LSD infects hundreds of cattle in Swabi

Livestock Department has formed team for door to door vaccination in the rural Swabi but few in number

SWABI:

Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) has been spreading fast across KhyberPakhtunkhwa (K-P) and it has now been recorded in Swabi district too where hundreds of animals have reportedly been infected.

Previously it was reported from Peshawar, Bajaur, Charsadda and DI Khan and other districts and due to lack of timely action on the part of the K-P Livestock Department the disease is spreading non-stop.

“We are naturally worried about the safety of our animals as we have been told that there is no cure of the disease and only mass immunization is the way out,” a local farmer told The Express Tribune.

Livestock Department has formed team for door to door vaccination in the rural Swabi but local farmers said that these teams were few in number.

“Infected animals experience lower milk production, low apatite and lumps on skin. Our animals are dying too without inviting any attention,” said the farmer, demanding of the government to carry out a mass vaccination.

In Bajaur

It may be mentioned here that in recent past hundreds of animals in Bar Khalozo, tehsil Mamond, Bajaur had been infected from the disease and dozens of cattle died.

“Our cows are dying which is a great financial loss for the local farmers. Everyday veterinary doctors and technicians visit the area but they are not taking any step to prevent the healthy animals from this disease,” said a local farmer of Bajaur. He said that several written applications had been submitted to the local livestock department. “After the applications the assistant director of livestock visited the village and he collected blood samples too. Some animals were given vaccine shots and then he told us that they were short of vaccine which is the only cure,” he said.

When contacted, Dr Nazir Muhammad, an official of Livestock Department Bajaur said that there were confirmed eight to nine cases in the village.

“We have collected blood samples and sent it to laboratory. We have contacted the LSD control cell,” he added. “I visited the area where people told us that dozens of cattle have been killed by the disease. It is not confirmed that the LSD is the cause of the mortality,” he said, adding that there is only five per cent mortality in the disease so there is no reason to panic about it.

“The vaccination process is on and we are trying our level best,” he said.

LSAD in livestock was initially reported in Sindh this year in March and then in Punjab but now confirmed cases have been reported from K-P. According to a press statement issued by Livestock Farmers Welfare Association (LFWA) two weeks ago, Director General Livestock K-P, Dr Alamzeb confirmed cases in K-P.