New vaccination guideline for livestock launched

The National Office of Animal Health (NOAH) has launched the Livestock Vaccination Guideline, providing support to vets, farmers and other industry professionals to help improve the health and welfare of UK sheep and cattle, as well as to support farm resilience and sustainable improvements in productivity.

“Preventing and controlling disease on farm has never been more important, in the face of new agriculture policies, evolving disease challenges, new trading arrangements and the urgent need to meet environmental sustainability goals in response to climate change. Healthier animals mean better welfare and more sustainable farming, and a preventative health approach for UK livestock, supported through vaccination, is an integral part of achieving this,” said NOAH in a news release. 

NOAH says the new guideline brings together current veterinary clinical experience and research to demonstrate a proactive approach to vaccination in the dairy, beef and sheep sectors, and encourage discussion between vets and farmers to help them apply effective vaccination strategies on farm.

Effective livestock vaccination will not only improve #animalhealth and #animalwelfare but supports more #sustainable and resilient farming. 🐄🐑💉 Our new Livestock Vaccination Guideline sets out best practice: 👉 https://t.co/R20ossyqxI.#VaccinesWork #AnimalhealthMatters pic.twitter.com/PB7yJlcuK6

— NOAH (@UKNOAH) May 27, 2022

“Prevention of disease is at the heart of NOAH’s vision for animal health and welfare in UK farming and our Livestock Vaccination Guideline aims to ensure that those who make decisions about animal health and vaccination across the industry and on the farm have access to best practice guidance,” said Dawn Howard, Chief Executive of NOAH.

“We are focusing on priority diseases and those conditions where increased uptake of vaccination can make a real difference to the level of disease across animal populations. This will not only help improve health and welfare on individual farms but also help raise health and welfare levels across the whole country, meaning UK farming will be better equipped to provide safe, high-quality and nutritious food, while also delivering the environmental benefits from healthier animals.

“Livestock vaccination can be complex, but provides huge benefits, not just for animal health and welfare, but also has a positive impact on food, economic and job security in the UK. Having the right tools, medicines and technology to provide adequate prevention, diagnostics, monitoring and treatment has never been more important,” she added.

Fiona Lovatt of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, and one of the specialists behind the new guidelines said: “The last couple of years have demonstrated the key importance of vaccination as a tool to ensure good human health. In a similar way, vaccination has a vital role to play in terms of ensuring good health, welfare, productivity and sustainability of our livestock herds and flocks.”

The NOAH Guideline “supports UK animal health and welfare ambitions, food security and safety and advances the competitiveness of the produce from our livestock” and is available here.