SRINAGAR: In the wake of reports of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) in Kashmir, the Directorate of Sheep Husbandry Kashmir has informed all the Sheep farmers of the division not to panic and take necessary preventive measures as the disease is not usually manifested in a virulent form in small ruminants.
In an official statement, the department has informed that an outbreak of Foot & Mouth disease was reported in sheep during early May in district Budgam and the department immediately took remedial measures and started vaccination of the animals in the periphery of the affected areas (ring vaccination) and offered treatment of clinical cases.
The disease was mainly reported from rural areas like Rathsun, Shalkani, Gundipora of Beerwah Subdivision of District Budgam where about 1700 sheep were affected out of which about 1600 have recovered fully. Besides district Budgam, the disease was sporadically reported from isolated pockets of District Anantnag, Baramulla and Bandipora.
It was revealed that besides field vets who attended the outbreak, the department immediately deputed experts from Disease Investigation Lab Nowshera who ensured all kinds of prophylactic and curative measures to prevent mortalities and spread of the disease. The teams collected the necessary samples from affected areas and the tests have been sent to Bhubaneshwar BSL-2 lab for confirmatory diagnosis of the disease.
In the meantime, all symptomatic treatment of affected cases is being undertaken and there is no paucity of either drugs or vaccines required to address the outbreak. Moreover, 05 teams of experts from Disease Investigation Laboratory Nowshera have been deputed for 10 districts of Kashmir division, to keep tight surveillance on any form of disease outbreak throughout the division especially of the migrating flocks from different areas of the valley.
