CAPE TOWN, June 6 (Xinhua) -- The South African Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) on Thursday called on livestock farmers and livestock owners in all provinces to limit the movement of cloven-hoofed animals amid an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in the Eastern Cape province of the country.
In a statement issued on its website, the department said FMD cases were confirmed on five farms in the Eastern Cape areas of Humansdorp and East London, after epidemiological tests were conducted.
"Clinical signs of FMD were observed on the first reported farm and samples were collected immediately on 30 April 2024. Since then, clinical signs of FMD were found on four more farms in the Humansdorp area, and one in the East London area," said the DALRRD.
"The laboratory at Onderstepoort Veterinary Research in Pretoria confirmed that the results from samples collected on these farms are positive for SAT3 (South African Territories 3) on serology and PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests. Virus identifications by sequencing have identified the same SAT3 virus on these positive farms," it said.
FMD is a highly contagious viral disease. The disease affects cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and other cloven-hoofed animals.
The DALRRD emphasized that cloven hoofed animals should not be moved unless it is absolutely necessary, considering among others that the East London farm sourced animals from multiple origins. "This will allow for the department to find and quarantine further undetected, affected properties to prevent any further spread of the disease," it added
The department also stressed on the significance of the incubation period for FMD, noting this is the period when animals appear to be healthy, in the early stages of infection where they are shedding virus without showing clinical signs of disease yet.
According to the statement, an investigation into the origin and extent of the FMD outbreak in the province is ongoing, and various steps have been taken, including the placement under quarantine of locations that were confirmed to be positive for FMD by the Eastern Cape Provincial Veterinary Services.
Cattle and sheep on the affected farms were vaccinated against FMD to reduce the viral load on these farms, the DALRRD added.
