TB reactor Shambo to be put down (passing the bullock part 3)

At last. Finally this danger to the countryside is going to be put down. TB reactor Shambo to be put down.

On Tuesday, rural affairs minister, Jane Davidson said she was minded to proceed with an order to put him down. - Well thats jolly nice of her, taken the woman long enough to do the right thing.

A slaughter order in May, caused outcry among Hindus and others at the multi-faith Skanda Vale community. The Many Names of God is a monastic centre which embraces all faiths and includes three Hindu shrines. - Still theres always someone who thinks the law doesn't apply to them.

The six-year-old black Friesian tested positive for bovine TB during a routine screening on 27 April.

But Hindu monks at the temple in Llanpumpsaint, launched a worldwide campaign to save the animal, saying it was contrary to their faith and its killing would desecrate the temple. - But never mind the deaths that could arise from a bovine tb outbrake.

David Miliband passed the buck on the tb reactor Shambo, giving us this fine piece of fluff: http://www.davidmiliband.defra.gov.uk/blogs/ministerial_blog/archive/2007/05/11/9431.aspx

• Mahatma Gandhi, truly one of the great figures of the 20th century, believed that the protection of cows was one of the true signs of the Hindu faith. It is for that reason that the case of Shambo, reported in many newspapers, raises such a high degree of concern for many British Hindus. Their representatives have written to me about their concern.
• Shambo is part of a herd of cattle cared for by the Skanda Vale Temple in Wales. Shambo has tested positive for bovine TB, which as many people know is a serious contagious disease that can spread to other animals. That is why it is normal practice for cattle in such cases to be humanely slaughtered to stop further spread of the disease.
• Since Shambo is a Welsh cow the matter comes under the jurisdiction of the Welsh Assembly (though EU rules apply to them in the same way as to English authorities). The decision in this case will therefore come before Welsh Ministers when the new Welsh Assembly Government is formed.

From the Defra site, an overview of bovine TB in the UK: During the 1930s, a large proportion of dairy cows were infected with M. bovis. Many were kept near large cities to provide urban dwellers with fresh milk and most were closely confined, in poorly ventilated cowsheds, which are ideal conditions for the disease to spread. Many infected cows developed TB in the udders and shed M. bovis in the milk. Because most milk was drunk raw (untreated), milk-borne human M. bovis infection was a major public health risk and an important source of TB in humans. During this time, over 50,000 new cases of human TB were recorded each year in Great Britain and it was estimated that 2,500 people were dying annually from TB caused by M. bovis.

To try to control the problem, in 1935 the Government introduced a voluntary TB testing scheme for cattle. Any animals that were positive to these tests were slaughtered. To try to stop bTB spreading to other herds, cattle were not allowed to be moved from farms affected with bTB.
This testing and slaughter programme became compulsory in 1950 and by 1980 it had reduced the national incidence of TB in cattle to a very low level. In addition to this, routine pasteurisation (heat treatment) of cows’ milk and inspection of cattle carcases at slaughterhouses were gradually put in place to further protect public health.

here is a previous bit on tb reactor shambo and also here on tb reactor shambo

**Any chance we can also put Miliband to sleep as well?

**Update - Steak back on the menu: Shambo to walk the green mile.

THE decision to slaughter Shambo the temple bull was “justified”, the Court of Appeal ruled today.

The six-year-old bull, revered by Hindu monks at the Skanda Vale Community in Llanpumsaint, west Wales, was given a reprieve last week.

But the Welsh Assembly Government, which served the slaughter order in May after Shambo tested positive for exposure to bovine tuberculosis (BTB), decided to appeal.

Today judges sitting in London upheld the appeal in a ruling that could be the death sentence for Shambo...

Tags: Shambo bovineTB Skandavale

David Miliband

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