Culls to begin again in Northern Ireland
Badgers in a pilot area will be trapped and tested. Those that test positive for bovine TB will be culled.
Badger culling is set to begin again in Northern Ireland as part of its test, vaccinate or remove (TVR) research project.
In year one, badgers were cage trapped, tested for bovine TB and released. This year, they will be re-trapped and tested in a focused pilot area. Those testing positive for TB will be culled using a lethal injection of barbiturate.
Data will be gathered on the reliability of the tests (sensitivity and specificity) to help inform future policy.
Simon Doherty, president of the BVA's NI branch, said: "We recognise that there are limitations in the diagnostic tests that are currently available for badgers and cattle and hope that the study will provide some quantification and validation for the deployment of these tests."
John Blackwell, BVA President, added: “There is no question that bovine TB is spread between badgers and cattle, but we still need to understand more about this complex disease in order to move towards eradication across the whole of the UK.
“BVA supports the use of targeted, humane badger culling and has called for it to be part of the comprehensive strategies in Northern Ireland, England and Wales, alongside strong cattle and biosecurity measures.
"All parts of the UK are taking a different approach to tackling bovine TB and we look forward to seeing the results of the TVR project as it progresses to help inform policies in other regions, as well as in Northern Ireland."
Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
