Imported dairy cows/heifers

[Rossymons]

Location is irrelevant. The risk of bringing disease onto farm is as high from across the valley as it is from across the water if checks aren't complete or thorough.

Buying cattle from across the continent isn't done on a whim or a prayer. It's has its procedure and is arguably more difficult than buying from these shores.

 

[pappuller]

Are you happy to import cattle with God knows what on to your place??

So you are basically saying that imported cattle are responsible for pretty much every bovine disease present in this country ?

 

[Thick Farmer]

Imported incalf heifers are around £1350 - £1450 at present.

Got a lovely bunch ready at the moment.

 

[sidjon]

So you are basically saying that imported cattle are responsible for pretty much every bovine disease present in this country ?

No, but UK is seen as the dumping ground for cattle which can't be exported to countries with high health plans, not against importing but look at Holland with it's johnes health plan ,higher risk cattle are exported to get themself clean quicker , same as the Danes were doing 10 years ago. Try a export breeding cattle out of this country and the hops you have to jump through are many more than importing.

 

[matthew]

Why wouldn't they when they can get Hi health quality cattle at a sensible price?

Because not all countries with schemes insist on slaughter of any animal testing positive.
They are sold. Or they are sold before testing. Or their calves are sold.

Johnes was imported from Holland many years ago.

We are an island we should have high health status. We kick off about meats coming in and F and M but dairy cows are fine.

There are diseases on the continent that we do not have in the UK yet.

Yes.

No, but UK is seen as the dumping ground for cattle which can't be exported to countries with high health plans, not against importing but look at Holland with it's johnes health plan ,higher risk cattle are exported to get themself clean quicker , same as the Danes were doing 10 years ago. Try a export breeding cattle out of this country and the hops you have to jump through are many more than importing.

Spot on. Read this one and weep.

http://bovinetb.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-end-of-line.html

 

[In the pit]

£1450 in calve German heifers, that was 2 months ago tho.

Germany has cows infected with bvd type 2
We don't have this in the uk but we still import cows from Germany
Hmmm
A lot of cattle diseases did come from imported cattle ,the worst of all digital dermatitis

 

[Sid]

Germany has cows infected with bvd type 2
We don't have this in the uk but we still import cows from Germany
Hmmm
A lot of cattle diseases did come from imported cattle ,the worst of all digital dermatitis

Didn't a bleeding calf syndrome get imported?

 

[In the pit]

Like someone said they don't cull cows for diseases they just sell them into the uk
Is there not enough cows for sale in the uk that we can stop imports

 

[friar]

Dear me ........

We have imported over 200 Danish heifers and are clear of BVD, Lepto, IBR, TB and have an in depth Johnes eradication plan in place (currently 2% of the herd is a possible and are tagged to ensure that they only go back to beef). I think you'll find that imported cattle, from the right sources, have a much higher health status than UK or Irish sourced animals

As to the OPs question, we are currently looking at buying in more heifers and the prices are eye watering at this precise time due to Russian demand. However if the Scandinavian drought continues, prices may ease. Euros 1850 onto farm is a benchmark for pedigree Jerseys at the moment

Do you make sure the Beef calves from Johnes cows only go for slaughter or is there a risk of some ending up as Suckler cows?

 

[Agrispeed]

Location is irrelevant. The risk of bringing disease onto farm is as high from across the valley as it is from across the water if checks aren't complete or thorough.

Buying cattle from across the continent isn't done on a whim or a prayer. It's has its procedure and is arguably more difficult than buying from these shores.

To be fair I know of someone who imported some high health cattle in to specifically avoid Johnes & BVD and a fair few had Johne's

Not saying it's normal though. If I could I would seriously consider importing cows, mainly to avoid TB - You can control BVD & Johne's by culling (although I'd rather not get it!) but once you start loosing cows to TB your options to voluntarily cull those cows is much more limited.

Best option is to buy from herd you know well and can see their history and management, but that is a rarity.

 

[sidjon]

If I could I would seriously consider importing cows, mainly to avoid TB

Biggest risk is from local wildlife, getting animals from clean areas doesn't reduce the risk.

 

[Princess Pooper]

Does high health status mean you vaccinate for everything?

We are not accredited High Health Status, we do not sell breeding stock normally.

We are naïve for BVD, (monitored), we do vaccinate for IBR but have not had it, we do vaccinate for lepto because we have higher risk factors (sheep, river) and we certainly don't vaccinate for Johnes. We very very nearly bought in IBR when sourcing UK cattle to replace TB losses - it is only because we insisted on blood testing before purchase that we detected it. This from a herd where the farmer and their vet said it was not a problem in the herd and they vaccinated. Didn't mention the in-calf heifers hadn't been vaccinated and didn't realise they had IBR wild virus circulating! That was the point at which we turned to Denmark.

 

[Agrispeed]

Biggest risk is from local wildlife, getting animals from clean areas doesn't reduce the risk.

Safer than buying cows from a farm that then goes down, as you have to be tested too.

 

[sidjon]

Safer than buying cows from a farm that then goes down, as you have to be tested too.

Only that animal, but is a PIA

 

[Sid]

Even if cattle are housed there is still a risk of btb
Housing is not a prevention as it can be picked up via feed.

 

[Water Wheel]

Warble fly!
Where has that come from? Thought we had eradicated that. Could it fly across channel ?

From Potter
http://www.ipaquotas.com/QUOTANEWS.htm
Warble Fly Warning (20th July 2018)

A reader from North Devon has alerted us to the presence of a significant infestation of warble flies and the urgent need to be vigilant and take precautions. They even provided a photograph of the unwelcome beast on a cow, which fortunately had been treated.

If you encounter warble fly or any other unusual and unwanted pests in this dry spell, please email us.

 

[Princess Pooper]

Warble fly!
Where has that come from? Thought we had eradicated that. Could it fly across channel ?

From Potter
http://www.ipaquotas.com/QUOTANEWS.htm
Warble Fly Warning (20th July 2018)

A reader from North Devon has alerted us to the presence of a significant infestation of warble flies and the urgent need to be vigilant and take precautions. They even provided a photograph of the unwelcome beast on a cow, which fortunately had been treated.

If you encounter warble fly or any other unusual and unwanted pests in this dry spell, please email us.

Imported cattle have to be treated for warble on arrival at farm (they are also inspected by vets before leaving country of purchase). Also - is this definite as nothing on Defra website.

 

[Scholsey]

Imported cattle have to be treated for warble on arrival at farm (they are also inspected by vets before leaving country of purchase). Also - is this definite as nothing on Defra website.

Do Defra vets work weekends? If the vets do I bet the IT/website people don’t.

 

[Princess Pooper]

Do Defra vets work weekends? If the vets do I bet the IT/website people don’t.

Actually I see, to my amazement, that it is no longer notifiable in England (it is in Scotland) so the farmer is under no legal obligation to report it so Defra may not even know.

And for the record, when we had a bluetongue suspect a few years ago (nothing to do with importing), the SVS as I think they were then, did turn out late on a Friday afternoon and worked at the weekend on the case.

 

[Sid]

Do tb valuation take into account the lower value of imported cattle due to their lower cull value?

Older cattle that is. Or do they not get to that bracket?