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Maedi Visna Accreditation Scheme
We would urge all new flocks to join the Maedi Visna Accreditation Scheme. If you have recently purchased stock then you should contact the Sheep & Goat Health Scheme, PO Box 5557, Inverness IV2 4YT, Telephone 01463 226995 for full details of the scheme.SAC vets are urging sheep farmers who sell breeding sheep to join the Maedi Visna (MV) Accreditation Scheme, as the disease becomes more common in non-accredited flocks.
SAC Veterinary Investigation Officer Catriona Ritchie said: “Some farmers may think because MV is not widely recognised, that it is not worth joining the scheme but the incidence of MV is increasing.”
“So our message to sheep farmers is that you can buy from an MV-accredited flock confident in the knowledge you’re not buying in the disease. In the unlikely event that there is a breakdown, early testing provides the best opportunity for eradication. By joining the scheme, your flock will benefit from regular testing.”
“MV can cause severe economic losses in infected sheep flocks through deaths from pneumonia and wasting and its knock-on effects such as poorer fertility, reduced milk production resulting in increased lamb losses and lower weight gains in lambs. There are also losses from the premature culling of adult sheep because of mastitis, occasionally arthritis and paralysis.
If your flock is not part of the scheme then you may like to consider joining.
Contact Sheep & Goat Health Scheme, tel : 01463 226995.