Clostridial disease fallen stock collection is a job farmers across the North West face most often in autumn, when blackleg, black disease, braxy and pulpy kidney can kill apparently healthy cattle and sheep with little or no warning. Martlands is a family-run, DEFRA approved collector based in Burscough, Lancashire, providing fallen stock and ABP collection with same-day availability across the region.
A sudden death is distressing and disruptive, but what happens in the hours after discovery matters. Clostridial organisms form spores that survive in soil for years, so the way a carcass is handled, stored and removed affects the risk to the rest of the stock on that ground.
Sudden Deaths, Spores and Clostridial Disease Fallen Stock Collection
The clostridial diseases behind autumn losses
Several different Clostridium species cause disease in ruminants, and most share the same pattern of rapid illness and sudden death. Blackleg usually strikes young, well-grown cattle and is often linked to disturbed ground, with affected animals found dead with swollen, gassy muscle. Pulpy kidney is the classic killer of fast-growing lambs on lush grass or creep feed. Braxy affects sheep grazing frosted pasture or roots in late autumn and winter, while tetanus can follow castration, tailing or wounds. The official guidance on fallen stock and safe disposal of dead animals sets out the legal duties in full.
Black disease deserves particular attention in autumn. It develops when migrating immature liver fluke damage the liver and allow dormant spores to multiply, so a fluke problem on wet ground can turn into a clostridial loss. Our article on liver fluke fallen stock collection explains how the two problems overlap. The diagnosis in any individual case is a matter for your vet, and the same signs can point to other conditions.
Rule out anthrax before anything else
Any unexplained sudden death in cattle should prompt one question before the carcass is moved or opened. Could it be anthrax? Anthrax is a notifiable disease, and if you suspect it you must report it to APHA immediately. Your vet will usually take a sample to rule it out, and the carcass should not be moved, opened or collected until you have been told it is safe to proceed. The government also publishes detailed guidance on animal by-product categories and disposal.
This is not a box-ticking step. Opening a carcass that contains anthrax releases spores that can contaminate the ground for decades and pose a serious risk to people. Once anthrax has been ruled out, collection can be arranged. Our guide to the role of fallen stock collection in preventing the spread of disease on farms covers notifiable disease procedure in more detail.
Why burial is banned and especially risky here
On-farm burial and burning of fallen stock have been banned since 2003, apart from very limited derogations for some remote areas. Clostridial deaths show exactly why the rules exist. A buried carcass returns large numbers of spores to the soil, and those spores can be brought back to the surface by drainage work, ploughing, flooding or reseeding years later. Blackleg outbreaks on disturbed ground are a well known consequence.
Leaving a carcass out on pasture is no better. Scavengers, birds and the decomposition process itself spread contaminated material across the field. Arranging farm and fallen stock collection promptly takes the material off the land altogether. Martlands’ standing advice is that farmers have a duty of care to arrange collection promptly, ideally within 24 hours of discovery, and our same-day availability helps keep that window short.
Getting a diagnosis when deaths are unexplained
One sudden death may be bad luck. Two or three in a group, or deaths in vaccinated stock, need investigating. Speak to your vet before the carcass is collected, because a post-mortem examination can confirm whether a clostridial disease is responsible, identify the species involved and reveal gaps in a vaccination programme. Post-mortems should be carried out by a vet or through the APHA surveillance network, not by opening carcasses on the farm.
Timing matters, because clostridial carcasses decompose quickly and become less useful for diagnosis within hours. If your vet wants the carcass examined, let us know when you book so collection can be arranged to fit, and keep it cool, covered and away from other stock in the meantime.
Storing and presenting the carcass for collection
Move the carcass to a hard-standing collection point away from water courses, feed areas and livestock, ideally somewhere a vehicle can reach without crossing grazing land. Cover it to keep birds and foxes off, wear gloves and wash down any equipment used. Do not cut, skin or open the carcass, which only increases spore contamination.
Ruminant carcasses containing specified risk material are classed as Category 1 animal by-product, including cattle over 12 months and sheep or goats over 12 months or with a permanent incisor erupted. Younger lambs and calves are generally Category 2. Martlands is licensed for both, with Category 1 ABP collection and Category 2 ABP collection handled under Animal By-Products Licence APB/CCN21/373/8002. Cattle over 48 months still need a BSE test whatever the cause of death, and as a DEFRA approved sampling facility we can take the sample.
Clostridial disease fallen stock collection records, BCMS and vaccination follow-up
Every collection comes with a Commercial Document and Waste Transfer Note. Keep these with your medicine and movement records, because together they show an assessor or vet the full history of a loss. Cattle deaths must be reported to BCMS within seven days and the passport returned.
The records also feed back into prevention. Clostridial vaccines are effective and widely used, but losses often trace back to missed boosters, bought-in stock of unknown status or lambs that missed colostral protection because ewes were not boosted before lambing. Reviewing each death with your vet turns an unpleasant job into useful information. If you farm in the county, our Lancashire fallen stock collection page explains local arrangements, and the background to the burial ban is covered in our article on the ban on burying or burning fallen stock.
If you have found a sudden death and anthrax has been ruled out, call Martlands on 01704 776977 or contact us to arrange collection, with the paperwork you need provided on the day.
