Forced Cattle Dipping Looms


The Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) will be coercing farmers into dipping their cattle judiciously, while punishing deviants who fail to comply with the aggressive bid aimed at controlling the spread of theileriosis, commonly referred to as January disease.

The tick-borne disease has wiped out thousands of cattle worth more than US$1 million in Manicaland.

Animal health experts who spoke to The Manica Post this week, said the situation can only return to normal if dipping is judiciously enforced, and adhered to.

From January 2021 to date, the DVS recorded 2 173 cattle deaths, amid indications that the majority of the cases were not being reported for unknown reason.

Coopers’ head of programmes and projects, Professor Joseph Kamuzhanje called for a change in farmers’ mindsets in order to preserve the national herd.

“Each livestock deaths must be followed by a post mortem, and this is how diseases are tracked. I do not know whether the system is able to do that. I am not sure if their system has the capacity to process a high number of livestock deaths,” said Professor Kamuzhanje.

He said rules and regulations of dipping must be judiciously enforced as was the case in the past.
“In the past, you were liable for failing to dip your cattle, but nowadays the law is not as strict. I don’t think it is being applied at all. The tick-borne diseases are still the same, but the difference is on how they are being managed.

‘‘In the past, the movement of animals was properly restricted, but nowadays a person can just relocate cattle from one point to the other. The regulation and policing aspects should be strengthened,” said Professor Kamuzhanje. Manica Post

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