Sindh govt shuts cattle markets amid LSD epidemic

KARACHI: Sindh government has decided to shut down cattle markets across the province amid the emergence of the Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) epidemic caused by a vector-borne virus, ARY News reported

The Sindh government livestock and animal husbandry department has notified the closure of cattle markets, and also advised against consuming meat and milk of infected animals.

The livestock department had also advised cattle owners to separate their sick animals from healthy ones and frequently use an anti-mosquito spray to prevent animals from contracting LSD.

According to the department, the Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is spread via spit and through insects.

Experts say that the disease is new to the region, so there is no existing vaccine that can be used against it. Animals infected from the disease have been shifted to cattle farms located at the highway and Bhens colony.

The fast spread of the disease and no vaccine has forced the department of livestock to temporarily shut down cattle markets across Sindh.

Also Read: Karachi dairy farmers seek Fed help over viral disease in livestock

Earlier, Karachi’s dairy farmers’ bodies appealed for help to the federal government over the spread of lumpy skin disease in the livestock.

The Dairy and Cattle Farmers Association in a letter addressed to the prime minister had said, “There are around one million animals at cattle farms of Karachi and the skin disease has spread in cows and buffaloes,” the letter read.

Originally found in Africa, lumpy skin disease, a viral infection of cattle, has also spread to countries in the Middle East, Asia, and eastern Europe, experts said.