This is a subscriber-only article
The Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), has confirmed that eight cases of Schmallenberg (SBV) were detected in sheep abortions.
As first reported in the Irish Farmers Journal, the cases were detected in Tyrone and Fermanagh, marking a significant spread west of the disease in Northern Ireland.
SBV was first detected in Northern Ireland in Co Down in 2012, and clinical signs include congenital abnormalities in aborted animals or in animals born alive or dead.
ROI
The Schmallenberg virus is also now affecting counties Galway, Mayo and Roscommon.
Regional veterinary labs (RVLs) have reported an increase in the number of suspected SBV cases in aborted lambs, in particular, and calves submitted during January.
Abnormalities include bent limbs or fixed joints, stiff necks, curved spines and a shortened lower jaw.
That can make lambing difficult, and in some cases a caesarean is required.
The disease is spread by midges, and the mild and wet autumn in 2017, is thought to have suited midge breeding populations which in turn had led to an increase in SBV incidents.
SHARING OPTIONS: