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The advice from DEFRA and Intervet is because the Bluetongue vaccine, Bovilis®, has not yet been tested on lambs or calves below four weeks old and it is quite right that farmers should be informed of this fact.

In Northern Europe Bluetongue disease has been widely spread, with serious consequences, over the past two years so most of the susceptible livestock born there will have passive antibodies to the disease from the colostrums in their mother's milk. This will provide them with protection for between one and three months after birth. In the UK we've had comparatively few cases of Bluetongue so far, so the majority of our adult stock will not have any protective antibodies themselves and will not be able to pass them on to their offspring via the colostrums in their milk.

As our Bluetongue vaccination campaign in England is starting at the time of year when the female midges that transmit the virus are actively reproductive, and taking blood meals from cattle, sheep and other susceptible species, it is very likely that they could infect all our unvaccinated livestock.

Therefore, Farmtalking recommends that providing farmers always ensure that their lambs and calves born this year are first of all dry, healthy, strong and able to stand and suckle, then they could vaccinate them with Bovilis®. There is no reason to suppose the vaccine will be toxic to the very young because it has been shown to be safe and effective from one month of age in cattle and sheep.* 

This would also make things so much easier for farmers and reduce the stress in their livestock if their lambs and calves are vaccinated very soon after birth. It will avoid exposing young stock to infection for longer than is necessary and having to repeatedly gather flocks and herds through the summer months just to vaccinate the youngsters as they reach a month old.

Also, please remember, that once animals are vaccinated it can take up to four weeks for their full immunity to the virus to be achieved and so the sooner their systems are able to start that process, the better it will be for all of them!

If all our cattle and sheep are not fully protected the spread of the Bluetongue virus will not be controlled.
It is essential that at least 80% of the susceptible livestock population is protected as soon as possible.
If all the animals on every farm are vaccinated, the wild deer and the very few farms that may not vaccinate their livestock, will constitute the susceptible 20% that remain and they will be without the protection needed to control BTv8.

In the case of camelids, goats, deer and buffalo, the other ruminant species that may be on our farms, these species are not included on the license for safety; probably because there has not been enough time to test the vaccine in these species too. However, DEFRA recommends that although off-license, the vaccine should be given to these animals as well but it should be administered by a vet. One therefore tends to suppose it will also be effective in these species too.

It is hoped that DEFRA will offer some antibody testing to those owners of these breeds who would be willing to co-operate with them as this would give us a field experience of the vaccine's usefulness in these species.
It is also quite right that as the BVA suggests, any adverse reactions that occur should be reported to your vet, DEFRA and Intervet and of course these reports should include any apparent non-response to the Bovilis® BTv8 vaccine.