Lack of livestock vet would be a concern if bird flu hit
Local farmers are keeping an eye out for any signs of bird flu in their cattle following an outbreak across the Atlantic.
States veterinary officers urged vigilance as cases of H5N1 avian flu spread among cows and birds in the United States and several farmworkers were infected.
Farmers are not worried, but if there was an outbreak the absence of a vet on the island who specialises in livestock would be a concern to the industry.
‘When we lost on-island vet provision, we had concerns about how we would cope if something was to happen,’ said Guernsey Farmers’ Association president Michael Bray.
‘We will keep working with the States vet and our off-island vet and constantly monitoring the animals for signs of infection, as we have always done.
‘We would spot very quickly if there was something not right with the animals as we spend so much time with them.
‘It’s all part of animal husbandry, and for us it is just making sure that if something were to happen that we are on top of it, but fingers crossed it won’t.’
States vet David Chamberlain asked farmers to report any signs in their herds, which include unexplained reduction in milk yield, thickened milk combined with reduced feed intake, low rumination, fever, and dry and tacky faeces.
‘We continue to receive updates from colleagues in the UK and we continue to work with Health & Social Care in the Bailiwick,’ said Mr Chamberlain.
‘We ask local veterinarians to report any unexplained deaths, or neurological and respiratory symptoms in other animals on dairy farms.’
The chances of the virus reaching Europe are considered low.
‘Importantly, the variety of avian influenza virus implicated in dairy cattle in the United States has never been detected in the UK or Europe,’ said Mr Chamberlain.
‘There is no trade in live cattle between the US and the UK due to other disease issues. Meat does not appear to be a vehicle on which the virus can be transported.
‘Research is under way to determine if pasteurisation will effectively neutralise the virus.’
The spread of the virus in the US is thought to be down to the movement of infected cows across state lines. Reporting and surveillance of cattle movement is poor compared with the UK and Europe, where all cows are tagged due to BSE outbreaks in the 1990s.
World Health Organisation figures show that between 2003 and 2023 there was a total of 248 cases of human infection with avian influenza virus from four countries within the Western Pacific region, just over half of which resulted in fatalities.
‘If British cattle did become infected, the likely pathway of human exposure would be occupational, including farmers, dairy workers, and vets. There is no evidence of sustained human-to-human transmission of avian influenza virus,’ said Mr Chamberlain.
