Zimbabwe: Tick-Borne Diseases Kill Cattle
ZIMBABWE - Cattle in Gwanda, Zimbabwe are being killed by tick-borne and tsetse fly induced diseases.
1 July 2008
1 minute read
According to All Africa the diseases have also affected parts of Mberengwa.
"There were a lot of ticks in some parts of Gwanda following the heavy rains we received during the last season.
"Heavy rains increased tick activities and villagers were not dipping their cattle due to lack of dipping chemicals which the country is experiencing," Moses Mlalazi a farmer in the Guyu area, told All Africa.
"The countrywide shortage of dipping chemicals was a result of the unavailability of foreign currency. I believe that the cattle deaths are not occurring in Gwanda only, but the problem of tick-borne diseases is a national issue," said a senior Veterinary Services officer in Gwanda.
He explained that there were two types of tick-borne diseases, anaplasmosis and red water, which are promoted by lack of cattle dipping while tripanosomiasis is a disease, caused by tsetse flies.
He added that the battle to contain these diseases was being hampered by a shortage of acaricide chemical.
TheCattleSite News Desk
