T B Testing

[MikeT]

The vet came to TB test the cattle today. We are in a 4 year area but still a stressful job. The cattle get stressed I get stressed. As our Highland Cattle are not housed, it is not a routine job to catch them and have them penned up for a couple of hours. Got the same job on Friday when the Vet comes back to assess the injection marks, hopefully they will not try to jump the pen again. Should be OK as TB is not in Norfolk.

 

[theeggman]

Many, many, many moons ago whilst working on a farm in Berks. we had to TB test the herd of highlands that roamed the owner's garden (parkland). As always the horns came out of the side of the crush and a cow managed to insert her horn up in the sleeve of the vet's tweed jacket. Luckily the only thing that got removed by the inevitable head shake was the sleeve ripped out from the shoulder of the jacket.
We struggled to maintain straight faces until the semi-clothed vet had finished and gone home.

 

[pargyle]

Many, many, many moons ago whilst working on a farm in Berks. we had to TB test the herd of highlands that roamed the owner's garden (parkland). As always the horns came out of the side of the crush and a cow managed to insert her horn up in the sleeve of the vet's tweed jacket. Luckily the only thing that got removed by the inevitable head shake was the sleeve ripped out from the shoulder of the jacket.
We struggled to maintain straight faces until the semi-clothed vet had finished and gone home.

Bet the cost of the jacket got hidden in the bill though ! (and I have a niece who is a vet so speaking from experience ...).

 

[MikeT]

Bet the cost of the jacket got hidden in the bill though ! (and I have a niece who is a vet so speaking from experience ...).

No charge to the farmer TB testing is paid on a standard rate by DEFRA

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Brings back memories as a strapping fourteen year old - no fancy cattle crushes or anything on our smallholding,and always young heiffers to be tested before the movement book could be endorsed so we could sell them on (we raised week old calves to store heiffer stage to supplement the horse breeding sideline) and if Dai the vet couldn't do it on a weekend or evening my father would be at work and it would be down to my mother or grandfather and me (mind you, saying that it was invariably me even when Dad was around!) quick wrestle of the heiffers into a corner of the shed, knee into the area between shoulder and neck, fingers up nostrils and pull head over to the (my) opposite thigh exposing the neck for Dai.
He did say I was so good at it that he considered employing me as a TT assistant!

 

[kathrynat]

Good luck with the second part of your test on Friday. We are in a yearly tb test area and we have to pre movement test, so we can be testing every 60 days. That was fine when we had lovely placid milking cows. ( we are casualties of the recent milk price fiasco) Now we have large unpredictable beef cattle and they hate the testing.

 

[pargyle]

No charge to the farmer TB testing is paid on a standard rate by DEFRA

That's a vet that must have been gritting his teeth when the bill went in then !!

 

[farbee]

The vet came to TB test the cattle today. We are in a 4 year area but still a stressful job. The cattle get stressed I get stressed. As our Highland Cattle are not housed, it is not a routine job to catch them and have them penned up for a couple of hours. Got the same job on Friday when the Vet comes back to assess the injection marks, hopefully they will not try to jump the pen again. Should be OK as TB is not in Norfolk.

Just curious; What happens if it gives a positive result?

 

[theeggman]

That's a vet that must have been gritting his teeth when the bill went in then !!

The vet normally dealt with the racehorses in training in the area so he wasn't hard up, he only did the cattle on the farm as the owner also owned most the Lambourn downs and gallops.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Just curious; What happens if it gives a positive result?

They are destroyed.

 

[MikeT]

Just curious; What happens if it gives a positive result?

Animal has to isolated and a further blood test is undertaken to confirm. The holding is placed under restrictions ( no cows are permitted to leave or come on to the holding). Also I believe restriction are placed on other farms within I think 3 Km of the affected farm. Not sure of this as in Norfolk TB is rare only in bought in animals.
We had a new vet (from Portugal) he has not seen a case of Bovine TB since he started work in UK in March 2014.

 

[Hivemaker.]

We had a new vet (from Portugal) he has not seen a case of Bovine TB since he started work in UK in March 2014.

He would encounter some if he moved to the south west hotspot, be interesting to see if the badger culling makes a big difference to TB in cattle, although the deer carry it as well as badgers.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Just curious; What happens if it gives a positive result?

They are destroyed.

Animal has to isolated and a further blood test is undertaken to confirm. The holding is placed under restrictions ( no cows are permitted to leave or come on to the holding). Also I believe restriction are placed on other farms within I think 3 Km of the affected farm. Not sure of this as in Norfolk TB is rare only in bought in animals.

Which is why the badger cull (or lack of one over here) is such an emotive subject

 

[theeggman]

From my limited knowledge, I believe there is no further blood test. The animal is isolated, valued for compensation and then removed for slaughter.
A post mortem is carried out to confirm the presence or absence of TB.

A lot of our neighbours have been "enjoying" TB for years, some have gone out of business.

 

[MikeT]

From my limited knowledge, I believe there is no further blood test. The animal is isolated, valued for compensation and then removed for slaughter.
A post mortem is carried out to confirm the presence or absence of TB.

A lot of our neighbours have been "enjoying" TB for years, some have gone out of business.

.

I'm not sure about the blood test, so I will ask the vet on Friday. Our next door neighbour has a reactor and was subsequently found to be Ok.

 

[theeggman]

The following link should take you DEFRA's info. on the subject.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/what-happens-if-tb-is-identified-in-your-herd


The bottom line is you just don't want it in your cattle.
All the best for Friday.

 

[Hivemaker.]

.

I'm not sure about the blood test, so I will ask the vet on Friday. Our next door neighbour has a reactor and was subsequently found to be Ok.

....

Any reactors identified during a tuberculin skin test will be marked immediately using a DNA tag. This will enable us to ensure that the correct animal is slaughtered.
AHVLA will arrange the valuation and slaughter of reactors. The animals will be examined post mortem to check for lesions that are typical of TB and to check the extent and location of these lesions. Samples of tissues from the reactors may be taken for aboratory culture and molecular (strain) typing of
M. bovis to assist with the investigation into the origin of the TB breakdown. You will be notified by letter of the results of any
investigations

 

[theeggman]

A neighbour of ours WAS a dairy farmer, he now contracts for others.

He ran a closed herd, i.e. he bred all of his own replacements and didn't buy any cattle in. His herd was TB positive on and off for about 3 years and was getting smaller as most of his 'new' stock went to TB. He eventually went clear of TB and decided to cut his losses and sell the herd whilst he could, all of the sales etc. were booked and then we gained Foot & Mouth in the area. everything cancelled and he was still a dairy farmer against his will. The sales took place 2 years late and it was touch and go over his mental health state by the end.

 

[MikeT]

The following link should take you DEFRA's info. on the subject.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/what-happens-if-tb-is-identified-in-your-herd


The bottom line is you just don't want it in your cattle.
All the best for Friday.

Will report back on Friday. There was one case of TB some 8 miles away, but it was on a bought in Dexter from West Midlands.

 

[theeggman]

I was not trying to be a wet blanket, just pointing out to urban beeks what happens in the countryside.

There's lots of PR re. pro and anti badger cull but I'm afraid there seems to be more hot air than fact. That should have set a hare running. The forum's been a bit quiet of late and we have to give Mark and Pete something to do.

I'm off for my dinner.

Again, best of luck for Fri., because it's really all down to luck.

Keep us updated.