Knowledge,attitudes and management of bovine viral diarrhoea virus among eastern Australian cattle producers: results from a 2013 cross-sectional study

Bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) is an economically significant disease affecting the Australian cattle industry, with losses stemming from decreased production and reproductive performance and control costs. However, these losses can be difficult to appreciate, particularly in endemic regions. Overall, there is a variable but high herd-level seroprevalence in Australia. Despite a potentially high financial burden of the disease, the onus for control ultimately falls on producers and strategies employed will vary between regions. A cross-sectional study, using a postal survey, was conducted in 2013 to evaluate the BVDV knowledge, attitudes and management practices utilised by Australian cattle producers. A total of 192 producers participated in the study, and results indicate that knowledge and attitudes towards disease risk are variable and can be improved. Producer knowledge of how persistently infected (PI) animals are produced was higher than that of disease outcomes or transmission pathways. Implementation of biosecurity practices was limited, with approximately half of respondents employing quarantine procedures for introduced stock and only 2% indicating they would antigen test introduced stock for BVDV. Approximately a third (36%) of producers reported engaging in BVDV control, with the majority of these using vaccination strategies over deliberate exposure to a PI. Knowledge of and engagement with BVDV control was positively influenced by the producer relationships with veterinarians. Findings from this study suggest that building on education and delivering a consistent message among stakeholders would likely improve producer awareness and understanding in relation to BVDV and support decision making in BVDV management.     

Adoption of biosecurity practices in the Australian poultry industries

OBJECTIVE: To determine the level of adoption within the Australian poultry industries of a range of standard biosecurity practices. DESIGN: A questionnaire survey of owners and managers of 1753 commercial poultry farms. Procedure Information was collected by telephone or in person from the owners and managers of poultry farms. Data were entered onto an Excel spreadsheet and analysed using the statistical tools within Excel. RESULTS: The response rates to the questionnaire for the chicken meat, egg, duck and turkey sectors were 94%, 37%, 92% and 96% respectively. Within the chicken meat sector, the adoption rate exceeded 98% for 11 practices with only the rates for appropriate disposal of spent litter/manure (94%) and development of farm level biosecurity plans (88%) falling below this level. Adoption rates for all practices had increased or remained at 100% since the last survey conducted in 2001. Integrated companies in the turkey and duck sector also reported high levels of adoption for most biosecurity practices although rates for the use of fresh litter, cleaning of sheds between batches of birds and maintenance of single age flocks were lower than in the chicken meat sector. Adoption rates for biosecurity practices on independently owned farms in the turkey and duck sectors were lower than for farms operated by integrated companies. CONCLUSIONS: Farms in the chicken meat, turkey and duck sectors of the Australian poultry industries have a high level of adoption of biosecurity practices with only a small proportion of farms needing to further enhance their biosecurity.     

Infection control and biosecurity in equine disease control

Infectious diseases are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in horses, along with economic costs and broader impacts associated with the loss of members of a species that generates income, acts as a working animal and is a companion. Endemic diseases continue to challenge, emerging diseases are an ever‐present threat and outbreaks can be both destructive and disruptive. While infectious diseases can never be completely prevented, measures can be introduced to restrict the entry of pathogens into a population or limit the implications of the presence of a pathogen. Objective research regarding infection control and biosecurity in horses is limited, yet a variety of practical infection prevention and control measures can be used. Unfortunately, infection control can be challenging, because of the nature of the equine industry (e.g. frequent horse movement) and endemic pathogens, but also because of lack of understanding or motivation to try to improve practices. Recognition of the basic concepts of infection control and biosecurity, and indeed the need for measures to control infectious diseases, is the foundation for successful infection prevention and control.     

Knowledge, attitudes and practices of traceability among livestock traders in south-western Nigeria: implications for sustainable livestock industry

Livestock diseases and other animal health events are a threat to achieving sustainable livestock industry. The knowledge of trace-back and the practice of providing feedback on diseases encountered in slaughtered animals from the abattoir to the farm can help limit the spread as well as manage potential future incidents of such diseases. We assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of 200 willing livestock traders on traceability in Bodija Municipal Abattoir, south-western Nigeria. The results reveal that the majority of these traders had poor knowledge (79.5 %) and practices (74.0 %) of traceability, though 89.5 % demonstrated good attitudes. While 22.9 % knew that traceability could be an effective means to control diseases, only a lower proportion (9.0 %) knew the health status of the animals being purchased. Though 29.0 % reported the diseases encountered in their animals during slaughter to the farm, only 9.5 % followed up to ensure the farmers take steps at preventing further occurrence of the reported diseases. While age (p?=?0.000; 0.014) and education (p?=?0.000; 0.000) were both significant for good knowledge and attitudes, frequency of condemned cases (p?=?0.000) and length of years in the trade (p?=?0.004) were, respectively, significant for good knowledge and attitudes with none associated with practice. These poor levels of knowledge and practices of traceability are a threat to sustainable livestock industry, food security and human health; hence, there is an urgent need to institute national feedback mechanism on slaughtered animals in order to strengthen interventions against diseases at farm levels.     

Neurological diseases of ruminant livestock in Australia. II: toxic disorders and nutritional deficiencies

The second in this series of clinical reviews on neurological diseases in ruminant livestock in Australia examines toxic disorders associated with plant and microbial toxins as well as the neurological effects of vitamin and mineral deficiencies. The aim of these reviews is to assist in the surveillance of neurological diseases, especially the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies.     

Estimating the level of disease risk and biosecurity on commercial poultry farms in New Zealand

ABSTRACT

Aims: To collect baseline data on the contact risk pathways and biosecurity practices of commercial poultry farms in New Zealand, investigate the relationship between the farm-level disease contact risks and biosecurity practices, and identify important poultry health concerns of producers.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey of all registered New Zealand commercial poultry operations was conducted in 2016 collecting information on farm demographics, biosecurity practices, and contact risk pathways. Survey responses were used to generate an unweighted subjective disease risk score based on eight risk criteria and a subjective biosecurity score based on the frequency with which producers reported implementing seven biosecurity measures. Producer opinions towards poultry health issues were also determined.

Results: Responses to the survey response were obtained from 120/414 (29.0%) producers, including 57/157 (36.3%) broiler, 33/169 (19.5%) layer, 24/55 (44%) breeder, and 6/32 (19%) other poultry production types. Median disease risk scores differed between production types (p?<?0.001) and were lowest for breeder enterprises. The greatest risk for layer and broiler enterprises was from the potential movement of employees between sheds, and for breeder enterprises was the on- and off-farm movement of goods and services. Median biosecurity scores also differed between production types (p?<?0.001), and were highest for breeder and broiler enterprises. Across all sectors there was no statistical correlation between biosecurity scores and disease risk scores. Producers showed a high level of concern over effectively managing biosecurity measures.

Conclusions: The uptake of biosecurity measures in the commercial poultry farms surveyed was highly variable, with some having very low scores despite significant potential disease contact risks. This may be related to the low prevalence or absence of many important infectious poultry diseases in New Zealand leading farmers to believe there is a limited need to maintain good biosecurity as well as farmer uncertainty around the efficacy of different biosecurity measures. Further research is needed to understand barriers towards biosecurity adoption including evaluating the cost-effectiveness of biosecurity interventions.     

The structure, dynamics and movement patterns of the Australian sheep industry

Objective To describe the structure of Australia's sheep industries and the movement of sheep to enable examination of the potential for animal movements to spread disease between farms. Procedure The structure, size, marketing and movement patterns of Australian sheep farms was determined through (i) review of data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics and Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics, (ii) interviews with producers and saleyard managers and (iii) expert opinion. Results Twelve geographic regions are described, based on the type and extent of sheep farming in each region. Five production sectors were identified within the Australian sheep industry, with the proportion of each varying between the geographic regions. Over the past 20 years, the industry has decreased in size and contracted from the northern and central areas of Australia. Movement of sheep onto the majority (79%) of properties was limited to the introduction of less than 50 stud rams annually, although cross‐bred‐ and wether‐based farms introduced up to 2000 sheep annually; 75% of sheep movements occurred over distances less than 200 km, but stud rams moved up to 500 km. An increasing percentage of movements off farms was direct to abattoirs and over 80% of sheep sold through saleyards were purchased by abattoirs. Conclusions The majority of Australian sheep farms operate as self‐replacing enterprises and introduce few stock. In addition, most sheep movements occur over distances of less than 200 km and therefore sheep movements within Australia have only a limited potential to spread disease over larger distances.     

Neurological diseases of ruminant livestock in Australia. IV: viral infections

Most viral infections that affect the central nervous system of ruminants are exotic to Australia. As such, this review focuses on viruses of importance in Australian ruminants, including Akabane virus and the ruminant pestiviruses, bovine viral diarrhoea virus and border disease virus, as well as bluetongue virus. Each virus is discussed in terms of pathogenesis, clinical signs and diagnosis.     

杜仲的活性成分及其在畜禽生产和疾病防治中的应用

杜仲不仅含有丰富的蛋白质、维生素、微量元素及脂肪酸,而且含有木脂素类、环烯醚萜类、苯丙素类、黄酮类、多糖类等生物活性成分.杜仲的活性成分在畜禽生产中发挥着促生长、提高免疫力、改善抗氧化功能、抑菌的功能,还能够防治疾病、改善畜禽产品品质、提高养殖经济效益.文章对杜仲的活性成分及其在畜禽生产和疾病防治中的应用进行综述.     

The current status and outlook for insecticide,acaricide and anthelmintic resistances across the Australian ruminant livestock industries: assessing the threat these resistances pose to the livestock sector

The Australian ruminant livestock industries are faced with the need to control parasitic infectious diseases that can seriously impact the health of animals. However, increasing levels of resistance to insecticides, anthelmintics and acaricides are substantially reducing the ability to control some of these parasites. Here we review the current situation with regard to chemical resistances in parasites across the various sectors of the Australian ruminant livestock industries and assess the level of threat that these resistances pose to the sustainability of these sectors in the short to long terms. We also look at the extent to which testing for resistance occurs across the various industry sectors, and hence how well-informed these sectors are of the extent of chemical resistance. We examine on-farm management practices, breeding of parasite-resistant animals, and non-chemical therapeutics that may act as short to long term means to reduce the current reliance on chemicals for parasite control. Finally, we look at the balance between the prevalence and magnitude of current resistances and the availability and adoption rates of management, breeding and therapeutic alternatives in order to assess the parasite control outlook for the various industry sectors.     

Neurological diseases of ruminant livestock in Australia. I: general neurological examination, necropsy procedures and neurological manifestations of systemic disease, trauma and neoplasia

Disease surveillance is an integral part of most veterinary practices in Australia. The aim of this series of invited reviews is to facilitate the differential and ultimately definitive diagnosis of some of the previously known, as well as the novel and emerging, neurological disorders of ruminant livestock, which is of particular importance in the surveillance for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. General principles of a systematic neurological examination, necropsy procedures and the neurological manifestations of systemic disease, trauma and neoplasia are described here.     

Neurological diseases of ruminant livestock in Australia. III: bacterial and protozoal infections

Bacteria (including chlamydia) and protozoa can produce neurological disease in Australian ruminant livestock and the nature of the inflammatory and neuroparenchymal response is often suggestive of a particular aetiological agent. An overview of the clinicopathological features of infectious disease affecting the central nervous system (CNS) is followed by a discussion of important bacterial and protozoal infections in Australia. Each infectious disease is discussed in terms of classification and pathogenesis linked to clinical signs and gross and microscopic findings. The literature review is restricted to infectious conditions causing CNS disease in Australia. Sources include the Australian Veterinary Journal (over 50 years of articles), the quarterly newsletter of the National Animal Health Surveillance System and the Animal Health Surveillance Quarterly.     

Traditional livestock breeding practices of men and women Somali pastoralists: trait preferences and selection of breeding animals

Somalia, one of the world's poorest countries, has livestock as the mainstay of the economy, with an estimated 65% of the population engaged in the livestock sector. This paper presents a gendered study on the traditional livestock breeding practices of Somali pastoralists for camels, cattle, sheep and goats, with a focus on documenting livestock traits of importance, the criteria used to select male breeding animals and the criteria used to cull female breeding animals. Data for the study were obtained by performing participatory rural appraisals (PRAs) with separate male and female pastoral groups from 20 settlements of the Tog‐Dheer region of Somaliland (in north‐western Somalia). In total, more than 500 pastoralists were involved. In terms of livestock ownership, goats were the most common species kept (97% of all households), followed by sheep (64%), camels (37%) and cattle (9%), with considerable herd size variation across households. Traits of key importance to the pastoralists varied by species and gender of the PRA group, but included adaptedness to harsh environmental conditions, high market value/high meat production and high milk production. The pastoralists practised sensible criteria for the selection of male breeding animals for all species, capturing aspects of productivity (milk yield, reproduction), adaptedness (good hardiness) and marketability (body size and conformation). Similarly, they practised sensible criteria for culling of female breeding animals, with females removed from the herd primarily for poor performance, but also to meet the livelihood needs of the family. Differences in the selection and culling criteria were noted by species, as well as gender of the pastoralists. On the whole, there was strong alignment between the livestock selection criteria used by the Somali pastoralists, their reasons for keeping livestock and the market requirements. This is not surprising given the intimate and long‐standing relationship between Somali pastoralists and their livestock.     

A review of management practices for the control of anthrax in animals: the 2005 anthrax epizootic in North Dakota--case study

Outbreaks of anthrax have diverse consequences on society. Establishing the appropriate control strategies is very important and crucial in reducing the socio-economic impact of the disease. Control measures are aimed at breaking the cycle of infection, and their implementation must be adhered to rigorously. The objectives of this paper were: (i) to review the control strategies currently used in management of anthrax in animals and (ii) to describe management strategies used by producers in North Dakota during the 2005 anthrax outbreak in livestock. Anthrax control strategies were divided in to strategies that apply before, during, and after an anthrax outbreak. This paper also highlights the problems or constraints faced by North Dakota producers in controlling anthrax during the outbreak of 2005.     

Potential impact of species and livestock density on the epidemic size and effectiveness of control measures for foot-and-mouth disease in Japan

The characteristics of a livestock area, including farm density and animal species, influence the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). In this study, the impact of livestock area on FMD epidemics was examined using an FMD transmission model. For this simulation, three major livestock areas were selected: the 2010 FMD epidemic area in Japan as the baseline area (BS), a cattle and pig mixed production area (CP) and a cattle production area (C). Simulation results demonstrated that under the 24-hr culling policy, only 12% of epidemics among 1,000 simulations were abated within 100 days in the CP area, whereas 90% of the epidemics ceased in the BS area. In the C area, all epidemics were successfully contained within 100 days. Evaluation of additional control measures in the CP area showed that the 0.5-km pre-emptive culling, even when only targeting pig farms, raised the potential for successful containment to 94%. A 10-km vaccination on day 7 or 14 after initial detection was also effective in halting the epidemics (80%), but accompanied a large number of culled or vaccinated farms. The combined strategy of 10-km vaccination and 0.5-km pre-emptive culling targeting pig farms succeeded in containing all epidemics within 100 days. The present study suggests the importance of preparedness for the 24-hr culling policy and additional control measures when an FMD outbreak occurs in a densely populated area. Considering the characteristics of the livestock area is important in planning FMD control strategies.