Dutch bovine viral diarrhea virus control program: Evaluation 2018-2023

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Medicine
• Animal Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Dutch dairy farmers must follow one of four routes for bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) eradication since 2018.
• Evaluating the national BVDV eradication program's effectiveness is crucial for dairy herd health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the efficacy of the Dutch national BVDV eradication program.
• To analyze key indicators including persistently infected (PI) cattle, BVDV-free herd status, and BVDV reintroduction rates.
• To conduct a cost calculation for each eradication route.

Main Methods:

• Observational study design.
• Monitoring the number of PI cattle quarterly.
• Tracking the percentage of dairy herds achieving BVDV-free status.
• Assessing BVDV reintroduction in BVDV-free herds.

Main Results:

• The percentage of BVDV-free dairy herds rose from 59% to 89% by the end of 2023.
• Quarterly detected PI cattle decreased from 500 to 83 between Q3 2019 and Q4 2023.
• BVDV reintroduction in BVDV-free herds dropped from 1.29% to 0.25% per quarter.

Conclusions:

• The Dutch BVDV eradication program, allowing multiple pathways, is highly successful.
• The program effectively reduced BVDV prevalence and PI cattle in Dutch dairy herds.
• Tailored national strategies, like the Dutch model, are effective for BVDV control in Europe.