animals (except for welfare reasons) doesn't take place, this is agreed upon with the EU and member states as it would not have an impact on the current course of disease. Nevertheless there are, in the long term, considerations about future measures dealing with animals found to be virus positive. .."
In the UK , a "Revised Bluetongue control strategy" is published by DEFRA, explaining to editors that the ".. Industry working group is comprised of (sic) senior individuals from the following organisations:
• British Cattle Veterinary Society
• British Meat Processors Association
• National Beef Association
• National Farmers Union
• National Sheep Association
• Livestock Auctioneers Association
• Sheep Veterinary Society"
The press release speaks of ".. rigorous measures to keep disease out of the UK and contain any outbreaks." It would be reassuring to know that science and veterinary input to the Bluetongue working group is providing information that takes into consideration more than the immediate needs of what Dr Breeze (above) refers to as "the livestock industry trade groups that have the loudest voices". (Belgium has just reported to the OIE 80 dead sheep because of BTV-8)

August 20 2007 ~ ProMed latest on Bluetongue and vaccination

We read that Luxembourg authorities are expecting that the whole of Luxembourg will be declared infected with bluetongue as more cases occur. The posting must be read in full - but an exract about the efficacy of vaccines is useful to quote here:
".... Inactivated vaccine against bluetongue virus serotype 8 will most likely be available mid 2008 for sheep and cattle (according to Merial SAS, Lyon).... Annual re-vaccination will lead to a long-lasting and efficient protection in sheep and cattle.
... Intervet (Boxmeer, NL) is also developing a vaccine against BTV serotype 8. The 1st test results in sheep are promising, and this would mean that by next year [2008], the 1st sheep could be vaccinated against BTV. ......
History from Spain, Portugal (BTV-4) and France (Corsica, BTV 2-4) shows that the use of inactivated vaccines against bluetongue was successful. Non-infected, vaccinated animals remained PCR-negative (also after challenge/field infection), which will allow animals to be moved.
.... According to OIE/EU, c-ELISA-positive but PCR-negative animals are considered safe for trade.
The above mentioned examples have shown that if a strict vaccine regime with at least 80 percent coverage of susceptible populations is achieved, vaccination can lead to the eradication of the virus. The use of inactivated vaccines will provide additional safeguards, preventing the spread of vaccine virus within the susceptible population. .......as the vectors respect neither borders nor movement restrictions, vaccination is a key tool to prevent the virus from spreading into hitherto uninfected areas.
It seems that the European commission is willing to fund 50 percent of the costs of a vaccination campaign."

August 18 - 20 ~ Animal diseases rage across Europe but "virtually no action to deal with outbreaks in a sensible way"

Referring to Friday's Farmers Guardian
- extract: (bluetongue) ".. .will become endemic in northern Europe. It is spread by midges, and veterinary experts believe it will only be a matter of time before it crosses the Channel into the south of England. This, and foot-and-mouth disease, happened as Romania faced the consequences of a swine fever outbreak, while Sweden had its first cases of the pig wasting disease, PPRS, also known as blue ear disease. France has reported fresh cases of the H5N1 strain of avian flu. These were in wild ducks in the Moselle region...."
..one correspondent says, "This just a snapshot of the current situation: diseases everywhere and virtually no action to deal with outbreaks in a sensible way. Looks BT will hit 1000 cases over the weekend (BE 489, NL 249, G 250 (?), F 8, LU 1 ) and many more in the pipeline. What's next ??" We feel that while animal disease control is in the hands of politicians who have far too much on their plate to be able to be experts, things can only get worse. Animal disease control should be back in the hands of the veterinary profession, aided by the blessings of modern science both in rapidly diagnosing and in fighting these pathogens.

August 9 2007 ~ For all the BT victims in Europe, there is a questionaire online now

on the impact. Please do follow the link. It is in French, Dutch and German

August 1 2007 ~ "a drop in the economic potential of the entire agriculture sector of Northern Europe..."

An article from http://pr-gb.com about the restrictions imposed by the Dutch authorities following the outbreaks of Bluetongue. To the dismay of Dutch farmers - and those in neighbouring countries - Cees Veerman, the Dutch Agriculture Minister, seems to have halted exports of sheep, goats, and cows. The ban could last for months - and apparently he wants to broaden the ban to all living ruminants nationwide, including their embryos.
"..... In a bid to prevent and stagger the epidemic, Belgian, German, and Dutch representatives conducted a series of meetings and conferences with the European Union. Known agenda of the bluetongue conferences are epidemic investigation, quarantine procedures, and agricultural assistance for ruminant exporters. The EU expects the agricultural ministries of both Northern European nations to adopt the restrictions imposed by the Netherlands to their own bluetongue-affected regions. Whether the Belgian and German agriculture sectors and ruminant exporters will be happy about these restrictions or not is a question that begs to be answered."
Whether this news report is entirely correct or not remains to be seen - but the implications are extremely worrying.
Later Update We now see that restrictions have been relaxed. A relief for many.

July 28 2007 ~ "nearly one year after the first outbreaks of BT we are back to square one"

This exasperated comment was sent to us along with the update by Klaas Johan Osinga of the current sitation in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany "...the Netherlands have got their first clear BTV-8 case for this year. This follows reports from Belgium (now 11 cases?) and Germany (another two in Rheinland Pfalz, adding up to 9 now?)"

July 21 2007 ~ "....The European Commission has already indicated it would support BTV vaccination paying 50 percent of the costs based on a plan to be submitted by the Member State."

From a posting on ProMed
"....In the Netherlands, the other 50 percent is likely to be paid by animal owners. In other Member States, like France, chances are the national government would pay the rest, as it does at the moment on Corsica, where annual vaccination against BTV-2 is carried out.
On the current situation on the ground, now that BTV-8 has been found again, it seems certain the disease will become endemic in central Europe and it will spread further during the summer and autumn seasons. So we will have to live with this disease."
See ProMed

July 18 2007 ~ A case of bluetongue in Belgium

According to Expatica.com the bluetongue virus "seems to have turned up at a sheep breeder in Oelegen, a submunicipality of Ranst. The results of the most recent tests will give a definite answer this afternoon, but the Federal Food Agency says that all indications are pointing to the virus at the moment...."
Last month, the Farmers' Guardian reported that "John Gloster of the Met Office, seconded to the IAH, said the risk of infected midges being carried to the UK was currently minimal, but the risk would increase if outbreaks of the virus were to be reported near the west coast of mainland Europe..."

July 17 2007 ~ An article in the Farmers' Guardian about Bluetongue in Germany fails to mention unrestricted sheep movements there

The article (German approach to bluetongue and speciality foods) has been commented on by one of warmwell's German correspondents.
Extract: "...... the only way to control BT and eradicate the virus is the use of vaccination. A lot of sheep and goats in Germany are not registered with the authorities. Plenty of people keep a couple of animals in their backyards and no one cares. The system of sheep farming in Germany is completely different to the system in the UK. There are large commercial flocks and the shepherds own only small fields. There is a historical grazing right for all fields from November, 1st. Unless the owner puts up a sign to show the shepherd he doesn't want sheep on his grounds the sheep will be all over the place. The shepherds are a rough bunch and they are travelling up and down the country. The number of sheep within a flock is never known and tagging is mostly done when sheep leave for slaughter. .."

June 8 2007 ~ Farmers kept in the dark over new case of Bluetongue

We hear from a trusted source that there has been confirmation of the first "new" case of Bluetongue in Germany. The farmer writes, "Although this has not been published yet I have learned Brussels and the MS have been briefed already. Why don't they tell our farmers who should in the first place have a right to know? I will write a comment sometime over the weekend, if you have the time please put it up on warmwell. I am so fed up."

April 29 2007~ The Netherlands is angry at the bluetongue mix-up and its sequel

It seems that Germany has finally confirmed that the Osnabrück sentinel cow had no Bluetongue infection. From the level of frustration apparent among farmers it looks as though farming issues are being handled in the same way all over Europe. Incompetence is at heart-breaking levels and veterinary experts are appearing to do little more than watch impotently while politicians make such a hash of animal health policies.
The consequences of this supposed BTV case - a case that was contested right from the start - have cost farmers and traders very dearly. Measures were taken (see below) within the EU as a result and were not relaxed as soon as the truth came to light. (See Agrarisch Dagblad for Dutch report)
As for the UK's ability to cope with serious diseases of which bluetongue is only one, we see that in spite of DEFRA's denials that funding for animal health and welfare research is being reduced, the Farmers Guardian quotes BVA president, David Catlow as saying
Funding for anything to do with animal health is becoming foggy. We do not know what figures to believe as it is becoming an accountancy exercise.
When there is no understanding of the serious implications of animal disease, cost cutting can became a dangerously false economy.

April 26/27 2007 ~ A ProMed moderator has now translated the Dutch press paragraph about the Bluetongue error.

See today's ProMed mail:
" The Ministry of Agriculture in Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen), Northern Germany, has made it known that the discovery of bluetongue in a sentinel cow in Osnabruck has definitely been a false alarm. A mix-up of ear tags, leading to the testing of an animal that was not the sentinel one, has caused this error, said the Ministry's spokesperson.
The tested cow in Osnabruck was indeed positive but it is not possible to rule out 2006-origin antibodies.
Although this means that there is no indication for current bluetongue-virus activity in northern Europe, so far it has not been decided to cancel or alleviate the implemented control/preventive measures. The Ministry of Agriculture in The Hague is planning to consult other EU member states before taking a decision on the matter.
The Hague has not yet received notification from Hannover [capital of Lower Saxony]." (www.zibb.nl )

April 26 2007 ~ Bluetongue sentinel at Osnabrück - the wrong animal was sampled....

On 30 Mar 2007, the German veterinary authorities reported that BTV (bluetongue virus) was detected in a sentinel bovine animal in Landkreis Osnabrück in Lower Saxony. The finding suggested that the virus had managed to 'overwinter'. This new assumption of infection in the Osnabrück cow brought to an end the agreements between the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, and Luxembourg, and the regular bluetongue export and movement restrictions were again enforced. The Friedrich Löffler Institut (OIE Reference Laboratory) was expected to announce that the Osnabrück outbreak was, in fact, not an outbreak.
This is a rough and very free translation by ourselves of the small paragraph that appeared in yesterday's Dutch press (www.zibb.nl )
The Bluetongue "discovery" in Osnabrück was definitively a false alarm according to the Agriculture Ministry of the federal state of Nedersaksen. The wrong animal was sampled. It tested positive, but this was because of a build-up of antibodies from the previous year. In spite of this mistake, it has been decided not to overturn the measures put in place (see below) when it was thought to have been a new case and proof that the virus had overwintered (As DEFRA proclaimed in its Defra Preliminary Outbreak Assessment of April 4th.) . The Agriculture Ministry in The Hague want to consult with concerned member countries before making any decision. The Hague has not yet received any message from Hannover.
(A more accurate, full translation would be gratefully received.)

April 22 - 23 2007 ~ "The virus cannot be transmitted between susceptible animals without the presence of the insect carriers....

The Queensland Government's page on Bluetongue: "There is no justification for stamping out but some animals may need to be destroyed for welfare reasons. It is not possible to eradicate the bluetongue vectors."
The NFU's apparent wish for "aggressive" culling (Farmers' Guardian) to be a UK response to bluetongue when it arrives is very odd. One wonders who is advising them.

April 22 - 23 2007 ~ Osnabrück sentinal cow - admission of mix-up expected on Monday - after the damage has been done. "Please tell the world. I am still so angry"

It is yet another example of a string of inflexible consequences following an assumption subsequently shown to have been wrong. On 30 Mar 2007, the German veterinary authorities reported that BTV (bluetongue virus) was detected in a sentinel bovine animal in Landkreis Osnabrück in Lower Saxony. The finding suggested that the virus had managed to 'overwinter'. This new assumption of infection in the Osnabrück cow brought to an end the agreements between the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, and Luxembourg, and the regular bluetongue export and movement restrictions were again enforced. We now find that the Friedrich Löffler Institut is very likely to announce on Monday afternoon that the Osnabrück outbreak was, in fact, not an outbreak. Our German correspondent writes,
"..this was not a "false" positive but probably a mixing up of blood samples at some level. Maybe the wrong cow was sampled or the sample has somehow been mixed with others at a lab and has been allocated a wrong number....plenty of possibilities. There is now a genetic test underway to check whether the positive sample belongs to the cow in question. It is likely it doesn't. We still have PCR positive animals around but this doesn't mean they are still infective as the PCR shows traces of virus for up to 200 days. ..... this shows yet again the incompetence of our "competent authorities". Even the vets from the local government have no information about the animals in question. In addition there is, at this moment, no legislation in place in Germany how to deal with the next wave of infections. When asking the government vet she told me to stick to last year's regulation. When asking which (there have been about 11 different versions that have been changed and amended every other week) she told me : 'take your pick'..
Please tell the world. I am still so angry, why can't there be sensible measures to deal with disease ? It is either kill everything or do damage by doing nothing. ..."
As James Irvine says on LandCare,. "What is required is rapid on-farm tests that can be done within a few hours, not a few days.... blood samples taken from anywhere throughout the UK have to go to Pirbright, Surrey in the south of England for testing. While this may be fine for establishing the serotype of the first case, it is far from satisfactory when it comes to checking whether a beast on a farm is suffering from BTV or from some other condition..... There must surely have been abundant opportunity to "validate" such tests if there was a will to do so."

April 20 2007 ~ "the precautionary measures taken by the EU to contain the Bluetongue virus (BTV) in Northern Europe have had little or no effect on the spread of the disease, according to the European Food Standards Authority"

".....Certainly moves to attack the midges which carry the virus would be more effective than transport restrictions for animals, it seems.
It is now up to DG SANCO to decide how this EFSA advice might be reflected in policy."
For further information see www.efsa.europa.eu

April 14/15 2007 ~ Bluetongue. "What is required is rapid on-farm tests that can be done within a few hours, not a few days".

Those likely to be affected by Bluetongue are recommended to read the article on LandCare by James Irvine
Extract: "...According to the latest version of the UK BT Contingency Plan, blood samples taken from anywhere throughout the UK have to go to Pirbright, Surrey in the south of England for testing. While this may be fine for establishing the serotype of the first case, it is far from satisfactory when it comes to checking whether a beast on a farm is suffering from BTV or from some other condition. What is required is rapid on-farm tests that can be done within a few hours, not a few days. RT-PCR technology is available for that internationally, but for some reason the UK authorities do not wish to use it. There must surely have been abundant opportunity to "validate" such tests if there was a will to do so."
A vet reader of warmwell writes, "I am afraid I am not an expert on Blue Tongue, nor I suspect are most practitioners, hence if it does arrive it could well get missed.." The Land Care article has a section on the symptoms and signs of Bluetongue - and also quotes the email sent to warmwell by the German farmer below. See also iah.bbsrc.ac.uk for clinical symptoms.

April 11 2007 ~ Bluetongue: " there will be multiple opportunities for it to come over"

Dr Ruth Watkins writes about bluetongue policy
" .... it could be imported midges rather than ones borne on the wind too. There are a number of midge transporting wind events that can occur from Ostend to Norfolk Kent etc. and if Bluetongue is active again this summer in that area of Europe as is expected, there will be multiple opportunities for it to come over. Should one prohibit all ruminants and cull all deer within 150 km of the English coast? I think that is just about as stupid a suggestion as culling animals in whom the disease is recognised.
We cannot spray and kill all midges either; anyway, midges may be important ecologically and the environment would be contaminated.
Things we might do is to think of strategies to decrease the amplification in midges by treating the ruminants ...vaccinating susceptible domestic ruminants, cattle sheep and goats to prevent or lower viraemia, and treating all ruminants on the farm..." Read in full
The European Food Standards Authority Report on Epidemiological analysis of the 2006 bluetongue virus serotype 8 epidemic in north-western Europe: provisional findings through 31 January 2007, updated yesterday, concludes "... changes in climatic conditions coupled with frequent travel might increase the risk in the appearance and the establishment of diseases in parts of Europe that were thus far exotic for those regions." In other words, it is most certainly on its way. Another warmwell reader suggests that there may be some mileage, in the longer term, in looking to see if we can affect the breeding of the local vectors ( Midges, mosquitos) . A vaccine will certainly ameliorate the effects of the virus infection , will lower the circulating virus in an animal and make the sheep less infectious when the next midge bites. And a West Country farmer writes, " ...We cannot control midges, so sooner or later we have to embrace a prevention policy."

April 10th 2007 ~ slaughter of the host is pointless. It is nothing to do with being "robust".

DEFRA and its chosen stakeholders group will try to "agree a national control plan" for Bluetongue by the end of April. Culling is quite clearly inappropriate for this midge-borne disease. Unfortunately DEFRA is maintaining that its reason for not culling is an economic rather than a veterinary one:. " it does not want to be landed with a large compensation bill in the event of an outbreak, and appears keen to use bluetongue as the first major test of its cost-sharing and responsibility agenda. .." (Farmer's Guardian) One can only quote Dr Roger Breeze in the paper "Industry Cost Sharing" " Industry cannot negotiate meaningfully if its "negotiation" comments are only responses to proposals and goals of the government." It is patently unjust, if the government is doing little to check on the health of the piper, not only to call all the tunes but also expect farmers to pay for them - but it would be helpful if livestock leaders were more clued up on the science when they argue with DEFRA. Thomas Binns is quoted as wanting a "robust" policy. He means killing the animals and getting compensation but he also maintains (and is listened to, alas) that it would " stop the virus getting into the midge population and spreading to other farms" One can only assume, as one reader remarks drily, that he clings to the miasma theory of disease 'much subscribed to until Pasteur and other troublesome types came up with a germ theory'. Once bluetongue is detected in an animal over here, after all the delays that recognition and diagnosis will take, it will already be in the midges. One expert correspondent :
".. in such situations slaughter of the host is pointless. It is nothing to do with being robust. See Defra Preliminary Outbreak Assessment of April 4th to understand the likelihood of infected midges crossing the channel and note that the virus appears to have overwintered in Germany -possibly in both host and vector. If it has overwintered in Germany it is highly likely it has also overwintered in other previously affected parts of Europe. "

April 10 ~ "Gluing fly swats to cattle tails didn't do the trick..."

Also on the subject of Bluetongue, we have the thoughts of a farmer actually in the thick of the disease. Sabine Zentis from Germany, who breeds purebred Longhorns:
" Finding a clinical case of BT usually is the tip of the iceberg (lots of subclinical cases shown by blood sampling during winter) so talking about infected animals or infected farms doesn't make sense. The region around the holding is "infected" and neither biosecurity nor legislation can prevent the virus from spreading once it is introduced.
As midges can't be eradicated the only sensible option to stop trom spreading is the use of a serotype specific, inactivated vaccine..."Read in full
Ironically, DEFRA justifies its non-culling stance by saying bluetongue is an 'economic disease' that affects the livestock industry, but has 'no human health implications'. (Farmer's Guardian) The 2001 policy for foot and mouth, also considered an "economic disease" and one that does not affect human health, gained acceptance from many precisely because the vast numbers of killed animals were compulsorily (and generously ) purchased - an expense to the country now precluded by the draconian powers of slaughter in the amended Animal Health Act. This actually makes illegal the refusal to agree to slaughter shown by owners in 2001 who valued their healthy stock as more than mere commodities. The Act further ensures that there can be no further possible defeat of DEFRA in the courts over this - such as we saw in the Upton Case, for example.
Sabine Zentis writes,
" I don't agree with the term "economic disease". Although the clinical signs and mortality in sheep infected with BTV 8 are not as aggressive as seen with other serotypes of BTV, cattle infected and showing clinical signs are really ill. If treated properly they will survive, but besides the short term lesions of the mouth, tongue or teats they suffer from laminitis for quite a time. The long term effects on calves born to dams infected during pregnancy have not been investigated yet nor a suspected reduction of fertility or milk yield after infection.
Concerns for animal welfare should prevent the use of the term "economic disease ......From my experience (spread of disease in our region despite movement restrictions, housing of animals and extensive use of insecticides) the only way to stop the virus from moving further is to vaccinate in and around the infected areas. There is no other way to break the cycle of infection (gluing fly swats to cattle tails didn't do the trick) "

April 2 2007 ~ "the BTV8 vaccine will require a temporary authorisation for exceptional circumstances. ."

Merial has launched development work on an inactivated purified vaccine designed to protect cattle and sheep against the bluetongue virus (BTV8) It is hoped to have the inactivated vaccine available for use by mid-2008. More

March 30 2007 ~ Bluetongue vaccine - " Killing 'infected' holdings is utter nonsense"

Merial is working on a vaccine for BTV serotype 8 and we are hoping to get information on this as soon as possible. They have already successfully produced an inactivated vaccine for BTV 4 Information from Merial. and the Bluetongue vaccination programme in Spain has as its objective
"vaccination of all the ruminant population (sheep and cattle) within the restricted zone so that
• the viral circulation diminishes (serotype 4)
• neither clinical signs nor deaths in ovine
• allowing movements to free zone
• achieving the eradication of the disease (More in pdf or here as html )
As for the UK "solution" of slaughter, our German correspondent writes, "Killing "infected" holdings is utter nonsense as by the time the clinical signs are obvious the midges have had their field day already."
From ec.europa.eu/ Q and A section Can vaccination be carried out against Bluetongue?
"Yes - it is possible to vaccinate against Bluetongue, and EU legislation on Bluetongue contains the option of carrying out a vaccination policy using live attenuated or inactivated vaccines. The establishment of a vaccine bank by July 2000 facilitated rapid and successful intervention against Bluetongue in the Balearic Islands. The EU later supported the vaccination option whenever national authorities wished to adopt this policy. In addition, the EU modified the rules regarding financial contributions from the Community to cover not only emergency situations but also the long-term surveillance of Bluetongue and control actions (vaccination)".

March 30 2007 ~ Bluetongue - Is vaccination to kill yet again the only plan for the UK?

As long ago as September 9th 2003, a BBC report on Bluetongue said, "Veterinary experts told the British Association annual science festival that efforts were underway to develop new, more effective vaccines to protect the national flock should disease reach these shores....."
Three years later, in 2006, Bluetongue had infected animals in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and especially, Germany. There is no recognised treatment. As the Scotsman says today, "...there is nothing in terms of biosecurity that can be put in place to stop the vector midge being blown across the Channel and the balance of opinion appears to be not a case of if, but when BTV hits the UK." Both the midge species and the strain concerned are different from that affecting the Mediterranean (the midge is native to the UK) , but we understand that Britain has not applied for marketing authorisation for vaccines against Bluetongue. The most recent DEFRA Contingency Plan we can find online says that
"Vaccination could therefore only be used on a vaccinate to kill basis" (See pdf file section 10)
There are millions of doses of vaccine at the EU Bluetongue Vaccine Bank, the EU Directive permits the use of vaccination as a control measure in certain circumstances - can it really be possible that it is, yet again, to be slaughter rather than the rapid diagnosis and vaccination vital to a modern animal disease policy that is to "cure" any outbreak?
The CVO, Debby Reynolds, in the Farmers Guardian on Friday wrote rather enigmatically, "Scientific evidence and veterinary service capabilities are essential and must be flexible to ensure the surveillance and prevention measures are suitable and flexible." Is "flexibility" to include making use of available technologies, listening to all sections of those affected by plans and making sure that scientific advice is clear and independent?

March 15 2007 ~ Notes on the Defra FMD & CSF stakeholders' meeting on 28 February 2007

Posted up on the "Disease control: Ideas for cost sharing between industry and government - Forum and discussion" page of the the FMD/CSF website are notes by Mary Marshall. Reading between the lines of the tactfully measured language, the February 28 stakeholders meeting seems to have been a classic example of command and control, telling and not listening. Cost cutting appears, for DEFRA, to have been the one important item on the agenda. At the same time, adding yet more layers of bureaucracy and dividing participants into sub groups is a time-honoured divide and rule tactic. This is not funny. At a time of ever-accelerating global movement of dangerous pathogens, DEFRA's attitude in a meeting about disease detection and control is both frivolous and dangerous. From the notes, it is evident that:
• Really crucial points about diagnostics and testing were interrupted by the Chair. A question about treatment of vaccinated meat was deferred to a private conversation at a later date. Urgent inquiries about the accessibility of on-site diagnostics were not answered.
• Communication issues, which have so often been referred to before by these stakeholders, are still not being addressed. It particularly rankles that when DEFRA communicates with media, they are not bothering to give these most concerned stakeholders the same information.
• In spite of the time for this meeting being drastically reduced at the last minute, a great deal of it was taken up by a reading aloud of material that participants could have read for themselves - and probably already had.
• Discussion of points raised was not allowed - while DEFRA's answers to urgent and relevant questioning betrayed either a woeful lack of knowledge or else an unwillingness to engage with the subject at all.
• The role of the Expert Group and the Science Advisory Council remains unclear in spite of constant requests for clarification.
• It seems that DEFRA is only now working on a contingency plan for BlueTongue - a disease that is playing havoc in Northern Europe and will, it is feared, arrive in the UK any day now .
No business could support such serious inadequacies of management. But this centrally imposed incompetence and ignorance is putting the country, its animals and population in danger.

February 10 2007 ~ Bird flu, bluetongue, swine fever... CIRAD is working with major French and international research centres to develop therapeutic vaccines.

Therapeutic vaccines, as opposed to preventive vaccines, are designed for use on those already infected with disease. Therapeutic vaccines are based on using interfering RNA molecules and apply particularly to diseases ( including foot and mouth) affecting ruminants and pigs. Emmanuel Albina, immunology and microbiology researcher with CIRAD: "... This strategy completely changes all the concepts of disease control. The choice is no longer limited to eradicating the infected animal population or mass preventive vaccination. A third tool, therapeutic vaccines, could be used on infected animals."www.cirad.fr

October 26 2006 ~ RPA - The mess causing cuts to vital agencies will further damage the SVS

Defra will be raiding its veterinary research budget. in order to cover the costs and EU fines. To hamper the agencies responsible for research, diagnosis and surveillance on livestock diseases now - at this time of uncertainty and fear about bovine TB, Bluetongue, H5N1, the return of FMD - seems utterly extraordinary. As Northern Isles MP, Alistair Carmichael, says today (See Shetland News)
"The State Veterinary Service is already stretched. It is frankly hard to believe that the government is even considering cutting their budget at this time. This is one of the worst possible examples of a false economy. When you think that the 2001 foot and mouth outbreak cost the public sector over £3 billion and the private sector more than £5 billion to make these cuts simply does not make sense."
See also RPA pages

September 2006 ~ EU-wide disease slaughter compensation down to 75%?
Stakeholders given only days to respond - and even then - "No negotiations or vote on these issues.."

(See relevant section of European Commission's proposed exemption regulation.)
Although the EU Consultation began on August 18, a Defra email dated 8th September to stakeholders says
"We have just been made aware that they are holding a public consultation period which ends on the 17 September....."
Sunday is the deadline for comments to the European Commission Directorate General for Agriculture ( Agri-State-Aids@ec.europa.eu) on proposed changes - due to come into force next January - that will drastically cut the amounts given to livestock owners who have their animals compulsorily slaughtered (as were over 10 million in the tragically mishandled FMD crisis of 2001)
DEFRA tells stakeholders:
".. the Commission has been given the power by Member States to decide which forms of aid are to be allowed and under which conditions. There are therefore no negotiations or vote on these issues - the Commission will decide having listened to the views of the Member States and those with an interest...."
It is not clear whether other Member States have held meaningful discussions on the proposed changes.
The posting by Mary Marshall, Member, Defra's FMD, CSF, Bluetongue and Avian Influenza stakeholder groups, can be seen in full at http://www.fmd-and-csf-action.org/forums/fmdv/post200609113053373524
As Mary Marshall, points out
"The document with the proposed revised guidelines that Defra sent to stakeholders has only 24 pages, so we ask Defra to please post this information with the correct page and paragraph reference on the Defra website."
The Farmers Guardian says, " The potentially devastating proposals are contained in a far-reaching consultation on EU state aid rules for agriculture that also includes potential new restrictions on the use of public money to promote national brands."
***We recommend again the paper by Dr Roger Breeze Disease control: Ideas for cost sharing between industry and government " - which sets out a practical blueprint for genuine partnership between the government and farming. "....Cost sharing offers industry a chance to sit at the table as a partner to make sure that when it pays what is asked, it gets what is promised."

September 2006 ~ Bluetongue moves north "Globalisation, the change in weather patterns and the increase in speed and volume of international transport as well as passengers" are, hardly surprisngly, the suggested causes.

European Research "....Bluetongue cases were first confirmed on a farm in the southernmost region of the Netherlands, and then also detected across the borders in Belgium, Germany and later France. Positive cases of the insect borne virus were found in sheep in the Lihge province of Belgium and in cattle in the Aachen area of North Rhine Westphalia in Germany..
.... the virus strain detected recently in the north has been previously unknown in Europe. The Community Reference Laboratory located in Pirbright....identified the serotype responsible of the current outbreak as serotype 8. Early tests suggest it is similar to the serotype 8 found in sub-Saharan Africa. How it came to infect animals in northern Europe is under investigation. As in other emerging diseases, possible explanations for how the virus arrived in northern Europe include "globalisation, the change in weather patterns and the increase in speed and volume of international transport as well as passengers," the World organisation for animal health (OIE) says. ...."

Aug 22nd 2006 2006 ~ Bluetongue "looks like Foot and Mouth"

Bluetongue, found in the Netherlands on Aug 18th has up until now been thought of as a disease of Mediterranean and Southern Europe. The Scotsman:
"Until very recently the balance of opinion among veterinary experts was that Bluetongue was unlikely to spread to northern Europe. The Netherlands outbreak is 300 miles further north than any other previous incident. .."
This is a worrying development for farming in North West Europe. Defra has announced " testing and additional surveillance" on all recent imports from affected countries into the UK.
In the Netherlands, Luxembourg and large areas of Belgium and Germany, an export ban for cows, sheep and goats now affects a radius of 150 kilometres around the infected farms. A transport ban has also been imposed - except to slaughter - within a radius of 20 kilometres.
The disease is spread by bloodsucking midges. Although it doesn't affect humans, it can be fatal to sheep. An email received today from Germany says, "....we are in the middle of BT and lots of cases in cattle are popping up. Authorities are behaving like headless chickens and until now there has been nobody able to tell us exactly what the main symptoms in cattle are. Rumours from Belgium say it looks like FMD..."
Europa.eu.int has a page of Q and A while Stackyard has a picture of the distressing symptoms in badly affected sheep.

~ "Additional BTV inactivated vaccines are currently under development, as well as new generation vaccines including recombinant vaccines"

We are grateful, as always, to Sabine Zentis, for forwarding this pdf file paper entitled Vaccines against bluetongue in Europe by Savini G, et al. Comparat Immunol Microbiol Infect Dis. (2007), doi:10.1016/j.cimid.2007.07.006.

  FAO's useful "disease card" on Bluetongue

.Bluetongue.

BLUETONGUE - notes from OIE Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals {2004]             Diagnostic Techniques

            European Technology Platform for Global Animal Health Action Plan (pdf) July 2007             Introduction to Bluetongue

Monday November 5 2007 ~ Member States shall draw up and keep updated a list of the restricted zones in their territory

From the europa.eu page. " Commission Regulation (EC) No 1266/2007 of 26 October 2007 on implementing rules for Council Directive 2000/75/EC as regards the control, monitoring, surveillance and restrictions on movements of certain animals of susceptible species in relation to bluetongue has been adopted.
According to Article 6.4 of the above mentioned Regulation, Member States shall draw up and keep updated a list of the restricted zones in their territory and make it available to the other Member States and to the public and article 6. 5 establishes that the Commission shall publish, for information purposes only, on its website the updated list of restricted zones.
The list of restriction zones per bluetongue serotype that have been demarcated by the EU Member States can be found in the following table (ours is Zone F, of course)
A map showing the location of the restriction zones has been prepared.
This map and the table are updated on a regular basis."

Click here for latest bluetongue news

New Zones 4 new premises + Scotland: Bluetongue meetings New scares in Herefordshire, Hertfordshire and Sussex. NFU urges more vaccine to be ordered + 60% infection among Dutch cattle + Dr James Irvine on the need to change EU rule "inappropriate to the situation" + ProMed moderator says "mass-vaccination should be adapted to the unfolding situation" - ie beyond merely the Protection Zones

A golden opportunity for DEFRA to show real leadership and initiate the vitally needed compulsory vaccination scheme.

The EU has shown itself very serious in wanting to eliminate the disease and prevent its becoming endemic. Markos Kyprianou's words "Prevention is better than cure" and his wish for a harmonised attack on the virus across all BTV-8 affected states have been underpinned by a commitment from the Commission to help fund the campaigns.
Even though the UK's particular case (because of the Fontainebleau Agreement) means we can't expect anywhere near the full 100% compensation for vaccine and 50% costs, the UK government would be very short-sighted indeed if it goes on insisting that farmers pay to vaccinate their stock in the Protection Zone. A few million pounds spent by the government now to support the compulsory scheme necessary to achieve 80% coverage in the Protection Zone is a small price to pay when one remembers that the livestock trade is worth around 750 million pounds a year, while the potential losses caused by bluetongue will impact on the whole rural economy Without compulsory vaccination, paid for by the UK government, there will be farmers who will fail to vaccinate or else just give up and leave farming altogether - and the virus will spread.

News

Scotland: Bluetongue meetings organised by Farmtalking.com Friday 22nd February 2008 at 7.30pm,

the Scottish Borders at Berwickshire High School, Duns Friday 22nd February at 7.30pm (prompt) (venue changed from Grantshouse Village Hall) Program:
Chairman: Frank Langrish - The Chairman of the British Wool Marketing Board and a farmer in the BT Protection Zone in the South East who has also had Bluetongue in his flock
Speakers: Dr. Ruth Watkins - Virologist and a farmer in Wales. The author of a Bluetongue Vaccination policy circulated to DEFRA and the EU
Dr. Dan Dercksen - The veterinarian from Holland who has experienced the diagnosis and treatment of Bluetongue
George Milne - The Regional Secretary and Development Officer for the National Sheep Association (Scotland)
Followed by Questions "
Space is limited Phone 01361-850324 or 0795-7811-463

external links open in new windows - please use F5 key for newest version DEFRA's Delivery Plan for Emergency Vaccination against Bluetongue serotype 8 is here. (pdf new window) and Guidance on the use of the Cascade (pdf) Current map of zones Dr. Ruth Watkins: 'About Bluetongue'