Animal Health And Veterinary Laboratories Agency Research Articles

Liver copper concentrations in cull cattle in the UK: are cattle being copper loaded?

With the release of the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs/Advisory Committee on Animal Feed Guidance Note for Supplementing Copper to Bovines it was noted that the current...

Factors associated with bovine tuberculosis confirmation rates in suspect lesions found in cattle at routine slaughter in Great Britain, 2003–2008

Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is one of the most complex and intractable animal health problems facing the British cattle industry today. The inspection of carcasses from cattle sent to slaughter is part of routine surveillance for bTB in Great Britain (GB). Tissue with suspect lesions from cattle from herds previously considered uninfected with bTB is sent to the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) for culture and histopathological examination for Mycobacterium bovis infection. In this study, risk factors for confirmation of infection in suspect bTB lesions found at routine slaughter of cattle from officially bTB-free (OTF) herds in GB were investigated. The study sample included the first record of a suspect lesion in a bovine from any OTF herd identified during post-mortem inspection between 2003 and 2008. There were 3663 submissions from 151 slaughterhouses of which 2470 (67.4%) were confirmed as culture positive for M. bovis. Logistic regression analysis with a random intercept for slaughterhouse was used to investigate relationships between bTB confirmation and animal and herd-level risk factors. Slaughterhouse of post mortem and the following factors related to bTB prevalence were significant predictors of confirmation probability: region of farm of origin of the animal, the testing interval for routine field surveillance for bTB on the farm, number of reactors in the last bTB incident on the farm within the last 4 years, if applicable, the animal's date of birth and the year of animal's slaughter. The modelled predicted population averaged probabilities for confirmation varied from 0.14 to 0.90 between slaughterhouses. Differences in the detection of cattle with bTB between British slaughterhouses warrant further study.

Influences of farmer and veterinarian behaviour on emerging disease surveillance in England and Wales

Surveillance for new and re-emerging animal diseases in England and Wales is based on post-mortem and syndromic analysis of laboratory data collated in a central database by the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA), with the aim of providing early warning of disease events prior to clinical diagnosis. Understanding the drivers for participation in such systems is critical to the success of attempts to improve surveillance sensitivity. The aim of this study was to investigate the decision-making process governing the submission of biological samples on which this surveillance system is based by use of questionnaires. Data extracted were used to structure and parameterize scenario trees modelling the probability of generating an entry in the surveillance database. The mean probability for database entry per case ranged from 0.085 for neurological disorders to 0.25 for enteric disease. These findings illustrate the importance of on-farm decision making to the generation of surveillance data.

Fibromatous lesions of antler velvet and haired skin in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)

Fibromatous nodular lesions were observed on the antler skin of reindeer from four separate farms, and from the haired skin from a deer from a fifth farm. The aim of...

Targeted surveillance for Usutu virus in British birds (2005–2011)

Veterinary RecordVolume 172, Issue 1 p. 17-17 Research Targeted surveillance for Usutu virus in British birds (2005–2011) D. L. Horton MA, VetMB, MSc, PhD, MRCVS, Corresponding Author D. L. Horton...

Suspected ethanol toxicity in juvenile blackbirds and redwings

DURING August 2011 the Cumbrian police were called to a primary school where the bodies of 12 juvenile blackbirds ( Turdus merula ) in varying stages of decomposition had been found. One additional bird was alive but unwell. Foul-play was considered as a possible cause of the deaths. The carcases were radiographed, revealing no obvious abnormalities, and then taken to Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) – Penrith and examined under the Diseases of Wildlife Scheme. All birds were in good body condition but some had feathers missing from the breast and neck areas. Postmortem examination and histopathology revealed no obvious abnormalities apart from signs of trauma in some birds. However, all 12 birds had berries present in their gastrointestinal …

Bison and copper

Veterinary Clinical PathologyVolume 40, Issue 2 p. 138-139 Bison and copper A.P. Foster, A.P. Foster Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) – Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK[email protected]Search for more papers by this authorB.W. Strugnell, B.W. Strugnell AHVLA –Thirsk, Thirsk, North Yorkshire, UKSearch for more papers by this authorJ. Payne, J. Payne AHVLA-Sutton Bonington, Sutton Bonington, Loughborough, Leicestershire, UKSearch for more papers by this authorA. Schock, A. Schock AHVLA – Lasswade, Bush Loan, Penicuik, Scotland, UKSearch for more papers by this author A.P. Foster, A.P. Foster Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) – Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK[email protected]Search for more papers by this authorB.W. Strugnell, B.W. Strugnell AHVLA –Thirsk, Thirsk, North Yorkshire, UKSearch for more papers by this authorJ. Payne, J. Payne AHVLA-Sutton Bonington, Sutton Bonington, Loughborough, Leicestershire, UKSearch for more papers by this authorA. Schock, A. Schock AHVLA – Lasswade, Bush Loan, Penicuik, Scotland, UKSearch for more papers by this author First published: 01 June 2011 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-165X.2011.00326.xCitations: 1Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume40, Issue2June 2011Pages 138-139 RelatedInformation