Two Danish public authorities, the Danish Food and Veterinary Administration and the Danish Forest and Nature Agency, make use of the advisory services of the National Veterinary Institute DTU, and the institute also gives advice to the industry and interest groups.
We give advice about diseases in production animals
We give advice to the Danish Food and Veterinary Administration about diseases in production animals in Denmark, assessing the risk of infection and spread of diseases in livestock. The institute diagnoses a number of diseases and provides data for the surveillance of the disease status in Denmark.
We are in charge of the central medicine register of prescription medicine for domestic animals (VetStat), and we provide statements of the use of medicine for the Danish Food and Veterinary Administration.
We are part of the Danish veterinary contingency plan
The veterinary contingency plan against infectious disease in livestock in Denmark takes place in collaboration between the National Veterinary Institute DTU and the Danish Food and Veterinary Administration. The institute is responsible for the laboratory part making analyses to confirm or deny suspicion on infection, whereas the Danish Food and Veterinary Administration decides how to handle a situation, for example to establish restriction or surveillance zones and destroy infected animals.
Urgent laboratory alert is set in motion both at suspicion and outbreak of serious infectious diseases in livestock. The institute also manufactures vaccines and sera for prevention when commercial products are not available.
Our work with several national surveillance programmes for diseases in livestock and zoonoses helps supporting our preparedness.
The research and diagnostic expertise of the institute is a very important prerequisite for the high quality of the veterinary preparedness.
The institute performs a great number of diagnostic analyses on a commercial basis. As the methods and equipment are the same as the ones used in case of suspicions and outbreaks of serious animal diseases, this commercial activity helps the laboratory keep currently updated and maintain an effective preparedness.
Our research focuses on six selected areas with the purpose to support the veterinary contingency plan and to strengthen our activities within education and innovation. The six areas are:
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Veterinary vaccinology and immunology
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Serious diseases in livestock and game
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Epidemiology/modelling of spread of infectious diseases in livestock
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Animal welfare
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Diagnostic development
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Gastrointestinal ecology and animal health.
We give advice about diseases in the wild fauna
We give advice to the Danish Forest and Nature Agency about diseases in the wild fauna. This includes various kinds of animals, from frog, seal and whale to fox and roe deer.
The Research Centre for Game Health is in charge of surveying the state of health in the wild fauna and – when diseases are found – to examine the reasons and to suggest potential control measures to the Danish Forest and Nature Agency. This research centre was established as a co-operation between the Technical University of Denmark and the Danish Forest and Nature Agency department at Kalø, but it also cooperates with other national organisations within the area.
National Veterinary Institute DTU is national reference laboratory
The institute has been appointed national reference laboratory for all serious infectious diseases in livestock.
The most significant are:
- Foot- and mouth disease
- Swine fever
- Bluetongue
- Newcastle disease
- Avian influenza
- Brucellosis
- Transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, USE, including BSE.
In some areas the institute is also national reference laboratory for the Nordic and Baltic countries, based on diagnostic collaborative agreements.