BRUCELLOSIS

FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE (FMD)

Foot and mouth disease has not occurred in Denmark since 1983, and Denmark is recognised by the OIE as an FMD-free country where vaccination is not practised.

In 2006, three clinically suspected cases of FMD were notified to the authorities. The Animal Health Unit of the Regional Veterinary and Food Administration Centres dismissed all three suspicions after a thorough evaluation.

RABIES

Sylvatic rabies has not been recorded in Denmark since March 1982. However, in September 1985, bat rabies, European bat lyssavirus (EBLV), was diagnosed for the first time in Denmark. The occurrence of bat rabies has been monitored since then. This monitoring is based on dead bats submitted for examination. EBLV was diagnosed in 10 bats in Denmark in 2006.

1.1 MULTIPLE SPECIES DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

TRICHINELLOSIS

2004 24,945,030 1,141 1,278

2005 22,147,738 1,552 1,476

2006 21,106,788 1,324 1,272

Information pertaining to other multiple species diseases is listed in Table 4.

West Nile fever Never recorded

* The disease is not notifiable in Denmark. ¹⁾ Serological examinations of bovine and porcine sera indicate a low incidence of leptospirosis.

²⁾ The disease is not officially controlled; however, since 1979 it has been possible for owners of cattle herds with clinical problems to use vaccination, subject to permission by the Veterinary Service.

Denmark is in the final stage of a successful eradication campaign against bovine virus diarrhoea (BVD). No cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) were detected in Denmark in 2006, and Denmark can now be considered a low BSE incidence country. Denmark is officially free of tuberculosis, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) and enzootic bovine leucosis by the European Union.

The results were encouraging, and in 1994 the Danish Cattle Federation decided to examine all Danish dairy herds by bulk milk tests. Herds identified as seropositive were encouraged to test and cull all PI animals and only purchase BVD-free animals.

In 1996, a compulsory programme carried out by the Danish Cattle Federation in collaboration with the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration replaced the voluntary programme. Legislation has been continuously adjusted alongside the progress of the BVD programme – revisions were made in 1996, 1997, 1999 (twice), 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2006.

The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration set up the legal framework for the BVD eradication programme, and the Danish Cattle Federation paid the laboratory costs and compensation to the herd owners if they slaughtered PI animals.

The primary measures of the eradication programme were the culling of PI animals and movement restrictions on animals.

Initially the herds were classified at three BVD risk levels based on the test results of three blood samples per year from all beef herds or on bulk milk samples four times per year for dairy herds. In high-risk herds, the identification of PI animals was attempted by further tests.

In 2006, 13 herds remained restricted as BVD infected herds (Figure 1). It was then decided to discontinue the BVD herd status testing programme and replace it by a national BVD surveillance programme, while keeping the remaining infected herds under movement restrictions.

The BVD surveillance programme still exists as part of the bovine disease surveillance programme for BVD and IBR. Bulk milk samples from all dairy herds are tested four times a year. If livestock is imported for a herd, bulk milk samples are tested for six consecutive months. All beef herds are tested by having one blood sample taken from their slaughtered animals every month, if possible. Beef herds for which cattle have been imported within the last six months will automatically have two animals tested by blood samples at slaughter.

Teams of veterinary experts at the Danish Cattle Federation are supervising the surveillance programme. If they notice an increase in the antibody titres or find other unexpected results, they perform an investigation of the matter. Every month in 2006, few herds have been placed under restriction due to unexpected test results. Subsequently they were all investigated by follow-up testing to confirm or reject the suspicion. PI animals must be isolated.

At the end of 2006, only five herds were still infected with the BVD virus and remained subject to restrictions.

Denmark is now a low BSE incidence country. This conclusion is based on the results of an extensive active surveillance programme with nearly two million tests in the period 2001-2006. No cases of BSE were detected in 2006 (Table 5).

Denmark has implemented the TSE legislation laid down by the European Commission in Commission Regulation 999/2001/EC as amended.

The Danish surveillance programme is in accordance with Commission Regulation 999/2001/EC and comprises:

• All healthy slaughter animals older than 30 months.
• All fallen stock, all emergency-slaughtered animals and all

animals with observations during ante-mortem inspection at slaughter (AM animals) older than 24 months.

A prognosis model from the National Veterinary Institute estimates that no further cases of BSE will be found in the period 2007-2010.

BOVINE TUBERCULOSIS

ENZOOTIC BOVINE LEUCOSIS

Table 6: Number of bulk milk samples and blood samples

examined under the Danish enzootic bovine leucosis surveillance

programme, 2004 2006

A serological surveillance programme for demonstrating the absence of IBR is carried out by testing bulk milk samples from dairy herds and blood samples from beef herds taken at the slaughterhouses. Bulk milk samples from all dairy herds are tested four times a year. Dairy farms in the southern part of Jutland bordering Germany are tested each month. If livestock is imported for a herd in any part of the country, bulk milk samples are tested for six consecutive months. All beef herds are tested by having one blood sample taken from their slaughtered animals every month, if possible. Beef herds for which cattle have been imported within the last six months will automatically have two animals tested by blood samples at slaughter (Table 7).

Table 7: Number of bulk milk samples and blood samples

examined under the Danish infectious bovine rhinotracheitis

surveillance programme, 2004 2006

Year Number of animals Number of tested through blood samples bulk milk samples

1.2 CATTLE DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

* The disease is not a notifiable disease in Denmark.

1.3 SHEEP AND gOAT DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

These three cases were found after the introduction of the IDEXX HerdCheck rapid test for the screening of sheep and goats under the surveillance programme. The IDEXX Herd-Check rapid test is more sensitive to atypical scrapie, and the findings are considered to be attributable to the introduction of this more sensitive diagnostic test.

The eradication of the three flocks was handled in three different ways due to changes in the eradication strategy and the different situations of the three herds. When the cases were detected, the EU legislation did not distinguish between classical scrapie and atypical scrapie. Eradication strategies aimed at controlling classical scrapie were therefore used in connection with the first two herds affected, whereas a different strategy was used for the third herd.

All clinical suspected animals and fallen ovine and caprine animals older than 18 months were tested under the Danish surveillance programme. In September 2005, the surveillance was extended to include all caprine slaughter animals above 18 months, but that surveillance scheme ended in December 2006 due to a revision of the EU regulation. All ovine slaughter animals above 18 months were included in the surveillance programme from September 2006 to December 2006. The results of TSE surveillance programmes for sheep and goats in Denmark from 2004 to 2006 are shown in Tables 9 and 10.

2004

Negative Positive

Negative Positive

5,253 0

4,349 2

91 0

3,695 1

50

30

5,349 0

8,064 3

Some of the preventive measures for BSE in cattle also apply to small ruminants, such as the removal of specified risk material (SRM) from carcasses of slaughtered animals. Furthermore, a ban on feeding meat and bone meal to ruminants was implemented in 1997.

CAPRINE ARTHRITIS-ENCEPHALITIS

MAEDI-VISNA

Table 11: The year when other sheep and goat diseases listed by the OIE were last reported in Denmark

* The disease is not notifiable in Denmark.

1.3 SHEEP AND gOAT DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

1.4 EQUINE DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

1.5 SwINE DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

1.6 POULTRY DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

1.6 POULTRY DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

Figure 4: Blue lines show important Danish wintering areas for tufted ducks (Aythya fuligula), pochards (Aythya ferina), scaups (Aythya marila) and mute swans (Cygnus olor). High density of poultry is shown in red shades (25 March 2006)

No of poultry per sqkm

0 to 999 (199)

1. to 1.999 (33)
2. to 2.999 (17)
3. to 3.999 (2)
4. to 4.999 (3)

5.000 to 7.340 (3) 1:2,100,000 Sources: Danish Environment Agency and the Central Husbandry Register

During the period of active surveillance for AI in wild birds, 5,530 samples of bird dropping were analysed by using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (not including the 1,007 extraordinary samples from the HPAI outbreak). All samples were negative for HP H5N1, except one pool of samples from five herring gulls collected near the town of Bisserup in the County of Storstrm. The gulls had not shown any clinical signs at the time of sampling. The location where the samples were taken was included in the restriction zone already established due to the detection of HPAI H5 in a dead wild bird. Other avian influenza virus subtypes isolated in connection with the active surveillance were of the following low pathogenic types: H14N5 (two samples), H13N6 (one sample) and H14N5 (one sample) (Table 16).

Further to this, a backyard flock with clinical disease and mortality in the County of Funen was diagnosed with HPAI H5N1 on 18 May 2006 (Figure 5). The source of infection was probably wild birds. The affected birds had not been kept in a net-covered enclosure in order to minimize contact with wild birds as prescribed. The flock was located near a site where a wild common buzzard (Buteo buteo) with H5N1 was found dead a few weeks before. A magpie (Pica pica) found dead on the affected premises was diagnosed with HPAI H5N1 on the 29 May 2006. Protection and surveillance zones as well as A and B areas according to Commission Decision 2006/135/EC were immediately established on 18 May 2006 on the basis of a positive PCR result.

1.6 POULTRY DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

* One of these was high pathogenic H5.

Protection zone Surveillance zone Area A Area B

birds for restocking were tested four times a year during the season from February to August. Further, when poultry and game birds were traded, they had to be accompanied by a certificate stating that the herd had been tested within the preceding three months.

Nearly 2% of the poultry herds examined in 2006 were found positive in serological tests (Table 17). The follow-up PCR test for circulating virus in these herds did not result in any positive findings.

However, the PCR tests of offspring from mallards resulted in three herds with mallards for restocking being found infected with low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI H5N2 and LPAI H5N3) in June and July 2006. These three herds were all killed. In two of these herds, the infection was thought to originate from contact with wild birds. In the third herd, the infection most likely originated from indirect contact with one of the other infected herds. There were no clinical signs in any of these herds, but in all three herds mallards were carrying the infection. In all cases, restriction zones were immediately established on the basis of the positive PCR results. A further four herds of game birds for restocking were found positive in virological tests with subtypes other than H5 or H7, one of these being H6N8, whereas the others could not be typed.

1.6 POULTRY DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

Number of serologically positive holdings

Number of virologically positive holdings

H5 H7 H5 & H7 Other

H5 H7 Other

The surveillance programme has shown that LPAI H5 was circulating among the population, mainly in mallards acting as asymptomatic carriers of AI. The aim of the surveillance was to find and eradicate any LPAI H5 or H7 virus circulating among the population by killing all birds of the infected herds.

Further information about the avian influenza epidemic in Denmark can be found in the report “Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 in Denmark, Spring 2006”, which can be downloaded from the website of the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration: www.dvfa.dk

The last outbreak of Newcastle disease in Denmark occurred in October 2005. As a consequence of the Newcastle disease epidemic in Denmark in 2002, the Danish Newcastle disease vaccination status was changed in the autumn of 2004 from non-vaccinating to vaccinating.

Prophylactic vaccination against Newcastle disease is compulsory for hens and turkeys in breeding herds, layer herds and for broilers if free-range or slaughtered when older than 10 weeks.

Also poultry brought to gatherings, exhibitions and markets and wintering game birds for breeding the following spring are to be vaccinated against Newcastle disease.

Vaccination status is checked in the commercial sector of the population by analysing blood samples from layer and breeding herds, and making regular checks of records and documentation of vaccination and of records of movements of vaccinated animals. In purebred poultry, backyard poultry and game birds, checks of vaccination against Newcastle disease are carried out through inspections of documentation and on-the-spot tests at gatherings, exhibitions and markets.

OTHER POULTRY DISEASES

Table 18: Outbreaks of other poultry diseases listed by the OIE and notifiable in Denmark, 2004 2006. The year of the last occurrence is stated in brackets if no outbreaks of a disease occurred in the relevant year.

Poultry disease 2004 2005 2006

Table 19: The year when other poultry diseases listed by the

OIE but not notifiable in Denmark were last reported in Denmark

Avian infectious bronchitis Known to be present¹⁾

Duck virus hepatitis Suspected, but not confirmed

Infectious bursal disease (Gumboro) Not reported²⁾

Marek’s disease Known to be present¹⁾

Mycoplasmosis (Mycoplasma gallisepticum)

Mycoplasmosis (Mycoplasma synoviae) Not reported²⁾

Turkey rhinotracheitis Known to be present

¹⁾ Has a low sporadic occurrence and is controlled by vaccination. ²⁾ Year of last outbreak not known.

1.6 POULTRY DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

1.7 LAgOMORPH DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

1.8 FISH DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

IHN has never been recorded in Denmark, and the country has the status of EU-approved continental zone free of IHN.

INFECTIOUS PANCREAS NECROSIS (IPN)

Denmark has three carp farms registered as free of SVC. No outbreaks of SVC were reported in 2006.

Information pertaining to other fish diseases is listed in Table 22.

Bacterial kidney disease
(Renibacterium salmoninarum)	Reported present
Epizootic haematopoietic necrosis	Never recorded
Epizootic ulcerative syndrome*	Never recorded
Gyrodactylosis (Gyrodactylus salaris)*	Known to be present
Infectious salmon anaemia	Never recorded
Red sea bream iridoviral disease*	Never recorded

* The disease is not notifiable in Denmark.

1.8 FISH DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark

For decades, there has been intensive commercial fishery on natural mussel stocks (Mytilus edulis) with annual landings of 90,000100,000 tons. Natural stocks of European flat oyster (Oestrea edulis) only exist in the Limfjord. Through the 1990s, the oyster stock increased due to optimal climatic conditions for reproduction. In 2002, the stock had reached a size at which commercial utilisation was allowed, and in 2003 approximately two million oysters were landed. Aquaculture production of mussels and oysters started on an experimental basis in 2000, and the experience gained from these experiments began being transferred to a commercial scale in 2003.

During the first two years, 150 oysters were sampled biannually from three different sites. The sampling was either from aquaculture production sites, or from the natural stock if the number of active aquaculture production sites was insufficient. From the autumn of 2002, the sampling was reduced to two annual samplings of 30 oysters from three sites according to Directive 91/67/EC.

Bonamia ostreae or Marteilia reføringens have never been detected in the flat oyster stock of the Limfjord.

Information pertaining to other mollusc diseases is listed in Table 23.

Infection with Bonamia exitiosa1)	Never recorded
Infection with Mikrocytos mackini	Never recorded
Infection with Perkinsus marinus	Never recorded
Infection with Perkinsus olseni	Never recorded
Infection with Xenohaliotis californiensis1)	Never recorded

¹⁾ Host not present in Denmark.

1.9 MOLLUSC DISEASES – Animal Health in Denmark