Advancements in Fish Vaccination Practices

Let's look at vaccinations,

arguably one of the most important advancements

for farming livestock in the modern age,

and the greatest leap forward in fish farming

welfare since its mass adoption in recent decades.

To start, most livestock in the UK are vaccinated.

Fish are no exception to this,

but they do present some unique challenges in doing so.

These are Atlantic salmon smolts being vaccinated

at their Scottish Inchmoor facility,

one of the country's most advanced freshwater facilities.

They start with an anesthetizing bath

to knock them out.

No one wants fish flopping around

for this sort of precision treatment.

Once they're out,

these juveniles head around to be orientated upright and forward.

Yes, fish flippers are a real machine.

Then every fish is imaged,

and this massive automated vaccinator

positions each fish in line with its injector.

This will administer a cocktail of vital vaccines

as quickly as possible.

And between its eight injectors,

this machine can vaccinate up to 18,000 fish an hour.

Throughout this, highly trained technicians are monitoring the entire process.

By the way, this process used to be done by hand,

and at many farms it still is,

which takes vets and techs weeks.

Now vaccinated and still a bit groggy,

these fish head back to the hatchery's tanks

to recover and return to a normal feeding schedule.

So broadly speaking,

why are salmon farmers vaccinating their fish?

Bacterial and viral diseases aren't typically an issue in the hatchery itself.

It's a biosecure facility with little environmental interaction.

Where fish will run into these pathogens is at sea.

Salmon are transferred from these freshwater hatcheries to seawater pens.

once they reach a certain size,

the same way they migrate in the wild.

Ocean pens are obviously very exposed to the environment around them,

which includes bacterial and viral pathogens.

By vaccinating fish against over a dozen common salmon diseases,

these farmers can maintain a significantly higher standard of welfare

by reducing the impact of infections when they do inevitably occur.

Vaccinations are also to thank for salmon farming's

almost complete removal of necessary antibiotics.

With their mass adoption,

antibiotic use has all but disappeared relative to years past

as more fish get vaccinated and those vaccines get better.

Just one of the many protective measures

undertaken here in Scottish salmon farming

by vets and biologists to improve their practices.

And yes, vaccinating fish is safe for them and for you.