Netherlands: Bluetongue caused 35 percent excess mortality in Flanders

Last summer, the excess mortality of cattle in Flanders was 35 percent. In the period from July to September, the carcass collection service Rendac collected more than 58,000 cattle. In the same period in 2023, that was almost 43,000. In sheep, the excess mortality was even 191 percent last summer. This was reported by the Flemish animal health organization DGZ in a webinar on bluetongue. More sick animals at dairy farmers Dairy farmers suffered more from bluetongue than beef farmers, according to the results of a survey on bluetongue conducted by DGZ. A total of 906 dairy farmers and 774 beef farmers completed the survey. Of the dairy farmers who completed the survey, almost 29 percent did not observe any symptoms of bluetongue. Among beef farmers, that was almost 46 percent. Nearly a third of dairy farmers observed symptoms of illness in 0 to 20 percent of the animals, compared to more than 42 percent of beef farmers. Premature birth and lameness are common Dairy farmers most ...