THE first positive case of bluetongue in County Cork has been confirmed following reports that the virus was found in an unvaccinated cow in the Bandon area earlier this week, writes Kieran O’Mahony.

Up until now Wexford was the closest county to Cork where the virus was detected with Wicklow, Louth, Laois, Monaghan and Kildare all reporting positive cases.

A text sent out by Glasslyn Vets in Bandon on Tuesday to its clients, which was seen by The Southern Star, confirmed a positive case in an unvaccinated cow and the Department of Agriculture website has Cork listed as one of the counties where bluetongue has been detected.

The confirmation comes as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon is reminding livestock owners to prepare for the higher risk period of bluetongue virus (BTV) as the temperature rises.

He warned the summer period could ‘make replication of bluetongue virus possible with infected midges’, advising farmers to consult their vet about vaccinating their herd.

He added: ‘Bluetongue virus is spread via midges and temperatures need to be greater than 12C for a sustained period for the virus to replicate within the midge so that the midge can spread the virus.’

Tadhg Healy, IFA West Cork chair, said he suspects this detection of bluetongue is a carryover from a previous infection last year.

‘The one positive thing is that over 50% of the breeding herd have vaccinated for bluetongue and if anyone does have concerns they should talk to the regional veterinary office,’ he said.

There are no public health risks to humans associated with bluetongue but it may have severe on-farm impacts as well as economic impacts on Irish agri-industry.