The sanitary level of bulls in artificial insemination must be very high, sanitary conditions are a fundamental requirement to win on the market.
The sanitary requirements that must be met by the bulls that produce seed can be traced back to three levels:
- National prophylaxis plans (TBC-BRC)
- Diseases transmitted by the seed (IBR-BVD)
- Health barriers
The health standards applied by the Genetic Center (C.G.) depend on European directives transposed by the Italian legislation. Is Directive
88/407 CEE which still with some modifications in Directive
93 / 60CEE "establishes the animal health requirements applicable to intra-community trade and imports of frozen semen of animals of the bovine species". In Italy the rules are implemented in the
Ministerial Decree 13 January 94, n.172 "Regulations for the implementation of the law
15 January 91, n.30, containing:" Discipline of animal reproduction ", and by the Ministerial Decree of 30 April 96 always on the same theme.
The purpose of these laws is to protect animal health from diseases controlled by national prophylaxis plans (BRC-TBC, etc.) and also to avoid the transmission of diseases with frozen semen.
The young bulls to access the C.G. must come from officially free flocks of:
TBC, Brucellosis, Leucosis.
They must have undergone a negative exam for:
TBC, Brucellosis, Leucosis, IBR and a test for Paratuberculosis (PTBC) to the mother of the young bull.
Young bulls with the required requirements are admitted to quarantine and subjected to the entry test for:
Brucellosis, Leucosis, IBR, virological BVD, preputial washing for Campylobacter-Trichomoniasis, Leptospirosis prophylaxis, gamma-Interferon test for PTBC, Blue Tongue, TB at the end of the quarantine. If a person tests positive for some tests, they will be removed and the rest of the quarantine will have to be checked again. When all the young bulls have tested negative, they can be transferred to the Genetic Center. All the bulls before being transferred to the F.A. are tested for:
TB, Brucellosis, Leucosis, IBR, Pre-punctual lavage, Blue Tongue, PCR feces for PTBC, Interferon range for PTBC. A part of these checks are provided for by current regulations many other tests are checks that the ANAFI Genetic Center has applied, in agreement with Assogene, and with the competent Health Authorities of the Health Services with the dual objective of:
- raise the health status of the breeding stock
- lower the risk of introducing diseases into the Italian Bovine Artificial Fertilization chain.
The experience of almost twenty years of activity has imposed very strict rules to reduce the risks of introducing diseases which, if they appear, would entail the elimination of the subjects present at the CGI. The work of these years by researchers, has expanded knowledge and refined diagnostic techniques of diseases, such as IBR and BVD, PTBC which, applied to the CG has allowed us to have a very high health standard.
The happy intuition to set up a working group with the health managers of the Genetic Centers and the C.F.A. (Assogene), has allowed us to better define the common objectives to be pursued, optimizing the operating models, with the result of having unique protocols from the birth of the bull to the production of the seed for export.
The genetic center was an important health filter between farms and FA centers, at the time with the brucellosis and leukosis problem, it is currently with IBR, BVD, PTBC, Blue Tongue the FA centers have found themselves free from IBR thanks to the genetic center.
The European trend is that the bulls will have to come from IBR-free herds, the new conditions (calves negative to IBR from birth) imposed on the young bulls to access the FA have been taken in agreement with ASSOGENE (CFA). To achieve this requirement, the genetic center remains an important filter between farms and CFA.
