'I am petrified' - Scottish farmer with flock devastated by virus warns more deadly disease likely to come

Scottish farmer devastated by virus warns a more deadly one is likely to hit Scotland soon

A farmer in Ayrshire who lost two thirds of his lambs this year to a virus has warned farmers need to prepare for a more deadly one likely to hit Scotland soon.

Michael Goldie, a fifth generation farmer who breeds pedigree Suffolk sheep, saw up to 92 of the 152 lambs born earlier this year taken out by the Schmallenberg virus (SBV) at his farm in Dundonald, near Troon.

A Suffolk lamb, which is what Mr Goldie breeds on his farm near Troon, in Ayrshire | NFUS

SBV is spread by midges and causes malformations and stillbirths in livestock including cattle, sheep and goats.

Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) has confirmed cases in early lambing flocks in Dumfries and Galloway, Ayrshire, and Stirlingshire, with five cases so far this year. However, because it's not a notifiable disease, it is thought there could already be dozens more.

Michael Goldie, who farms in Ayrshire, saw his flock devastated by SBV | Supplied

Mr Goldie, 52, said: “I am finished lambing now and I am glad to see the back of it sadly.

“It’s normally the happiest and most exciting time of year but this year was the worst ever.

“I had to euthanize around 40 lambs myself. Ultimately, the situation became too overwhelming and we were forced to call the vet to euthanize large batches of lambs showing severe deformities.”

From his experience, Mr Goldie, who farms with his mother, Helen, said it appears SBV primarily impacts flocks that lamb early because they have an earlier mating season that coincides with when midges are still likely active.

Sheep farmers with later lambing schedules in regions where the virus has been confirmed, however, are still concerned they are yet to see flocks affected as lambing season gets underway.

Marcus Maxwell, who farms 3,000 Romney sheep in New Galloway, is due to start lambing in about a month’s time.

Some Romney sheep, similar to the ones Mr Maxwell farms

“We are obviously very worried about SBV,” he said.

“We were very aware of it with cases in England, but we didn’t expect it to come as far north as this.

“It’s just devastating the financial but also the mental affect it can have on farmers.”

As well has having to recover from the trauma of SBV, Mr Goldie warned Scottish livestock farmers will potentially face the impact of a more damaging disease - Bluetongue (BTV-3), which is also spread by midges.

A new strain of the virus - which originated in the Netherlands - was detected in England in 2023. Now more than 200 cases have been recorded in England, with a couple in Wales. There are movement restrictions in place along the east of the country stretching from Sussex to North Yorkshire to prevent the spread of the virus further.

Bluetongue has more of a devastating impact on livestock as it can be spread from animal to animal, and it kills adult livestock. Where it has been detected on farms, the animals that test positive for the virus are culled as a precaution.

Mr Goldie said: “I have friends and breeders in Belgium and Germany who I went to advice for for SBV because there’s no manual for it here.

“One of them told me it’s not SBV we need to be worried about, it’s Bluetongue.

“Even though two thirds of my flock here have gone from SBV, Bluetongue is what I am petrified of.”

Scotland's chief vet, Sheila Voas, has previously warned it is “inevitable” that Bluetongue will reach Scotland and urged farmers to be extra vigilant for warning signs.

Scotland’s Chief veterinary officer Sheila Voas

She told the BBC the virus could even reach the country this year.

As for now, Mr Goldie said his flock is showing signs of antibodies for SBV, which he hopes will protect them if the virus hits the farm again.

But rather than risking a repeat of this year’s catastrophe, the farmer said he will aim to lamb some of his sheep later in the year in the hope he misses the midge season.

“I can’t face the thought of losing as many lambs as I did this year again next year,” Mr Goldie said.

“I am just not willing to put my mum or myself or my family through it.”

He said the significant reduction in the number of animals lambed early will be a financial sacrifice given the farm breeds a specialist pedigree flock that relies on lambing early to produce large ram lambs that go to market from early August onwards.

The Suffolk is a British breed of domestic sheep | Agriimages

As for Bluetongue, Mr Goldie said: “I have lost lots of lambs to SBV, but the emerging vector disease threat to livestock farmers in Scotland, including Bluetongue, is something that we need to be taking seriously.”

The Scottish Government said it has been working with the livestock industry regarding a possible rise in SBV and encourages farmers to remain vigilant and discuss any concerns with their vet.

A spokesperson said: “We appreciate how distressing and difficult it is for farmers with affected livestock.”

On Bluetongue, the spokesperson added: “Testing for Bluetongue is routinely undertaken before and after travel as part of the Scottish Government’s measures to ensure that imported animals do not introduce disease to the country, with movement restrictions on cattle or sheep imported from countries where Bluetongue is known to be circulating.

“These restrictions will apply until the animals have been tested and confirmed free of the disease.”

The Welsh Government announced this week that it has agreed to licence three Bluetongue vaccines for emergency use across Wales from March 1.

The decision follows the continued spread of cases in England, which has also licensed vaccine use.

Wales’ chief vet Dr Richard Irvine said the step was taken as the country is “now at high risk of experiencing an incursion of Bluetongue this year.”

He said: “Our primary aim is to keep Bluetongue out of Wales through biosecurity, vigilance and safe sourcing of livestock.

“Wales remains free of BTV-3, but it is important to be prepared.”

Researchers at SRUC have been developing an app to assist farmers in monitoring livestock health.

HerdPlan replaces paper-based surveillance and allows farm staff, vets and nutritionists to track and monitor vaccination strategies and infectious disease protocols across a range of areas in real time.

Its aim is to help farmers test regularly and spot potential problems at an early enough stage to contain them.

Vets are also available to carry out heavily subsidised post-mortem examinations on animals to establish what caused them to die.