Millions of farm animals at risk as deadly bluetongue virus is blown in

12 April 2012

A deadly disease that has killed millions of farm animals on the continent has arrived in Britain.

The bluetongue virus, which has swept through 8,500 farms in northern Europe in just 12 months, has been found in a cow at a children's farm in Suffolk.

The news of the UK's first case is a hammer blow for farmers still reeling from the devastation of foot and mouth.

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First victim: Debbie the Highland cow was a favourite with visitors at the children's farm in Suffolk

Cows, goats and deer are all susceptible to bluetongue, which is spread by midges and causes symptoms including ulcers, lameness, internal bleeding and the telltale discolouration of the tongue.

But Britain's 40 million-strong flock of sheep is most at risk, as a third of infected sheep die within days of showing symptoms.

The Department of the Environment Food and Rural Affairs believes that if it takes hold, it could affect 19million sheep and nine million cattle. It could also lead to vast swathes of the countryside being sealed off.

Restriction zones up to 150km (93miles) across - 15 times bigger than for foot and mouth - would be imposed to cover the range of the midges carrying the infection.

Experts warned it was unlikely the disease, probably brought by a midge blown from the continent, would be confined to a single case. The insects normally fly in large groups.

The infected animal - a Highland cow called Debbie - has been put down and all other animals on the rare breeds farm are being tested for the disease.

The National Farmers Union said the arrival of the virus in Britain was "absolutely devastating" for an industry struggling to cope with foot and mouth - a possible seventh case of which was being investigated in Hampshire last night.

Bluetongue, which does not affect people, is normally found in Mediterranean countries but has spread north with global warming.

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Carrier: Midges pass on the killer virus

Since the first confirmed case in Holland in August last year, it has hit farms in France, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium.

The virus, the same strain as the one in north Europe, was confirmed at Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm near Ipswich on Saturday evening.

Farm owner: Richard Storer

Owner Richard Storer, 68, a former top RAF pilot who commanded the Red Arrows display team, said he initially feared the cow had foot and mouth.

But tests at the Institute of Animal Health in Surrey revealed the bluetongue virus. All movement of animals on and off the farm has been banned, and families arriving there yesterday were turned away.

Wider restrictions will be put in place if the virus is found to have spread.

Infected animals may be culled initially in an attempt to stop the virus from becoming established in midges in the UK. But widespread slaughter of animals is unlikely as it would not affect the insects.

Mr Storer said shaggy-coated Debbie had been a favourite with children who fed her grass as she hung her head over the fence. The 20-acre farm also has rare breeds of sheep, goats, pigs and poultry and encourages school trips and family visits.

Professor Peter Mertens, one of the Government scientists who identified the Suffolk strain, warned that other animals could already be infected.

He said: "What are the chances that only one midge has blown across from northern Europe and just happened to pick on this one animal? The thing that is telling is that this is an animal on a petting farm, with fewer than 100 animals which I imagine are under intense scrutiny.

"There are a lot of other animals out there in fields and pastures that have much less scrutiny."

Professor Mertens said authorities in the Netherlands were expecting the virus to kill at least four per cent of the national flock.

He said: "If you apply that to the UK, it is potentially millions and millions of sheep."

He said farmers should be hoping for a really severe and early winter to kill off the midges as soon as possible. A vaccine, likely to be available next summer, could then keep any further outbreaks under control.

Dr Freda Scott-Park, past president of the British Veterinary Association and a dairy farmer, also warned it was unlikely to be an isolated case, adding: "This is something we have been dreading.

She said movement restrictions imposed to stop foot and mouth meant farms were full of lambs which would normally have been taken to market by now.

Dr Scott-Park said: "By having movement restrictions, which were absolutely correct, we have potentially given ourselves an absolute headache should bluetongue spread."

Agriculture Minister Lord Rooker said last night the Government had been expecting the arrival of bluetongue and planning how to deal with it for some time.

But he acknowledged that farmers felt "beleaguered and isolated" after floods, foot and mouth and now bluetongue.

NFU President Peter Kendall called for a wide ranging package of support for livestock farmers. He said they were facing "financial Armageddon" and had looked in surprise at the multi-billion guarantee to Northern Rock savers.

The latest suspected case of foot and mouth is on a farm near Petersfield in Hampshire, raising fears that the disease has spread from neighbouring Surrey, where six cases have been confirmed.

What is bluetongue?

A deadly virus spread by midges that infects cattle, sheep, deer and other ruminants are most susceptible.

A single midge bite can result in death within days of the first symptoms - ulcers of the mouth, nose and eyes.

The tongue may turn blue as the head and neck swell. Lameness, internal bleeding, breathing difficulties, and, in the worst cases, death, follow.

Infection in cows is often symptomless but can still lead to spread of the disease.

How is it spread?

By midges which pick up the virus from biting an infected animal.

The bug multiplies inside the insect and is passed on when it bites another animal.

Global warming has been blamed for the movement of infected midges from Africa to southern Europe and, last year, to northern Europe.

The bug has infected 8,500 farms in Holland, France, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium in just over a year and killed two million animals on the continent in less than a decade.

Bluetongue is not spread directly from animal to animal although experts cannot rule out the possibility that it could be transmitted between livestock by unhygienic practices such as using contaminated surgical equipment or hypodermic needles.

How did it reach Britain?

An ongoing ban on animal imports from infected parts of the EU makes the virus's arrival on an animal unlikely.

The bug probably arrived with a cloud of midges blown across the Channel. Although the insects usually only cover a mile or so a day, they can be carried up to 125 miles by warm winds.

Will it spread here?

Nobody knows, but it seems extremely unlikely that just one infected midge has arrived in the UK and just one animal has been bitten.

While the disease is often fatal in sheep, the infection of cattle is just as dangerous, as theycan pass the virus on to midges despite showing no symptoms themselves. Infected animals are contagious for up to a month.

What does it do?

Sheep are most susceptible, with some strains killing up to 70 per cent of infected animals. Serotype 8, the continental strain that has arrived in Europe, kills around a third of sheep it infects. Death of cattle is rare. Milk, wool and beef yield can all go down in surviving animals.

Can we stop it?

There is no cure for bluetongue and while a vaccine is being developed, it will not be ready for use until next year.

Keeping animals indoors from dusk to dawn - when midges are at their most active - can cut exposure, as can the use of insecticides and the removal of midge breeding grounds, such as manure heaps.

At the moment, all movement of animals on and off the infected farm is banned.

If the disease is found to have spread, restriction zones of up to 150km (93miles) - 15 times bigger than those used in foot and mouth - could be imposed around infected farms.

Infected animals may be culled initially but if the disease spreads, mass slaughter is unlikely, as this would not stop the disease being transmitted by midges.

The arrival of winter may nip any outbreak in the bud, as the virus cannot grow at temperatures below 15C.

Can humans catch it?

No, there is no risk to human health.

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