Nghe An: Dozens of buffaloes died after floods
(Baonghean.vn) - According to information from the Provincial Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, as of September 11, anthrax outbreaks had occurred in three localities: Xieng My commune, Yen Thang commune, Tuong Duong district and Lang Khe commune, Con Cuong district.
According to the people of Dong Tien village, Lang Khe commune, Con Cuong district,On September 4, a family discovered their buffalo dead in the forest. Afterwards, some families went to the forest to cut the meat and eat it. This is believed to be one of the reasons why the disease spread so quickly.
As of September 10, dozens of buffaloes had died of anthrax in Dong Tien village. At least five others are currently suffering from the disease.
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| Many households do not have the habit of keeping livestock. Photo: Ba Hau |
The situation of dead cattle has made many people worried. Mr. Vi Van Lien, whose five buffaloes died from septicemia, said: "I don't know what to do now because that is almost all my property."
Mr. Ngan Dinh Phong - Vice Chairman of Lang Khe Commune People's Committee said: Since receiving information about dead buffaloes in Dong Tien village, the locality has implemented prevention and treatment plans. However, the effectiveness is not high because people still use meat from dead cattle, especially most people still let their buffaloes roam freely in the forest.
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| The veterinary sector of Con Cuong district is currently trying to control and handle the outbreak. Photo: Huu Vi |
Dong Tien is an area bordering a number of villages and hamlets of Tam Quang commune (Tuong Duong), with complex mountainous terrain making disease prevention work difficult.
Currently, the People's Committee of Con Cuong district has developed a plan to handle the epidemic and prevent it from spreading. The trading and transportation of livestock and poultry in and out of the area has been banned. At the same time, the district government is also organizing vaccinations for livestock and advising people to comply with measures to ensure safety and prevent epidemics in livestock and poultry.
In Tuong Duong district,Mr. Kha Van Ot - Vice Chairman of the District People's Committee said that by the afternoon of September 11, the district's authorities discovered another outbreak of anthrax in Yen Thang commune; 11 cattle were infected. This is a commune adjacent to Xieng My commune - the locality that discovered anthrax in cattle 4 days ago.
Currently, the epidemic has been confirmed to have occurred in 4 villages of Xieng My commune (Dinh Tai, Cha Hia, Chon and Phay villages); with more than 40 buffaloes and cows dead. The total number of cattle killed in these 2 communes in the past 5 days is more than 50.
"Yen Thang and Xieng My communes are remote communes of the district. Currently, these two communes are still without electricity from the recent flood, so it is difficult to propagate to the people about the disease in the cattle herd; bringing the cattle and buffalo back from the forest is facing many difficulties. The district is directing the commune to continue to propagate and request households to bring the cattle and buffalo back for preventive vaccination, to avoid the spread as well as to minimize damage to the people" - Mr. Kha Van Ot added.
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| Cattle of Phay village people, Xieng My commune died of anthrax. Photo: Ho Van Ngoi |
According to statistics from the Provincial Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, up to now, the epidemic has caused 79 buffaloes and cows to become sick and die (62 in Tuong Duong, 17 in Con Cuong); of which, 57 died (50 in Tuong Duong, 7 in Con Cuong); 13 have been cured (9 in Tuong Duong, 4 in Con Cuong); currently, 9 are still being treated (3 in Tuong Duong, 6 in Con Cuong).
Mr. Dang Van Minh - Deputy of the Provincial Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine said: The disease occurs in cattle that have not been vaccinated against anthrax. The cause of the disease is due to the erratic weather, which reduces the resistance of livestock. In the bodies of buffaloes and cows, which have a relatively high rate of already carrying pathogens in the respiratory tract, when encountering anthrax bacteria that exist in mud, garbage or in food after floods, livestock are very susceptible to increased virulence and disease.
It is worth mentioning that the use of specific treatment regimens for anthrax on infected cattle and buffalo in Tuong Duong in the early days of the outbreak was not effective, because the bacteria were resistant to the drugs.
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| Veterinary staff of Tuong Duong district vaccinate livestock in Xieng My commune. Photo: Ho Van Ngoi. |
"We have coordinated with the Veterinary Agency of Region III and drug suppliers, combined with practical experience in disease prevention, to come up with a new treatment regimen, using new drugs imported from the US, applied in Tuong Duong for the past 5 days," Mr. Minh added.
The initial results are quite positive, from September 8th until now in Tuong Duong no more buffaloes or cows have died, the sick ones are all recovering well, some have been cured. Currently this new treatment regimen is continuing to be applied in Con Cuong.
The provincial Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine has lent Tuong Duong district 2,000 doses of vaccine.tBlood septic tank for vaccination in epidemic areas and more than 100 liters of chemicals to spray disinfectants in epidemic areas.
In Con Cuong, the district has begun receiving 2,000 doses of anthrax vaccine, 2,000 doses of foot-and-mouth disease vaccine and 100 liters of chemicals in the national control program and vaccines for mountainous areas, implementing epidemic prevention and vaccination for the autumn crop on livestock.