1. Introduction

The second-High Prevalence mailout for this current season (OML season is from December to the end of November the following year) was sent in late August. In this mailout 280 suppliers were contacted (2015: 342, 2014: 312: 2013; 346). This combined with the 459 suppliers from the April mailout has seen 739 suppliers contacted for high prevalence compared to 778 for the same time last year a 6.2% reduction and down from 914 in 2014 (2013; 882; 2012; 771, 2011; 814, 2010; 823, 2009; 973).

2. Thresholds

As for previous mailouts the national prevalence is taken for the period 1 December 2015 to 31 July 2016. Suppliers contacted in the earlier April mailout are not included in this mailout. The national prevalence for this mailout period was 0.46%, (2015; 0.44%, 2014; 0.47%, 2013; 0.47%,.

3. Summary – North Island

This July mailout combined with that of March totaling 738 notifications represents the lowest number of suppliers notified in these first two mailouts of the year. The increase in TLA prevalence is reflected with an increase in letters to the Taranaki districts with Stratford, New Plymouth and South Taranaki all having increases in letters. Gisborne has increased from the 53 for this period last year to 73 HP letters. Ruapehu has maintained the level similar to last year with 47 notifications (2015; 49) but remains ahead of the 38 in 2014 and 32 in 2013. A sustained drop in letters to Central Hawkes Bays with 27 letters compared to 38 last year and 45 the year before has been maintained while Tararua has stayed on a par with 43 YTD compared to 41 last year and 45 and 58 respectively the previous years. Hastings has also had a reduction from 2013. Manawatu 34 is reduced from 2015’s 48 while Whanganui with 20 continues the decrease seen since a peak in 2013 of 41.

4. Summary – South Island

In the South Island Southland exceeded the number of letters sent for the same time period with 33 compared to 27 in 2015 but still down from the 52 in 2014. Central Otago with 22 up from 16 and Dunedin 14 letters up from 11 last year are the only areas with increases of note. Marlborough with 26 letters is down from the 30 for last year but still higher than recent years reflecting the increase in prevalence seen last year. Tasman is similar with 14 notifications compared to 24 last year a drop of 42%. Hurunui, meanwhile has had a drop of 38% from 31 notifications last year to 19 this year the lowest seen in ten years although some consideration must be given to the fact that many farms are carrying low stock numbers due to drought conditions, lamb kill numbers for the region are 24% below that of last year for the December – July period. Areas including Ashburton, Selwyn and Gore have continued their low notification levels.

5. High Prevalence Ovis Letters by TLA for Lambs processed 1st December to 31st March

North Island

South Island

New Zealand Totals

6. End of Season Lamb Prevalence

The lamb prevalence data for the completed processing season October 2015 – September 2016 is 0.64%. This is equal second lowest since inclusion of viscera data in 2008, Fig 4.
The figure was boosted by a number of large storm lines originating from the South Island property contributing 1,653 infected lambs. Last year’s winter kill (2015) had no significant storm lines resulting in low prevalence as seen in Fig. 3.

Fig 1.

Fig 2. North / South Island Prevalence

Fig 3.

Fig. 4

Want more information contact:

Dan Lynch
Project Manager

Phone: 0800 222 011
Email covis@xtra.co.nz
www.sheepmeasles.co.nz

A number of significant “storm” lines have been processed in recent months. As outlined in the Pig Hunter story, a plant in the lower North Island received a line of 293 lambs, by the time processing had been completed 263 were identified with Ovis, 38 lambs were condemned on the slaughterboard and another 18 the following day during further processing. At one point during processing consideration was given to condemning the whole line!

These lambs came from a property with a number of dogs present but the dogs were on a monthly dosing programme. Given the extreme level of infection across the mob and while hunting on the farm is banned the presence of a foreign dog around the sheep yards is suspected.

In a second event four neighbouring South Island farms killing at three different processing sites within a three-week period all had storm lines processed. The lines started in March with one farm still having substantial infected lines being processed in May. Over the March to May period the four farms killed 21,494 lambs with 846 infected. Twenty lambs have been condemned.

All four farms reported being on a monthly dosing programme and no reports of stray dogs in the area. A rabbit hunting contractor had been on some farms but not all and the associated dogs were all on a monthly dosing programme.

In both situations identification of a source of infection proved difficult due to the time that can elapse before infection is found. In both cases the farms concerned appeared to be carrying out correct Ovis control with an expectation of monthly dosing across all the properties involved. However, the events above, demonstrate the impact an infected dog can have on a naive flock and the desirability of having a “zero tolerance” level to dogs being brought onto farms without evidence of treatment.

Over the past years, since schemes of compulsorily dog dosing have ceased, the majority of sheep farmers have instigated voluntary dosing for their dogs to prevent outbreaks of sheep measles which is a parasitic infection of sheep meat spread by dogs. Many think sheep measles is a minor issue but in one particularly bad case recently, one North Island farmer had 263 lambs infected at processing out of a line of 293 with around 56 condemned.

It is important that you, as a Pig Hunter, play your role in helping to restrict the spread of this parasite. It will also help you to gain access onto farmland by doing a few minor things.

One of the most important things you can do is have your dogs dosed regularly.

Dan Lynch, the Project Manager for Ovis Management Ltd, the meat industry company responsible for education and awareness of sheep measles, says that “farmers are increasingly aware of on-farm biosecurity issues such as sheep measles. While they are spending money dosing their dogs their attention is focusing on external sources of infection and a major risk to stock is from foreign dogs such as those with hunters, coming onto sheep pasture.”

Farmers are taking the approach that all money and effort preventing infection on farms is at risk the moment someone else’s dog comes on the farm unless that dog is on a treatment programme.

Wairarapa sheep farmer and Chairman of Ovis Management, Roger Barton, takes a stronger tack. “Easy hunting access to private farmland may become a thing of the past if pig hunters don’t have their dogs dosed for sheep measles”.

He encourages farmers to require evidence that dogs have been dosed for sheep measles before they are allowed on the property for hunting. And he asks hunters to take responsibility for their role in fighting a parasite capable of hurting farmer’s profits and damaging lamb exports. “Most hunters are pretty onto it,” he says. “But some – including some who have a lot of dogs – don’t dose, or feed those dogs properly to control sheep measles. “All you need is one untreated, infected dog on a pig to get lost, or go for miles across sheep country, and you’ve got a major problem.”

He acknowledges farmers themselves have a huge role to play in containing the risk posed by sheep measles, which threatens not only key industry markets but can have a major impact on farmers’ incomes. “Farmers have to feed their own dogs correctly, make sure their freezers are working (sheep or goat meat should be frozen at minus 10 degrees for 10 days before feeding to dogs) and dose their dogs regularly. ”They also need to stop turning a blind eye to the status of dogs visiting their property. Barton says the best thing for hunters to do is strike up long-term relationships with farmers whose land they would like to hunt across or near (see tips below). And of course get their dogs treated. “Trade implications of sheep measles are potentially quite serious”. “Using a tape wormer tablet such as Droncit or Wormicide on a monthly basis, which is all that is needed to control sheep measles, costs around $12 a year per dog for small dogs, and around $24 a year for large ones. That adds up when you’re talking a team of eight or nine dogs but it’s cheap compared with the costs of a sheep measles storm outbreak or, if you are a hunter, having issues about farm access.”

Vets have a role to play too, in reminding customers to dose their dogs and ensuring treatment is up to date.

Some Tips for new hunters

• Phone the farmer, tell him or her who you are, and ask for access to or across their land for hunting.
• Take them a beer!
• Sit down and find out what the rules for access to the property are.
• Know where the neighbour’s boundaries are.
• Phone your vet and let them know you are coming in to have your dogs treated. And keep an eye on the calendar – dogs should be treated at least 48 hours (but no more than four weeks) before going onto a farm.

The initial 2016 High Prevalence mailout for the time frame December 2015 – March 2016 has been carried out. The mailout was being sent to 459 suppliers compared to 436 for the same period last year, 602 in 2014 and 536 in 2013.

One factor contributing to the increased number of notifications compared to last season was the accelerated kill in the early part of the season with suppliers processing stock that may have come forward later with Ovis. An indication if the early kill is contributing to the increase in HP letters will be seen in subsequent mailouts.

In the North Island, as in recent years for the initial mailout, the Ruapehu region received the most notifications with 35, compared to 26 for the same period in 2015 and 29 for 2014. Gisborne had 34 up from 22 for the same period last year and 29 in 2014. Tararua also had an increase to 28 from 25 last year.

In the South Island, Southland had 20 notifications, the same as last year for this period. Hurunui had 15 letters down from 22 last season while Central Otago also had 15 up from 11 last year.

Two regions of interest, Marlborough and Tasman, both with large increases in notifications last year received fewer notifications than for the same period last season with Marlborough receiving 13 letters against 16 last year and eight in 2014. Tasman received nine letters down from 19 last year and 10 in 2014. Their notification figures will be watched with interest as the season progresses.

High Prevalence Supplier Mailouts – North Island

High Prevalence Supplier Mailouts – South Island

High Prevalence Supplier Mailouts – South Island

Lamb Prevalence

As always lamb prevalence is the key indicator of farmer behaviour in controlling sheep measles. Overall lamb prevalence for the current processing season, October 2015 to May 2016, was 0.52%. This is the same as that for 2014-15 October to May period and slightly down on the 0.53% for the same timeframe in 2013-14.

In recent months however, the South Island prevalence is ahead of previous seasons. One contributing factor is the number of high prevalence lines coming forward from the four neighbouring storm farms The impact of the storm line in the North Island is seen in that island’s prevalence which is also ahead of last season.