Pathways to Progress with BJD for Veterinarians

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Pathways to Progress with BJDfor Veterinarians

• Mr Phil Whitten Dairy Australia, BJD Project
  Manager
• Dr Andrew Padula Veterinary Consultant
• www.dairyaustralia.com.au/bjd March April 2008

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Overview

• Introduction
• Why worry about BJD?
• Key steps for managing BJD
• Dairy industry activities
• National Dairy BJD Assurance Score
• 3-Step Calf Plan
• BJD communication and training
• RD projects on BJD
• Dairy industry resources on BJD

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Introduction
1. Introduction

• Road show of information sessions in Vic and Tas
• Provide information on BJD
• Working with stock agents and milk companies
• Aiming to get all farmers reducing their risk of
  BJD

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Key drivers for tackling BJD
2. Why worry about BJD?

• Common dairy cattle disease in south-east
  Australia
• Hypothesised link to Crohns disease in humans
• No proven link but apply the precautionary
  principle
• Many countries now with BJD programs
• On-farm economic losses
• Market access into the future?

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Why worry about BJD?
3. Why worry about BJD?

• Relatively common dairy cattle disease
• Hypothesised link to Crohns disease in humans
• MAP found in some Crohns patients
• MAP found in overseas retail milk surveys
• Insufficient evidence to support a link
• MAP in milk may make future market access
  difficult
• Some on-farm economic losses

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Food Safety Authorities Review
2. Why worry about BJD?

• Crohns and Mptb hypothesis reviewed by many
  international food safety bodies
• Many published studies and conflicting results
• FSANZ review in 2004
• no evidence for a causal link between Mptb and
  Crohns but apply precautionary principle

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Keys to management
3. Key steps to managing BJD
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Its all about risk management
3. Key steps
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Whole chain risk management summary
3. Key steps to managing BJD
Cattle Harvesting Processing Markets
Hazard BJD in herd Hazard Faecal contamination of milk Hazard Pasteurisation efficacy Hazard Market sensitivity to MAP
Critical Control Points Good calf hygiene Remove shedders Avoid Introducing BJD Critical Control Points Good milking hygiene Critical Control Points Understand efficacy of heat tx Adequate time and temp Critical Control Points Communication and awareness
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Effectiveness of strategies
3. Key steps to managing BJD
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What is the industry doing about BJD?
4. Dairy industry activities

• Reducing the risk of BJD
• Communication and training
• Educational program on BJD for all sectors
• New industry programs for calf rearing and low
  risk introductions
• Partnerships between industry and government
• Moving to less regulated system of management
• Research and development
• Alternative diagnostic tests
• Milk survey for Mptb, heat treatment of milk
  effectiveness

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3-Step Calf Plan
4. Dairy industry activities

• Agreed fundamental steps for BJD control
• Relevant to every dairy farm
• Included in company QA manuals
• Companies provide an advisory service to farmers
• Auditable

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Step 1 Calves removed within 12 hours
4. Dairy industry activities
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Step 2 No access to effluent
4. Dairy industry activities
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Step 3 12 months separation from adults
4. Dairy industry activities
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National Dairy BJD Assurance Score
4. Dairy industry activities

• A tool for farmers to better understand the risk
• Developed as a voluntary tool
• Assist in making low risk herd introductions
• Ranks existing BJD programs by risk
• The higher the Score the lower the risk

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Comparing the risk
4. Dairy industry activities
Free Zone (WA)
Market Assurance Program herds
Protected Zone
Single test negative
Approved Control Programs
Hygienic Calf Rearing Programs ie. JDCAP
(Victoria) or 3-Step
Infected or Suspect
All Non-Assessed herds after July 2008
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Cattle veterinarians role with Dairy Score
4. Dairy industry activities

• Support farmers implement risk reduction measures
• Basic principles
• Calf rearing programs
• 3-Step Calf Plan
• JDCAP
• Test Control Program pros and cons
• CattleMAP

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Communication and training
4. Dairy industry activities

• Dairy industry encouraging all farmers to reduce
  risk
• Communications to raise awareness of BJD
• Materials to support 3-Step Calf Plan
• Farmer seminars planned
• Training for range of industry sectors on BJD
• Factory field service
• Stock agents
• Veterinarians

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Research and development on BJD
4. Dairy industry activities

• Alternative diagnostic test development
• Evaluation of herd level screening tests
• Aim to find the most heavily infected herds
• Bulk milk tank antibodies, milk PCR for Mptb
• Bulk herd faecal culture

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Environmental sampling
4. Dairy industry activities

• Culture of a single representative herd sample
• pooled faecal sample from holding yard
• Project evaluating sensitivity in known infected
  herds
• USA has protocol for Test Negative Status program
• Relatively sensitive herd level test (50)

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BJD Vaccination
4. Dairy industry activities

• DPI-Vic and Pfizer project
• Some use of vaccines in Australia previously
• Minor use permits for Silirum
• Issues BJD vaccines raise
• Efficacy and its evaluation
• Blood test status post-vacc
• TB testing cross reactivity
• Injection site lesions
• Import protocols and animal ID

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Dairy BJD resources
5. Dairy BJD resources

• Web site www.dairy.com.au/bjd
• Publications
• 3-Step Calf Plan
• Dairy Score
• BJD Technotes for vets and advisers
• Dairy farm guidelines for BJD
• DVD on BJD best-practice
• Project manager

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Summary

• Now in era of living with BJD
• Support farmers in reducing risk of BJD
• Farmers must manage it as part of everyday
  farming
• www.dairyaustralia.com.au/bjd
• END