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rynner2 What a Cad!
Great Old One Joined: 13 Dec 2008 Total posts: 21365 Location: Under the moon Gender: Male |
 Posted: 01-07-2013 10:37 Post subject: |
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| rynner2 wrote: |
Yvonne Squire, from Torrington in Devon, had a kitten who caught bovine TB.
She said: "He was attacked by a feral cat. I took him to the vet with a terrible bite. The kitten got worse. I took him back to the vet. They did all these tests.
"They phoned me up to say my little Alfie had TB and he had to be put down. He said there was a dog there who also had it." |
Seems to be a widesread problem:
Cats being infected with TB could be risk to owners, vets warn
Pet cats are being infected with the deadly form of tuberculosis found in cattle and could pose a risk to their owners, vets have warned.
By Richard Gray, and Josie Ensor
9:00AM BST 30 Jun 2013
A study at University of Edinburgh found that the disease, which is caused by a bacterial infection, is more common among domestic cats than previously thought.
Experts estimated that up to 100 out of every 100,000 cats could be infected with Mycobacteria, which include those that can cause tuberculosis, with around a fifth of these being the bacterium found in cattle and badgers.
Veterinarians believe domestic cats could be catching the disease by venturing into badger setts or from rodents that have been in badger setts. They could also catch it directly from cattle or from infected milk.
While the findings may raise fears that domestic pets are helping to spread TB among cattle, vets said the risk to human health was of greater concern.
Most people in Britain have been vaccinated against tuberculosis with the BCG jab, which should offer protection against bovine TB. However, a growing number of people have not been inoculated.
“The real issue with cats with TB is that unless they are feral, they tend to have close contact with humans,” said Carl Padgett, a former president of the British Veterinary Association.
“That is where you ramp up a degree of the public health risk through direct contact with cats that have TB and that is where I see the importance rather than driving the outbreak among cattle.”
Tuberculosis is caused by a type of bacteria known as Mycobacterium. In humans it is typically caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis while in cattle it is Mycobacterium bovis, but this can also cause disease in humans.
In 2011 there were 8,963 cases of TB in humans. Less than 1 per cent is thought to have been caused by the bovine version of the bacterium. Between 1994 and 2011 there were 570 human cases of bovine TB in humans.
The majority of cases were in people who were over 65 and who had drunk infected unpasteurised milk.
The study by experts at the University of Edinburgh Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies found that, in one year, there were 187 cases of tuberculosis in cats, 17 per cent of which were the bovine strain.
Professor Danielle Gunn-Moore, a researcher in feline medicine who has been studying the presence of TB in cats and who led the study, which is published in the journal of Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, said: “This study has revealed that the potential incidence of feline mycobacteriosis in Great Britain is higher than previously thought.
“These findings suggest that these infections are a common cause of clinical significant disease in cats in Great Britain and more work needs to further improve our understanding of these infections.”
She added that vets needed to be more aware of the presence of TB in cats.
The most common cause of the disease in cats was a strain called Mycobacterium microti, which is usually found in voles.
Prof Gunn-Moore said in all the cases of mycobacterial infections in cats she had seen she had never seen an infection passed onto a human and so believes the risk to be extremely low.
"Cats are more of an end stage host rather than being a risk to spread to other animals," she said.
"In all the cases I have dealt with in Britain, I have not seen any cases of humans being infected by cats. There are a small number of cases where the infection has passed from dogs to humans.
"My biggest concern is the fact this is spilling over from cattle and badgers into cats, and poses a risk to cats.
"We are seeing about one per cent of samples sent to labs infected with mycobacterium, which is scary and that is why we are keen to raise awareness of this so vets can look out for it."
A seal pup was put down last week after being found to be infected with bovine TB from a badger bite.
A controversial cull of badgers is due to start this year in an attempt to control TB in Gloucestershire and Somerset, where thousands of cattle are infected by the disease each year.
Official figures from the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) show that it has received just 80 reports of bovine TB in domestic cats since 2009, with just nine being reported last year.
Nigel Gibbens, the chief veterinary officer, told BBC Radio 4’s Farming Today programme this week that the number of cases in cats and other pets was tiny compared with cattle. He said: “Cats, of the pet species, seem to be more frequently infected and that could be because of the way they behave. They roam and do explore and could get into fights with feral cats and badgers themselves.
“There is a threat to humans. If an animal has an unresolving bite wound or a respiratory problem that won’t go away, they should talk to their vets, and vets need to bear this in mind. Transmission to people is possible and has happened but the number of cases in pets is low and so the possibility of this is low.”
Mr Padgett said the Defra figures were probably so small because very few vets were looking for TB in cats.
He added: “The fact that we have this evidence that cats can suffer from bovis is good as it raises the awareness of veterinary surgeons to look out for it.
“We don’t want to get this out of proportion with suggestions that cats are the main spreader of TB. If that was the case, we would have seen a far greater incidence of TB in cats. We also don’t want to panic the general public that cats are a major health risk for TB, but there is something here that needs to be looked at.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/petshealth/10150363/Cats-being-infected-with-TB-could-be-risk-to-owners-vets-warn.html |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17933 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 01-07-2013 21:46 Post subject: |
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| Now the farmers are infecting cats. Is there no end to their perversions? |
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| rynner2 What a Cad!
Great Old One Joined: 13 Dec 2008 Total posts: 21365 Location: Under the moon Gender: Male |
| Posted: 25-08-2013 09:34 Post subject: |
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Brian May hits out at 'propaganda' war against RSPCA on eve of badger cull
Queen guitarist accuses government of taking part in campaign to discredit animal charities 'bringing fox hunters to justice'
Townsend, home affairs editor
The Observer, Saturday 24 August 2013 18.29 BST
Rock star Brian May, a vice-president of the RSPCA, has accused the government of being involved in a campaign to discredit animal welfare organisations as part of an increasingly rancorous war of words ahead of this week's badger cull.
Speaking before the expected start of the cull tomorrow, the Queen guitarist accused officials of utilising vested interests and elements of the media to espouse "propaganda" supporting the controversial scheme.
May, 66, said that Britain's biggest animal welfare charity was under concerted pressure from critics who had not forgiven it for its role in the successful campaign to outlaw fox-hunting.
"The current campaign against the RSPCA is scandalous, completely manufactured by those who condone bloodsports and cannot abide the RSPCA and all other animal charities bringing fox-hunters to justice," he said. "This is all about money and power, vested interests, undercover deals and votes."
The latest developments emerge as animal rights charities are accused of becoming more militant and follow the row over an RSPCA decision to prosecute David Cameron's local hunt, drawing claims from MPs that it was using prosecutions for political purposes.
Stoking the debate are reports that the Charity Commission is considering enforcement action against the RSPCA over the tone of its badger campaign. An advertisement from the charity, headlined "Vaccinate or exterminate?" alongside a picture of a bullet aimed at a badger prompted 118 complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority.
The actual cull is expected to start on Monday evening in the west Somerset and west Gloucestershire pilot zones, though the timing has not been officially confirmed. The pilot will run over six weeks, during which more than 5,000 badgers could be killed as part of a controversial programme to reduce the spread of tuberculosis to cattle. May said members of the public had confirmed they will turn up to register their opposition. An online petition begun by the musician calling for an end to the cull has so far attracted 263,000 names.
On Thursday, the National Farmers' Union won a high court injunction restricting people from protesting against the cull after some members said they had been intimidated and needed protection. However, lawful protest will still be allowed.
"We will fight peacefully and decently, even if the other side is behaving despicably," May said. "Many people say they will be walking their dogs nearby on Monday night and afterwards."
He also claimed that many MPs and officials from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) were finding it problematic to support the ban: "The evidence is that many Tory MPs are finding it increasingly hard to keep supporting the party line on the cull when their constituents are urging them not to. Sadly, it's clear that many of the honest Defra workers are embarrassed by it."
etc...
http://www.theguardian.com/global/2013/aug/24/badger-cull-brian-may-rspca |
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| rynner2 What a Cad!
Great Old One Joined: 13 Dec 2008 Total posts: 21365 Location: Under the moon Gender: Male |
| Posted: 29-08-2013 13:06 Post subject: |
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No badger cull in Cornwall as vaccination project shows 'good progress'
10:01am Thursday 29th August 2013 in News
As the Government launches two “pilot” badger culls in Somerset and Gloucestershire, West Cornwall MP, Andrew George, announced good progress in the project to vaccinate badgers against Bovine TB across west Cornwall.
The Zoological Society of London will oversee the programme which will run for at least six years and extend to the whole of the Penwith peninsula. The Government has granted funds to the project to commence a small trial vaccination project in Penwith. This could commence later this year.
Mr George said: “It is highly unlikely that the Penwith area would ever succeed in securing Government support for a cull, even if it were proven to be a success because when the Government backed badger cull trial was undertaken in the Penwith area a decade ago, non-cooperation and disruption resulted in less than 50 per cent of the area being accessible for culling.
“Bovine TB has had and is continuing to have a devastating effect on many livestock farms here in west Cornwall. It is absolutely essential that we make every effort to get on top of this disease. But the project cannot succeed without the support of volunteers (otherwise it becomes prohibitively expensive) or local farmers and landowners. The response so far has been encouraging but there’s still much more to do.
“Although the Government has offered financial support for a small pilot to be undertaken this year, we still have more work to do to plan for the remaining six years of the project. However, things are coming together well and with the support of the National Trust, the Cornwall Wildlife Trust and the Zoological Society of London I am confident that this project could have a real and beneficial impact on beef and dairy farms in the area.”
http://www.falmouthpacket.co.uk/news/10641320.No_badger_cull_in_Cornwall_as_vaccination_project_shows__good_progress_/?ref=la |
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| jimv1 Great Old One Joined: 10 Aug 2005 Total posts: 2734 Gender: Male |
| Posted: 29-08-2013 19:00 Post subject: |
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I bet these are immigrant, foreign badgers causing all the TB.
Once they spread it to cats, all the babies will die.
I am not making this up. |
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| Cochise Great Old One Joined: 17 Jun 2011 Total posts: 1104 Location: Gwynedd, Wales Age: 58 Gender: Male |
| Posted: 30-08-2013 09:07 Post subject: |
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| Rightly or wrongly, I have come to the conclusion than any official statement or figures coming from this government are simply made-up propaganda. |
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| Heckler20 The Sockpuppet of
Cthulhu's Prodigal Son Joined: 16 Jul 2004 Total posts: 4702 Location: In the Nostril of The Crawling Chaos Gender: Unknown |
| Posted: 30-08-2013 09:31 Post subject: |
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| jimv1 wrote: | I bet these are immigrant, foreign badgers causing all the TB.
Once they spread it to cats, all the babies will die.
I am not making this up. |
Well that's if the Foxes don't eat the babies first.
Won't someone think of the house prices? |
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| Pietro_Mercurios Heuristically Challenged
Gender: Unknown |
| Posted: 30-08-2013 09:33 Post subject: |
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| Cochise wrote: | | Rightly or wrongly, I have come to the conclusion than any official statement or figures coming from this government are simply made-up propaganda. |
Yup!
The insistence on the badger cull leads me to think that the badgers have become some sort of scapegoat or primitive sacrifice, to the vagaries of disease, rather than that there's any kind of sound scientific foundation for it. It's a stab in the dark based up on the most vindictive and primitive instincts of the representatives of the collective agencies that go to make up the British agricultural industry. They can't see the TB bacteria to shoot or poison them and the worms (which may also be carriers), are also too small, so they work their way up the scale until they have a target big enough to be worth aiming at.
Mostly just for the sake of being seen to do something, rather than be accused of doing nothing. |
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| rynner2 What a Cad!
Great Old One Joined: 13 Dec 2008 Total posts: 21365 Location: Under the moon Gender: Male |
| Posted: 03-09-2013 09:11 Post subject: |
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Badger cull protest song enjoys chart success
7:20am Tuesday 3rd September 2013 in News
[ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EllYgcWmcAY ]
A pop song written to protest against the badger cull has reached Number 40 on the iTunes Hot Songs chart.
The track is a mash-up of the Brian May-penned Queen classic 'Flash's Theme' and 'Badger Badger Badger', the infamous YouTube sensation by Weebl. 
The track features guest vocals from mighty-voiced actor Brian Blessed, who played Prince Vultan in the original Flash Gordon film for which 'Flash's Theme' was written.
"Keep the badgers aliiiiiiiiiiive!" Blessed is heard booming at the end of the minute-long track.
'Save The Badger Badger Badger' by Brian May and Weebl was actually released on iTunes on May 20, but has zoomed up the chart over the last 48 hours following an appearance on on Adam Hills's Channel 4 show The Last Leg on Wednesday night (August 28 ).
The track's aim is to raise awareness of Team Badger, a coalition of wildlife protection organisations formed to fight the UK government's plans to cull badgers in a bid to reduce tuberculosis in cattle. On June 1, May led a march through London to protest against the planned cull.
Responding to the track's surge in popularity, May said in a message posted on his official website today: "The British people are speaking in their many thousands, and yet the Government is refusing to listen. We thank them for buying this track and giving the badgers a voice. Let's get this to No.1 so Cameron cannot avoid it... Badgers Rock!"
http://www.falmouthpacket.co.uk/news/10647857.Badger_cull_protest_song_enjoys_chart_success/?ref=la |
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| jimv1 Great Old One Joined: 10 Aug 2005 Total posts: 2734 Gender: Male |
| Posted: 07-09-2013 09:08 Post subject: |
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I see there's now a campaign to rebrand badgers as Hedgehog Eaters.
Here's me thinking they wore tweed suits and gave helpful, paternal advice to all the lesser animals of the wood.
Frankly, they should all be gassed...er hang on...we're all against that now aren't we? I meant SHOT IN THE FACE. |
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| Mythopoeika Boring petty conservative
Joined: 18 Sep 2001 Total posts: 9109 Location: Not far from Bedford Gender: Unknown |
| Posted: 07-09-2013 11:29 Post subject: |
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Recently I've noticed rather a lot of dead badgers by the side of the roads, and without exception all of them look undamaged. That is, they don't appear to have been knocked over or mashed flat by a road vehicle, and no blood is evident.
As someone has suggested elsewhere (possibly on this thread), I think it's completely possible that some farmers have been killing them and leaving the carcasses by the roadside. |
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| jimv1 Great Old One Joined: 10 Aug 2005 Total posts: 2734 Gender: Male |
| Posted: 08-09-2013 09:00 Post subject: |
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| Mythopoeika wrote: | Recently I've noticed rather a lot of dead badgers by the side of the roads, and without exception all of them look undamaged. That is, they don't appear to have been knocked over or mashed flat by a road vehicle, and no blood is evident.
As someone has suggested elsewhere (possibly on this thread), I think it's completely possible that some farmers have been killing them and leaving the carcasses by the roadside. |
That was me. |
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| rynner2 What a Cad!
Great Old One Joined: 13 Dec 2008 Total posts: 21365 Location: Under the moon Gender: Male |
| Posted: 28-09-2013 10:08 Post subject: |
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West Cornwall badger TB vaccine trial to start
A new trial of TB badger vaccines in West Cornwall will start in the next few days, a professor in animal disease has confirmed.
Professor Rosie Woodroffe is working with local conservationists on vaccinations, using trained volunteers.
The £2m scheme is seen as a possible long-term alternative to culling, in work to tackle TB in cattle.
Farmers' union the NFU said it supported vaccination but there were questions over its effectiveness.
The project will see a vaccination area which will cover 200 sq km of the Penwith area.
Professor Woodroffe, of the Zoological Society of London, said: "This area is very promising for TB control because it is surrounded by sea on three sides.
"So, we're not going to have any problems of badgers coming in."
Five farmers will take part in the vaccination programme this autumn, with the project expected to expand and last for seven years.
Trapping badgers so they can be vaccinated against TB, has been happening in parts of west Cornwall for three years.
The original small-scale project is increasing, thanks to funding from the government.
Bob Speechley, of Cornwall Badger Rescue, said: "We have got to work as a group with the farmers.
"We need to get the vaccination going for the badgers, we desperately need to use the cattle vaccine and we need to tighten up security on farms.
"If we can do that, I think we will see a significant drop in TB."
The NFU said that while it "fully supports" the development of vaccines for badgers, the only vaccine currently available is in an injectable form, which "presents problems".
"You need to cage-trap the badgers to vaccinate them", a spokesman said.
"And you have to do it annually for a period of at least five years.
"This makes the process costly... it needs to be carried out by people who have been on accredited courses.
"And here too, there are still question marks over the efficacy of the vaccine."
The NFU added there was no evidence as yet to show vaccinating a proportion of the badger population actually resulted in a reduced risk to cattle.
"An oral bait vaccine is likely to offer the most successful route forwards," the NFU said.
"But, this option is still some years away from becoming a part of any badger control plan."
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Analysis
Adrian Campbell, BBC South West Environment Correspondent
Many farmers blame successive governments for their failure to tackle the problem of bovine TB in the South West.
Some have been driven to despair as they test and test again for a disease which can make or break their livelihoods.
Many farmers have called for a cull but many scientists have said a cull cannot work unless its carried out over a massive area for a sustained period of years.
One alternative is badger vaccination, which is backed back Liberal Democrat MP Andrew George and the Zoological Society of London.
The aim is to use trained volunteers to vaccinate badgers across a peninsula. That has the advantage of reducing the possible risks of badgers escaping to and from the vaccination area.
That is why this trial could produce some important and useful results for politicians, animal welfare groups and farmers.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-24302674 |
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| jimv1 Great Old One Joined: 10 Aug 2005 Total posts: 2734 Gender: Male |
| Posted: 28-09-2013 10:25 Post subject: |
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How do badgers catch TB? Can infected cows give it to them? If this is the case, vaccination is surely the best answer.
Looking around the web, I've also seen that the deer population of the UK also carry TB so expect to see them next in the firing line. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17933 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 28-09-2013 14:03 Post subject: |
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| I reckon farmers infect the badgers. |
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