Raising responsibility for disease prevention in livestock and poultry

(Baonghean) -The rainy season is also a sensitive time for livestock diseases. Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) and avian influenza have appeared, with the risk of widespread outbreaks. The management, monitoring and prevention of livestock diseases have become urgent...

SAfter the impact of storms No. 10 and No. 11, Ms. Ho Thi Cuc - Hung Tan hamlet 1 (Hung Nguyen) is actively cleaning the barn, applying lime to disinfect, and continuing to take care of the buffalo being treated for FMD. She said, "About 10 days after storm No. 10, I discovered that my buffalo and calf were urinating, eating poorly, and had loose hooves and water running out, so I reported it to the hamlet chief. After checking and discovering that the disease was mild, the commune veterinary staff supported the family with manual treatment such as rubbing lemon, washing with warm water, and applying grease to the buffalo in a timely manner. It has been nearly a month now, and the buffalo is recovering." Hung Tan hamlet 1 - the lowest area in the commune, with heavy rain, water accumulation, and slow drainage, the whole hamlet is like a basin of water. Due to localized flooding for quite a long time, waste from daily life, livestock, rotten plants, especially dead animals floating back, causing serious pollution to the livestock environment.

Mr. Vo Ngoc Thao - Head of Hamlet 1, said: After the impact of storm No. 10 and floods, the whole hamlet had 8 buffaloes, cows, calves and pigs infected with FMD. In addition, over 250/2,500 chickens and ducks were sick and stopped eating. Some chickens and ducks died. After reporting to the commune and the district veterinary station, the hamlet was given 6 bottles of Benkocid to spray and disinfect all the barns. The hamlet mobilized people to spend money to buy medicine to prevent and treat avian influenza, and buy 300 kg of lime powder to disinfect the barn area and main roads in the commune. In particular, people were required to manage 100% of the buffaloes and cows in the barns. However, the risk of disease spreading and spreading during the rainy and stormy season is very unpredictable.

Cleaning livestock barns after floods in Hung Tan (Hung Nguyen).

Nam Cuong Commune (Nam Dan) currently has 1,200 fattened buffaloes and cows, over 13,000 chickens and ducks. After the impact of storm No. 10 and recent heavy rains, 4/11 hamlets of the commune were severely flooded, isolated on the other side of the Lam River. Due to rising flood waters, 20 hectares of corn spread along the river and 5 hectares of grass grown as food for buffaloes and cows were damaged. After the flood, some cows in the commune were infected with FMD. However, through discussions with Mr. Dang Cong Huan - Head of the Veterinary Department of Nam Cuong Commune, it was learned that: Because the livestock barn system does not have a drainage system. The waste pit is not guaranteed, most of the waste from livestock is discharged onto the street. In particular, the most difficult time at this time is also the time when livestock households prepare food sources to supply the Lunar New Year market. This year, people sell more beef cattle to the market than previous years. The amount of cattle transported by car happens every day without any management agency, so it is difficult to control diseases.

Mr. Ho Nghia Binh - Head of the Veterinary Station of Quynh Luu district said: In the storm No. 10, both Quynh Luu district and Hoang Mai town had over 2,000 pigs, buffaloes and cows die, over 150,000 poultry swept away by water. The veterinary environmental treatment team of the two areas of Quynh Luu and Hoang Mai organized to collect dead animals and poultry, and instructed people to bury and destroy them. Particularly, 6 wards and communes in the livestock farming areas severely affected, including Quynh Vinh, Quynh Thien, Quynh Trang, Quynh Xuan, Quynh Di, Mai Hung, organized to spray 700 liters of disinfectant. However, the impact of storm No. 10 has not passed, the rain and flood have caused serious environmental pollution. Feed for livestock and poultry is scarce, manure, garbage, and pathogens are spreading widely. In the coming time, the risk of dangerous infectious diseases in livestock, poultry, and diseases in farmed shrimp is very high.

After the recent heavy rains, hundreds of thousands of livestock households, barns, and grazing grounds in the province were flooded. In particular, communes were severely flooded or completely isolated, such as 10 communes of Hoang Mai Town, some communes across the river in Nam Dan District, low-lying areas along the dike, along the coast, and along the rivers of Hung Nguyen and Nghi Loc districts.

Mr. Dang Van Minh - Deputy Head of the Provincial Veterinary Department said: In general, the disease situation in livestock after the floods is stable, without many changes. However, for livestock farms that do not meet the infrastructure requirements, do not comply with basic procedures in disease prevention, especially poor herd management, this is a time of many challenges. To ensure good disease management in livestock, the Department issued Official Dispatch No. 604/TY-DT on "Strengthening disease prevention for livestock and aquatic products in the last 3 months of 2013". Accordingly, localities are required to strengthen surveillance of FMD, blue ear disease, avian influenza..., quickly detect outbreaks, control and handle them on a small scale.

Advise the People's Committees of districts to direct and urge to increase the vaccination rate, organize thorough vaccination of 100% of livestock and poultry in the vaccination area, especially old epidemic areas, high-risk areas, low-lying and flooded areas. Localities should pay attention to additional vaccination for newly raised livestock and poultry, imported and re-herded livestock. Organize the implementation of the third round of disinfection of the livestock environment after the flood in 2013 according to Decision No. 1284/QD-SNN of the Department of Agriculture. For units severely flooded including Hoang Mai Town, Quynh Luu, Nghia Dan, Thai Hoa Town, it is necessary to implement early. Decide to establish a post-flood environmental treatment team in Quynh Luu and Hoang Mai Town. Up to now, the Provincial Veterinary Department has coordinated with functional departments and facilities to organize the provision of chemicals for spraying and disinfecting heavily flooded areas, including 1,800 liters for Hoang Mai Town.ai, Quynh Luu, 400 liters for Nghia Dan, 200 liters for Thai Hoa town (according to plan 1284/QD - SNN-CN).

However, the current difficulty is that disease management in livestock in many localities is still limited. In fact, the localities where FMD and avian influenza appeared after floods are mostly in old epidemic areas and high-risk areas. Mr. Nghiem Xuan Bao - Head of Hung Nguyen Veterinary Station said: Most of the cattle and buffaloes infected with FMD or avian influenza appearing in some communes after floods have not been properly vaccinated. In the 2013 autumn crop, the whole district only vaccinated 8,600/14,000 doses of cattle and buffalo pasteurellosis, 5,700/10,700 doses of pasteurellosis, swine fever, 5,500 doses of avian influenza vaccine, 820/10,000 doses of FMD. The reason is due to the lack of cooperation of the people and local authorities, including households that have paid the vaccination fund according to the plan. In particular, this year, in the condition that the State does not subsidize vaccines, it is not easy for people to spend 700 VND/dose of avian influenza vaccine and 15,500 VND/dose of FMD vaccine to vaccinate their livestock.

In addition, due to the continuous rain and floods, the implementation of chemical disinfection spraying in many localities has encountered difficulties. In Quynh Luu, Hoang Mai town, due to unfavorable weather, only 700/1,800 liters of chemicals needed to be sprayed were sprayed. In Nam Cuong commune (Nam Dan) and many other flooded localities, the treatment of barns and waste after floods with chemical disinfection has not been deployed to livestock households.

Article and photos:Luong Mai