The Cattle Health Certification Standards (CHeCS) provides the TB health status of herds.
The status is represented by a score. This score is based on biosecurity and the number of years since the last herd TB breakdown, it runs from 0 to 10:
- 0 is where there has been a breakdown in the past year
- 10 is where it is 10 or more years since the last breakdown
For Welsh cattle keepers, the benefits of joining CHeCS include:
- knowledge of the risks involved in buying cattle
- recognition of lower risk animals within herds across Wales which may not have recently had (or ever had) a TB breakdown
- a chance to improve their risk score year-on-year and use this status when selling homebred cattle
- a Post-Movement Test will not be needed after moving an animal from a level 10 herd in the Intermediate or High TB Areas into a herd in the Low TB Area
The accreditors of the CHeCS TB scheme are:
- HiHealth Herdcare (Biobest)
- Premium Cattle Health Scheme (SAC)
To participate and find out more about the scheme.