Lumpy skin disease in cattle worries livestock farmers

Coimbatore: Three weeks ago, when 44-year-old Ramesh Babu went to his cattle farm to milk cows, he noticed a small lump on the body of one of the animals. He dismissed it as a mosquito bite and continued his work only to regret a day later.
The next morning, visible lumps and wounds were found all over the body of the cow, which appeared tired. Scared, Babu rushed to a veterinarian, who confirmed it as the lumpy skin disease.
Within a few days, similar lumps were found on other cows and as of now, five of his cows are affected by the disease.
Babu said that he had never seen such lumps on the animals. “It was more like chickenpox that humans get. Affected cows becomes tired and stop taking food. After applying medicine on the skin, the lumps subsidized within a couple of weeks,” he told TOI. “Milk production of the affected cow has been reduced significantly. Instead of 12 litres, it gives less than two litres. Even though the doctor has assured that the disease will not affect productivity, we are worried.”
The disease, which was prevalent in Dharmapuri and other nearby districts, has started to spread among the cattle in the district in the last few weeks, said R Perumalsamy, joint director of the animal husbandry department.
“We noticed the disease recently and are conducting camps to create awareness among farmers. We have also directed field workers to collect data on the affected cattle.”
The disease spreads through blood transmission by mosquitoes, flies and lice, Perumalsamy said. “The affected animal should be isolated. We have asked farmers to apply a paste of small onion, garlic, turmeric powder, neem, tulsi, marudhani and kuppaimeni leaves sauteed in gingelly oil on the lumps. There is no specific vaccine for the disease.”
C Radhakrishnan of Periyanaickenpalayam said he had started to take precautionary measures to safeguard his cattle. “To reduce body heat of the cow, I am adding more kambu to its diet and planning to apply the paste all over its body,” he added.