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There has been no evidence to date of deer playing a significant role in TB breakdowns outside of west Wicklow, according to a senior Department of Agriculture vet.
A number of deputies at a Joint Oireacthas agriculture committee meeting on Tuesday 11 December raised concerns that the Department was underestimating the role played by deer in TB outbreaks.
Evidence
Eoin Ryan, a senior vet in the Department, said they were required to base their policies on evidence and that to date they had seen none suggesting deer were to blame for TB outbreaks anywhere but Wicklow.
He said the Department had tested 74 deer and only three had shown signs of a TB infection. He made reference to particular concerns raised by farmers in Kerry and Clare.
Of 39 deer tested in Kerry, one was shown to have TB. In Clare, none of the 16 deer tested had TB.
Fianna Fáil’s Jackie Cahill raised the example of an outbreak near the village of Killoscully, Co Tipperary, where farmers believed deer were playing a role.
Testing
Ryan emphasised that in any case where farmers had suspicions deer were to blame for a TB breakdown, they should liaise with the Department and local hunters to arrange a number of samples to be collected.
He said the samples could be brought to the local regional veterinary lab (RVL) where they would be tested to determine any TB presence.
Ryan explained the Department did not dispute that deer could pass TB to cattle but that they disputed whether it played a significant role outside of Wicklow.
He said: “The question isn’t whether it happens at all, it is whether it is significant.”
He added: “There is a perception that the Department of Agriculture don’t want to talk about deer. We are happy to talk about it but were happier to talk about things there’s evidence to.”
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