Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che says the city is adopting urgent measures to prevent the spread of lumpy skin disease, an illness that can devastate cattle populations. Friday’s announcement from the southern city comes a day after authorities in New Taipei City discovered Taiwan’s first-ever case of the disease.
Tainan is home to Taiwan’s third-largest cattle industry, with 158 farms holding almost 30,000 cattle. That’s why Tainan’s Animal Health Inspection and Protection Office says it is establishing an emergency response center and inspecting farms in the area. Authorities say they will finish examining all farms in the next three days.
Tainan City Government Agriculture Bureau Director Hsieh Yao-ching says lumpy skin disease mainly spreads through disease vectors like mosquitoes, flies, and ticks. The disease normally affects between 10% and 20% of a population, with a mortality rate of only 1% to 5%.
But cattle that have had the virus are severely affected, and often have little to no economic value after infection. That’s why both Taiwan and the World Organisation for Animal Health list the disease as a risk to livestock. The disease cannot spread to humans.
Tainan authorities are urging cattle farmers to be vigilant and take measures to protect cattle from mosquitoes and flies. Officials say that if farmers discover a suspected case of the disease, they should immediately call a veterinarian and report to local authorities.