Ticks & tick-borne disease

Every region raised ticks this period. Advisers linked the change to reduced stocking densities, undergrazed uplands, deer and wildlife sustaining tick populations, and a shifting season. Wales recorded an 81% rise in tick-borne fever submissions over five years, a rise in submissions rather than positivity rate, which has remained relatively stable at around 10%. In the current season, however, 75 of 108 tick-borne fever tests returned positive, a live signal well above that baseline. Separately, Anaplasma submissions rose 16%, with 48% of those samples now testing positive, a significant increase in positivity rate.

North Scotland testing found 99% of tested lambs positive across six or seven farms, 2.5kg lighter at 21 weeks, close to 10% of weaning weight. South of Scotland reported tick-borne fever in young lambs on low ground that had not previously been exposed.

A further concern raised in North Scotland: tick-borne fever is frequently presenting alongside Pasteurella, joint ill and other pathogens, with Pasteurella often identified as the cause of death when tick-borne fever was the underlying trigger, illustrated by one case where 40 hoggs diagnosed as Pasteurella deaths all tested positive for tick-borne fever on PCR. This co-infection dynamic means tick-related losses are likely being undercounted across all regions.

Bluetongue, Schmallenberg & congenital loss

Last vector season saw 339 confirmed BTV cases across the UK, with BTV-3 the predominant strain. Confirmed Schmallenberg and bluetongue cases sit alongside a wider run of abortions, stillbirths and malformed calves that have not been diagnosed. One Shropshire dairy unit lost an estimated 20 to 40 calves to BTV-linked dummy calf syndrome. A separate unit confirmed roughly 10% fetal loss to BTV. Three serotypes are currently in circulation: BTV-3 accounts for the majority of cases, BTV-8 has been confirmed in four to five cases in southwest England, and one Shropshire case could not be serotyped, raising the possibility of an additional strain.

Advisers in the South of England and Wales both raised a related concern: as awareness of BTV rises, some losses may be attributed to it without diagnostic investigation, which risks masking other causes.

A structural barrier compounds this picture: BTV's SAPO3 classification means samples can only be sent to Pirbright, cannot be returned, and cannot be tested for other causes if BTV comes back negative. Advisers in Wales and the South of England both flagged this as actively suppressing disease intelligence, making it impossible to know how much BTV is circulating or what else may be causing uninvestigated losses.

APHA winter surveillance found many cattle herds seropositive with no clinical signs, suggesting some natural immunity may be developing in the national herd, though how durable this is remains unknown.

Sheep scab

Scab was raised everywhere, with reinfection between neighbouring holdings the recurring theme. One South of Scotland example involved three farms affected for more than 18 months, linked to incomplete gathering. North Scotland reported possible treatment failure, with scab recurring four to five weeks after sheep had reportedly been dipped correctly. In Northern Ireland, animals are being condemned at slaughter due to the immune response to scab affecting meat inspection, a consequence not previously widely recognised.

Moredun's own Firth farm found scab antibodies in ewes with no nose-to-nose contact with other sheep, with spread attributed to deer, rabbits, hares and birds carrying wool fragments across boundaries. The mite can survive on wool fragments in the environment for up to 21 days. Contractors and farm staff are also a confirmed transmission route.

North England reported strong uptake of pen-side testing, with the Welsh lab and Axion Laboratories both in use (Axion returning same-day results), a more encouraging picture of diagnostic-led control taking hold.

Worm burdens & anthelmintic resistance

The picture varied sharply by region: North Scotland and North England both described an easier than expected spring; North England's advisers called it the first calendar-normal parasite year in approximately five years, with slightly fewer Nematodirus cases than expected. The South of England and Wales raised concern about Haemonchus emerging earlier than expected, calendar-based dosing without faecal egg counts, and worsening resistance. In Wales, one farm transitioned from fat lamb to store lamb production after resistance reduced worm kill to around 60%, no longer able to finish lambs. Barbervax, the Haemonchus vaccine developed by Moredun, is seeing growing use in the southwest but requires robust integrated management to be effective and is not suitable as a standalone product.

The impending loss of Startect (manufacture of the active ingredient has already ceased, with supply in some areas confirmed only through 2026 and no replacement planned) was raised as a significant concern for future treatment options, alongside the value of FAMACHA scoring and sequential dosing in resistant flocks.