Randy, it's not an extreme suggestion, in Europe it's standard practice and
appears to have favorable results - in better nation-wide survival than in
US?

 

Yes, I have cured countless infected pet maladies with antibiotics, after
accurate diagnosis. Diagnosis was crucial. 

 As you graphically describe in one of your video lectures, beekeepers are
their own diagnosticians and are weak at it. I would speculate that many
misdiagnosed foul brood cases have contributed to excessive reliance on
Oxytet. - and sustained the market sales. 

Only a tiny percentage of beekeepers are skilled as you in knowing where
treatment might be appropriate, but peer pressure, prior to this year, has
nudged the average beekeeper to speculate and dose liberally. So Oxy tet.
has been abused because using it has been advised in supply catalogues and
instruction books, - even routine prophylactic application was advised this
year in a BeeCulture article authored by a University of Florida apiarist. 

 

I think some comparative analysis between American and European survival
rates and production efficiency might help advise us if non treatment policy
nation-wide might be advisable. 

 

Fumagillin, an anti-fungal, is also banned in Europe for good reasons:

-        It is counter productive at low levels -
http://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.10031
85

-        Another study, I believer from U. of Ill. Found rebound
infestations 100% higher in treated bees than in non-treated controls.

-        It's a harsh medication and is only effective against the
vegetative form, treating only the sick bees already infected and terminal
regardless of efficacy of the medication

 

So, reliance on a higher standard of management practices and hygienic care
might result if antibiotics were banned in US as they are in Europe.  

 

 

DC

 

 

 


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