After the identification of a case of plague in small ruminants at a livestock unit in mountainous Corinthia, a meeting was held at the offices of the regional unit, with the aim, as announced, “to address the problem and take the measures required by European regulations to limit and eradicate the disease.”
As stated by the Secretary General of the Ministry of Rural Development, George Stratakos, who chaired the meeting, “after the case was identified, the primary measures being taken are the culling of all animals in the unit, followed by sanitary burial, disinfection, and the closure of the specific unit for as long as necessary, in order to ensure that it no longer has infectious power.”
“Of course,” he continued, “what we must mention is that to achieve the measures, there must be very good cooperation from the livestock breeders within the two protection and surveillance zones around the unit where the case was identified, with the veterinary services of the Peloponnese Region.”
For his part, the Regional Governor of Peloponnese, Dimitris Ptochos, stated in his remarks that “our reaction was immediate, aimed at limiting and taking the necessary measures” and added: “The extensive meeting that took place shows the degree of readiness of all parties involved. We are following the protocol, we have confidence in our services, and it would be good to reiterate that it is not transmitted to humans.”
Possibly the virus from Romania
Meanwhile, initial data from ongoing investigations “indicate” Romania as the country of origin of the sheep and goat disease, and it is likely that the virus originated from a large livestock unit in the country, with at least 51,000 animals.
What are the symptoms of the disease?
The symptoms in susceptible animals, namely sheep and goats, are, as experts point out, high fever, lethargy and drowsiness, difficulty breathing and coughing, severe diarrhea, lesions with serous fluid around the eyes and nose, excessive salivation from the mouth (wet face appearance), lesions inside the mouth (white plaques on the gums and inside the lips), and sudden mass deaths.