Good postAsk the vet what APHA and Public Health England are going to do about the likely source of the infection in your cattle, the reservoir of infection in wildlife before it infects companion animals and the human population.
When they trot out the biosecurity line ask them how you are expected to prevent an incontinent badger leaking Tb bacilli all over your grazing land.
No doubt others will be along shortly with other helpful suggestions!
I had a some IR at a 2nd TB test and 3 cows had to be sent off , and now a vet APHA is coming out to give me advise on TB ie field maps , grouping cows farm biosecurity .
Whats all that about just a waste of time or helpful .
I just hope they send you someone that can actually speak "ENGLISH" as the last one that came here was virtually impossible to understand as had very poor pigeon English and general understanding of my situation etc. But I almost think that was done on purpose as the English ones don't want the difficult questions being asked.I had a some IR at a 2nd TB test and 3 cows had to be sent off , and now a vet APHA is coming out to give me advise on TB ie field maps , grouping cows farm biosecurity .
Whats all that about just a waste of time or helpful .
Tb's a f##ker but at the end of the day the person visiting you is just doing there job. The chap that came to me was expecting a bollocking but i couldnt be bothered , just tell him where you think its coming from and play the game. Getting yourself churned/ revved up doesnt alter your situation . The best advice i would offer any farmer is to control your own wildlifeI had a some IR at a 2nd TB test and 3 cows had to be sent off , and now a vet APHA is coming out to give me advise on TB ie field maps , grouping cows farm biosecurity .
Whats all that about just a waste of time or helpful .
Could the OP gather relevant evidence then apply for a licence to trap badgers and have them tested for TB. That could actually push the issue.....We have a big problem here, in that the top end of TeaBag (or whatever they call themselves this year) are lecturing farmers to 'own the situation'.
Just how a cattle farmer can do that when as @topground has pointed out, highly infected, over protected and incontinent wildlife are polluting your grassland, is not explained. Territorial and hungry badgers are very determined.
The other angle that T-Bag's members are (still) promotoing is badger vaccination - that despite the accumulated evidence of trials over the last 9 years that indicate not an iota of benefit is seen by cattle restrictions in areas where it has been widespread. See links in this posting:
https://bovinetb.blogspot.com/2019/03/new-year-new-lies.html
I'm afraid that I have no time at all for this merry go round of misery, foisted on to us, along with a shower of blame from many different agencies, sources and assorted hangers on. They are not a solution. They are a very big problem.
The only thing found to get herds clear of TB long term is to get rid of the badgers up spilling infection. That was made crystal clear in our PQ's. The alternative is to get rid of your cattle. So, keep focussed and read some history of TB eradication. If we don't understand that background history, we are condemned to repeating it.
https://bovinetb.blogspot.com/2018/02/zoonotic-tuberculosis-and-straw-men.html
Could the OP gather relevant evidence then apply fur a licence to trap badgers and have them tested for TB. That could actually push the issue.....
I've just reported a 3rd roadkill badger of the year as per the WAG request. Does anyone else in Wales do this? There seems to be a great apathy around these parts that p1sses me off, typical divided we stand, United we fall attitude. I bet I'm the only one that reports them. I know the vets collect them and I assume test them for tb, and then produce some data? @matthew , different country I know, but any idea?
Then what?Three farmers I know who paid to do this non invasive test, found about one third of their setts to be infected.
Ask them when they will be testing the setts.
Then what?
Surely they could then apply for a licence to kill the badgers in those setts as they meet the criteria for the economic impact under the licence. Push the issue public.People have done that in the past with a very good, validated PCR test for badger latrines. Problem there is that the chief scientist who developed the test does NOT want it used to cull badgers.
Another one ‘following the money’.
Three farmers I know who paid to do this non invasive test, found about one third of their setts to be infected.