DEFRA says that ‘developing effective cattle TB vaccines is a high priority’ but, on the same webpage, it mentions that the ‘vaccination of cattle against TB is currently prohibited by EU legislation’. (In case you don’t know: EU is the European Union.) Here’s a list of notifiable diseases affecting livestock in Britain.
Something that can be done, that is already being done, is to restrict the movement of infected cattle (Bos primigenius).
A complimentary strategy could be to vaccinate badgers (Meles meles) against bovine TB (bTB). DEFRA is funding experiments by the Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA) in the Badger Vaccine Deployment Project.
As you may have noticed, I have an open mind on this. I won’t be surprised if a combined strategy ends up being the way forward. But some of the science isn’t finished yet, and the politics continue. All in the context of climate change and economic hard times.
British Conservative unscientific badger cull:
http://dearkitty1.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/british-conservative-unscientific-badger-cull/
Please comment on my blog as well as linking to your own blog.
Hi, in this case my blog post has a lot more points than I would be able to point out in a new comment here 🙂
That may be so and I’m interested in your blog. But I’d find it better manners if you wrote a few words, even just ‘What an interesting post. You might like to see mine too…’ Without that, I feel as though you’re treating my blog merely as advertising space.
OK 🙂
The EU sounds like they’re taking their cue from the U.S. I suppose their reasoning is on par with the anti-vaxers over here. Have they decreed that TB vaccine causes autism in cows?
Snork! That’s it 😉