Tuberculosis testing in cattle

This posting has absolutely nothing to do with sheep. Tuberculosis is a notifiable disease, should any farmer suspect he has an animal suffering from TB he is bound by law to notify the necessary authorities - DEFRA. However, in this instance we are talking about cattle, as sheep, suprisingly enough (and horses), are resistant to the disease - amazing to think there is something sheep are less likely to suffer from!

So why am I writing about TB when it has absolutely nothing to do with sheep? Well due to the fact that the majority of the farms in Tarset also run cattle I thought it might be of interest to some to know about the regulations these farmers have to adhere to.

All cattle within the British Isles have to undergo regular tuberculosis testing. The parish of Tarset and Greystead is a 'clean' area and so undergoes their testing every four years - which just so happens to be this year.

So what is TB? Well it is a disease of the respiratory tract spread by a bacteria and passed from animal to animal but will also cross to different species, therefore it is possible for cattle to be infected by badgers, which is a long standing issue which preys on many farmers minds. Badgers carry the TB virus in this country but they are also a protected species. Many years of fighting beaurocracy still seems to be drawing blanks even though a promise of badger culls in the worst infected areas of the country was finally given. Badger numbers have understandably been on the increase since they received their protected species status in 1973.

Cattle can easily pick up the TB bacterium by grazing in areas where badgers frequent, even if you keep your cattle away from areas where the badger actually lives they do tend to wander around quite a lot (badgers that is) and so in a densely badger populated area it would be almost impossible to prevent cattle from having access with badgers. Even when housed for the winter cattle are still not safe from the badger as they will often enter cattle sheds and yards to forage, eating the same food as the cattle have access to.

We know that badgers carry TB and are the greatest threat to contaminating cattle, which are the most susceptible domesticated species to the bacteria, but deer, alpacas, goats even cats and dogs can be infected as can humans. It is the threat to the latter species which causes the disease to be notifiable under British law, the threat to humans.

There are a few strains of TB and in actual fact only half a percent of all people affected in this country have been infected by bovine TB - an interesting statistic! If meat is properly cooked and any milk consumed is pasteurised then the only way anyone could be infected with bovine TB is if infected cattle with full blown TB sneezed or coughed over them and they inhaled the bacteria. Which brings some to question why we still battle on with government enforced cattle testing.

For the time being at least cattle testing is still on the agenda for cattle farmers in this country and as already said this is the time for our parish to have it's cattle tests.

The vets inform the farmers that their test is due and a date is set. Winter time is preferrable for many as their cattle are mainly all housed and so easier to handle. Held together in sheds rather than running all over the farm. Cattle are not always co-operative when it comes to moving them and bringing them into the steading (farm yard), they tend to know something is up and can be wound up to high dough (over excited) before the proceedings get underway. During the winter months and housed they are already 'cornered', makes life a little bit easier!

Within this parish, due to it being a four yearly test it is only necessary to test animals over two years of age (there is an odd minor exception but I don't want to complicate things). Each animal is walked into a cattle crush for ease of working with and operator/livestock safety. A cattle crush is a device designed to hold the animal as stationary as possible and as comfortably as possible, it has an unfortunate name, it most definitely does not crush the animal, although it will often restrain them by the neck in a guillotine type fashion. This may sound inhumane but believe you me it is anything but, years of improvements have produced excellent and safe cattle handling facilities for both man and beast.

Once held secure the vet reads the ear tag number. All cattle in the UK are registered (a legal requirement) and all carry tags in their ears with the required registration data. The tag number of the beast is recorded along with it's age and sex. Access to the neck is necessary as the hair is shaved off two small areas one a distance above the other. The skin at the bare areas is then measured with calipers and the measurements recorded prior to the sites being injected with a laboratory produced TB bacteria. Avian TB as well as bovine TB is injected, the avian is injected in the top area with the bovine further below. Once all the cattle have been dealt with the vet will depart and return in 3 days.

Should an animal be carrying Bovine TB it will react to the injection it was given, the avian injection is given to enable the vet to compare the reactions to the two different forms of TB. When the vet returns to re check the herd he again measures the skin and records the measurements if necessary. It is not unusual for there to be raised areas at the injection sites, however, should the lower area be more pronounced than the higher site (the bovine react more than the avian) then the beast will be classed as being inconclusive and a further test will have to be run in 60 days time.

All in all it is a quite a stressful time for both the farmer and his cattle. The farmer has the concerns that maybe his cattle could be carrying TB, there are not bound to be any signs as it can lie dormant for the whole duration of the animals life, causing no problems to anyone, not even infectious to the other cattle, so a farmer would never know until a test proved positive.

As for the cattle? Well they find themselves being handled twice in one week which can find them getting wound up. Cattle don't always take kindly to seeing strangers, they don't always appreciate being put back through the cattle crush when their memories are still fresh from the incidences of three days ago. It can get them worked up and stressed which in some weather conditions could always lead to them going down with pneumonia, the last thing any farmer would want.

Due to the poor weather conditions at the end of last year many of the cattle tests in this area found themselves postponed until a later date. Even if the snow hadn't caused a problem the ice did. Icy concrete yards are not ideal for moving cattle on, their cloven hooves struggle to purchase in such conditions and it wouldn't have been safe for their welfare or those handling them to work under such conditions. Therefore many of the tests are now taking place which sees the better half helping out many farmers to get their cattle forward for the vets inspection.

Are the tests proving to be clear? Well most are, there has apparently been one inconclusive result which will see the vet return to that farm in March to test that one beast again. Hopefully all will be well and there will be no reaction on the second test. However, should their be a reaction again the farmer will find himself held under strict movement regulations, further tests of the whole herd and more stress. Any animal which is deemed to be a reactor is automatically sent for slaughter, the farmer receives a compensatory payment from the government (which is rarely the value of the animal).

There are many countries which have managed to eradicate bovine TB by testing and culling as our country does, however, it is highly unlikely that the problem will ever be eradicated in the UK as long as the badgers carry the disease. I was told by the vet that it would be highly unlikely TB would kill many cattle, they were more likely to die of other causes or be naturally culled out of the herd by age than end up having full blown TB and die of it. So why test then? Presumably to keep those who work with cattle safe from catching it, as to the normal person on the street who cooks their meat and drinks pasteurised milk bovine TB ought not to be a threat.

Twin lamb disease update

You may remember I mentioned sheep being 'off' one Sunday. My instinct told me it would be twin lamb disease, my optimism remained as I felt I had noticed this problem quickly and hoped it could possibly be resolved.

Unfortunately nature resolved the problem. All efforts failed and the two ewes died.

For all you get hardened to death, it still frustrates you. Days were spent treating these ewes. One went down quickly the other was up and down like a yo - yo, until finally, she too succumbed. You feel as though you've failed, even though you knew the outcome was unlikely to be a good one.

There is absolutely no point in dwelling on the matter, there are many live ones and it is important to maintain their health and well being.

I do however feel that I may have learnt something. Discussing the subject with another shepherd I learnt a different twist on the logic of twin lamb disease.

As explained in a past posting, something triggers the ewe to call upon her own bodily reserves in an effort to 'feed' the lamb or lambs growing inside her, unfortunately this causes problems with her metabolism, a form of poisoning kicks in and invariably they die.

I was truly frustrated as these sheep had been well looked after, they were in good physical fettle prior to going 'off' and ought not to have had an excuse to succumb to this disease.

The shepherd I was talking with was quite adamant that in his mind twin lamb disease was a greater risk to fit (fat) sheep as opposed to lean (thin) sheep. His logic being that a fat sheep HAD reserves to fall back on when needed whereas a thin sheep didn't have the body fats to call upon when necessary. Therefore a thin sheep couldn't go on the downward spiral of draining her reserves as she had no reserves to drain.

My logic has added that if that is the case she'd probably naturally abort or lamb down a very weakly lamb which would most probably die either from being weak or from the fact the ewe would also probably not have sufficient milk to feed it. Again natures way. The result would be that the ewe would live to see another year. For all she was so lean and had no bodily condition once she was rid of the lamb which she couldn't rear anyhow she would then be able to build up her body and thrive and ultimately survive!

I have no idea whether this is fact or fiction but it does sound logical. I know of two neighbours with ewes waiting for the dead cart, both have been fed well and both have had twin lamb disease. Does make you wonder - but then none of us would be happy to see the ewes lean and unable to rear their lambs, we'll just have to put up with the odd ewe going down with twin lamb disease.

Twin Lamb Disease

Not a disease as such at all, the posh name being Pregnancy Toxeamia. Often linked with ewes carrying multiple births, but not always the case.

As ewes get heavier in lamb the lambs inside them ask more of their mothers. The lambs are growing and require more sustenance from their mothers, the ewes then use more of their built up reserves and this is when the problem may arise.

The reserves that the ewe has built up in her body are stored as fat or take the form of sugar and glycogen throughout the liver and muscles of the body. If she uses up the sugar reserves this will cause her blood sugar levels to drop, she will then call upon her fat reserves in an attempt to raise the blood sugar levels, unfortunately as the fats are broken down by the liver ketones are formed. Excessive ketones end up poisoning the system eventually producing an effect similar to alcohol abuse in humans.

Well managed feeding of the sheep ought to help keep twin lamb disease at bay, however, there are always the odd ones which may well succumb. The ewe just needs to have an 'off' day, not eat as well as usual, and the body will automatically begin to draw upon its own reserves and try to make up the deficit. Almost any form of stress, be it the weather, a day through the sheep pens or even a change in feed could well be enough to trigger twin lamb disease in a ewe.

I have always found two symptoms which draw me direct to the conclusion of twin lamb disease. Blindness and sweet breath.

The blindness does not affect the appearance of the eye (unlike snow blindness)but you'll find if you wave your hand past the eye or move your finger towards the eye there will be no reaction shown, the ewe ought to at least blink - but she wont.

As for the breath - it has a definite sweet odour about it which I believe arises from the ketosis. The next time you see a shepherd seeming to wave at a sheep then smell it's breath they haven't lost their marbles, they are diagnosing.

The sheep I had the pleasure of finding 'off' the other morning were showing some of these signs, fortunately for them they were still mobile and with the rest of the flock, however a built in sense of 'something not right' came to the fore.

The early signs may have a ewe lying off from the flock, or not coming in to the cake. These particular sheep were on ad lib blocks, it is always possible that some ewes were not eating the blocks or maybes were getting pushed out by greedier sheep. One ewe was lying behind the wall, looking as though she was sheltering and did rise and join the rest of the flock with encouragement but there was no doubt about it that something was wrong. The other was still with the main flock but something about her demeanour made alarm bells ring in my head. Interestingly enough we had had a hard frost the previous morning followed by a strong cold relentless wind all day - could it be possible this was sufficient stress to cause these ewes to call upon their own bodily reserves? Who knows.

In both cases the ewes appeared to be blind and one most definitely had a sweetness about its breath. A home made glucose drench was administered with an injection of calcium and magnesium also given. Calcium and magnesium deficiencies cause lambing sickness and staggers, a poorly sheep can easily succumb to this and it never does any harm to cover the possibilities.

Unfortunately it is difficult to pull a ewe back from full blown twin lamb disease. The success rate is only a few percent. She will be off her feet, off her food and reliant on you to keep her re hydrated and trying to raise her sugar levels whilst the poison of the ketones gets to work on the rest of her body. The best chance of survival is to get rid of the cause - that being the lambs inside her.

Now women can suffer from the same problem. They will find themselves in hospital, closely monitored, drip fed to keep glucose levels up. Once the condition of the expectant mother is stabilised she will probably be given a ceasarian section with the premature baby heading for an incubator in the special baby unit. A hugely worrying and dangerous time for all involved.

The ewe is less fortunate. It is often hoped that they will keb (abort), the ewes last resort to saving her life, one which may happen naturally or injections from the vet can be administered, however, these don't always work. Which ever scenario it is highly unlikely the lambs will survive unless they are close to being full term. As for a ceasarian? Yes it is an option available but one which is rarely considered. Should the lambs inside her already be dead (which is highly probable if she has been sick for a while) the chance of subsequent infection and death of the ewe is high. A great risk when the cost of a ceasarian will be well above the value of a normal hill sheep. Unfortunately there is not a national health service for sheep which means weighing up the pros and cons before heading for major surgery on an animal valued at less than the cost of the treatment, especially if the outcome has a high probability of being unsuccessful.

Should the ewe not be able to be rid of her lambs life looks bleak for her indeed and after a duration it is always kinder to put her out of her misery. Put her down. Which is never easy as you always remain optimistic, keep treating the condition in the hope she may cast her lambs and rally, you have spent days nurturing the beast, hoping and praying that she will show some signs of rallying but there comes a time when realisation dawns and you know you have to do the right thing, let her leave this world peacefully, call the dead cart and pay £14.25 for the privilege.

There have been many reports of incidences of twin lamb disease, the weather has got to be a contributing factor, fields bare as a board - there is no substitute for the real thing, sheep are meant to eat grass and this year so far there is none. Those already lambing away further inbye are reporting problems due to there being nothing in the fields to turn the ewes out on to, these being fields that haven't been grazed for quite some time, fields that ought to be freshening up, growing grass and giving the ewes a boost as they are set out into them. The weather is due to warm up this week according to the forecast, hopefully this ought to set the grass on growing and give the sheep a sporting chance of remaining healthy.

Another Sunday off

Farmers and shepherds alike get days off but they usually have to do some work before the rest of the day is theirs. Stock to feed or look before getting changed into better clothes and heading away for the day, often to return and change back into the work wear to check or feed stock again before darkening.

Some can be more fortunate and have someone to cover for them. Shepherds employed on a farm may find another member of staff or the farmer himself will cover for them and vice versa. Less staff on farms means many aren't so lucky and a complete day off from rising to going back to bed is unheard of, even if there are just the dogs to see to there will always be something needs tending on the day off.

Shep is more fortunate due to the nature of my work. Self employed Contract Shepherd. I get my days off when no one requires my assistance or such as this Sunday when I had a christening to attend.

My second Sunday off on the trot saw me feeding some sheep in the morning (I treat this as a day off, a quieter pace of life to a 'normal' day)to find all was not well . A great start to the day! There were two or three sheep in the field that were acting peculiarly and I had a christening to attend......

The clock was ticking, bath and clean clothes were required so the sheep were left for now and off to the christening we went. The better half sick to the back teeth of me wittering away in the car discussing the possible problems these sheep may be suffering from.

Hexham Abbey was the venue, if any one has never been inside the Abbey it is well worth a visit, a magnificent building which always brings back memories of my childhood and being taken down the crypt by a friend of my Grandfathers,an elderly, bent gentleman whom at the time I believed lived down there - made it all the more spooky!!

The christening was in all fairness a stressful affair, not how they are meant to be really but family politics and grief lying below the surface caused it to be, which brought to the fore Shep's aptitude for saying and doing silly things (a failing I have, but an endearing one at that - I think!), which brings me on to the christening lunch......

Shep headed straight for the bar at the venue, to be greeted like a long lost friend by a man " well hello there, how ya keepin'?"
"Grand thanks, and yourself?"
"Aye, Champion"

Totally clueless as to who this fella was I enquired whether he'd been at the service "No. I can't sit down"
"I beg your pardon?"
" Can't sit down. No good going over there and those hard pews, can't sit down"

Now the guy seemed perfectly healthy to me, his legs appeared to bend and I couldn't see any obvious reason as to why he couldn't sit down. I've heard many excuses over the years for not attending church but this was a fresh one on me. My inquisitive nature along with a relief that someone had greeted me as a long lost friend and broken the ice on this difficult occasion made me enquire as to why he was unable to sit down.

"Cement burn" was the reply
"A what?" I enquired
"Cement burn on me arse"
"Oh!"

Now as is oft the case, Shep does not always engage the brain before the mouth and this was one such case "Can I have a look? I've never seen a cement burn before"
"Are you sure"
"What? that I've never seen a cement burn or that I want to look at your arse?"

Jeans and boxers were dropped and Shep saw her first cement burn - I never want one of those, poor soul, I fully understand why he couldn't sit down. The better half by this time was shaking his head and waiting for a hole to open and swallow me up.

My new found friend then enquired if I'd like to rub some cream on, when deep heat rub was offered he duly pulled his kegs (trousers) back up.

A roofer by trade, he had been sitting on a ridge which had been cemented the previous day and seemingly not set properly, the discomfort in his backside and upper thigh he put down to the position he was in for hours, until that was, the following morning when the pain was intense and it was realised he'd suffered a major burn to his posterior. The things you learn in life!

Anyhow, an excuse to leave the christening do was that we needed to get back and see to poorly sheep, plus my mother needed her mothers day card which we had only just managed to buy en route to the christening. I gave her a bunch of flowers too, an imaginary bunch, which I made her smell and guess what colour they were - I'm sure she was flattered!!

On the way home the better half enquired as to who my friend was in the bar,
"Y'know the one who dropped his trousers".
"No idea, never met the guy before"
It was then it dawned on me just how ludicrous the whole scenario had been.... but interesting all the same!!

Back home, changed into the smelly everyday clothes and off to look at sheep. My first conclusion which I drew on first seeing them in the morning was still my favourite prognosis and not one which I liked. Twin lamb disease. On a positive note it had to be mild twin lamb disease so there was hope and still is.

The sheep which were acting peculiarly this morning were no worse, a good sign, they were also no better (which would have been highly unlikely). It is disapointing as these sheep have been fed like fighting cocks, albeit with access to high energy licks and hay. I conclude that as they are now just a fortnight off lambing this is not sufficient for them and so they will be going onto 18% sheep cake with added glucose immeadiately, thanks to the kindness of a neighbour who has lent some bags until a delivery is made.

The ewes are in good physical fettle and really ought not to be going down with twin lamb disease, however the prolonged hard weather has meant sheep have been fed for a longer duration than usual and so are now maybe finding that when the drag of bearing lambs is really hitting them that boost in feeding is not there, as they have been fed since being very light in lamb, whereas feed would normally have only been introduced to them more recently and would have given them a lift as the lambs began to be a drain on their mothers bodies.

All being well these sheep may well be lucky. If my prognosis is correct then the outcome could well be poor, except (and I am thinking positively here) this problem has been noticed very early with what I suspect to be a mild form of the 'disease', as the better half said - he wouldn't have picked up on it yet ( he is a tractor driver with a strong dislike of sheep). It boils down to knowing the sheep and catching 'odd' behaviour quickly - hopefully luck will be on their side.