All herd owners are to receive letters over the coming days informing them of the new TB testing requirements that will kick in on 13 April, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon has said.
A leaflet posted with the letter summarises changes to animal testing and animal movement requirements that will take effect in two weeks’ time, having been approved in last year’s revamp of the TB eradication plan.
“The aim of the bovine TB action plan is to reset the bovine TB eradication programme by putting in place measures necessary to tackle the current disease situation,” Minister Heydon said.
“The measures in the plan are targeting all routes of transmission including between wildlife and cattle, transmission between cattle and residual infection.”
Movement testing
A pre-movement test will be required for dairy cows moving into a breeding herd and the test must be carried out no earlier than 30 days before the movement takes place.
Contract-reared heifers will need a 30-day pre-movement test before returning to their herd of origin.
Calves or heifers being moved to a contract-reared herd that are older than 42 days will require a 30-day pre-movement test before moving to any contract rearer that keeps animals from multiple herds.
Suckler cows, males over 36 months and dairy cows moving into non-breeding herds will need a pre-movement test - post-movement testing is no longer an option.
Blood testing
Gamma interferon testing, commonly referred to as blood testing, will be mandatory for breeding herds of 80 cows or more where 5% of the exposed cohort test positive or where there are 10 reactors identified in the exposed cohort.
The Department is to cover the cost of blood testing.
Relapse high-risk herds
A herd that witnesses a TB breakdown of three or more reactors where at least one of the reactors had been present during a previous breakdown of at least three reactors in the same group of cattle in the same herd will need to test the herd every six months for three years after restrictions are lifted.
Movement controls
Cows that were part of an exposed cohort in herds of greater than 80 cows that were blood tested may not be sold for two years after the removal of the last reactor, except where they are headed to slaughter or a controlled finishing unit.
Definitions
The Department has also outlined TB definitions that farmers should familiarise themselves with:
High-risk breakdown - three or more skin reactors in the one breakdown.Exposed cohort - animals who tested negative, but which are or were in the same management group as reactor animals had been at the time of breakdown. An example would be the TB-negative dairy cows in a milking group in which there had been reactors, but not the same herd’s replacement heifers or calves if these animals groups had no reactors.
All herd owners are to receive letters over the coming days informing them of the new TB testing requirements that will kick in on 13 April, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon has said.
A leaflet posted with the letter summarises changes to animal testing and animal movement requirements that will take effect in two weeks’ time, having been approved in last year’s revamp of the TB eradication plan.
“The aim of the bovine TB action plan is to reset the bovine TB eradication programme by putting in place measures necessary to tackle the current disease situation,” Minister Heydon said.
“The measures in the plan are targeting all routes of transmission including between wildlife and cattle, transmission between cattle and residual infection.”
Movement testing
A pre-movement test will be required for dairy cows moving into a breeding herd and the test must be carried out no earlier than 30 days before the movement takes place.
Contract-reared heifers will need a 30-day pre-movement test before returning to their herd of origin.
Calves or heifers being moved to a contract-reared herd that are older than 42 days will require a 30-day pre-movement test before moving to any contract rearer that keeps animals from multiple herds.
Suckler cows, males over 36 months and dairy cows moving into non-breeding herds will need a pre-movement test - post-movement testing is no longer an option.
Blood testing
Gamma interferon testing, commonly referred to as blood testing, will be mandatory for breeding herds of 80 cows or more where 5% of the exposed cohort test positive or where there are 10 reactors identified in the exposed cohort.
The Department is to cover the cost of blood testing.
Relapse high-risk herds
A herd that witnesses a TB breakdown of three or more reactors where at least one of the reactors had been present during a previous breakdown of at least three reactors in the same group of cattle in the same herd will need to test the herd every six months for three years after restrictions are lifted.
Movement controls
Cows that were part of an exposed cohort in herds of greater than 80 cows that were blood tested may not be sold for two years after the removal of the last reactor, except where they are headed to slaughter or a controlled finishing unit.
Definitions
The Department has also outlined TB definitions that farmers should familiarise themselves with:
High-risk breakdown - three or more skin reactors in the one breakdown.Exposed cohort - animals who tested negative, but which are or were in the same management group as reactor animals had been at the time of breakdown. An example would be the TB-negative dairy cows in a milking group in which there had been reactors, but not the same herd’s replacement heifers or calves if these animals groups had no reactors.
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