"A future outbreak will be controlled by a cull"

Originally from: frances fish
                        
Just WHAT lessons have been learned ? If you have your head stuck in the sand then it must be very difficult to see any other point of view. In fact, you will be stuck in a time-warp where nothing changes and nothing gets any better. I think that Defra/Seerad epitomises this attitude for most farmers. Yet the farmers themselves are urged to embrace new technology, to change their practices, to adapt, to diversify or to go to the wall. Isn't it about time that Defra and its northerly cousin Seerad, swallowed some of their own medecine and began looking at their own way of "working " ?Isn't it time they dragged the way they regard and deal with animal diseases into this century ? Its not a question with them, to kill or not to kill, killing is the FIRST line of their perceived defence. Yet this same government urges all parents to have their children vaccinated, it is irresponsible not to. But this vaccination must be as per big brothers edict, you must not choose to have seperate jags it must be all or nothing ! Yet, if the choice was available to go down either road, would it not solve the problem at one fell swoop ? Presumably it would be more expensive (but I'm also sure that many parents would pay a subsidy to go down the road of choice) If, and perish the thought, FMD or another disease should rear its head again, farmers will not be given a choice apparently, cattle will be culled, vaccination is still lurking somewhere in the background.Yet in this day and age, it should be very much in the foreground. Lets hope Europe is able to drag these dinasaurs into the modern world or, alternatively, looking on the bright side, they may, like their predecessors, become extinct ! Oh, happy day !!!! Frances

Originally from: Bill
                        
Was nothing learned, Frances, or did they know all along? The epidemic screeched to a halt after Osama hit the twin towers in New York. Maybe Blair decided there were bigger fish to fry.

The disease was being spread by contagious contact, humans as biological carriers. Remember Brigadier "Birtie" Birtwistle? Since he retired he has gone on record admitting the Army would have done more to stop the spread of the disease by staying in their barracks.

In 2001 the doctors' surgery near Fulwood Barracks recorded an epidemic of what they were told to diagnose as "Hand Foot and Mouth [Coxsackie virus] Disease". My very good friend with 15 years in general practice has never seen the like of it before or since.

Incidentally it is impossible to catch "Hand Foot and Mouth" from animals as the Coxsackie virus exists solely in mankind. If you erupt in a rash after being sprayed with bodily fluids from an FMD infected animal YOU HAVE GOT FMD.

Ribble Valley farmers realised vets were spreading the disease by contagious contact and stopped FMD in its tracks barring vets from disease free farms. (Without so much as a whimper of protest from DEFRA)

I have a copy of a report written in 1912!!!!!!! that concludes humans working to halt spread of the disease do the exact opposite, the net result being the disease spreads further and the epidemic lasts longer.

I feel as if I have been banging my head against a brick wall for the last 3 years.

All the best,
Bill.