Published on 26 November 2024

Eradication of bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) in Switzerland

BVD is a viral disease of ruminants; it mainly affects cattle and causes significant losses — © IVI

Bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) has been making headlines around the world for decades as a cattle disease of great economic significance. In 2008, Switzerland classed BVD as an animal disease to be eradicated. As the national reference laboratory for BVD virus, the IVI plays a key role in controlling and eradicating the disease based on its expertise in diagnostics and research. BVD has virtually disappeared from Switzerland thanks to an extensive national eradication programme. However, if the virus enters a cattle population undetected, it can spread rapidly through animal movements and cause massive losses on affected holdings.

• Why is this important?

  Before the eradication programme was launched, the economic losses due to BVD on Swiss cattle farms amounted to several million Swiss francs per year. This prompted various national breeding associations to call for the eradication of BVD in the Swiss cattle population.

• What does the IVI do?

  As a reference laboratory, the IVI plays a key role in the BVD eradication programme.
  It is responsible for some of the primary diagnostics and also for the confirmation of results. In addition, it refines diagnostic tests, develops new methods and conducts field studies to investigate the occurrence of the virus in farm animals (such as cattle and sheep) and wild ruminants (such as chamois and deer).
  The IVI is also responsible for the testing of veterinary diagnostics as part of their approval process and acts as a competence centre advising national authorities and recognised diagnostic laboratories.

• What are the main results?

  Various IVI studies accompanying the eradication efforts have shown that:

  • Contact with sheep does not in principle jeopardise the goal of national eradication, as BVDV does not circulate in sheep.
  • However, if cattle become infected with Border Disease (BD) virus (which circulates in sheep and is closely related to BVDV), this complicates the serological surveillance of BVD. For this reason, BD in cattle has recently been defined as an epizootic disease to be controlled.
  • Wild ruminants are not a reservoir for BVDV.

• What are the next steps?

  Eradication requires close cooperation between farms, veterinarians and authorities:

  • Strict compliance with on-farm biosecurity measures.
  • Targeted testing for rapid identification of infected animals.
  • Rapid, cross-cantonal contact tracing to identify the source of infection.
  • Inclusion of sequencing of virus isolates to identify chains of infection.
  • Strict definition of the «BVD-free» label.
  • Ensuring and monitoring the quality of BVD diagnostic methods by organising regular ring trials.

Informationen über die BVD-Diagnostik

Our activities at a glance

Eradication of Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) in Cattle in Switzerland: Lessons Taught by the Complex Biology of the Virus.

The eradication of BVD is progressing, but the virus has not yet been eliminated from Switzerland. The IVI, the FSVO and the veterinary services of Solothurn and the original cantons published in 2021 the current body of knowledge on the virus and its control. The last chains of infection must now be detected as quickly as possible and BVD-free herds protected against reinfection.

Matthias Schweizer^1,2, Hanspeter Stalder^1,2, Anja Haslebacher³, Martin Grisiger⁴, Heinzpeter Schwermer⁵ and Elena Di Labio⁵

1 Institute of Virology and Immunology, Bern, Switzerland, 2 Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathobiology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland, 3 Veterinary Office Canton Solothurn, Solothurn, Switzerland, 4 Veterinärdienst der Urkantone, Brunnen, Switzerland, 5 Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO), Bern, Switzerland.

• Good knowledge of the BVD virus is important for its eradication

  PDF112.74 kB26 November 2024

More information

• FSVO Bovine viral diarrhoea BVD
• FSVO Last mile on the road to freedom from BVD: BVD eradication
• FLI WOAH Referenzlabor für Bovine Virusdiarrhoe und Nationales Referenzlabor für Bovine Virusdiarrhoe / Mucosal Disease (BVD/MD)
• AGES Bovine Virusdiarrhoe/Mucosal Disease
• DISCONTOOLS BVDV
• WOAH Bovine viral diarrhoea