Who's who in the M. bovis response?
In this update, we look at the two main advisory groups for the response. Both groups are chaired by an NZVA member.
Technical Advisory Group (TAG) - This group of animal health specialists was formed to advise on the options and long-term planning for the Government's national response to M. bovis. It recommended eradication. The group is chaired by Scott McDougall, managing director of Cognosco, a company involved in animal health research and development. Scott has previously worked as a scientist with the Dairy Research organisation, now DairyNZ.
Other members of the TAG are:
- Professor Robin Nicholas, a British consultant, who has been head of the Mycoplasma Reference Laboratory in the UK
- Professor Glenn Browning director of the Asia-Pacific Centre for Animal Health, University of Melbourne
- Professor Jeff Caswell, a Professor of Pathology, Ontario Vet College
- Dr Mark Humphris, an Australian dairy veterinary consultant
- Professor Larry Fox, Professor of Dairy, Washington State University
- Dr John Morton, a veterinary epidemiological consultant from Geelong
- Dr Simon Firestone, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne
- Dr Ben Madin, an epidemiologist and director of AusVet
- Dr Stephen Cobb, an independent consultant with SRC Associates
- Professor Nigel French, Professor of Food Safety & Public Health at Massey University
Technical Working Group (TWG) - Essentially the new TWG is the old Industry Working Group (IWG). The TWG pan-industry group is chaired by the NZVA's Chief Veterinary Officer Helen Beattie. It meets weekly to discuss issues arising during the response, consider solutions, and provide scientific, evidence-based guidance and feedback to M. bovis response governance. Its role is also to coordinate and share, wherever possible, consistent messaging to key stakeholders; and support the response by providing access to subject matter experts on technical policy and other issues.
Organisations represented on the TWG are:
- Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) - Liaison (Secretariat); Intelligence; Planning; and Public Information Management (PIM) units
- DairyNZ
- Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ)
- Federated Farmers
- Road Transport Forum
- New Zealand Stock and Station Agents Association
- New Zealand Veterinary Association
- Beef & Lamb New Zealand
- Meat Industry Association
Are calf days on or off?
A position on calf days is expected from the TWG in the next 10 days and is in line with communications that have already been provided by several organisations. Given that New Zealand is attempting phased eradication of M. bovis, calf days should not take place for 2018. Once New Zealand has a better understanding of the national herd’s M. bovis status, a review on these events can occur.
Calf schemes that require calves to be moved and mixed with other herds should also be avoided for 2018, given the significant implications if the source herd became an infected property. Donations in kind, as cash, or rearing of the donated beast on the home farm through to slaughter are some alternate options.
What are NoD, IP and RP and how do they relate to each other?
There are three types of legal notices (with movement controls) being used by MPI during the M. bovis response:
Notice of Direction (NoD): These are issued to properties which have an unknown level of risk – such as trace farms that have not yet been tested, or have results pending. Movements onto the property are not restricted, but any cattle movements off the property are prohibited except with a permit issued directly from MPI. Some cleaning and disinfection processes are likely to be required.
Infected property (IP): A property with confirmed M. bovis infection. These properties will be under a Restricted Place Notice.
Restricted Place Notice (RP): These are issued to properties that may or may not have confirmed M. bovis infection, but are considered very high risk. All cattle movements are prohibited on or off the property, except with a permit issued directly from MPI. Equipment and personnel entering or leaving the farm must follow strict cleaning and disinfection protocols overseen by AsureQuality.
More information is available on the MPI website.
What's the plan for bulk milk testing in spring?
This spring, as part of the M. bovis response, all dairy companies will be testing every farm supplying milk.
This bulk milk surveillance programme will help to give further assurance of previous non-detects, and identify any clusters of the disease that have gone undetected so far.
M. bovis can hide in an infected cow, not showing up until weeks or months after the animal has contracted the disease. The spring months are the best time to test for M. bovis because infected animals are more likely to shed the bacteria after a stressful period, such as calving and the start of lactation.
See more details from MPI:
Testing, testing, testing - what's the right way?
An individual test (or even a small number of individual tests) is not useful to prove a herd nor an animal’s negative status – M. bovis may be “not detected” only (or positive).
Access to further commercial testing is still under discussion. Details about access to the testing, and sampling numbers, sample selection and sampling protocols (i.e. which test or tests are required, how many animals, and from which epidemiological groups, and ensuring a random selection) are key components of this discussion.
Fitness-for-transport certification
The New Zealand Veterinary Association (NZVA) has advised its members that providing fitness-for-transport certification for cows in the last four weeks of pregnancy should be avoided.
Cows are in or approaching this time of their pregnancy right now, and the NZVA's advice is that the animals should not travel long distances at this stage of their pregnancy.
NZVA Chief Veterinary Officer Dr Helen Beattie BVSc said the association's veterinarian members have been advised not to certify cows as fit for transport if the animals are within the final four weeks of giving birth, even if they are caught up in the culling required as a result of the cattle disease Mycoplasma bovis (M. bovis). The no-transport advice applies to travel of more than two hours between properties or to the meat works for slaughter, and is in line with DairyNZ's advice to famers.
"The NZVA's intention is to provide advice that is in the best interests of animal welfare and will provide clarity for farmers and veterinarians about this issue during the M. bovis eradication response."
"The NZVA and its members are working closely with the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and farmers to identify other options for late pregnancy cows, as the welfare of the animals is paramount. A heavily pregnant cow is already physiologically stressed and in their condition they should not have to undergo the ordeal of travelling in a stock truck for long hours, standing all the while and not being able to lie and down and rest.
"It is legal to transport pregnant livestock but, in our view, cows should not be transported in their last four weeks before calving. Veterinarians should not be asked to clear them for transport when it is clearly not in the cows' best interests."
Dr Beattie said the NZVA continues to work alongside MPI and industry stakeholders to help farmers deal with the many challenges and uncertainties created since the disease was discovered in New Zealand one year ago.
"One of the closest and most trusted advisors a farmer has is their veterinarian. We fully support MPI's focus on the farmer and their welfare, as well as the animals, during this phase of the M. boviseradication response. The NZVA is keeping veterinarians well-informed, and providing advice where needed, so that the profession can give the best advice possible during such a difficult time for dairy and beef cattle farmers, particularly those caring for affected herds."
Farmers should seek advice from MPI response personnel if a cow cannot be certified for transport because it is in the late stages of pregnancy. "Ideally, decisions need to be made before it gets to this point."
Helen Beattie
NZVA Chief Veterinary Officer
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