FlockCheck reduces high lamb fatalities

Mar 25 2008 by Steve Dube, Western Mail

THE UK sheep flock could be losing around one in six of its lamb crop in the period leading up to and immediately after birth.

A report in the Vet Times says this equates to more than 5m animal deaths each year that have a huge impact on the bottom line of any farming business.

A study of the costs of Chlamydophila abortus (enzootic abortion or EAE) in lowland sheep flocks estimates that losses due to abortion and the birth of weak and sickly lambs that die soon after birth can reach £5,000 over a five year period for every 100 ewes infected.

The two main causes of abortion (EAE and toxoplasmosis) diagnosed in 2006 accounted for over 67% of all cases. The third biggest cause, campylobacter, accounted for just 12% of the reported abortions.

“Investigating the cause or causes of aborting ewes around lambing and taking the appropriate remedial action will help to reduce similar losses at future lambings,” said Intervet large animal veterinary adviser, Rosemary Booth. “In well-managed flocks, it should be possible to reduce the losses stated above by up to two-thirds,”

Around 600 farmers use Intervet’s subsidised blood testing service every year to help them find out the cause of the abortions and still birth in their flocks.

The service, called FlockCheck, runs annually and will be launched again at the end of this month. It analyses samples taken from aborted ewes and reports the findings back to the farmer and supporting vet.

The results show whether the flock has been exposed to EAE and/or toxoplasmosis, allowing an appropriate vaccination programme to be planned later in the year to prevent the two diseases causing similar losses at subsequent lambings. Farmers interested in FlockCheck can get details from their vet.