FMD (Foot & Mouth Disease)
Highly contagious viral disease
Disease
Learn in detail about Highly contagious viral disease — causes, symptoms, prevention, and treatment.
3 readers 2 min read
Shobar Khamar
Cause
Caused by Aphthovirus (Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus) with 7 different types (serotypes) that continuously change characteristics forming new strains — making this disease very difficult to control through vaccination.
Symptoms
- Body temperature rises to 104°F–106°F; loss of appetite; body becomes weak
- Inflammation inside mouth causing blisters on tongue, lips, gums, palate, teat tips, and hooves
- Death rate in infected calves is very high
- Long rope-like saliva drips from mouth
- Blisters in mouth and feet burst forming open painful sores
- Foamy soap-like saliva flows from cracked skin of mouth and tongue
- Skin of hooves crack and spread foul smell
Treatment
- If wounds appear in mouth and feet: Clean with warm water and alum (1g per 1L water) or Potassium Permanganate (1g per 10L water). Then mix Sulphanilamide Powder and Doxycycline Powder well, clean the wound with disinfectant, and apply the mixture twice daily as a paste with coconut oil.
Prevention
- Disease prevention is very difficult. Isolate infected animals immediately in a separate location
- Disinfect all objects that infected animal has touched
- Bury dead animals at least 6 feet deep
- Vaccinate animals against FMD from nearest animal hospital
Medicines
- Sulphanilamide Powder (mix with coconut oil — apply as paste)
- Doxycycline Powder (mix with coconut oil — apply as paste)
- Gentamycin Injection OR Ampicillin Injection
- Analgesic Injection (pain relief)
