It seems like midges are no longer the sole theory in town.
The Germans have told us for weeks that the midges apparently blew
against the wind, suggesting that it was not just midges.
Defra could not even get the geography of England and its adjacent
seas right in the early days, and there is the case of mysterious
missing goat farm, and the BBC suggesting that pigs were involved.
Then they got early dispensation not to give ether the names or the
locations of any infected farms. Nobody could check their work.
It is always wise to assume all the possible multiple possible means
of transmission: something always ignored by Britain's government vets in their anxiety to blame someone else, preferably innocent.
BBC report with video here
30 March 2012 Last updated at 18:17
Scientists at the Institute for Animal Health in Surrey have been
studying whether the Schmallenberg virus could be spreading from
animal to animal.
Schmallenberg affects sheep and cattle. It was identified in Germany
last year, and in the UK in January.
It has been found on more than 80 farms in the UK, mainly in the
southeast, and it is thought to be carried by midges.
Professor Peter Mertens told the BBC the level of infection in the UK
suggested insects might not be the only source of the disease.
