Kaduna Govt battles outbreak of contagious lung infection in cows

shuaib.sadiq

February 5, 2019 2:04 PM

Malam Dahiru Abdullahi, the Information Officer, state Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, confirmed the outbreak in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna.

Kaduna Govt battles outbreak of contagious lung infection in cows/Illustration

The Kaduna State Government on Tuesday confirmed an outbreak of strange animal disease, suspected to be Contagious Bovine Pleuro Pneumonia (CBPP), currently killing cows in parts of the state.

Malam Dahiru Abdullahi, the Information Officer, state Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, confirmed the outbreak in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna.

Abdullahi said: “There were reported cases of the strange disease in parts of the state.

“The Vetenirary Department of the ministry had begun investigation and blood samples of some affected cows had been taken for laboratory test to ascertain the nature of the disease.”

NAN reports that the outbreak was reported in some communities in Kachia, Kagarko and Anchau Local Government Areas of the state.

The official, however, said that experts in animal diseases were already working round the clock to ensure it did not spread to other parts of the state.

A Fulani herder, Malam Suleiman Adamu, told NAN that disease had so far killed more than 100 herds of cattle in their own family at Kilometre 60, Doka Ward, Kachia Local Government Area, in the last three weeks.

Adamu said their father, Alhaji Dano, who has over 500 herds now live in fear and devastation following the outbreak in the area.

He expressed concern with the slow pace of measures being taken by the state government to tackle the disease which, he said, was contagious.

Another pastoralist, Malam Muhammed Dauji, who lives at Gadan Malam Mamman, a community also in Kachia local government area, told NAN in a separate interview that they had lost 40 cows to the disease.

Dauji said herds of cattle belonging to his kinsmen in Kagarko and Anchau Local Government Areas had been affected and many cows killed between September 2018 and January this year.

He, however, lamented that no proper action had been taken by government to tackle the outbreak and “it is now spreading to other areas of the state’’.

NAN reports that cattle infected by CBPP would have difficulty breathing, which constitutes the major symptom.

Other clinical signs, according CBPP experts, includes “dry husky cough, especially when the animal first gets on its feet or is made to run’’.

Affected animals show signs of grunting with signs of pain if pressure applied to the ribs, fever, nasal discharges and anorexia, among others.

“In severe cases the animal’s breathing is rapid, movement of the sides is increased and animals stand with feet wide apart to aid breathing.

“Some animals may die. Others appear to recover but can remain infectious for up to three years.

“CBPP is spread by direct contact with an infected animal, through infected droplets in the breath.’’

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