Ovine brucellosis alert for sheep farmers

Low rates of lambing have urged the Darling Livestock Health and Pest Authority (LHPA) to ask their landholders to test their rams for ovine brucellosis before the next joining season.

Ovine brucellosis (OB) is a venereal disease in sheep caused by the bacteria Brucella ovis. The disease is widespread in NSW but many producers are unaware of it and the problems it can cause.

According to Colin Betts, senior ranger from the Darling LHPA, low lambing percentages have been recorded this year and OB could be partly to blame.

"The disease causes fertility problems in rams, which can then result in considerable production losses through poor lambing percentages and ram wastage," he said.

Mr Betts said testing is an easy process, and can be done by careful testicular palpation, preferably when the ram is freshly shorn to decrease stress to the animal.

"If lumps are found, a simple blood test will confirm the diagnosis."

"It’s important for sheep farmers to test their rams at least six to eight weeks after their last joining and three months before the next joining, in case they get a positive result and need to retest," he said.

If OB is diagnosed, it’s recommended that it’s eradicated by testing all rams in the flock and culling those that test positive. This should be continued every 30 days until two consecutive negative tests are achieved.

"This can be a time consuming exercise, which it is why we encourage checking rams well before joining to allow time to eliminate OB so production losses are minimised," said Mr Betts.

For more information about testing for OB, contact your local LHPA ranger: Robert Neate (Cobar) 6836 2081, Allan Neilsen (Bourke) 0448 832 767, or Col Betts (Brewarrina) 0429 392 047.

Media contact: Vanessa Delaney 6391 3787 or 0428 465 378