The Taraba State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security yesterday confirmed the death of over 1,000 cattle to “Haemorrhagic Septicaemia and Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia” at Gembu in Sardauna Local Government Area of the state.
Addressing reporters in Jalingo, the state capital, the Director of Veterinary Services in the ministry, Dr. Nathan Francis, said a laboratory result had confirmed the earlier report of the cause of the deaths to be “Haemorrhagic Septicaemia and Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia”.
The director said the government had imposed a movement ban on animals to and from the affected local government area.
Francis described Gembu as having the largest population of livestock in Nigeria, ranging between 800,000 and 1,000,000.
He expressed the fear that the huge number might make the control of the diseases Herculean.
Francis sought logistics and funding support to enable the state to overcome the challenge.
He said: “…Over 1,000 animals were lost; one herder lost 70 animals. One of the bulls that died was estimated to cost about N2.5 million and somebody lost 70. You can imagine how much he has lost. You remember that this is not only a business; it is a livelihood. Obviously, their livelihood is going to be affected.
“Initially, we thought it was Haemorrhagic Septicaemia. When I went to Gembu to monitor the treatment, we had a herd with mortalities and then we went there to do a postmortem. We discovered that in addition to Haemorrhagic Septicaemia, we also have Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia. So, we have a mixed infection.
“As a department, we have a challenge of cold chain facility. We have only a giant freezer that can contain less than 100 vials. We are talking of vaccinating over 800,000 animals. If these vaccines are brought, I don’t have a cold chain to keep them safe until when they are required to be used.
“We are also asking for support in the area of funds. We have primarily five epicentres in Dorofi, Mayo Daga, Kwarakwara, Furmi, and Labare.”
Francis said the ministry was “on top of the situation,” assuring that the “disease does not affect human beings, and the public can go ahead with the consumption of meat”.
But the director advised that the meat should be properly cooked before consumption.
Credit: The Nation
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