After a shaky start, it seems like summer is finally here. As more people get outside for countryside walks over the summer, the risk of dog attacks on livestock increases. Dog attacks result in the severe injury or death of thousands of animals each year. Surveys have found that attacks have been increasing since the pandemic, probably as a result of the huge increase in puppies bought during this time. The NFU report that UK farm animals worth an estimated £2.4 million were severely injured and killed by dog attacks last year. This is up almost 30% from the previous year.
These attacks are heartbreaking for farmers and vets dealing with the aftermath, as well as – dare I say it – the owners of the dogs involved. While I'm sure many are irresponsible for not having their dogs on leads, very few will have expected that their beloved pet could behave in such a way. Education will be key, and the threat of prosecution will play a part in that.
That is why I was interested to read about a forensic research project being run by Liverpool John Moores University. Researchers are working with farmers, police and vets to improve the collection of dog DNA from livestock that are attacked. Currently, rural crime police cannot always attend quickly enough to collect DNA, as it will degrade quickly on an animal exposed to the elements.
Early evidence kits have been developed by the university so a forensic sample can be collected at the scene by police, vets and farmers. DNA will be collected in minutes and the samples can then be processed by the police. As this is still a research project, it remains unknown whether these will be accepted as evidence for criminal trials, but this is an exciting development. The kits are being distributed in 10 regions across England and Wales this summer.
In this issue of Livestock, we have a wide variety of articles for you. Ginny Sherwin looks at ‘Why is longevity an important metric for the modern dairy herd?’ on p130. On p138 we have an article on the control of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis. In this article Maria Guelbenzu describes the disease, its diagnosis and control and eradication at herd and European level. Owen Aitkinson discusses building for the dairy cow and the role that vets play when new housing is built (p144). Adam Hayward and Phoebe Beal look at exploiting tolerance of infection to reduce the impact of gastrointestinal nematodes in sheep (p148). On p155, Emili Canavan-Hicks, Jenny Hull and Claire Neillans look at the examination of rams for breeding. Finally, Alison Howell (p162) provides an update on liver fluke in sheep and cattle.
I hope you enjoy this issue. Please let us know your thoughts and any other topics you would like us to cover at vet@markallengroup.com