This report includes reflections on potential response to disease outbreaks
Recommendation from this report:
- Easily accessible courses on sheep handling, welfare and disease recognition
- Establishing formal networks for spreading disease news (potentially a Facebook group dedicated to smallholders)
- Providing biosecurity guidelines specific to smallholders and crofters
- Clear guidelines on how to notify a disease outbreak could be shared in an easily accessible format for sheep keepers on the edge of communities and not in current formal networks
- Providing clear quarantine guidelines that can be practically adhered to for small scale sheep holders
- High health for entire males available for hire for breeding purposes (tups), including records of preventive treatments, vaccination, or quarantine measures.
Small scale sheep keepers have a role to play in monitoring their livestock to prevent outbreaks of disease, not only on their own holdings but to contain potential outbreaks on a larger scale. Past studies have looked at commercial sheep production on farms of 100+ head of livestock but little is recorded on small sheep keepers where typically the numbers are below 100, often below 10.
Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a notifiable disease in the UK and is caused by a highly infectious virus affecting sheep, cattle, pigs and goats. The last large-scale outbreak of FMD in the UK was in 2001, and it could cause devastating effects on livestock if another outbreak was to occur. It is therefore important that livestock holders are aware of potential practices that could leave them open to their stock catching the disease and of them spreading disease. Many people keeping livestock at the moment would not have been holding livestock during the previous outbreaks, and therefore will not have firsthand experience of the impact. The FMD control strategy for Great Britain outlines the protocol in place to minimize risk once the disease has been identified with the main objective to eradicate the disease and return to disease-free status. Preventive actions for the spread of FMD are centred around the need to maintain high biosecurity standards. This report presents research into how small-scale sheep producers respond to disease risks and identifies the current biosecurity measures routinely in place. It also highlights whether the keepers are in a good place to identify and contain any potential situations that might occur and their ability to respond to potential national outbreaks to prevent their livestock becoming the focal point for any outbreaks. To look at these issues 13 small scale sheep keepers across Scotland (Figure 1) with fewer than 100 head of head of sheep were interviewed. As few people had experienced the previous FMD outbreak, we also looked at response to sheep scab outbreaks, which is also a notifiable disease as an example of approach to an outbreak.
The uptake of biosecurity measures are low amongst the smallholder interviewed (few were able to describe their biosecurity measures employed on-farm). They live in remote locations with little contact with other sheep producers, rarely visiting potential contamination sources, for example the local mart, and rarely buying in additional animals. They have less opportunity to learn from their peers and are less likely to hear about standard practices in use and changes in practices that could be beneficial. Potential problems identified would be the borrowing of breeding males (tups) and a misunderstanding of the quarantine measures that should be in place. Small-scale sheep keepers develop their own networks, and some try to find a mentor. They indicated that they would find out about outbreaks on social media. The smallholders indicated that establishing a good veterinary relationship to provide the welfare support for their livestock was useful.
It should be noted that none of the sheep keepers interviewed had sheep during the 2001 FMD outbreak, although two study participants were working with livestock at the time and described their experiences. The smallholders had not encountered sheep scab with their own sheep. They had a clear consciousness of the risks that could be faced if there was a theoretical outbreak of disease and the resulting devastation that might impact on their own situations.
Animals held on crofts are in a unique situation. In some areas crofting townships are still operated. These are situated in remote areas and sheep keepers of a range of scales often work together. However, some crofts are not part of townships and operate independently, not relying on the community for joint activities. The animals in the crofting townships are held together accessing common grazing and together the livestock are looked after, sharing resources, including breeding males. Not bringing in animals from external sources is essential to the safe operating of the system. Their main strength, in terms of biosecurity, is in close cooperation and communication.
Several of the sheep keepers interviewed indicated they would like more information on biosecurity, disease and quarantine, relevant to keeping sheep in small numbers. They experienced difficulty in finding resources, although some had accessed both face to face and on-line training.
