Rapid test positive

Bovine TB: Farm closed after suspected case

Bovine tuberculosis has been hanging over Vorarlberg agriculture like the sword of Damocles for years.

(Bild: Dietmar Mathis )

It was quiet for a long time, but now the fear of bovine tuberculosis (TB) is spreading again in Vorarlberg. Following abnormalities in a cow during slaughter in Germany, a farm in the Hinterer Bregenzerwald had to be temporarily closed.

It is not yet certain whether the cattle were actually infected with TB, but the rapid test was positive. We now have to wait for the definitive findings. Until then, the farm from which the animal originated remains off-limits. However, milk deliveries are exempt from the ban - the milk may be used as long as it is pasteurized before further use.

10,000 cattle tested
As a precautionary measure, Vorarlberg vets will once again carry out large-scale tests on farms in December, with a total of around 10,000 cattle in 700 stables to be tested - in the "high-risk areas" of Klostertal and Montafon, all cattle and cows will be tested.

Infection through red deer
This effort is not unfounded: The cattle remain on the pastures in the Vorarlberg side valleys until well into September. There is a possibility of contact with red deer, which are considered to be carriers of TB.

It was only in October that two deer in Montafon tested positive for the disease, and in four other cases from the Hinterer Bregenzerwald there is at least a suspicion of TB, but there is no definitive result yet.