– William Shulaw, Extension Veterinarian, Cattle and Sheep, Ohio State University
Controlling or eliminating Johne’s disease in a herd takes time and commitment. A final observation from the Demonstration Herd Project is that the herd owner must become well informed about the disease and set realistic goals. If this includes making rapid progress, and perhaps eventual elimination, careful consideration regarding retaining home-raised heifer replacements must be given. One of our beef herds had made the decision to try to eradicate Johne’s disease from their herd before they were enrolled in the Project in 2004. To their great credit, the owners had recognized the possibility that a replacement heifer could become infected as a calf and not begin shedding for several years. This could destroy a lot of hard work and expense after considerable progress toward that goal had been made by exposing a future calf crop to MAP. Before 2004, they made the decision not to keep their own heifers until they had reason to believe the disease was gone or nearly so. Toward that end, they have purchased some heifers from a herd enrolled in Ohio’s Test-Negative Status Program. After removal of two cows following the first sampling in the fall of 2004, and one more after sampling in the spring of 2005, they have had six consecutive, semi-annual, whole-herd tests with all negative culture and blood test results. Continue reading Johne’s Disease: Control and Elimination (part 3)