Risk Of Bovine Tuberculosis Is Increased By Reactive Badger Culling Efforts
Monday, January 23, 2012 - 06:10
in Health & Medicine
British cattle farmers have struggled over the last several decades to find a solution to the problem of bovine tuberculosis (bTB), a disease caused by Mycobacterium bovis. Wild European badgers (Meles meles) act as a reservoir for these bacteria, inspiring culling efforts to try to stem the flow of M. bovis from badgers to nearby herds. Over 20,000 badgers were culled between 1975 and 1997, but the incidence of bTB remains high: In 2009 alone, some 35,000 cattle were slaughtered after testing positive for the disease. The Randomized Badger Culling Trial (RBCT), a 10-year study begun in 1997, was conducted to investigate the effect of badger management efforts on bTB. read more