{"id":167366,"date":"2025-11-30T09:49:07","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T09:49:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/167366\/"},"modified":"2025-11-30T09:49:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T09:49:07","slug":"bluetongue-virus-detected-in-cattle-in-co-down-control-measures-in-place-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/167366\/","title":{"rendered":"Bluetongue virus detected in cattle in Co Down, control measures in place \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The first suspected bluetongue virus outbreak in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/northern-ireland\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/northern-ireland\/\">Northern Ireland<\/a> is under investigation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The disease is believed to be affecting two cows near Bangor, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/down\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/down\/\">Co Down<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">On Saturday, the North\u2019s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) introduced a 20km temporary control zone, and moving susceptible species in or out of it is now prohibited.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">A general licence is available that allows animals to cross the boundary if they are going directly to slaughter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Bluetongue is an animal disease that affects livestock including cattle and sheep, as well as goats, deer and llamas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Symptoms include a blue and swollen tongue, fever, reduced milk yield and, in the most severe cases, death.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">It does not affect humans or food safety and is primarily transmitted through midges.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon said: \u201cThe news of a suspect bluetongue outbreak in Northern Ireland is unwelcome.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">\u201cMy thoughts are first and foremost with the affected farm family, and those farmers in the locality who will be worried about their own herds now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">\u201cThis development has potentially serious implications. If the disease becomes established in one part of the island, it will be that much easier for it to spread, with consequences for animal health and welfare, and financial and emotional stress for farmers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Northern Ireland Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir said all producers affected by the new control measures need to help limit the virus.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">\u201cWhile there was always a potential for bluetongue to arrive here, given its prevalence in GB and the EU, we must now do all we can to protect our livestock and limit the spread of the disease,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The suspected cases were detected by Daera\u2019s active surveillance for the disease.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The first case of bluetongue serotype 3 (BTV-3) in England since early March 2024 was confirmed in one sheep in Norfolk on August 26th that year, Daera said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">There are now more than 260 premises affected in England, it added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The direct movement of all ruminants and camelids from Britain to Northern Ireland is suspended as a result. It can resume once the UK recovers its EU-recognised disease-free status for bluetongue.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Daera\u2019s chief veterinary officer, Brian Dooher, said the virus \u201cis unpredictable and can spread rapidly through and between flocks and herds\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">\u201cColleagues have been preparing for a possible incursion of this disease and have been working closely with our colleagues in the Republic of Ireland to ensure a co-ordinated response in tackling any incursion,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Symptoms must be reported immediately to a vet, local divisional veterinary office or the Daera helpline on 0300 200 7840. \u2013 PA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The first suspected bluetongue virus outbreak in Northern Ireland is under investigation. The disease is believed to be&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":167367,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[21753,103,61,60,2443],"class_list":["post-167366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-down","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-northern-ireland"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167366"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167366\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/167367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}