You are now in an imaginary country called Fensland. This country is in Northern Europe and has a temperate climate. The production animal population mainly consists of cattle; both beef and dairy, small ruminants; sheep and goats, pigs, farmed salmon and poultry; broilers and layers, and reindeer. There is also a large sport- and companion animal population with horses, dogs, cats etc.
For dairy, the typical size of cattle herds varies between 100-250 cows in mostly loose house systems. The beef herds are more diverse both regarding size and production systems. Cattle are predominantly pastured during the summer period. The most common endemic infectious diseases for cattle are: respiratory agents (bovine respiratory syncytial virus, bovine coronavirus, Pasteurellaceae), enteric pathogens (rotavirus, E. coli, Cryptosporidium parvum), infectious claw disease (Fusobacterium necrophrum, Treponemas, Dichelobacter nodosus) many different mastitis pathogens and other pathogens causing different manifestations (e.g., Mycoplama bovis, Trueperella pyogenes) and various parasitic agents.
Sheep flocks vary in size from less than ten animals up to several hundred. They are housed indoors during the winter, and on pasture in the summer. The goat herds are typically small (less than 20 animals) and consist of several breeds, where some are bred for meat and some for milk. Infectious agents that may occur include Listeria monocytogenes, Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, Mycoplasma spp. (but NOT M. capricolum subsp. Capripneumoniae), Dichelobacter nodosus, Fusobacterium necrophrum, Maedi-Visna and Caprine Arthritis/Encephalitis and various parasitic agents.
Pig herds can be either farrow-to-finish, breeding, or fattening herds. Organic production systems have outdoor production while conventional herds are usually larger (>1000 pigs). Infectious agents that are present in the country include: enteric pathogens (e.g., Brachyspira spp. Lawsonia intracellularis, rotavirus, E. coli), respiratory pathogens (e.g., Actinobacillus pleuropneumonia, Mycoplasma spp. influenza virus) and others (e.g., Porcine circovirus, parvovirus, Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae (mainly in outdoor production) and various parasitic agents.
Poultry flocks vary in size, from backyard holdings to commercial holdings with several thousands of birds. Commercial holdings typically have strict external biosecurity routines. Layers are mostly housed in aviary systems while broilers are in free-range floor systems. Infections include E. coli, Clostridium perfringens, coccidiosis, mites and other endo and ecto-parasitic agents, and Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae.
Reindeer are exclusively kept by the sami people, they graze on summer pastures in the mountains and are moved to lower areas in the winter and provided with extra feed if they cannot access their natural feed sources due to weather conditions. Very few diseases are endemic in reindeer, but cases of eye inflammation caused by various bacterial and viral pathogens do occur, as well as nose botfly (Cephenemyia spp.) and Elaphostrongylus rangiferi and other parasitic agents. During periods of higher animal density, infectious agents affecting other animal species also occur.
For farmed atlantic salmon the first year of production is performed in freshwater in land-based facilities, while the rest of the production (approximately 18 months) is in seawater cages. Each farm at sea contains about 1 million fish, most commonly kept in six cages. Very few pathogens can be excluded from the list of possible causes of disease in the salmon population as both notifiable and non-notifiable diseases occur regularly. All fish are routinely vaccinated against Aeromonas salmonicida subsp. salmonicida, Vibrio anguillarum serotype O1 and O2a, Vibrio salmonicida, Moritella viscosa andinfectious pancreatic necrosis virus.
Sport horses and racehorses are mainly kept in individual boxes while pleasure riding horses, broodmares and yearlings are often kept in loose housing. During the summer months most horses are allowed to graze on pastures. Horse movements are active within Europe and horses from Fensland commonly compete and train abroad. Approximately, ten percent of the horses in Fensland have been imported from other European countries or the USA. Gastrointestinal parasites are common in all horses, and recent cases of piroplasmosis have been reported in imported horses. Fensland has several endemic respiratory pathogens affecting horses including equine arteritis virus, equine herpes virus 1 and 4, equine influenza virus, equine rhinitis A and B virus, Rhodococcus equi, and Streptococcus equi subsp. equi. Racehorses and sport horses are required to follow a vaccination program for equine influenza. Abortions and neurologic signs caused by equine herpes virus 1 are sporadically seen. Other infectious agents commonly detected in horses include equine coronavirus, equine rotavirus and Streptococcus equi subs. zooepidemicus. Skin infections caused by fungi, various bacteria and lice are frequently encountered. Equine parapox virus was just recently identified as a cause of infectious equine pastern dermititis outbreak in racehorses.
The legislative framework in Fensland is the same as for the European Union, with the Animal health law (EU Regulation 2016/429) as the most relevant piece of legislation. This means that any veterinarian who suspects a disease listed under this regulation must notify the authorities and, pending a decision from the competent authority, take appropriate actions to prevent the spread of the suspected disease. They must also comply with any requirements and instructions from the competent authority. Diseases not present in Fensland are also notifiable to the competent authority.
Although the responsibility for further actions against listed diseases lie with the authorities, any veterinary practitioner must know enough about these diseases to be able to foresee what restrictions and other measures are appropriate to prevent spread.
The money used in Fensland is gio (GIO, ₲). To understand its value, see the following examples for the correspondence between the gios and euros: for the amount of GIO, there are price-ranges of EUROs for tests used in the Fensland’s laboratory.
- 0 GIO: 0 € (EU-listed a and b diseases)
- 1 GIO: 1–50 € (smears)
- 2 GIO: 51–149 € (viral, bacteriological, parasitological samples horses, cattle, dogs, cats)
- 3 GIO: 150–299 € (susceptibility after culture, minerals of feed)
- 4 GIO: 300–499 € (necropsy for dog and cat, feed mycotoxins, forbidden compound, medicines)
- 5 GIO: 500 € or above (necropsy for cattle or horse, pesticides of feed)