Indore: Five cows found with lumpy skin disease-like symptoms

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Along with sounding an alert for lumpy skin disease, the Madhya Pradesh animal husbandry department has sent samples of five cows which were found with symptoms of the disease in Depalpur on Tuesday. After treatment based on the symptoms, the condition of the cows was fine, deputy director (animal husbandry) Dr Ashok Barethia said.

Experts say the major symptoms of this infectious viral disease, which affects cattle, are fever, nasal and lacrimal discharge, ulcers in the eye, swollen lymph nodes and a drop in milk production. Also, nodules are observed on the skin in the head, neck, genital organs and chest regions. “Lumpy skin disease-like symptoms have been found in five cows in the rural area of Depalpur. The samples have been sent to the National Institute of High-Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) in Bhopal,” Barethia said.

Another deputy director, Dr Shashank Jumde, said the disease had not been confirmed yet. “We’re waiting for the investigation reports. The teams have also been alerted, but the cows affected with the symptoms are stable and recovering well. We’ve also advised people for avoid transportation of animals from the other states for a few days,” he said.

In neighbouring Maharashtra, at least 22 head of cattle have died of the lumpy skin disease in a period of one month, according to an official from that state’s animal husbandry department. Outbreaks of the disease have been reported in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.

Since the disease is infectious, it is important to take preventive measures, such as proper cleanliness of cowsheds and segregation of healthy animals from infected ones, according to experts.