September 24, 2007

UK Chief Vet: "New FMD virus already three weeks old"

The Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) virus, found in cattle in the county of Surrey last week, is likely to have spread more than three weeks ago, according to UK's chief veterinary officer.

British head vet Debby Reynolds said that the FMD outbreak has already spread to the newly discovered area before UK declared free of the disease.

The cattle culled at the latest stricken farm, The Klondyke, at Virginia Water, carried lesions that were more than ten days old.

Both cattle and sheep from the farm also had antibodies for the virus, which shows the infection is as old as three weeks.

A transport ban related to FMD is bound to affect the British pig industry, says Reynolds.

The UK has faced five cases of FMD since as two farms near laboratories in Pirbright were found infected in August ¨C and only hours after any FMD-related ban was lifted last week, more cases were reported.

Up until now, altogether, five locations have been found infected.

In another suspected case of the virus, tests conducted in a bull in Solihull, in the West Midlands, about 170 kilometres north of Surrey, proved negative for FMD, the British Department of Environment, Forestry and Rural Affairs (Defra) has said.

The temporary control zone there has been lifted.