Keen Marlborough Interest In Footrot Control Method

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29240, 25 June 1960, Page 9

Keen Marlborough Interest In Footrot Control Method

Marlborough farmers, are keenly interested in footrot eradication and a considerable number of inquiries have been received for advice by the Department of Agriculture’s South Island footrot specialist, Mr P. H. Sibley, at Blenheim, in the six months or so since he took up his appointment.’

Mr Sibley is at present proceeding quietly, doing the ground work for an expanded campaign which will begin in the spring. This will include demonstrations to groups of farmers and instruction of departmental officers. Other areas will also receive attention and Canterbury should be well up on the list for an early call.

Not Complete The department’s scheme, whiph is receiving Wool Board encouragement, has not yet been completed, and in the meantime, Mr Sibley has been concentrating on extension work, and advice to farmers’ personal inquiries. The purpose of the scheme is to get all farmers on to one standard method of control.

Referring to a recent veterinary advisory leaflet published by the department, which sets out briefly the New Zealand recommended control programme, Mr Sibley

said that permanent control of tootrot in a’ flock was not easy and greater success was likely with the farmer "who bred all his replacements than could be expected with the farmer who bought in new sheep each year. In areas where rainfall was high a more or less continuous control scheme was necessary to keep the disease at a minimum level, but, with care, control could be achieved. The leaflet recommends that during the dry summer-autumn period of the year all sheep should be examined carefully and infected sheep segregated.

The healthy sheep should be put through a footbath of formalin and put straight into a paddock which has been free of sheep for at least a fortnight and a month later the clean sheep should again be examined, put through a footbath, and returned to the paddock.

Infected sheep should have their feet pared with foot secateurs and a sharp knife, so that all diseased tissue is removed. The animals should then be put through a formalin footbath and kept in an isolation paddock until

they appear to have recovered. Minor damage to healthy parts of the foot, caused during the paring, need cause no alarm, since the formalin footbath will prevent infection. I

When the infected sheep have recovered they should be put through a footbath into another spelled paddock. If at the end of 14 days these sheep appear healthy, they may be put through the footbath once again and may rejoin the main clean flock. There will always be a few animals which do not respond to treatment. These should be slaughtered. Where the disease is of common occurrence permanent footbaths .should be constructed. Cradles also should be made, as they are the best means for examining the sheep.

“There has been an enthusiastic response from Malborough farmers who have shown keen interest in the department’s method and with hard work under the present scheme a worthwhile reduction in the incidence of the disease can be achieved.” Mr Sibley said.