Resilience of French cattle farms to bovine tuberculosis detection between 2004 and 2017

Publication date: Available online 21 January 2020Source: Preventive Veterinary MedicineAuthor(s): Laetitia Canini, Benoit DurandAbstractFrance was recognized officially bovine tuberculosis (bTB) free by the European Union in 2001, however an increase of bTB detections has been reported since 2004. Even though the recommended method for bTB control is whole herd depopulation, test-and-cull protocols have been authorized in pilot areas since 2008 and in the rest of France since 2014. BTB impact at the state level and on trade has been thoroughly studied, however the consequences of these control measures at a farm level are poorly understood.We used bovine movement data from the French cattle tracing system and surveillance data from the National reference laboratory to compare time to closure between case farms with a bTB detection and matched control farms between 2004 and 2017 in France. For this purpose, we considered two modes of closure: (i) long-lasting (more than 12 months) depopulation and (ii) change of farm owner. Using a competing risk analysis, we showed that bTB detection significantly increased the odds of long-lasting depopulation (particularly during the first three months after bTB detection) indicating that farmers renounced restocking after the depopulation, whereas it decreased the odds of a change of owner. Larger farms, characterized by an increased average weekly number of cattle, had a lesser risk of long-lasting depopulation. Farms owned by a natural ...
Source: Preventive Veterinary Medicine - Category: Veterinary Research Source Type: research