Last chance to get free biosecurity advice for TB
© Tim Scrivener Farmers in England are encouraged to book their slot for a free bovine TB advice session before funding runs out in September.
Free vet visits, through the TB advisory service (TBAS), funded by Defra, offer livestock farmers a chance to get different perspectives on the disease and better protect their animals from the disease.
See also: Badger cull to continue pending bovine TB strategy review
Latest TB figures show that from October 2023 to September 2024, England saw 21,864 cattle culled due to TB, marking a 12% rise compared with the previous year.
Sarah Tomlinson, a Kingshay veterinary consultant and TBAS technical director, said: “A lot of people focus on the risk from badgers. However, the risk of cow-to-cow transmission cannot be overlooked. During these visits your adviser can discuss how to identify high-risk cows, how best to manage them, and reduce the risk of transmission within the herd.”
There are still 500 pairs of visits up for grabs and, in addition to offering two free vet visits, TBAS has a free telephone service offering advice on TB biosecurity.
Farmers can also fill out a form to request a callback.
Explaining how the on-farm visits work, Ms Tomlinson said: “During the initial visit, the vet and farmer will identify where the farm’s risks for TB exist and more importantly what can be done about them.
“The farmer and vet then agree four recommended measures to be completed in the next three to six months, before a follow-up visit takes place to discuss progress and what was involved in completing the measures.”
Key risk areas discussed during the visits includes the TB history of the herd, the risk from incoming stock, the risk while out at grazing, geographical risk, the farmyard risk through visitors to the farm, and the risk posed by TB to the business as a whole.
More information about TBAS can be found online or by emailing info@tbas.org.uk and the telephone helpline can be contacted on 01306 779410