Goat And Sheep Diseases In Nigeria: How To Prevent And Control Them
Goat and sheep diseases are always a big challenge to all livestock farmers in Nigeria. For you to excel and be successful in goat and sheep farming in Nigeria, you have to understand how to prevent these farm animal diseases. Your ability as a livestock farmer to identify ways to prevent these goat and sheep diseases will go a long way to making your livestock farming business successful.
If your goats and sheep get infected with these diseases, you should also know how to cure them as fast as possible to avoid disease outbreak in your farm. For every goat and sheep farmer in Nigeria, preventing the outbreak o diseases should b your major concern. While the prevention of goat and sheep diseases is your goal, you must focus on control and management because in reality, there is no herd that is ever disease free.
See: How to start goat farming in Nigeria
If you venture into goat and sheep farming business without drafting out ways to prevent and manage disease outbreaks in your farm, you are definitely shooting yourself in the leg. Most of the diseases of goat and sheep are parasitic and Nigerian livestock farmers should beware of this big threat to the productivity and success of their animal husbandry.
List Of Goat And Sheep Diseases
Goat and sheep diseases are of two types and they include;
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Non-infectious diseases
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Infectious diseases
This article will focus on helping you understand these different goat and sheep diseases in Nigeria, their prevention and control.
Read: How to start ram selling business in Nigeria
Non-Infectious Goat And Sheep Diseases
It is estimated that about 80% of deaths in goat and sheep farming business in Nigeria is as a result of non-infectious causes. Below is the list of the non-infectious goat and sheep diseases.
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Pneumonia
This is the most common among the list of non-infectious goat and sheep diseases in Nigeria. Pneumonia is characterized by increased respiration, coughing, and abdominal breathing. There has been increased report of high mortality rate among goat and sheep farmers in Nigeria caused by pneumonia of viral or bacterial origin.
Aside from the bacterial and viral pneumonia, there is also aspiration or drenching pneumonia caused by wrong or forceful drenching operations. If fluids mistakenly enter the respiratory tract of your farm animals, you should lower their heads immediately.
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Rumen acidosis
This is another non-infectious disease of goat and sheep in Nigeria. This is caused by excessive ingestion of highly fermentable carbohydrate feeds by these farm livestock. The excess production of lactic acid from these fermentable carbohydrates in the rumen of these ruminants leads to rumen acidosis. The symptoms include dehydration, complete inactivity of the rumen, blindness, and high death rate.
If you find your goat or sheep exhibiting these symptoms, it is advised that you administer sodium bicarbonate, antihistaminics, or normal saline to them.
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Intussusceptions
It is commonly caused by nodular worms, intestinal problems, and change in the animal feed. The symptoms include no defecation with constant straining, kicking at the stomach with no rise in temperature, the animal becomes dull, loss of appetite, and recumbency at the later stages of the disease.
The only treatment for this goat and sheep disease is surgery by a good veterinary doctor.
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Deficiency diseases
As a livestock farmer in Nigeria, you should do all within your power to see that your goats and sheep are well fed with the needed nutrients. Feeding your farm animals with pastures or foliages that are without the necessary vitamins and minerals will negatively affect your herd, thereby reducing their productivity and your profit.
Always make sure that your livestock are fed with balanced diet at all times.
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Dystokia
This is caused by the insufficient opening of the cervical canal, abnormal fetal position and twisting of the womb. This can only be corrected through surgery, so once you notice this disease, consult your veterinary doctor.
Infectious Goat And Sheep Diseases
You must be very observant as a livestock farmer in Nigeria when it comes to infectious diseases that attack farm animals. These infectious can render bring your farm to zero if not properly managed and controlled as soon as possible. Some of these infectious goat and sheep diseases include;
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Tetanus
Caused by the bacteria called Clostridium tetani, it is characterized by the convulsion of the voluntary muscles of the infected farm animal. This very deadly bacteria gain entry into your farm animals through deep puncture wounds. The symptoms include lock jaw, the stiffness of limbs, muscle spasm, and death due to lack of oxygen.
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Pasteurellosis
This disease of sheep occurs in the form of pneumonia and is caused by the bacteria pateurella haemolytica. The death rate as a result of this infectious bacterial infection of goat and sheep can be as high as 40%. The bacteria are transmitted by inhalation or ingestion of infected material.
The symptoms include discharge of mucus from the eyes, ear and nose, coughing, depression, and loss of appetite of the infected farm animal. You are advised to give your farm animal preventive vaccination.
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Sheep pox
This is a highly infectious and contagious viral disease of sheep. The disease is characterized by the development of blisters and pus on the skin and internal lesions of the infected animal. The infection is transmitted by contact with the already infected animal, or by inhalation of the viral pathogen.
The mortality rate is so high that it leads to death in 50% of the infected animals. The sumptoms include loss of weight, shedding of wool, and death. Vaccinating the animal is the best control mechanism.
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Foot and mouth disease
Among the goat and sheep diseases, this is one of the highly contagious. Like the sheep pox, it is caused by a viral pathogen. It is characterized by the formation of blisters in the mouth of the infected farm animal. The mortality rate is low, unlike the sheep pox.
Transmission is mainly through contact with the infected animal and the incubation period is not more than 24 hours. You should administer antibiotics to prevent secondary infections. For the management and control of this foot and mouth disease, vaccination is the best option.
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Paratuberculosis
Caused by Mycobacterium paratuberculosis, this very chronic, wasting disease is characterized by loss of weight, and thickening of the animal’s intestinal wall. The mortality rate is estimated at 10%. This is one of the goat and sheep diseases seen only in mature and older farm animals. No successful treatment is known yet.
How To Prevent Goat And Sheep Diseases In Your Farm
In order to prevent the outbreak of diseases in you livestock farming business in Nigeria, you need to adhere strictly to the following guidelines.
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Keep your environments clean
The rate of your sheep or goat been infected with a disease is very high when they are kept in a dirty surrounding or environment. Always try to keep your farm environment clean at all times.
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Keep your animals in good condition
When you farm animals are fed well, kept in a comfortable environment that reduces stress, they will rarely fall sick. You need to always supplement their rations with extra feed. Make your that the pregnant females are always well fed. Goat and sheep diseases will be greatly minimized if your farm animals are always in good condition.
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Vaccinate your livestock
To prevent goat and sheep diseases from attacking your farm animals, you must never joke with vaccinating your farm animals. Economically speaking, it is always cheaper to vaccinate your sheep and goat than treating them of the disease.
Always work with a veterinary doctor in order to give the best of vaccines to your livestock as at when due.
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Be careful of new animals
Before introducing new animals into your farm, you should make sure that they are disease free. This is to prevent the already healthy farm animals in your farm from contacting the infection from the new one coming into the farm.
While buying new farm animals, buy them from trusted farmers. Better still; go with a veterinary doctor to buy new farm animals. The job of the veterinary doctor will be to help you identify healthy stocks before you can buy.
Livestock farming is very profitable and lucrative in Nigeria, but you need to be careful of these goat and sheep diseases. If you take them for granted, they will definitely ruin your livestock business.
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