"Here’s some history. In 1960 the UK was entirely free of bovine TB. We had a lot of badgers then too, so what were they up to? And here’s an interesting fact. There are no badgers on the Isle of Man but they have bovine TB there. The hero of this story, is, happily, a farmer. He is called Dick Roper and he farms in Eastington. He decided to do some digging of his own (literally) and discovered that the soil on one of his farms, which consistently showed signs of bovine TB, was deficient in selenium and Vitamin E. Both are vital to an effective immune system. You can see where this is going. Maize, unsurprisingly, is deficient in selenium and Vitamin E. The soil is now deficient in both thanks to the haze of chemicals it has to absorb. Badgers, therefore, are suffering from lowered immune systems when they graze naturally, and especially when they gorge on maize. Mr Roper took an unusual and imaginative step – he started feeding his badgers with mineral supplements. Lo and behold, bovine TB disappeared from his farm! Since the cows also licked his mineral cakes, they too acquired better immune systems."
Posted on: Mon, 09 Sep 2013 17:03:50 +0000
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