Eradication of Virulent Footrot from New South Wales

Before 1788 there were no domestic livestock in Australia. Inevitably, when farm animals were imported from Europe, some of their endemic diseases were imported with them. Footrot of sheep was one of these and there are reports of its presence in the Sydney region from the early nineteenth century. As sheep spread across the country so did footrot and by the early part of the twentieth century it was endemic in all environments favourable to its development and persistence. Following the introduction of superphosphate fertilizer, the development of improved pastures and increased stocking rates, footrot became more prevalent and severe. It was recognized as a major constraint on production and money began to be invested in research designed to remove or reduce this constraint. The first phase of this research (Beveridge 1941) culminated in the identification of the bacterium responsible for transmission of the disease ...