No new suspicions of bluetongue in Lithuania

The State Food and Veterinary Service (SVVT) informs that no new suspicions of Blue Tongue Disease (BTD) have been reported in Lithuania at this time: additional samples from surrounding or contact farms have been tested negative, and there have been no new notifications of suspected TB to date. 

So far, the suspicion of the disease has been recorded in five cattle holdings in the Tauragė, Prienai and Vilkaviskis districts. On the farms where suspected FMD has been detected, restrictions on the movement of cattle and protection measures remain in place.

As no blood-sucking midges, which spread MLD, have been detected in special traps in recent days, it is likely that their period of activity has come to an end this year due to the cooler weather. The risk of virus transmission is therefore decreasing.

VMVT specialists continue to monitor all five farms suspected of having FMD: the health of the stock is being monitored, and additional tests are being carried out to see if the disease agent is still being transmitted by the machines or if new infections are emerging. These tests will be repeated every 3–4 weeks. 

Since the first suspected cases of MLD, the VVM has collected and tested over 60 livestock samples in the additional surveillance area. In total, more than 500 samples have been tested for FMD during this year's surveillance. 

The tests to confirm or exclude the diagnosis of MLL and to determine the serotype of the disease are currently being carried out at the European Union Reference Laboratory in Germany. Once the official results are available, further action will be decided. 

A further extended remote meeting is planned for next week, Wednesday 8 October at 13:00, to discuss the latest situation and envisaged solutions.