Why must Shambo die?
Question:
The fact is, that the human population is still prone to TB, but if there was an outbreak at the local junior school, we would Not expect the authorities to cull the kids!
Answers:
Thats what I say. Check those cows in at the Mayo.
It must die because it is a hamburger on legs that is polluted and cant be eaten!
Weren't there some rare breed cattle slaughtered last year (?) because they had tested positive and then found that didn't have bovine TB after all?
My memory is a bit hazy about this I'm afraid.
It can't be slaughtered for food because it is a sacred animal.
I've been wondering, too, why cattle can't be treated when we can treat humans - I had a friend back in the 50's who had pulmonary TB and was still running half marathons when in his 70's.
A child is human and a cow or bull is not. In the U.K bovine animals do have rights under the law to humane treatment, but that does not include expensive Hospital treatment on the NHS.
Now that Wales have there own welsh assembly, is it not time they stood firm on the sacred cow issue. If the vets and experts have found the animal to be infected is this not a good time for them to stand up and be counted. In the last foot and mouth epidemic, some valuable herds that did not have the disease still had to be slaughtered.
I hope they do not fall for the old chestnut, well it is religious. The verdict is nothing to do with religion, its just good husbandry.
The UK does not attribute human rights to non humans, therefore an animal infected with a disease that could quickly spread across the UK's farm animal population has to be disposed of.
This is UK law, it's as simple as that.
UK residents are not 'prone' to TB. Until the 1990s school children were vaccinated against TB. This was stopped in the 90s as human TB was deemed virtually eradicated in the UK. Unfortunately TB is starting to recur in immigrant communities in the UK so TB vaccines may have to be re-initiated again (at massive cost to the general public), this prevention work would stop any risk of the school scenario you speak of.
Best way to answer this question is to look at the situation regarding vaccines for human TB forms and infections. The BCG is still the most widely used even though it was first used in 1921. It is far from perfect and there are many downsides to it's use. Due to the world wide spead of this disease and 2 million deaths a year from it, it has not been ignored by research institutes or drug companies. Even though the financial benefits of developing an improved vaccine are enormous, it has not yet happened.
Recently there have been some important advancements. DNA based vaccines are being developed and put to trial using animals. (Animal rights people don't shout at me, it's just a fact and not my fault.) These tests will have to be extended to human trials and will still take years before general acceptance of the vaccines is possible.
I hope that helps you to understand why there is no general use vaccine available for animals. They can't get it right yet for humans. What you are also doing is confusing a vaccine, which is preventative, with a treatment after infection. It is not worth vaccinating every animal in the UK or the whole world for that matter, which would have to include wild animals, such as badgers that you mention, as well. You are assuming that an outbreak would start with domesticated animals and then spread to wild animals. It would probably be the other way round. So all wild animals would also have to be vaccinated in order for the vaccination to be effective. How do you suggest we go about doing that?
With regard to your comments about not expecting the authorities to cull kids, you just totally destroyed what was otherwise a good question. I'm just a dumb blonde, but you proved yourself to be a total and complete idiot.
Kiss Kiss
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