1 May 2008
Dear Member
At long last we
have had the announcement from Defra saying that Bluetongue vaccine is now
being released to wholesalers and is ready for distribution to the Protection
Zones (PZ) – this includes the New Forest and Dorset PZ.
The first batch of
one million doses of the vaccine is now available in 20-dose bottles. A
larger batch of up to two million doses, produced in 50-dose bottles, is
expected to follow within a few days. The vaccine will require one dose
in sheep and two doses, given three weeks apart, in cattle. The necessary
licences to allow vaccination to take place are being put in place and should
be on the Defra website.
In line with the
principles set out in the roll-out plan, the first two batches of vaccine will
be made available to livestock keepers in the Protection Zones. As soon
as further batches are delivered, vaccine will be rolled out to the rest of the
counties in the second priority phase for vaccination, before progressing more
broadly across England county by county. The Protection Zone will be
extended at each stage to allow vaccination to occur under the EU regulations.
Vaccination offers
the only realistic prospect of controlling Bluetongue. The release of the
first batches of vaccine is very good news and is well ahead of the expected
schedule.
If you have not
ordered vaccine from your vet yet, DO SO NOW!!
Please refer any
llama or guanaco-related Bluetongue vaccination queries which your vet is
unable to answer to Liz Butler:
llamaliz@hotmail.com, or 01737 823375.