Tag Archives: ruminant

Steps to sustainable livestock

Posted on March 14, 2014 by argylesock

Here are thoughtful, readable words about sustainable livestock. These words were published a few days ago in the well-respected journal Nature. There, scientists including Prof Sir John Beddington (formerly our UK Government’s Chief Scientific Advisor) tell us how, ‘With improved … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, food, knowledge transfer | Tagged Beddington_John, development, food security, food sovereignty, knowledge, livestock, ruminant, sustainable, vertebrate | 7 Comments

McDonald’s will shift (very slowly) to sustainable beef

Posted on January 8, 2014 by argylesock

argylesock says… A tiny, slow step but a step in the right direction. Perhaps.

Posted in agriculture, food | Tagged cattle, livestock, mammal, meat, restaurant, ruminant, sustainable, vertebrate | Leave a comment

Cuts to red tape in British agriculture

Posted on January 7, 2014 by argylesock

Here’s a press release about ‘cuts to red tape’ in British agriculture. This arose, no doubt, from the Red Tape Challenge. Apparently these cuts will help to monitor and control livestock diseases while also saving money. Moving sheep (Ovis aries) … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture | Tagged bovine tuberculosis, cattle, disease, disease transmission, law, livestock, mammal, notifiable disease, ruminant, sheep, transport, tuberculosis, vertebrate | Leave a comment

Getting rid of bovine tuberculosis?

Posted on November 30, 2013 by argylesock

A farmer in my family told me, ‘People want clean meat.’ Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is an infectious disease of cattle (Bos primigenius) caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis. Our UK Government wants rid of bTB, because then the European Union … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, money and trade | Tagged bacterium, badger, biosecurity, bovine tuberculosis, cattle, Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, disease, disease reservoir, disease testing, disease transmission, farmer, food safety, law, livestock, mammal, milk, Mycobacterium bovis, native species, notifiable disease, politics, ruminant, trade, tuberculosis, vertebrate, wildlife, zoonosis | 6 Comments

What the British government is doing about bovine tuberculosis

Posted on November 28, 2013 by argylesock

Did you think I’d stopped thinking about bovine tuberculosis (bTB)? I haven’t and nor has our Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Here are two announcements from DEFRA today. First announcement: There’s to be ‘zero tolerance’ of missed … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture | Tagged bacterium, biosecurity, bovine tuberculosis, cattle, Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, disease, disease testing, disease transmission, farmer, Heath_David, law, livestock, mammal, Mycobacterium bovis, notifiable disease, politics, ruminant, transport, tuberculosis, vertebrate, zoonosis | 1 Comment

Is the existing bovine TB eradication policy really working?

Posted on November 2, 2013 by argylesock

One of my favourite sources of information about bovine tuberculosis (bTB, caused by Mycobacterium bovis) is bovinetb.co.uk. Its unnamed author is ‘looking for the reform of a costly and misguided system.’ When I talk to farmers, I often hear support … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, human health, knowledge transfer, money and trade | Tagged alpaca, cattle, disease, disease reservoir, disease testing, disease transmission, endemic disease, export, farmer, finance, food, food processing, food safety, history, human, knowledge, law, livestock, mammal, meat, milk, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, politics, ruminant, shooting, slaughter, trade, tuberculosis, vaccine, vertebrate, veterinary, welfare, wildlife, zoonosis | 19 Comments

Licence for more badger culling

Posted on October 14, 2013 by argylesock

Natural England has today confirmed that criteria have been met to allow control of badgers to continue under licence in west Somerset for the purpose of preventing the spread of bovine tuberculosis (bTB).

Posted in ecology | Tagged bacterium, badger, bovine tuberculosis, cattle, disease, disease reservoir, law, livestock, mammal, mustelid, Mycobacterium bovis, ruminant, shooting, tuberculosis, vertebrate, wildlife | Leave a comment

Cattle which resist a devastating disease

Posted on October 4, 2013 by argylesock

People in tropical countries fear diseases called sleeping sickness, and other names, caused by tiny parasites called trypanosomes (Trypanosoma spp.) also known as tryps. Now there’s new science suggesting a way to reduce Animal African Trypanosomiasis in cattle (Bos primigenius) … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture | Tagged Africa, arthropod, Asia, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, breeding, cattle, development, dipteran, disease, disease resistance, farmer, insect, invertebrate, livestock, livestock breed, local breed, mammal, meat, parasite, pastoral, protozoan, research, ruminant, selective breeding, sleeping sickness, tropical disease, trypanosome, tsetse, vector, vertebrate | 4 Comments

The badger cull – what we know and what we don’t know

Posted on September 30, 2013 by argylesock

Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is an infectious disease of cattle (Bos primigenius) caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis. You could follow my ‘tuberculosis’ tag. Other animals can get bTB too. In Britain, some people think the native badger (Meles meles) is … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, knowledge transfer | Tagged alien species, bacterium, badger, biosecurity, brushtail possum, cattle, data, deer, disease, farmer, foot and mouth disease, fox, history, knowledge, livestock, mammal, marsupial, mouse, mustelid, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, native species, poison, polecat, politics, research, reservoir, rodent, ruminant, shooting, shrew, squirrel, stoat, tuberculosis, vertebrate, vole, wildlife | 2 Comments

Bovine TB in New Zealand compared to Britain and Ireland

Posted on September 28, 2013 by argylesock

Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is an infectious disease of cattle (Bos primigenius) caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis. You could follow my ‘tuberculosis’ tag. This disease is zoonotic. That is, M. bovis can infect us as well as cattle. Not very … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, knowledge transfer | Tagged alien species, bacterium, badger, bait, bovine tuberculosis, brushtail possum, disease, disease reservoir, finance, fur, history, human, livestock, mammal, marsupial, mustelid, Mycobacterium bovis, native species, oral vaccination, parental vaccination, pest, research, ruminant, tuberculosis, vaccine, vermin, vertebrate, veterinary, wildlife, zoonosis | 8 Comments