Sheep and domestic goats affected by smallpox are usually sent to slaughter to prevent the spread of the virus. Only vaccination can save you from this disease. Smallpox is transmitted through the air, contaminated particles and direct contact. If animals are grazed in fenced-off pastures, fed with homemade food and given clean water, infection can be avoided. It is advisable to keep purchased breeding animals imported from Asian countries in quarantine for a month.
The causative agent of the disease
Smallpox is a viral disease of goats and sheep, manifested by fever and rash on the skin and mucous membranes.In Europe and Russia, this disease occurs rarely and sporadically, only when it is brought in by individuals from disadvantaged countries. Most often, animals suffer from smallpox in southern Asia and northern Africa. The smallpox disease Variola ovina belongs to group A, that is, quickly spreading. Smallpox causes great damage to livestock production. Animals are dying due to the disease, and some are forced to be slaughtered.
The causative agent of the disease is a DNA virus. It belongs to the family Poxviridae and genus Capripoxvirus. The virus is characterized by its relatively large size, epitheliotropic properties and the ability to form round inclusions in cells. Smallpox virions have a complex structure. They have a core at the center with a dumbbell-shaped core containing DNA. It is surrounded by a protein-lipid capsid and shell.
The virus is very tenacious. It remains in the fur of recovered animals for two months. Indoors - six months. In dry smallpox crusts, the virus persists for 4-5 years. True, it dies in just 20 minutes at temperatures above +55 degrees. The virus is sensitive to alkalis and acids, formalin, ether and chloroform, phenol and detergents. One animal sick with smallpox can infect the entire herd in a short time (2-3 weeks). The incubation period is 4-12-21 days. Mortality - 5-10 sheep or goats out of 100.
Main routes of infection
The main source of infection is animals sick with smallpox. The virus enters the body of goats and sheep through inhaled air, as well as through contact with sick individuals. It disperses with drying and falling smallpox crusts throughout the entire territory.The spread of infection is facilitated by the movement of sick animals from unfavorable areas to pastures of favorable ones. The virus can be contracted through food (grass), contaminated forage, bedding, transport and care items. Smallpox can be spread by insects that come into contact with sick animals.
Sensitivity to the virus depends on the breed. Fine-fleeced sheep are most susceptible to smallpox, while coarse-wooled sheep have a lower incidence rate. Old animals get sick less often than young ones. As for goats, dairy and fine-wool breeds are more sensitive to the virus. Most often, weakened animals kept in damp, cold and cramped rooms get sick.
Main symptoms
The smallpox virus is carried by the bloodstream onto the skin and mucous membranes. Pockmarks form in these places. Smallpox exanthema goes through a number of successive stages. At first, reddish spots appear, then they turn into nodular papules, which after a few days are filled with a yellowish liquid.
Then the contents darken and become purulent. After a few days, the pockmarks dry out and form scabs, which subsequently fall off.
At the very beginning of the disease, goats and sheep lose their appetite and their body temperature rises slightly. Animals' eyelids swell and discharge appears from the nose and eyes. Sick sheep and goats have difficulty breathing and sniffle. A smallpox rash appears on the head, around the eyes and mouth, on the genitals, and udder. In severe cases, the pockmarks coalesce and affect large areas of the skin, causing purulent infection to develop. There are even hemorrhages in smallpox foci. With an easy process, the pockmarks heal, that is, they turn into scabs, which subsequently fall off.
The illness usually lasts 3-4 weeks.Smallpox is accompanied by infectious inflammation, gastrointestinal and lung diseases. Animals with weak immunity die from sepsis. Sheep and goats that experience mild forms of smallpox recover and become immune to the disease. True, they can become carriers of the virus, which persists for a long time in their lymph, fur, and skin.
Diagnostic measures
The disease is mainly diagnosed based on the clinical picture and laboratory data. For examination, the contents of pockmarks and altered areas of skin are taken. If the course of the disease is unclear, bioassays are done. Smallpox is diagnosed using other methods (electronoscopy, RDP and RIF).
How to treat goat pox
If signs of smallpox are detected, sick animals are separated from the herd. They are given nutritious and light food. Potassium iodide is added to drinking water. Patients are given pharmaceutical vitamins, minerals, and immunostimulants. Infectious complications are treated with antibiotics (penicillin). Pockmarks on the skin are cauterized with iodine, brilliant green, potassium permanganate, and antiseptics. The disease goes away on its own after 20 days. Severely ill goats and sheep are killed.
Consequences of the disease
Animals that have been mildly ill receive immunity from smallpox for 2 years. The disease is fatal in 5 percent of 100 percent. Smallpox is very dangerous for young animals. Animals that have recovered from the disease may be stunted in growth and development. The meat of seriously ill goats and sheep is prohibited from being used for food purposes. If smallpox is suspected, your local veterinarian should be notified.
Prevention
As a preventative measure, healthy animals are vaccinated with aluminum hydroxide formol vaccine. After sheep and goat vaccinations after 10 days they receive immunity, that is, protection from smallpox for 6-12 months. The vaccine does not have a therapeutic effect, only a preventive effect. Vaccinations can be given to both adult animals and young animals. The smallpox vaccine is completely harmless. The vaccine is prescribed even to females who have given birth, whose cubs with colostrum will receive immunity from a dangerous viral disease.
You can prevent infection with the virus by not allowing sick sheep or goats to pasture. It is prohibited to buy feed, grain, compound feed and breeding animals in disadvantaged areas. It is advisable to keep recently purchased animals separately from the main herd for 30 days. If smallpox is suspected, they are usually sent to slaughter.
Premises where sick sheep or goats were kept must be thoroughly disinfected. Lime and chlorine-containing solutions are used for disinfection. It is recommended to burn the corpses in special crematoria or bury them away from pastures.
It is prohibited to use manure from sick individuals for agricultural purposes without disinfection. The meat of recovered sheep and goats is not recommended for consumption. The wool and skins of recovered animals must be disinfected using acids or high temperature. It is better to immediately send sick individuals to slaughter and burn the entire corpses. Such a radical way of combating smallpox will help protect the rest of the livestock from infection and a dangerous disease.
