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Guidance

Testing for TB in your herd in Scotland and Wales

Guidance for cattle keepers in Scotland and Wales on why cattle are tested for bovine TB, how the tests are done and how to prepare for the tests.

Updates to this page

From:
Animal and Plant Health Agency
Published:
1 January 2013
Last updated:
27 October 2025
Show all updates

  1. Updated the 'Testing for TB in your herd: what this means to you (Wales)' page to include information about the resolved standard IR policy to be introduced in Wales from 1 January 2026.

  2. This guidance has been updated as a result of the extension of the use of the TB PCR test to all post-mortem samples from bovine animals on 14 February 2024.

  3. This guidance has been updated due to legislative changes in Wales on 1 February 2024.

  4. Because of legislative changes in Scotland on 18 May 2023, this guidance has been updated. The sections which have changed are 'Inconclusive Reactors (IRs)' and 'Pre- and post-movement testing' in the Scotland guidance.

  5. Updated 'Testing for TB in your herd: what this means to you (Wales) '. The sections with changes are: Pre- and post-movement testing; Suspension: Officially TB Free status Suspended (OTFS); Withdrawal: Officially TB Free status Withdrawn (OTFW); The tuberculin skin test; The gamma interferon blood test for TB

  6. The guidance 'Testing for TB in your herd: what this means to you (Scotland' has been updated throughout. The PDF 'Testing for TB in your herd: what this means to you (Scotland)' has been removed. It's been replaced with an accessible HTML attachment.

  7. Added Welsh translation of the guidance: Testing for TB in your herd: what this means to you (Wales).

  8. The Welsh guidance PDF has been replaced with HTML guidance to make this content more accessible. The following sections have also been updated: Testing cattle for bovine TB Inconclusive Reactors (IRs) The TB status of your herd Suspension: Officially TB Free status Suspended (OTFS) Withdrawal: Officially TB Free status Withdrawn (OTFW) Records. A new section on the IDEXX Antibody test has been added.

  9. Added translation

  10. Scotland document updated to clarify the testing requirements of a TB breakdown based on the various risk factors associated with that breakdown.

  11. Wales documents updated in relation to OTFW Wales policy change due to come into force from the 1st January 2016.

  12. PDF guidance document for England has been archived and link added to new guidance

  13. AHVLA documents have been re-assigned to the new Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).

  14. First published.

Documents

Testing for TB in your herd: what this means to you (Scotland)

HTML

Testing for TB in your herd: what this means to you (Wales)

HTML

Details

For cattle keepers in England, see Bovine TB: getting your cattle tested in England

Anyone who keeps cattle is required by law to have their animals tested for bovine tuberculosis (TB).

Cattle are tested at an interval (one or four years) depending on which county the herd is located and the disease risk for that area.

The testing programme confirms the TB disease status of a herd and is important to:

  • identify which cattle are infected with bovine TB
  • prevent bovine TB spreading to other cattle and animals
  • prevent cattle suffering because of infection
  • protect public health

Throughout this guidance, the term ‘cattle’ includes farmed bison and Asiatic water buffalo.

A Welsh translation of the guidance for cattle keepers in Wales is available.

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