East Anglia's livestock farmers have been warned to guard against bluetongue as a new strain of the devastating disease spreads rapidly in the Netherlands.

The region was at the centre of the UK's last major bluetongue outbreak in 2007 - a virus affecting ruminants including sheep, cattle, goats and deer as well as camelids such as llamas and alpacas.

But the disease has resurfaced this year and animal health experts reported that a new strain, named BTV-3, had been confirmed on more than 700 Dutch farms by early October - with a new case also reported in Belgium this week.

As the virus is transmitted by infected midges, there are concerns that its close proximity and the recent warm weather could increase the risk of it being brought across the North Sea to our shores.

Industry body Ruminant Health and Welfare (RH&W) has held emergency meetings with more than 40 key industry stakeholders to discuss the response to the emerging disease threat.

Dr Joseph Henry, president of the Sheep Veterinary Society and member of RH&W’s steering group, said: "What we are advising is three-fold. Farmers need to beware when buying animals in, especially from Europe, take action to report any signs of the disease, and at all times, remain vigilant.

“The existing BTV-8 serotype vaccine will not offer cross-protection against this new BTV-3 strain, making any likely outbreak difficult to control.

"Hence why it’s so important that we follow the advice to take action and prioritise good biosecurity measures while remaining extremely vigilant to the disease at this stage."

Dr Henry added: "It remains extremely difficult to protect against midges and a vector-borne disease.

"However, there is always a role for good biosecurity and insecticides, but it’s important to differentiate between products licensed for use on animals, and those designed for use on buildings and vehicles."

Although bluetongue does not pose a threat to human health, it remains a serious, notifiable animal disease.

Symptoms of BTV-3 in sheep include drooling, mouth lesions, high fever, lameness and oedema (swollen heads) and sudden death.

Cattle are not usually as severely affected but may show similar clinical signs as well as teat, eye, coronary band and nose lesions.