Originally from: Ron
                        
No more to say, I hope.

My attitude to the present official stance on the so called TSE question is forthright, for that I make no apology. So these two contributions I have received today says it all as far as I am concerned. Thank you Frances and David.

Joyce and I fell in love with the Shetlands because of their variety. We wish to do our part to encourage the colours, that is why with Dusty Miller's Moorit and the variety of colours and patterns we have in our 16 ewes we hope there will be some interesting lambs.

I will pass no further comment unless invited.

Ron

*****************************
Dear Ron, do not take your ball and go away, as Jane so rightly says, we can all have our say, this SHOULD apply to the Shetland chat-line,too ! Some people, for their own reasons will not like either what you are saying or what you are trying to do. Of course the Shetland chat-line and others are where these differences should be aired, where else ? To disagree with someone's viewpoint does not make them wrong and you right.Perhaps, as you intended, if a debate were underway, we might all learn something, however painful. I have to say, if you do take the trouble(and, really, with the web, it is no real hassle) to log onto a search engine with the word "Scrapie", it is amazing how well -informed you can become. The more you learn , the more you realise that the NSA is so flawed in its concept and its mis-named scientific opinion that any reasonably intelligent individual would say, "Hey, now, just a cotton-picking minute". If we all decided that bad ideas, bad advice , bad laws had to be taken on board, we would only have ourselves to blame for the outcome ! Come back 1984, all is forgiven(or at least, forgotten). I agree with fighting back. the more I find out about Scrape, the less I realise, is known, and that applies to those in power who are making the decisions, But, if a law or whatever, is perceived by most to be stupid, unjust etc. it will be ignored and will join the ranks of its forbears, in the dust-bin of democracy.
Fighting Frances
***********************************

Those who recall my opposition to the NSP scheme will be surprised to see me defending the SSS stance on testing – and I do so only reluctantly and on one peripheral issue. On the Islands there was historically a problem with scrapie – not that it "infected" people but that there was too much of it for good farming and animal welfare. A far sighted local vet Edwin Moar (?spelling) once a test for susceptibility was found started to campaign for tups to be tested with a view to removing valine from the breeding pool. Nothing else was to be removed, tests were financed (I think) from the local council (using its oil revenue for long term sustainability) and at first all tests were voluntary.Ewes were not tested then or now under this system.

In due course a scrapie test "pass" ie no valine was a requirement for entry into the flock book sale in Lerwick (the main place to buy and sell a tup) but then as now ARQ/ARQ was acceptable under the scheme. In due course this flowed out into some of the non flock book crofts although even now not 100%

The SSS did see the advantages of this – and like the Flock Book Trust requires a scrapie test for males sold under its banner – I think we are a bit more liberal in that we do not forbid the sale of a valine animal as long as this is disclosed to the purchasers. Of late I have seen, with growing concern,that these steps have been elongated so as to put enormous pressure on breeders to have animals of R1 status – never mind the quality,never mind the other characteristics just go for R1.To my mind this is a most dangerous development and must be resisted at all costs for this breed as well as for all Northern Short Tailed Breeds.I do note that it is to the financial advantage of breeders of R1 tups – and think this may well continue or even increase as the NSP bites.

As a Society we hold a reservoir of coloured Shetlands – and patterns that are now as rare on the islands as they are here (eg Gulmogets) – we must not be seduced by the NSP into demeaning the value of characteristics other than a high R rating – never forget that ARQ/ARQ is scrapie resistance.Neither must we be seduced into killing good female sheep of whatever rating rather than getting on with the long term job of breeding their best characteristics into their daughters and sons sired by scrapie resistant tups .

As to the NSP – we test privately but have not joined and will not unless/until it becomes compulsory.

David Trotter
Rivendell Flock of Shetland Sheep
Northumberland

PS ON registration – you can register any pure bred Shetland Sheep with a 3 generation pedigree.An "approved" ram is one that is inspected by Society Inspectors and approved for pure breeding.Given the clear link (empirically demonstrated) between valine and an increased susceptibility to scrapie we cannot approve a valine ram for pure breeding. Others on Committee would wish to go further I think – it is my view that they are wrong – only time will tell.