By the end of April 2026, 3.5 million doses of bluetongue vaccinations were sold from wholesalers to veterinary practices, according to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).

According to DAFM, there is a higher percentage of uptake in dairy herds of the bluetongue vaccination than in suckler herds.

The department confirmed that, as of earlier this week, the bluetongue virus had been detected in eight counties.

The first case of bluetongue was confirmed in a suckler herd in Co. Wexford on January 24.

Since then, cases have also been identified in counties Wexford, Wicklow, Laois, Louth, Monaghan, Kildare, Cork and Tipperary according to DAFM.

There are different serotypes of the bluetongue virus - the most commonly found in Europe are 1, 3, 4 and 8. The serotype that has been detected in Ireland is 3.

Bluetongue is spread via midges. Temperatures need to be greater that 12°C for a sustained period for the virus to replicate within the midge in order for them to spread the virus.

The advice to farmers and livestock owners that have not yet vaccinated their herds or flocks is to talk to their vets, to decide whether to vaccinate for bluetongue.

Vaccination

Sheep vaccination takes three weeks to take full effect, and cattle vaccination takes six weeks.

As of late April, over 270 bluetongue vaccine licenses had been issued to vet practices throughout the country.

Farmers can source the bluetongue vaccine from a vet, under licence from DAFM.

A DAFM spokesperson has said that as of late April, an estimated 3,000 herds had been vaccinated.