With an estimated number of 50,000 animals in the Bolgatanga municipality, only 11, 320 have been vaccinated against the anthrax disease. The reasons are that the veterinary services department in the municipality received just the 11, 320 vaccines and have since exhausted all through a mass vaccination exercise.
“For now, what we have done is that we did a prompt intervention. So, where the case of anthrax was recorded, we went in there and normally we have to do an 8-kilometre radius vaccination of animals of where the case was recorded and that is why we are not having any cases of anthrax in those places we immediately intervene”, Bolgatanga Municipal Veterinary Officer, Ransford Okornor, disclosed.
Mr. Okornor who described the consignment received as “woefully inadequate” said all ruminants such as goats, sheep, cattle, donkeys, horses, and pigs in the municipality were vaccinated against the anthrax disease.
The Veterinary Services Department in Bolgatanga has therefore called on animal owners to be vigilant and report any cases of suspected anthrax.
Mr. Okornor urged animal owners to be aware of the symptoms and report any suspected cases to veterinary authorities.
“Normally, one of the main signs of anthrax is sudden death and when they die, their limbs cannot move freely. If the animal dies all of a sudden, quickly the animal begins to bloat and as it bloats, then, eventually, the blood begins to ooze out of the nostril, the anus, and the mouth”.
He was speaking to the media during a stakeholder engagement held in Bolgatanga to mitigate the fast extinction of donkeys due to the high demand for its skin.
The Upper East Regional Health Directorate on June 1, 2023, received notification of the first anthrax cases which were recorded in the Binduri district. 1 human life was lost with several animals dying.
Measures taken to curtail its spread include a ban on the movement of cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, donkeys, and their products to encompass the entire region. Similarly, the ban on the slaughtering, sale, and consumption of meat and meat products derived from the aforementioned animals was also enforced throughout the entire region.
Source: A1Radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Joshua Asaah|Bolgatanga|Ghana
