Lung sickness outbreak confirmed in the Ohangwena Region
An outbreak of Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia commonly known as Lung Sickness has been detected at Oshandi crush pen in Ondobe Constituency of Ohangwena region, the Ministry of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform confirmed on Thursday.
According to the ministry, some farmers at Oshandi crush pen notified Veterinary Officials in the region after observing signs consistent with Lung sickness in their cattle, mainly coughing.
“The outbreak investigation by veterinary officials established clinical signs of lung sickness in six cattle out of the herd of 71. Lungsickness was confirmed by the Windhoek Central Veterinary Laboratory on 31 May,” the ministry said.
Lung sickness is mainly a disease of cattle and water buffalo caused by the bacterium Mycoplasma mycoides, a type of bacteria that attacks the lungs of susceptible animals. In Africa, Lungsickness is known to cause greater losses of cattle than any other disease as it may result in a death rate of more than 50%.
In line with the Animal Health Act (Act 1 of 2011), a complete movement restriction/ ban of live cattle (except for direct slaughter) within, in, and out of the Ondobe constituency with immediate effect until further notice.
According to the ministry, surveillance teams have been deployed in the region to establish the extent of the outbreak, and farmers are requested to cooperate and present their livestock for inspection.
