Federal government begins national control of sheep foot rot
Published: Wednesday, Sep 25th 2024, 11:20
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On October 1, the Confederation will begin a nationwide campaign to combat the contagious and painful disease sheep footrot. The aim is to reduce the number of affected farms to less than one percent in a maximum of five years.
To this end, all sheep farms will be inspected over the next five years between October 1 and March 31, the FSVO announced on Wednesday. Sheep farmers with positive flocks will have to rehabilitate them. The Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO) developed the various steps of the control program in collaboration with the cantonal veterinary services and the most important players in the sector.
A key measure is the strict application of hygiene measures, it added. The program aims to reduce the suffering of sheep, reduce economic losses for sheep farmers and prevent the excessive use of antibiotics. At the same time, the program promotes research and innovation in order to develop new and effective solutions to combat foot-and-mouth disease.
Foot rot is a contagious claw disease that affects one in four sheep in Switzerland, i.e. around 130,000 animals, according to the FSVO. The affected animals can no longer walk normally and have to graze on their knees.
In the cantons of Graubünden and Glarus, sheep footrot has been controlled for decades, but reinfections still occur time and again. On Tuesday, the canton of Lucerne announced its program to combat the disease, as did the canton of Aargau a week ago.
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