Representatives from Lewis and Harris, Shetland and Orkney met at the new, state-of-the-art Hutton Hub at The James Hutton Institute’s Craigiebuckler campus recently for their second inter-island gathering.
The meeting was coordinated by Dr Claire Hardy, Dr Niamh Mahon and Abby McAllister from the Hutton, and Dr Stew Burgess and Dr Dave Bartley from the Moredun Research Institute, as part of the on-going animal disease research collaboration between the Hutton and the Moredun Research Institute. The inter-island event took place on Tuesday 23 February and Wednesday 24 February. It gave island representatives the opportunity to meet once again and build upon an accumulation of research intervention and networking activity over the past four years.
As part of the meeting, attendees were introduced to the Hutton Hub’s 360-degree Immersive Suite. Equipped with a media server, games engine and surround sound, this new equipment enables scientists to model simulated crofting and farming environments. In addition to this, gaming software has been used to play out scenarios that can occur in response to livestock disease management.
The project began with planning and workshops in autumn of 2022. In April 2023, results from the first round of blood testing for the presence of sheep scab (an infectious disease caused by infestation with a parasitic mite) conducted as part of the Lewis and Harris Sheep Scab Project were reported to the public - revealing 19 positive cases from 105 flocks on the island. These tests led to subsidised treatments for the affected and neighbouring flocks and ultimately to the co-design of a campaign of coordinated plunge dipping of flocks across Lewis & Harris, using a subsidised mobile sheep dipping contractor.
Since then, the project has evolved from continued annual community sheep dipping (which has now led to ~100k sheep being dipped across the project) to stakeholders’ workshops and additional research. In November 2023, crofters in Lewis and Harris were invited to make use of a free, sheep faecal egg count procedure as part of a new roundworm control project, empowering the crofters to lead on roundworm control in their flocks, and attendees at events across the islands were invited to discuss control measures they used to manage disease in livestock. The project also facilitated a visit for Lewis and Harris representatives to Shetland (to explore the quarantine process used for incoming livestock), and the first inter-island gathering in Inverness in 2025.
During this first gathering, representatives from each island community discussed and established geographical objectives to work towards to prevent the spread of disease in livestock. One of these objectives (for Lewis and Harris) was to secure a paid Lewis and Harris Sheep Producers Association (LHSPA) role to coordinate all of the activities associated with communal dipping, scanning, faecal egg counting and design of whole farm plans tailored for crofting. Funding for this post has since been secured, with Hannah Mackay now working in this role.
At the recent gathering in Aberdeen, updates on the sheep scab project were presented by Moredun researcher Dr Stew Burgess. Additionally, farmer/vet Tim Geraghty gave a presentation on the spread of Johne’s disease in cattle, and vet Susan Duthie spoke on current testing and management provision for the disease.
Meanwhile, Dr Dave Bartley from the Moredun Research Institute gave a presentation on round worm control, and attendees were invited to identify the livestock diseases they wanted to see prioritised in their areas.
The collaborative project is set to continue with the aim of establishing methods of disseminating information on animal health diseases and empowering sheep keepers to effect positive change throughout the islands. Organisers hope to host three to four online workshops over the next year, as well as a third in-person gathering in 2027.
Dr Hardy said, “It was good to meet again, with some new faces to add to the group, the openness of the island representatives to share challenges and solutions was great to see and hear. Both institutes are looking forward to hosting online events to share information on other livestock diseases of interest to the islands and to a future face to face meeting to continue building the inter-island collaboration.”
Detailed information about the disease mentioned in this article can be sourced via the following links:
Resources | Moredun
https://moredun.org.uk/resources
Detailed information on Sheep Scab and the Pan-Island Initiative Project can be found via the following link:
Sheep Scab and Pan-Island Initiative Project
https://www.epicscotland.org/our-impact/sheep-scab-and-pan-island-initiative-project/