After a case in the North on Wednesday, a new outbreak of bluetongue (BT) serotype 3, which can be fatal for sheep, was confirmed in the Ardennes this Friday.
A new outbreak of bluetongue (BT) serotype 3, which can be fatal for sheep, has been confirmed in the Ardennes, the second recorded in France after a case in the North on Wednesday, the prefecture announced on Friday, August 9.
Analyses underway in 16 other farms
This outbreak was identified by the ANSES animal health laboratory in a sheep farm in the village of Vireux-Wallerand, a few kilometres from the border with Belgium.
“Sixteen other farms are likely to be affected” in the Ardennes, the prefecture specifies. “Analyses are underway.”
FCO, also known as “blue tongue disease”, mainly affects sheep, cattle and, more rarely, deer. It is not transmissible to humans.
Symptoms include fever, difficulty breathing, a lolling tongue or loss of pregnant pups.
It passes from animal to animal via biting insects, the Culicoides midges. It weakens animals, causes economic losses and disrupts international trade.
Unlike bird flu, its detection does not lead to the euthanasia of animals.
A first case was confirmed on Wednesday in a breeding farm in Marpent (North), near Maubeuge, and 22 “suspicions” were recorded on Thursday in the department.
“Voluntary” vaccination will be offered
Bluetongue is already present in France, with serotypes 4 (in Corsica) and 8 (in mainland France), but French livestock have not developed any resistance to serotype 3, which they have never encountered.
The serotype 3 bluetongue epizootic began in the Netherlands in September 2023. The virus then spread to Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom within a few weeks. In Belgium and the Netherlands, the number of outbreaks has increased sharply in recent days, reaching 308 in Belgium according to the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain on Thursday.
“Voluntary” vaccination will be offered and the vaccine “made available free of charge by the State”, the Ministry of Agriculture announced on Monday, saying it had 4.6 million doses available thanks to an order placed “in advance” at the beginning of July.
