A program to control Johne’s disease in dairy and beef herds must be a made-in-Canada solution and must be one that farmers want, says Matt Taylor of the Animal Health Coalition.
He said farmers must first evaluate similar programs in countries such as Holland and Australia, then examine the latest research and calculate the economics.
“If (a national control program for Johne’s) goes ahead, I want the one producers would like.”
A National Johne’s Disease Committee was formed last year and includes representatives from government, industry and academia.
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The committee, which is expected to create a rough draft of a national control program within the next 12 months, met following the first national forum on the disease. It was held in November at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon.
More than 100 people attending the national meeting received an overview of Johne’s and its possible links to Crohn’s disease in humans, as well as herd certification and surveillance programs used around the world.
John Kellar, national manager for animal disease surveillance with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said Canada’s long-time voluntary program for Johne’s control was discontinued in the 1990s due to a lack of producer interest.
It involved CFIA, veterinarians and farmers, culled infected animals and included a number of checks on herd health that limited day-to-day activities of producers, he said.
“Producers did not determine enough benefit to stay with it.”
Kellar said the cattle industry is now more proactive. Producers have easy access to the latest information on the disease through sources such as the internet, which makes them more aware of the effects on cattle productivity. They are also more aware that the growing size of herds and farms makes control and eradication more necessary.
The forum explored a number of issues, including concerns about the disease’s spread to wildlife, the merits of a reportable disease program and ethical dilemmas for veterinarians who suspect or diagnose the ailment in animals.
Some questioned whether there was sufficient laboratory capacity in Western Canada to do the tests required to control Johne’s.
Producers looked to other countries for ideas that might work in Canada.
“There are excellent models in other countries,” Kellar said.
“We have to critique those rather than re-invent.”
Studies under way by the Canada Health Network are examining the prevalence of diseases like Johne’s in Canada’s dairy and beef herds.
