Veterinary authorities say preventative measures imposed after the initial outbreak have restricted the disease’s spread.
The disease returned to the Czech Republic in September after a 15-year absence as part of a wider epidemic across Europe.
The contagion across Europe started in September 2023 in the Netherlands. Since then, Bluetongue has appeared in 13 countries, the British Agricultural Bureau (BAB) has reported, chiefly in the north but also as far afield as Portugal.
Tens of thousands of animals are affected across the continent in what one veterinary virologist has described as “a kind of tsunami that is coming.”
Economic losses from the disease are expected to run to hundreds of millions of euros, the website Science reported.
The insect-borne disease is non-transmissible to humans but fatal to sheep; it also affects cattle and goats. According to Science.org, the epidemic is caused by a new variant against which vaccines appear to be ineffective.
Emergency measures
The Czech outbreak has been limited by restrictions imposed by veterinary authorities, including a protective zone measuring 33,000 square kilometers in the northwest of the country, where all the current cases have been detected.
October’s infections were uncovered as a result of compulsory screening implemented as part of the protective measures.
“It is therefore evident that the extraordinary veterinary measures work and prevent the transfer of infected animals to previously healthy farms,” Petr Majer of the State Veterinary Administration told the Blesk.cz website.
The site said there are almost 6,900 animals on all infected farms, though the agriculture minister has said it will not be necessary to conduct a general cull.
