> Sounds like you may have hit on a realistic answer.
 
Now Judy, that's something I can agree on. This discussion turns up now
and then about the "medication" of beehives that's going on in some parts
of the world.
 
Just some thoughts on how some of us see it on this side of the pond.
 
Too me it seems as stupid to continuously pour antibiotics into a bee hive,
as it would be for me to take it myself every day. Apart from that it's illegal
to use ANY antibiotics in beekeeping in Sweden, we would soon loose all
possibility to find and breed from the bees showing signs of resistance to
the disease. And when we can't see if there is any infectious matter in the
hive, and clean it out in time, we would soon have it all over the place and
be forced to prophylactic use of drugs just to keep in business! And when
we got there it would be no return..... we would have to keep on medicating
when all material would be so contaminated with nosema and AFB spores
that the bees might not make it otherwise.
 
I rather stick to the old way, survival of the fittest, that's taken us to where
 
we are now, and let nature work for me instead of working against evolution.
 
Said that, I must accept that some big operators can't stay in business
without using antibiotics.
 
BUT, I can't agree on the use of it as a prophylactic! When there is established
 
that a hive needs it, the medication should be used to cure THAT HIVE only.
We have reports coming more and more often from hospitals and researchers
that one or the other bug gets resistant to antibiotics and can't be treated
anymore
because of the use of it as a general cure to everything. When we really get
sick there
is no cure as the bugs got the chance to build up resistance to antibiotics due
to
the excessive use. I'm sure the same thing is happening with bees.
 
What I don't like to read here is the advice often given to a newbee to use
all kinds of drugs "just in case"! Instead he/she should be encouraged to be
careful with antibiotics and learn how to give the bees the best possibility to
make it without drugs.
 
I'm only a small fish in the beekeeping ocean with a few hundred hives, but
to this day I haven't had a case of AFB in my hives. Some hives now and then
with nosema problem, but they are requeened and that's the end of that.
 
> However, in order to
> overcome the continuous use of those anitbiotics, we must have someone,
> such as yourself, extract some of that stingless bee DNA and start us all
> over again.
 
No, I think it's up to all of you out there to stop and think if it's worth it;
to save a little bit of time now (but paying the drugs), or to stop using
antibiotics unless there is a need and have the chance to find resistant
strains of bees, and make antibiotics useful a few more years (and save money).
 
It's easy to say wait until someone else fix it for you. But if no one
does.....?
Can we afford to make antibiotics useless before we got something else?
 
--
Regards
 
P-O Gustafsson, Sweden
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