The following letters are typical of many of the mails we have received...... please keep the coming.

Dear Mr Rowe et al

I was delighted to read your and other letters in the Veterinary Record of last and this week. I found myself for the first time in my life being ashamed to admit to being a Veterinary Surgeon.

The RCVS has been deafening in its silence on this, an issue slightly more important than docking tails.

(M.M.Aitken)

I would like to register my support for "Vets for Vaccination". I agree with every point raised in your circular, and in the letter in the Vet Record. I have long thought that a slaughter policy (especially an unsuccessful, poorly orchestrated slaughter policy) is a barbaric, primitive and unscientific way of dealing with what is, basically, a simple viral disease that appears to be endemic.

However, unless concerted action is envisaged, I do not think that individual vets refusing to take part in the slaughter of DCs and CPs will make any difference (other than allowing the individuals concerned to go back to their normal duties!). It would be nice to think that reasoned, logical, scientific argument would prevail, however, my current experience working in "Field Epidemiology" at Newcastle DECC has enlightened me so far as to realise that that is unlikely.

If you are considering any other action, I would be happy to help.

Good luck!

Dr. Sarah Binns
Wellcome Trust Research Fellow in Clinical Epidemiology (University of Warwick)
Visiting Fellow: Department of Clinical Veterinary Science
University of Bristol

 

Dear Colleagues, 

I strongly support your stance for F&M vaccination. I wrote to Tony Blair - no reply yet - stating as such a couple of weeks ago. By the 3rd day of the outbreak, it was obvious to me that slaughter was inappropriate; I thought they would kill 500,000 and then vaccinate, in a sort of prediction of the probable

behaviour of MAFF  vets. I sadly underestimated their tenacity in sticking to the wrong approach, and their inability to see the big social/environmental picture in relation to this disease.Obviously Britain's reputation in cattle disease control has to be maintained.

Regards, Jon Lumley B.V.M..S., M.R.C.V.S.

 

Dear Colleagues, 

I was relieved to see at last some public discussion within the profession regarding the slaughter policy for dealing with the current FMD outbreak. I attach a copy of a letter I wrote and sent as indicated. The fact that MAFF would appear to have not updated their FMD file since 1967 is amazing to me - how many of us are dealing with any case now in the same way as veterinary surgeons did then?? Surely to be dealing with a situation with such broad ranging effects without having done any home work for over 30 years is negligent.I feel that you are too kind to MAFF in your letter - it is correct that we haven't previously seen FMD in a developed agricultural economy on the scale that we have seen in the last month, but someone in MAFF should be working to update protocol in line with prevailing agricultural practices. The RCVS Guidance Notes for CPD issued recently indicate that 'as a self regulating profession, veterinary surgeons are obliged to offer the best possible veterinary service to society and animals', and that CPD is necessary as a 'professional obligation'. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help. Janet Harrison BVMS MRCVS Marshfield,Wilts.  

Click here to read Janet's letter
Having worked as a T.V.I. and involved in slaughter I would like to pledge support.
 

James Cadwallader B.V.Sc M.R.C.V.S.