[Shropshiresmallholder]

Hi there,

I apologise  if this has been covered before but all seems quite confusing

We are looking at purchasing a few (less than 5) Dexter cattle (these will
Be the only cattle on the farm) directly from another farm and raising them for meat as a friends and family type set up

We are based in Shropshire which is apparently high risk from what I can see

My question is if the cattle we purchase are the only cattle we have (no herd mixing) and we are keeping them until slaughter which the time may vary must we have them TB tested? And if so is this something we have to pay for ourselves?

And following on from this

With the current state of everything is this kind of set up more hassle than it’s worth?

We’re not looking to make a huge profit with it more to have our own supply of meat and cover costs with the meat we can sell on

Thank
You

[shep53]

You need to talk to your vet as they will know the exact rules for your area .  Are you fully equipped to handle cattle eg  transport to bring onto your holding and take to the abattoir , some method of restraining  for treatment and good fences

[twizzel]

Yes you will need to tb test them unless they are gone to slaughter by the time your test is due. It doesn’t matter how many cattle you’ve got or what the end goal is with them. Your vet will know how often you need to tb test (we are in a high risk area and test every 6 months), and will explain what handling facilities you’ll need (crush etc). The costs of tb testing are covered by the government apart from if you want to tb test outside of your window to facilitate selling live animals either privately or through a market, then you pay the vet for a private test. The best thing to do is speak to your vet as they will know how often you’ll need to test, but it may turn out to be more hassle and expense (buying equipment, time taken etc) than it’s actually worth.

[SallyintNorth]

We are in a high risk, 6-months testing area.  We have 2 cows and their followers, none of our immediate neighbours ever have cattle in any adjoining fields, we eat all our own beasts (don't sell anything), and our vet has enacted a derogation for us to be tested only annually.

We would still need to comply with the on- and off- pre-movement testing requirements, and if we started having such movements would probably lose our derogation and have to revert to testing every 6 months.

You don't have to do a Tb test before sending to the abattoir.  But in England you will now need a vet attestation, requiring a site visit to see the actual animals, and completing the documentation, within the previous 12 months, as you do for any species now.

Until recently, our butcher used to transport our cattle to the abattoir for us and charged a very reasonable amount for it.  But he can't do that any longer, they are too busy.  We have located a local hire firm who can hire us a trailer when we need one, but you still need quite a hefty vehicle to tow it safely.  Our member who has the one vehicle on site which can tow the weight is leaving, so we will probably have to find an animal transporter (driver and vehicle/trailer), which will cost rather more.

The vet initially insisted on us having a crush for Tb testing.  Thankfully a community-minded local beef farmer lends their portable crush out for small producers to use, and another community-minded local farmer totes it from farm to farm!  But now the vets know us and our animals, they are happy that we do it in the parlour with the cattle haltered in the milking stalls.

Is it worth it?  Not if there is any significant risk your cattle might actually get Tb, I'd say.  Way too much heartache and the potential to end up with just money (which won't buy the equivalent meat) after all your hard work.  So absolutely talk to your vet about your holding and ask them for their views, and their experience of Tb being diagnosed in your immediate area.  (You should also be able to find out about diagnoses, when and where, online.  Sorry, can't give you a link.) 

[PipKelpy]

Hello, North Shropshire here, yep high risk! You'll be 6 monthly whether you like it or not. Don't buy crazy/skittish and make sure you can restrain them. Mine were halter trained (and stall trained) and tied in an alley between 2 gates. Cow chain around neck tied to the right side gate, headcollar on with the lead rein tied to the left gate. Vet would go up the side of cow whilst I rubbed her bum! (Cows bum!)

It is a hassle and if I go back into cattle (Not cows, only buy to rear for meat) it'll be reared the same, headcollar, walk to heal, no kicking etc, live with sheep, tie in a stall..... Basically be quiet and calm. They also walk onto a trailer better that way too for the final journey that results in my full freezer!

[SallyintNorth]

Vet would go up the side of cow whilst I rubbed her bum! (Cows bum!)

I'm so glad you qualified!   

[grange]

Have you considered the time/costs involved?

[SallyintNorth]

Have you considered the time/costs involved?

Routine testing is paid for by the government.  Any pre-movement testing required has to be paid by yourself

[twizzel]

Have you considered the time/costs involved?

Routine testing is paid for by the government.  Any pre-movement testing required has to be paid by yourself

Still need to take into account time spent, especially if you have a job away from the farm that you need to take leave or unpaid holiday from.
And there must always be thought into what plan b is if you do get shut down and unable to move cattle- for some this doesn’t affect them much, but it can cripple a lot of farms especially during winter, in terms of needing more housing, fodder, and complete lack of cash flow.

[PipKelpy]

Have you considered the time/costs involved?

Routine testing is paid for by the government.  Any pre-movement testing required has to be paid by yourself

Still need to take into account time spent, especially if you have a job away from the farm that you need to take leave or unpaid holiday from.
And there must always be thought into what plan b is if you do get shut down and unable to move cattle- for some this doesn’t affect them much, but it can cripple a lot of farms especially during winter, in terms of needing more housing, fodder, and complete lack of cash flow.

That's my thinking, what if!

I went down with TB in 2008, only 1 cow as a inconclusive so they allowed me to sell the 2 with their calves (id already sold previous years weanlings several months earlier on a pre movement test, all 6 of them)

When the retest came, Gannet failed spectacularly! So, she taken, that leaves me with 3 cows, 4 babies and retesting. Fortunately we passed and those (now weanlings) could depart and fast! Clearance was special delivery on a Saturday morning, weanlings gone Saturday afternoon to chap who id been selling to for years. This was now February and though I had plenty of silage (mum always said never let animals go hungry and we always did more, for just in case.)

But NOT being able to move off cattle is a shocker. The local auctions do have the red markets, if you're shut down with TB.but I've not used them.

If you want cattle, GET cattle, they can be fun.but make sure you can feed them over winter (Just in case)