The Mozambican authorities are stepping up measures to control teleriosis, a cattle disease caused by ticks and which is suspected to be the cause of the deaths of more than 200 animals in Maputo and Inhambane provinces..

A publication by News says that recently, a multi-sectoral commission was set up, made up of researchers, technicians from the Veterinary Faculty, cattle breeders and other stakeholders working in some districts of the affected provinces, to assess which of the parasite-borne diseases has been causing the most cattle deaths.

According to the head of the Department of Disease Prevention and Control, Zacarias Massicame, preliminary data points to an intersection between teleriosis and ehrlichiosis, diseases that can significantly decrease productivity.

In the same publication, the source said that the disease, which had already been eradicated in the country more than seven years ago, had resurfaced due to deficiencies in the tick control system, spreading to some places in the provinces of Gaza and Maputo.

In order to contain a possible spread, the sector has stepped up surveillance and inspection measures from the affected regions, and has also intensified inspections at animal slaughterhouses to assess their health status.

Likewise, Massicame recommended that breeders intensify their baths, focusing above all on immersion baths or showers, alternatively using medication on the animal's back, which is then spread over the body.

The source also calls on farmers to report cases of suspicious deaths so that the authorities can intervene to eradicate the disease.

(Photo DR)