Farmer Writes: trip to the regional veterinary lab

Last week I and a group of farmers from Inishowen took a trip to the regional veterinary lab in Sligo.

The trip was both enjoyable and informative, and I must say it was nice to be arriving at the gates for once without having a dead calf wrapped up in fertiliser bags in the back of the jeep.

Ger Murray and his team treated us to an extensive tour of all the labs, where we were able to see a wide variety of endo and ecto parasites under microscopes (stomach worms, lung worms, fluke, lice etc).

We were shown the lab, the machines and the processes that blood goes through to be tested for mineral and trace element levels and deficiencies. We also witnessed a post-mortem of both a calf and lamb.

Eradicating bacteria

I must say, the thing I found the most interesting was the lab in which bacteria from post-mortems are cultured. Different drugs or antibiotics are tested on them to see which has the greatest efficacy.

This is done very simply by growing the bacteria in question on a petri dish and placing a tiny spot of various antibiotics spaced apart on the dish as well.

It is then clearly visible which drug is the most effective as this drug will wipe out the biggest surface area around were the original spot was placed.

Interesting stuff, or it was to me anyway. This information is then relayed back to the local vet and then onto you and me, the farmer, so we can treat our sick animals as effectively as possible.

Possible closure

As some of you may be aware the future of the Department of Agriculture’s Veterinary labs are under review and there is a strong possibility that the labs in Limerick, Sligo and Kilkenny may be closed.

As someone who has used the services of the lab in Sligo on several occasions over the years, I know the benefits of it first hand.

I know a lot of times inconclusive results are returned, which is frustrating, but I always say it’s a bit like doing the Lotto, “If you’re not in, you can’t win!”

If you’ve never had any major herd or flock health issues then you may not understand the point I’m trying to make.

But for any of you who have experienced an outbreak of scour, pneumonia, abortion etc, in either sheep or cattle, you will understand only too well.

You will know the kind of hope that’s involved in a vet coming and taking samples and sending them off to a lab, and the relief that’s experienced if some sort of result is returned to hopefully end your misfortune.

We need to do all we can to keep this lab open and hopefully it’s not already too late

If the Lab in Sligo closes, the nearest Veterinary Lab to ourselves in Donegal will be in Athlone. It’s a long spin from Malin Head to Athlone.

I know blood and faecal samples wouldn’t be a problem as they could be couriered down, but delivering animals to a lab to determine a cause of death would just be impractical if not impossible.

Any source of information removed from us as farmers will inhibit the management of our flocks and herds and is ultimately a step backwards.

We need to do all we can to keep this lab open and hopefully it’s not already too late.

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