Sheep and goat pox: ways of infection and symptoms, treatment methods and consequences

Sheeppox and domestic goats are usually sent to slaughter to prevent the spread of the virus. Vaccination is the only cure for this disease. Smallpox is transmitted through the air, infected particles and direct contact. If you graze animals on fenced-off pastures, feed them with homemade food and clean water, infection can be avoided. Purchased breeding individuals imported from Asian countries should preferably be quarantined for a month.

Pathogen

Smallpox - a viral disease of goats and sheep, manifested by fever and rash on the skin and mucous membranes.In Europe and Russia, this disease is rare and episodic, only when it is brought in by individuals from disadvantaged countries. Smallpox most commonly affects animals in southern Asia and northern Africa. Smallpox disease Variola ovina belongs to group A, that is, to rapidly spreading. Smallpox causes great damage to livestock. Because of the disease, animals die, some have to be forced to be slaughtered.

The causative agent of the disease is a virus containing DNA. It belongs to the family Poxviridae and the genus Capripoxvirus. The virus is characterized by relatively large size, epitheliotropic properties and the ability to form round inclusions in cells. Smallpox virions have a complex structure. In the center they have a core with a dumbbell-shaped core containing DNA. It is surrounded by a protein-lipid capsid and a membrane.

The virus is very tenacious. In the wool of recovered animals, it persists for two months. Indoors for six months. In dry smallpox crusts, the virus persists for 4-5 years.True, in just 20 minutes it dies at temperatures above +55 degrees. The virus is sensitive to alkalis and acids, formalin, ether and chloroform, phenol and detergents. One smallpox animal in a short time (2-3 weeks) can infect the entire herd. The incubation period is 4-12-21 days. Mortality - 5-10 sheep or goats out of 100.

Main routes of infection

The main source of infection - smallpox animals. The virus enters the body of goats and sheep through inhaled air, as well as through contact with diseased individuals. It dissipates with drying and falling smallpox crusts throughout the territory. The spread of infection is facilitated by the transfer of sick animals from unfavorable areas to pastures that are prosperous. The virus can be transmitted through feed (grass), contaminated forage, bedding, transport and care items. Smallpox can be carried by insects that come into contact with sick animals.

Susceptibility to the virus depends on the breed. Fine-fleeced sheep are most susceptible to smallpox, while coarse-wooled sheep have a lower incidence rate. Old animals get sick less often than young ones. As for goats, dairy and fine-fleeced breeds are more sensitive to the virus. Most often, weakened animals kept in damp, cold and cramped rooms get sick.

Main symptoms

The smallpox virus is carried by the bloodstream to the skin and mucous membranes. In these places pockmarks are formed. Smallpox exanthema goes through a series of successive stages. At first, reddish spots appear, then they turn into papules, which after a few days are filled with a yellowish liquid.

Then the contents darken, become purulent. After a few days, the pockmarks dry up and form scabs, which subsequently fall off.

At the very beginning of the disease, goats and sheep lose their appetite, their body temperature rises slightly. In animals, eyelids swell, discharge from the nose and eyes appear.Sick sheep and goats breathe with difficulty, sniffle. On the head, around the eyes and mouth, on the genitals, the udder appears smallpox rash. In severe cases, pockmarks merge, affect large areas of the skin, which develops a purulent infection. There are even hemorrhages in smallpox focuses. With a light process, pockmarks heal, that is, they turn into scabs, which subsequently fall off.

The illness usually lasts 3-4 weeks. Smallpox is accompanied by infectious inflammation, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and lungs. Animals with weak immunity die from sepsis. Sheep and goats that get mild smallpox recover and become immune to the disease. True, they can become carriers of the virus, which persists for a long time in their lymph, wool, and skin.

Diagnostic measures

The disease is mainly diagnosed on the basis of the clinical picture and laboratory data. For research, the contents of pockmarks, altered areas of the skin are taken. With an unclear course of the disease, bioassays are done. Smallpox is diagnosed using other methods (electronoscopy, RDP and RIF).

How to treat smallpox in goats

When signs of smallpox are detected, sick animals are separated from the herd. They are given nutritious and light food. Potassium iodide is added to drinking water. Patients are given pharmacy vitamins, minerals, immunostimulants. Infectious complications are treated with antibiotics (penicillin). Pockmarks on the skin are cauterized with iodine, brilliant green, potassium permanganate, antiseptics. The disease goes away on its own after 20 days. Seriously ill goats and sheep are killed.

Consequences of the disease

Animals who have been ill in a mild form receive immunity from smallpox for 2 years.The disease in 5 percent out of 100 can lead to fatal consequences. Smallpox is very dangerous for young animals. Animals that have been ill may lag behind in growth and development. The meat of seriously ill goats and sheep is forbidden to be used for food purposes. If smallpox is suspected, the local veterinarian should be notified.

As a rule, sick animals are immediately sent for slaughter, and he althy ones are vaccinated. The vaccine is not a treatment for smallpox. The entire household or farm is quarantined for 20-40 days.

Prevention

As a preventive measure, he althy animals are vaccinated with aluminum hydroxide formol vaccine. After vaccination, sheep and goats receive immunity after 10 days, that is, protection against smallpox for 6-12 months. The vaccine does not have a curative effect, only a preventive effect. Vaccinations can be given to both adult and young animals. The smallpox vaccine is completely harmless. The vaccine is prescribed even for females who have given birth, whose cubs with colostrum will receive immunity from a dangerous viral disease.

You can prevent infection with the virus if you do not let sick sheep or goats into pastures. It is forbidden to buy feed, grain, feed and breeding individuals in disadvantaged areas. It is advisable to keep newly purchased animals for 30 days separately from the main herd. If smallpox is suspected, they are usually sent to slaughter.

Premises where sick sheep or goats were kept must be thoroughly disinfected. For disinfection, lime, chlorine-containing solutions are used. The corpses are recommended to be burned in special crematoria or buried away from pastures.

It is forbidden to use for agricultural needs without disinfection the manure of sick individuals. The meat of recovered sheep and goats is not recommended to be eaten. Wool and skins of ill animals must be disinfected with acids or high temperature. It is better to immediately send sick individuals to the slaughter, and burn the corpses entirely.Such a radical way of dealing with smallpox will help protect the rest of the livestock from infection and a dangerous disease.

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