Deadly bovine tb reactor, Shambo to live.

In a bizarre twist common sense has been thrown out in a court case, the poison filled beast Shambo has been allowed to endanger the population with bovine tb.

This is nothing more than a pc move designed to appease some Buddist types the health of the rest of the population has been put in danger by this action.

More here: BBC reports on poison filled tb reactor being allowed to live.

From David Miliband we have this 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.

In short nothing to do with me, I am washing my hands of it. Nice to see prefect Pontius Pilate , sorry Miliband doing nothing. Nice to see that London is taking a lead in this, by passing it off to the Arsembly in Cardiff to resolve.

Don't let Shambo breath on you.

The arsembly sat around for too long on this and should have enforced the law and put the beast down, thats Shambo not Miliband - although putting him down as well is not a bad idea. Now a court has said that public health comes a poor second to a group of looney bovine huggers.

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.

Previous bits on tb reactor Shambo: Shambo post 1, and Shambo post 2, and Shambo post 3, and Shambo post 4, and Shambo post 5, and Shambo post 6

Best post ever on tb reactor Shambo was this, oh how he should live and I have posted part below

Now, it seems to me one solution to this is straightforward:

• Paint a white stripe in the appropriate place.
• Declare Shambo to be an exceptionally large badger.
• Set him free.

That way he is allowed to have TB with impunity, and the “animal rights movement” will swing into action in their normal unthinking, febrile manner.

**So if you see a large animal (tag no 742266/200001) - please try not to breath in! Oh and the Arsembly is lodging an appeal, so Shambo way well be walking the green mile after all.

Update from Farmers Weekly:

"This ludicrous ruling contradicts the principles upon which successful TB eradication programmes throughout the world have been based for generations," said FUW Life Member Evan R Thomas, who represents the Farmers Union Wales on the WAG TB Action Group.

"It flies in the face of common sense. It seems that the British justice system is now content to put human health and animal welfare at grave risk.

"What will now happen if in six months time this animal is coughing up blood and is so emaciated that it cannot hold its own weight? Will the judge make a similarly ludicrous decision?

"Today’s ruling could set disease control in Britain back by 70 years. Tests on other animals in the Skanda Vale herd have already shown a worrying pattern of further potentially infected cattle with two more animals found to be positive reactors to the TB skin test, in the same category as Shambo, and five others as inconclusive.

"This area has suffered the ravages of TB for a number a years and this ruling has infuriated all those farmers who have lost thousands of animals to this disease. The fact that the judgement will now place their farms at greater risk will further dishearten an already depressed community."

**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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