JEREMY Clarkson has revealed Diddly Squat farm will be forced to close for two months after an “absolutely dreadful” TB outbreak.
The TV star, 65, told how his farm was hit with the disease in a statement on social media yesterday.
Clarkson told Peter Cardwell on Times Radio the last 24 hours have been “absolutely dreadful”.
“It’s awful, it is awful. You have a test every six months on the cows and then you sort of become blasé, it’s a hypothetical threat,” he said.
“And then the vet looks up as he did yesterday lunchtime and said ‘I’m really sorry this one’s failed’.
“So that means we’re now locked down and it’s just dreadful, absolutely dreadful.”
The devastated farmer told how his puppy had also died through the night.
He is also trying to care for a “very sickly calf”.
The Top Gear icon revealed he is not enjoying his new profession this week.
Clarkson explained the farm will have to shut down for two months until they can carry out more tests.
The Diddly Squat Farm Shop is unaffected and will remain open.
Bovine Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis, which can also infect and cause disease in humans, cats and dogs.
It is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis) which can also infect and cause disease in many other mammals including humans, deer, goats, pigs, cats, dogs and badgers.
In cattle, it is mainly a respiratory disease.
Fans sent their well wishes after Clarkson’s post on X yesterday.
One penned “Hope the cows recover soon” to which he replied “they have to be culled. It’s the law”.
It is the latest hardship to hit Diddly Squat farm in recent months, after hot and unpredictable weather caused havoc with his crops.
He told the Times: “It used to be reasonably predictable, but it just isn’t anymore. In March Diddly Squat had no rain at all. Not even a drop. In April we got 20mm, which in old money is bugger all.
“And so far in May we’ve had 4mm. You couldn’t keep a window box going with a dribble like that. It’s been drier than it was in 1976. And while we do have about thirty springs on the farm, they’re all in the wrong place. So my onions and my beetroots are just sitting in the dust.
“The wheat, meanwhile, is curling up, the barley won’t really get cracking at all and I dread to think what manner of terribleness is being foisted on my poor potatoes.”
Meanwhile, on the latest series of his Amazon Prime show, Jeremy revealed how endless rain had sparked chaos on the farm last year.
Sharing a picture of farmland from a helicopter, the Diddly Squat Farm Shop’s Instagram page wrote: “It’s going to be a rough year. All that seed sowed, drowned with the constant rain.”
This comes after fellow Clarkson’s Farm star Kaleb Cooper was the victim of soaring tool theft after robbers nicked his £7,000 farm tool this week.
The farmer turned TV hero, 27, told fans his pricey post knocker, used for hammering in fences, had been stolen from Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, on Tuesday.
Another firm’s £70k John Deere tractor was also taken, with a burnt-out SUV car found down the road.
Cooper fumed on Instagram: “My post knocker was stolen last night.
“As well as the John Deere tractor.
“Can we please make this as hot as possible!
“What is going on with England at the moment!”
Home & Country Fencing, the company whose tractor was also stolen, said on social media: “Unfortunately, we have had one of our tractors and post knockers stolen overnight.
“There has been a silver 4 x 4 burnt out just down the road which is possibly related.”
Kaleb, who joined Sun columnist Jeremy, as his farm hand on the Amazon Prime smash hit, is thought to have loaned his post knocker to a fencing company which was robbed.
What is bovine TB?
Bovine Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease of cattle and badgers.
It is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis) which can also infect and cause disease in many other mammals including humans, deer, goats, pigs, cats, dogs and badgers.
In cattle, it is mainly a respiratory disease.
What are the symptoms?
It is hard to spot bovine TB as the signs are similar to other diseases and normally only develop in the advanced stages.
It is normally picked up in cattle testing before clinical signs develop or during inspections of slaughtered cattle.
Animals can get thinner, have a light fever that keeps coming back, appear weak and have a reduced appetite.
Some will also have swollen lymph nodes, in the neck and a moist cough which is worse in the morning and during cold weather or exercise.
The government states it may cause chronic mastitis, an infection of the udder.
How is transferred between animals?
Evidence of bovine TB is most commonly found in the lymph glands of throat and lungs of affected animals.
They spread the disease mainly through coughing and sneezing.
Bacteria are released into the air and inhaled by other animals in close contact.
The disease can pass from badgers to cattle via close contact – and vice versa.
Contaminated equipment, animal waste, feed and pasture can also transfer the infection.
Can humans catch it from cattle?
Humans can catch bovine TB through:
- unpasteurised milk or dairy products from an infected cow, buffalo, goat or sheep
- inhaling bacteria breathed out by infected animals
- inhaling bacteria released from the carcasses of infected animals or from their excretions (such as faeces)
- Infection is more likely if an unprotected wound is exposed to bacteria from an infected animal.
But the government insists the risk of infection is very low for the vast majority of the population.
Symptoms are similar to human TB, including weight loss, fever, night sweats and a persistent cough.
Anyone who develops these symptoms should consult a doctor.
The disease can be treated by a complex combination of drugs over a long period.
More information on TB in humans can be found at Public Health England, and at
2
More to follow… For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online
Thesun.co.uk is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thesun and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSun.
