Cattle handling risks and first reactor.

After watching various neighbours suffer with herd breakdowns over the last five years, it seemed to this couple that eventually they were the only clear farm in the area. Each time they worried about the results. Waiting the three days for each result became more and more difficult. Both have full time jobs as they could not make the farm pay for itself but they were keen to keep a herd of cattle as both were from farming families and they are passionate about good quality, tasty, full flavoured meat and animal welfare. They believe smaller farmers are a vital part of farming, playing an important role in habitat diversity and wildlife conservation. They are concerned that the future of such farms is threatened as a result of all the bureaucracy now involved in all sectors of farming and bTB is onerous for the smaller scale operations. They have spent a great deal of time and effort building up their herd, breeding their own calves and they take a lot of pride in the condition of their animals. They use their own land for grazing and rent in additional land when necessary, The cattle are housed for some of the winter but left out for as long as possible, as their ideal is for grass fed animals.

They were originally on four year testing. This increased to annually a few years ago with increasing herd breakdowns in the area. Latterly it has increased to every six months. It is a small farm with a herd of around fifty, with some breeding and some reared for beef. They operate an extensive system of management with minimal interference. Some of the animals are not easy to handle and there is always concern regarding the health and safety aspects of the testing. As testing has become more and more frequent they have had to completely upgrade their existing handling facilities. They have several animals that are high spirited and difficult to round up and pen. Testing is a very risky business. It is hard work, labour intensive and time consuming. They had many near misses with their old equipment, with physical injuries both to themselves and cattle. They therefore had no option but to upgrade. They have only been able to afford to do this by designing a bespoke system using second hand equipment and undertaking the labour work involved themselves. Even so, the concrete, steelwork, yolk gates and ingenious system that uses a bar to force the animals through, which locks if the animal tries to walk backwards, cost thousands of pounds. They had to fund all this themselves, even though it is used mainly for testing. Even with the better system, they have found they have needed to make several adjustments after each test as problems have come to light. The problems are never evident until they happen. They have animals of various sizes as they have several different breeds, from calves to mature adults in varying sizes so all need to be adequately catered for. On one occasion they almost lost an older calf as it doubled back along the high gated passage and managed to get enough of a run to attempt to jump over the rear gate, despite the fact it was almost 7 feet high. It got its leg stuck and hung dangling. Had it not been for the very quick action of the two of them and their helpful vet the animal would have had to have been shot. Thankfully, with great effort and risk to themselves, they managed to get her down. An additional steel bar has been added to raise the height further to try and ensure there is not a repeat of this incident. They know only too well that when cattle dislike being handled they will go to any length to try and escape. Whilst they have as good a system as they can get, they dread testing as the animals always seem to know what is happening and get very stressed. They worry too about the health and safety risks for themselves.

Sadly on the last routine test the inevitable happened. One of their animals tested was a reactor. It was their best animal and had looked in very good condition. They are now waiting for it to be collected for slaughter. They are devastated and feeling very depressed, although both are trying to be positive about the future. Each of the tests involves both of them having to have two days leave from work. They now have to have more time off for the next test due in 60 days. If bTB is confirmed in their herd even more testing will be needed. They know that the compensation they will receive will not cover all the associated costs; the expenses and indirect costs of a bTB herd breakdown. They will not be able to move any of their animals as they are now on movement restriction. Animals that are ready for slaughter now cannot be sold. They will have to stay on the farm, possibly well into the winter, thus incurring feeding costs. They will also have to endure more testing. They know that their costs will increase and they are powerless to do anything but wait and hope future tests will be clear. They do have badgers on their land but are adamant their badgers are healthy badgers. However, they have noticed a new set spring up recently on the other end of their farm and wonder if new badgers have moved in.