Anthrax

Red Meat Producers Organisation | By Maryna Brits  All farmers are requested to urgently vaccinate their animals against anthrax. This includes cattle, sheep and goats. Anthrax also occurs within game and under no circumstances must venison of infected game, be consumed. Farmers must also be very cautious when buying in new animals and ensure that the animals are disease-free. The movement of animals (live stock and game) must as far as possible be avoided and if any mortalities occur, the carcass must be handled with the utmost care and it must under no circumstances be cut open. This follows after an outbreak of anthrax has been confirmed near Maseru in Lesotho. In this case, humans also got infected with the disease after the carcasses have been cut open and eaten. A ten kilometer radius has been quarantined. Farmers from Ha-Tseka were warned not to take their products to a Maseru trade fair. Even animal movement between the Free State and Lesotho will be restricted and no trade will be allowed. The areas affected includes Ladybrand in the Maseru-zone, Zastron, Wepener, Maputsoe, Botha Bothet and Thabo Mofutsanyane. Anthrax is a highly contagious and infectious soil-borne disease caused by Bacillus anthracis, a relatively large spore-forming bacteria that can infect mammals. Animals are infected with anthrax when they eat contagious plant materials, water or even the bones of dead animals. Animals who contract the disease show the following symptoms :-they don’t eat; there is a decline in milk production; milk may be bloody; […]

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