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Topics: Jeremy Clarkson, Clarkson's Farm
Brenna Cooper
Topics: Jeremy Clarkson, Clarkson's Farm
Jeremy Clarkson confirmed had been an outbreak of a deadly virus among the livestock at Diddly Squat Farm.
The veteran TV presenter has weathered several storms since taking over the Cotswolds farm, from animal deaths to flooding and more recently crop failures.
And it doesn't seem like the problems are stopping for the 65-year-old, as he announced the devastating news of a bovine tuberculosis (bTB) outbreak.
Confirming the news on X, he wrote: "Bad news from Diddly Squat. We’ve gone down with TB. Everyone here is absolutely devastated."
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Clarkson's Farm fans were of course devastated by the update, sharing their well-wishes with the presenter and concerns for fan-favourite animals such as Endgame and Richard Ham.
"Oh dear me Jeremy, that's horrific news, wrote one person, while a second added: "Been in that situation in the past! Devastating as the heard could well have to be culled. Feel for you JC."
Clarkson later confirmed the Bovine TB diagnosis in a follow-up post, after several fans became concerned the presenter himself had contracted the respiratory condition.
"I should clear this up really. It’s Bovine TB that we have. It doesn’t affect people, just our poor cows," he added.
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Caused by a bacteria known as Mycobacterium bovis, Bovine TB is considered on of the biggest issues affecting cattle farming in the UK.
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The disease is spread through inhalation of the bacteria or ingesting contaminated food. Bovine TB can also be spread by wildlife, with badgers being known to spread the disease to cattle.
Clarkson has been very outspoken about the impact of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) and cattle in past, even referring to the badgers as evil, vicious b******s'.
"We found two badger corpses on the on the farm - I mean, there's about 100 badgers live here - we found two, had them both tested and they both had TB [tuberculosis]," he told LADbible back in 2023.
"So we're living in constant fear that they pass that on to the cows."
He continued: "When you get cows, the biggest problem you have are badgers, by miles, just off the charts."
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Clarkson also hit out at laws which designate badgers as a protected species by UK law, which means it is illegal to kill the animal or disturb their habitats.
"Obviously, you have Brian May and Chris Packham and so on who say, 'Well, they're cuddly little things, and Wind in the Willows, and aren't they lovely?'" he added.
"They're not - they're evil, vicious b******s who eviscerate hedgehogs."
He even suggested that badgers are responsible for suicides among farmers, adding: "In a direct way. They definitely 100 percent are."