| Username |
Post |
| tewari |
Posted
on 21-Mar-01 05:50 PM
Foot-and-mouth disease spreads in Nepal
.c Kyodo News Service
KATHMANDU, March 21 (Kyodo) - The latest outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Nepal has caused the deaths of a number of cattle and livestock around the country, government officials said Wednesday.
The number was not immediately available.
The disease has spread to the Terathum district in the eastern part of the country, where two buffaloes and two calves recently died of the illness.
Last year, cases of foot-and-mouth disease were reported in 56 of Nepal's 75 districts, killing some 600 cattle, veterinary officer Gyanendranath Dangol said.
The mountainous Karnali area in the country's northwest was the hardest hit.
Nepal, which had its first confirmed outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in 1965, is an ''endemic zone'' for the illness, Dangol said.
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| Biswo |
Posted
on 21-Mar-01 09:23 PM
What is Nepali for 'Foot and Mouth disease'? Is it the same
disease that is hitting Europe these days?
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| Hom Raj |
Posted
on 21-Mar-01 09:46 PM
I think the possible Nepali word for this disease is khoryat, on the foot, and male, on the mouth (no political reference intended). When I was in my village, the way I treated our animals with khoryat and male was by making a paste of ash and smearing it brutally on the face and the hooves. The bakhara/gai/goru would howl and throw a tantrum. But it would pay off--they would survive. Although the symptoms sound pretty similar, I'm not sure if it is the same disease. If any one of you out there is a veterinarian, please let us know. BTW it stinks really bad and attracts swarms of flies as the mouths and hooves rot!!!
Hom Raj
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| agriculturist on the know |
Posted
on 21-Mar-01 11:33 PM
FMD is KHORET in Nepal as Hom Raj pointed out. In Nepal, generally they do not treat animal with Khoret. They isolate the affected animals and let the animal heal over the course of time. It is a serious viral disease (caused by Coxsackie virus) in animal. Although most of the developed countries do not have the case of FMD until lately (for example it is lastly seen in Canada in 1952), such occurence is common in developing countries like ours as observed by lot of farmers and as reported by international animal health origanization. Here are some more information:
What is Foot and Mouth Disease?
Foot and Mouth Disease is a severe, highly communicable viral disease of cattle and swine. It also affects sheep, goats, deer and other cloven-hoofed ruminants. Elephants, hedgehogs and some rodents are also susceptible to the virus but do not develop clinical signs of the disease. The disease is characterized by fever and blister-like sores on the tongue and lips, in the mouth, on the teats and between the hooves. Many affected animals recover, but the disease leaves them weakened and debilitated. Horses are not affected.
Public Health?
Foot and Mouth Disease is not a public health threat. Human cases are extremely rare. This animal disease is NOT RELATED to the human condition -- Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (Coxsackie virus).
How is it spread?
Animals, people or materials can spread Foot and Mouth Disease. An outbreak can occur when:
People wearing contaminated clothes or footwear, or using contaminated equipment, pass the virus to susceptible animals.
Animals carrying the virus are introduced into susceptible herds.
Contaminated facilities and vehicles are used to hold and move susceptible animals.
Meat or animal products infected with the virus or raw or improperly cooked food waste containing infected meat or animal products is fed to susceptible animals.
Susceptible animals are exposed to contaminated materials such as hay, feed, water, semen or biologics.
Is Foot and Mouth Disease a serious disease?
Foot and Mouth Disease is an extremely serious livestock illness and it is one of the most contagious of animal diseases. The disease also causes severe production losses in domestic livestock. If an outbreak occurred, the virus could spread rapidly to all parts of the country through routine livestock movements. Unless detected early and eradicated immediately, losses could reach billions of dollars in the first year. Wildlife such as deer, elk and bison could become infected and remain a reservoir for the virus.
What can you do?
In order to prevent spread of any disease, all farm visitors should follow sound biosecurity measures such as washing and disinfecting all personal effects and equipment used on any other farms that have accompanied them. It is particularly important to clean and disinfect footwear or provide visitors with footwear.
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| Hom Raj |
Posted
on 21-Mar-01 11:55 PM
Great information!
FYI, if someone is a villager who can't do "sound biological security measures" you isolate the affected animal out in the mud while keeping other animals in the shed. This is basically to ward off flies. Not really appealing to health workers, but anyway, it's what we did and it seemed to work.
By the way, when khasi have khoret/khoryat people usually eat them. But when they prepare the meat they polne it and also chop off the mouths and hooves. There begins the great feast! I wonder if this is healthy (I don't think so).
PS. In these days of foot 'n' mouth, just in case anyone has some khasi next to their computer, make sure it was poleko maasu! Or in American terms, "well done."
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