Michael McVerry (49) of Tullyah Road in Belleeks, Newry was convicted today at Newry Magistrates Court of one charge of failure to provide a BVD sample from animals.
Mr McVerry pleaded guilty and was fined £500 plus a £15 offender levy.
The case arose following the monitoring of compliance with the testing requirements of the Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) Eradication Scheme Order (NI) 2016, and subsequent enforcement action against those herds with large numbers of untested animals.
Mr McVerry was convicted on one charge of failure to ensure the taking of a tissue sample from bovine animals within 20 days of birth or coming into his possession, and the failure to dispatch this sample to an approved laboratory within 7 days of taking the tissue sample for testing for BVD, contrary to Article 52 (1)(a) of the Diseases of Animals (Northern Ireland) Order 1981.
BVD (Bovine Viral Diarrhoea) is a highly contagious viral infection of cattle which causes a range of clinical problems. Most infected animals don’t survive to a productive age. Currently BVD affects over 8% of cattle herds in Northern Ireland. An industry-led scheme to eradicate BVD from Northern Ireland has been supported by legislation since 2016. Herd keepers are required to tag and test all newborn calves and the movement of positive animals between herds is prohibited.
By ignoring his duties as a herdkeeper to test for this highly contagious disease, Mr McVerry reduces the productivity and profitability of NI herds and compromises animal welfare.
ENDS
CLANRYE NEWS 