TB Test

[Sid]

They do take samples sometimes to check, they took some from mine that were clear to be culled. I would rather load them on a lorry than have them shot on farm and rendered but whatever floats your boat.

Check that they are ok for human consumption not to check they have been treated.
You said worried about treatment affecting the test, nothing about the on or off farm culling issue.

 

[Werzle]

Check that they are ok for human consumption not to check they have been treated.
You said worried about treatment affecting the test, nothing about the on or off farm culling issue.

No problem, read the entire thread through and you will see why i raised the culling issue

 

[Sid]

No problem, read the entire thread through and you will see why i raised the culling issue

You said majority wouldn't be dirty. Fair enough.

Animal welfare of not having to travel halfway across country would be paramount over you having to watch an animal being shot on farm?

Only caveat to that is the horror of having a heavily pregnant animal shot on farm and watching the unborn calf suffocated to death in her womb!

 

[matthew]

You said majority wouldn't be dirty. Fair enough.

Animal welfare of not having to travel halfway across country would be paramount over you having to watch an animal being shot on farm?

Only caveat to that is the horror of having a heavily pregnant animal shot on farm and watching the unborn calf suffocated to death in her womb!

.. and that death can take several minutes as the unborn calf struggles.
Deathrow's desk jockeys don’t see that.

Our last close to calving cow, a gamma reactor, we managed to calve in. Then 7 days later, when she could travel, ( from Cornwall to Zummerset) they shot her.

The whole thing is a brutal farce, as infected wildlife straddle farm borders and indiscriminately pee on your grassland and crops.

 

[Werzle]

You said majority wouldn't be dirty. Fair enough.

Animal welfare of not having to travel halfway across country would be paramount over you having to watch an animal being shot on farm?

Only caveat to that is the horror of having a heavily pregnant animal shot on farm and watching the unborn calf suffocated to death in her womb!

I dont think livestock find travelling stressful tbh, within the uk . I have always been allowed to calve down incalf tb reactors ,and anything not heavy incalf would not show signs of suffocating imo.

 

[Sid]

I dont think livestock find travelling stressful tbh, within the uk . I have always been allowed to calve down incalf tb reactors ,and anything not heavy incalf would not show signs of suffocating imo.

Any travel is stressful on an animal, its outside of normality for it.

Well I can tell you that the rules have changed!
Anything within the last 30 days is not allowed to travel, you will see them struggle when their mother is dead. I've been kicked by a calf in a cow in an abreast 60 days before due date!
If you want to keep a heavily pregnant animal on farm you have to pay for your vet to do a 20 point biosecurity plan and then they may or may not let you keep the cow for 2 weeks max.
I would have done a cesarean when shot on her but APHA said if I opened her up I would get nil compensation.

So all in all it's not financially viable to do as you could also possibly have a worthless Fri bull to deal with as well!

 

[milkloss]

So not only might it be better welfare for the animal to be shot on farm it could also reduce the risk of deductions due to having a dirty hide. On top of this there is the potential benefit of making it more expensive to cull tb positive animals so the shift might go more towards controlling TB in the wider environment?

 

[Werzle]

Any travel is stressful on an animal, its outside of normality for it

I dispute that, i think some look forward to going somewhere new. Stock bulls will go up the ramp in the middle of field if they no there off to another group of cows.

 

[matthew]

I dont think livestock find travelling stressful tbh, within the uk . I have always been allowed to calve down incalf tb reactors ,and anything not heavy incalf would not show signs of suffocating imo.

There's travelling and then there's travelling.

Reactor cattle are grouped in batches on the lorry. Not supposed to be - do not mix big with small, horned with non horned, male entires etc etc. is the mantra.
Believe me - it happens. all of the above.
And on one occasion, when the lorry arrived at a SW abattoir, the cattle in the first compartment were so distressed, they were shot on the lorry, as they stood on at least one dead cow.

Trading Standards knew. The abattoir vets knew - and did - absolutely nothing.

On another occasion a huge longhorn bull was loaded in the same back compartment with a frail holstein cow, who was terrified. They unloaded her at the farm, and tried to run them in together. Every rule in the book - broken. And no one gives a monkeys.

At least now, the abattoir taking these animals has to be the nearest that will accept reactors, and not the one at the ar$e end of Wales, who tendered 1p/kg less to Deathrow. But it's still 200 miles + from the toe of Cornwall to Zummerset and further than that from the East midlands.

 

[ridger]

Always wondered how the salvage was paid, over here the ones with drugs still go to the plant and are disposed of from there