The temperature at foot and mouth ground zero

Joe Muir looked for stock inspectors most of the morning by the front gate of his Waiheke Island farm.

He looks the typical Kiwi farmer, standing with hands in pockets, in gumboots and green Swanndri, making low-key jokes about the threat that had suddenly appeared for him and his neighbours.

His dogs jump to attention as he shoos them away from the steady stream of friendly neighbours who stop to say hello and chat about the odd situation that is unfolding around them.

The property behind him is undergoing a transformation, typical of the island as a whole. Its dry-stock farming operation has become part farm, part lifestyle block under the direction of his boss, Mainfreight owner Bruce Plested.

Mr Muir reaches into his pocket again to answer his constantly ringing cellphone. It's the boss on the other end of the line from London and he wants to know what on earth is going on. The only sign of tension is when Mr Muir calls the hoaxer a "bloody idiot" - with feeling.

Down the road at the 800ha Waiheke Station, Mr Muir's neighbour and fellow farm manager Neville Dick is helping to herd reluctant young herefords past vet Phillip Brown's hovering thermometer. He thought the hoax was a "wind-up", but now faces hours of mustering to get his stock into pens for checking.

He looks like a man who doesn't need this right now.

Mr Brown, a Te Awamutu veterinarian, is one of about two dozen nationwide qualified to attend a possible foot-and-mouth outbreak.

He takes the temperature of a random sample of about 60 sheep and cattle, as well as looking for any lesions or foaming at the mouth, symptoms of the virus.

"Anything over 40C is suspicious and will have to be tested again."

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry spokeswoman Tina Nixon said islanders were being helpful.

"One lifestyle block owner even rang us about his pig called Babe to make sure it was included on the list."

Farmers were prevented from getting stock off the island because of the threat of spreading the disease and were mustering stock for testing. This would be done every 48 hours for two weeks, the incubation period of the virus.

The earliest a disease outbreak on Waiheke would be confirmed would be the end of the week.

No vehicles were prevented from leaving Waiheke yesterday and one woman had volunteered not to take her horses to Auckland because the animals could carry the disease.

By last night, stock was being checked on 16 of the 30 farms and lifestyle blocks on the island.

According to figures compiled by the ministry, there are 15,000 sheep on the island and 16,000 cows, and MAF hoped to have tested them by the end of tomorrow.

One casualty of the scare was visits by tourists wishing to see Stony Batter Historic Reserve at the eastern end of the island. Department of Conservation Auckland area manager Beau Fraser said the department wanted to avoid any unnecessary traffic through farmland to Stony Batter, saying the reserve would stay closed until MAF gave Waiheke the "all-clear".

The department put up signs about the closure at the ferry terminal at Matiatia and the public entrance to the Stony Batter reserve, off Man O' War Bay Rd.

Last night, biosecurity authorities explained their balancing act over the threat of a foot-and-mouth outbreak to a sombre public meeting of about 50 people on Waiheke.

Resident Eleanor Rimoldi said she came along because the issue potentially affected the entire community. She added: "I feel we are being used either as a pawn or a joke and neither is acceptable."

MAF spokesman Douglas Birnie said the fact that the release of the deadly virus could be a hoax meant officials had to impose restrictions without over-reacting.

"We hadn't gone for the footbaths and disinfecting stuff because we don't want to signal it's that serious yet," he said.

MAF was also worried that the incident might encourage copycats.

AgriQuality spokesman Robert Isbister said there had been three movements of livestock in the past few days off the island. The livestock had been traced to the Beachlands area, east of Auckland, and would be checked for the disease.

Federated Farmers spokesman Richard Gardner urged farmers to keep records of any losses they suffered. A foodbank for stock feed was being set up.