Free Republic

The Schmallenberg virus causes lambs to be born dead or with serious deformities such as fused limbs and twisted necks, which mean they cannot survive. 74 farms across southern and eastern England have been hit by the virus, which arrived in this country in January. A thousand farms in Europe have reported cases since the first signs of the virus were seen in the German town of Schmallenberg last summer. Infected ewes do not show any symptoms of the virus until they give birth, with horrific results. Farmers have described delivering the deformed and stillborn animals as heartbreaking. There are...

Thousands of cows, sheep and goats have been infected with a flu-like virus across Germany, with the number of infected herds increasing sharply over the weekend. According to a report in Bild newspaper, the number of herds infected with the “Schmallenberg virus” has jumped from 34 to 314 since Friday, and more and more farms are reporting premature births and deformed baby animals since the virus hit. Eight cow herds, 12 goat herds and as many as 294 sheep herds have been affected by the virus so far, mostly in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, but individual cases have...