A jallikkattu bull got a fresh lease of life, thanks to veterinarians of TANUVAS Veterinary College and Research Institute, Orathanad, who removed 38.40 kg of polythene waste from the animal’s stomach.
Ayyappan, a bull-rearer of Thuvakudi, Tiruchi district, brought his two-and-a-half year old jallikkattu bull to the institute’s Teaching and Veterinary Clinical Complex on Tuesday, with complaints of anorexia, abdominal pain and debilitation for the past one month.
On clinical examination, the veterinarians found the rumen of the bull completely impacted up to its caudal abdomen and diagnosed the condition as acute ruminal impaction.
Led by A. Arun Prasad, Head of Department of Veterinary Surgery, a team of doctors, including S. Senthil Kumar, M. Vijaya Kumar and P. Tamil Mahan, performed a surgical procedure on the animal and removed a whopping 38.40 kg of waste — polythene bags, LED bulb, safety pins, nails, leather strip, coir rope — from the rumen. After the procedure, the animal recovered without any complications.
R.C. Rajasundaram, Head, Teaching Veterinary Clinical Complex, said the public must think of safe disposal of domestic and kitchen wastes.
More importantly, they must ensure that polythene bags and plastic waste do not get eaten by grazing animals.
College Dean K.N. Selvakumar said shrinking grazing lands and excessive use of plastic and polythene, unmindful of the consequences they might have on animals, have led to increased health risks to cattle.
