A report on the use in New Zealand of hole's complement-fixation test for Johne's Disease

Abstract

Extract Johne's Disease is recognized as a veterinary problem of major importance. In New Zealand, the disease was in all probability imported in infected but apparently healthy cattle, and has since caused appreciable losses in dairy cattle, particularly in Taranaki, Waikato, and Auckland; in the Wairarapa and also in the South Island, the disease has been occurring for some time. An indication of the increasing recognition of its importance is given by the annual reports of the New Zealand Department of Agriculture; from 1946 to 1950 compensation was paid on 94, 151, 207, 244, and 303 head of cattle respectively. These figures, moreover, give only an indication of the extent of the disease; Stephens ( 1955 Stephens, E. H. 1955. Private communication [Google Scholar] ) states that Johne's Disease is the major source of wastage in cattle in Taranaki, causing even greater losses than tuberculosis; by 1950, Stephens had confirmed 369 infected properties in Taranaki alone, but he states that the actual number of infected farms must by now be a multiple (sic) of this.