: Officials of the Department of Animal Husbandry, Vellore, have contained an outbreak of anthrax in a village in Ambur.
More than 8,500 livestock have been vaccinated in and around the affected village of Bairapalli in Mittalam following the death of an animal due to anthrax attack last week.
Teams formed
T. Manoharan, deputy director (Cattle Breeding and Fodder Development)-cum- specialist of the department said they formed 15 teams to vaccinate the livestock against anthrax.
“We have now contained the spread of the disease and there are no more deaths. We have vaccinated a sizeable population of livestock in the affected village, and also villages located in an 8 km radius. This way, we can prevent spread of infection from the affected area,” he explained.
In Bairapalli alone, 1,209 cattle, 744 sheep and, 311 goats have been vaccinated so far.
In the surrounding villages, the teams vaccinated 2,891 cattle, 86 buffaloes, 1,914 sheep and 1,677 goats.
Awareness created
The officials also created awareness among farmers on the symptoms of anthrax in the livestock. This included sudden death and bleeding including from the rectum and vagina.
“In such cases, the farmers should not resort to removing the skin of the animal for selling purposes. This could lead to spread of the disease,” he added.
More than 8,500 livestock have been vaccinated in and around the affected village of Bairapalli
