The Foot-and-Mouth Disease (Control of Vaccination) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

Artificial insemination and collection of ova and embryos

14.—(1) A person shall not collect semen for artificial insemination from a susceptible animal kept in a semen collection centre in a vaccination zone unless such collection complies with sub-paragraph (3) and either sub-paragraph (4) or (5).

(2) A person shall not collect ova or embryos from susceptible animals kept in a vaccination zone.

(3) Collection of semen for artificial insemination complies with this sub-paragraph if—

(a) it is under the authority of a licence granted by the Department;

(b) the semen collected is clearly marked in accordance with the directions of the Department.

(4) Collection of semen for artificial insemination complies with this sub-paragraph if—

(a) where the donor animal is unvaccinated; and—

(b) all animals present in the semen collection centre at the time of collection have undergone a clinical examination and samples have been subjected to a serological test which substantiates the absence of infection in that centre to the satisfaction of the Department.

(5) Collection of semen for artificial insemination complies with this sub-paragraph if—

(a) the donor animal is vaccinated; and

(b) the vaccination took place following a test for antibodies against the disease virus carried out by the Department with negative result.

(6) A person shall not use semen collected in compliance with this paragraph for artificial insemination unless—

(a) it was stored separately from other semen for at least 30 days after collection;

(b) if collected from an unvaccinated animal, that animal has been subjected with negative result to a serological test carried out by the Department for the detection of antibodies against disease on a sample taken not earlier than 28 days after collection of the semen; and

(c) if collected from a vaccinated animal—

(i) a negative result has been achieved in a test for detection of either the disease virus or viral genome or for the detection of antibody against non structural proteins carried out by the Department at the end of the quarantine period for the semen on samples taken from all susceptible animals present at the semen collection centre at that time; and

(ii) 5% of the semen from each collection (with a minimum of 5 straws) has been subjected to a virus isolation test for disease carried out by the Department with negative results.