Displaying items by tag: Leptospirosis

Leptospirosis is widespread on New Zealand livestock farms and a webinar hosted by Zoetis on March 19 will provide resources and insights into understanding and preventing the disease.

Leptospirosis is widespread on New Zealand livestock farms and a webinar, hosted by Zoetis on March 19, will provide resource, and offer insights into understanding and preventing the disease.

Leptospirosis (lepto) is a disease caused by bacteria that can be spread from animal to human, otherwise known as a zoonotic disease.

A large new study into leptospirosis in NZ has revealed new facts about how this infectious disease may be caught by various people working in the rural sector.

New research has shown that dry stock farmers are just as likely to be infected with leptospirosis as dairy farmers.

People newly diagnosed with leptospirosis or suspected with the disease will be asked to take part in a nationwide study.

Taking a she’ll-be-right attitude to leptospirosis is no longer good enough, says an international expert on leptospirosis, Associate Professor Jackie Benschop, of Massey University.

A New Zealand expert in leptospirosis says the disease appears to be becoming more ‘tropical’ in the way it is occurring in NZ. 

After a spike in cases of leptospirosis in Northland, farmers are being urged to take care around animals and to vaccinate their livestock.

A nationwide dairy farm survey is underway as part of a project to evaluate the effectiveness of current vaccination practices to prevent leptospirosis in dairy herds.