Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (SS)

Mangaluru, Jun 7: The lumpy skin disease found in cattle that had posed a challenge Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences department has been brought under complete control in the district with no cases reported recently. However, the department is taking steps to give a booster dose of the vaccine to the cattle against the recurrence of the disease.

In Dakshina Kannada district, there are a total of 2,50,569 cows including 65,997 indigenous and 1,84,572 crossbreeds as per the 20th cattle population survey and the department is taking steps to vaccinate all the cows. As of now, only 17,000 doses of the vaccine are available and the department is taking the help of Karnataka Milk Federation officials to implement the vaccination drive.

In total, 456 cattle died due to the disease in the district and owners of 352 cattle were given compensation to the tune of Rs 65.05 lac from the government. Officials said the remaining owners will get compensation as soon as the government releases funds.

The brucellosis disease has already been brought under control in the district under the National Animal Diseases Control scheme in which four to eight month old female calves have been vaccinated. In total 421 female calves have been identified out of which 409 of them have been vaccinated. The vaccination drive is conducted thrice a year.

The department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences is also gearing up to enrol over 2.5 lac cattle in Dakshina Kannada district under the Pashu Aadhaar registration.

Each domestic cattle in the district will get a unique identity number with muzzle pattern as biometric details under the Information Network for Animal Productivity and Health of the National Dairy Development Board. The data will help the department monitor the health status of cattle in the district, especially to tackle diseases.