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SUMMER 2010 ISSUE
LIVESTOCK MATTERS
10
B E E F F E A T U R E
Penny Lally says: ‘It's important when selling
stock to know they are protected against
disease, and it adds something to their value -
the value is not necessarily a monetary one,
it's more about improving the appeal of the
animals because buyers can have confidence
they are not buying in disease.’
Jeff Thomas says: ‘Twenty years ago, people
used to buy cattle on their looks. Then we
started weight recording and people wanted
their EBVs as well as coming to see them. But
now, people ring up and the first question is
'what's the health status of your cattle
?
' Only
once they know we've none of the four main
infectious diseases, do they then ask for figures
and want to come and look.’
Irwin Rowe reckons that apart from the
conformation and temperament of the cattle,
farmers are interested in the health status of his
animals. ‘They do not want to buy-in diseases
and we are 100% certain that we have done
the right thing in testing, and would encourage
other people to do the same.’
The health status of the Rowe's Bosullow Herd
brings farmers from all over the country and
brought one Pedigree Angus breeder all the
way down from the borders of Scotland.
Matthew Berriman sums it up: ‘I recommend
to anyone selling breeding stock to get rid of
these four infectious diseases and get the herd
independently accredited as having a high
health status. And if anyone is looking to buy
stock, then they should buy from these herds.’
C ATT L E S HOWS
‘Shows are a good place to
pick up disease,’ says Matthew.
‘Animals come into contact with
other animals and humans.
‘All the diseases can be spread by contact
with other animals, and leptospirosis can
be spread in urine splashes, or sharing a
water tank at shows where contamination
can occur with everyone dipping their
buckets into it. Many disease problems can
also be spread by aerosol between cattle,
even over some distance.
‘It's important that animals are transported
in clean lorries.’
Penny Lally never shares transport, except
with her neighbour, with a similarly high
health herd. ‘There's no point taking two
years to become fully accredited and
then sharing a lorry which has carried
animals with a disease, thereby losing the
accreditation, all for the sake of a rosette.’
She also keeps her show animals apart
from the rest of the herd during the show
season, which lasts approximately three
weeks, kicking off with the Devon County
Show and finishing with the Royal
Cornwall Show.
Matthew explains: ‘BVD and IBR viruses
can spread by aerosol spray, so it's not just
important to stop physical contact between
animals, it's also essential for them to have
separate airspace.’ At the end of the
season, Penny's animals are tested to
make sure they haven't sero-converted,
before they are allowed to re-join the
rest of the herd.
The pedigree herd of Ruby Red Devon
cattle owned by Jeff and Pat Thomas of
Bollowal Farm is part way through the
2 year accreditation process. Jeff adds:
‘The herd has been testing free of disease
for around six years, so joining the SAC
Scheme has just been a way of formalising
it using an outside organisation.’
Jeff Thomas has a show team of animals
which are kept quarantined from the others
during the show season and then for a
further 4-6 weeks afterwards. He also has
his own lorry. Jeff has the calves blood
tested before vaccinating them for
leptospirosis. He explains: ‘We vaccinate
because we show, and there's a biosecurity
risk with this disease.
He attends the Three Counties Show, Bath
& West and Devon County Show: ‘We
need to show! We need the show wins to
advertise our herd and generate interest.
Otherwise no one will come and see us all
the way down here.’ Jeff is not planning to
buy in any more cattle, but if he did, he
would blood test them on the source farm,
and if disease-free bring them to Bollowal
Farm and quarantine them for six weeks
and then test them again
The Rowes show their Angus cattle at the
Devon County and Royal Cornwall Shows.
To minimise risking their accreditation, Dilys
checks with the show organisers regarding
where their cattle are placed in stalls.
‘We also buy extra stalls to have space
either side of the cattle and we erect extra
barriers. We try to transport our cattle
ourselves, but if that's not possible, they
travel on their own in a hired lorry.’
For these Cornish breeders, shows are
essential for promoting the quality of their
cattle. Penny explains: ‘Showing is our
shop window, we all need it to gain the
credibility of our fellow breeders.’
For pedigree breeders, cattle shows can
be one of the biggest risk factors for
disease to be introduced into a herd.
Accreditation:
Is it wor th it?
Jeff Thomas’ show team of Ruby Red Devons are kept
separate from the main herd during the show season.