CHAPTER 4

ANIMAL DISEASES, PROTECTION AND

CONTROL
 CONCEPT/ TERM
• HEALTH: state/ condition of physical and mental well-being

• DISEASES: Deviation from normal (health)

Is any process which disrupts an animal’s normal
function
- It is important to identify and differentiate an animal that is
healthy from poor health animal

- The following are the signs of animal that is in good condition

and poor condition
 The signs of poor health/sick animals
(cattle)
GOOD HEALTH POOR HEALTH
 Healthy looking coat • Dull/ rough coat (lump, loose, scab)
 Bright eyes • Glassy eyes
 Moving ears(when hearing sound)
• Drooped ears
 Normal reproduction
• Decreased/ lower production
 Normal body temperature
 Normal pulse rate • High/ low temperature
 Normal urine and faeces • Rapid/ lower pulse rate
 Normal walking • Discoloured urine and faeces
 Head holds ups • Limping and moving slow
 Moist muzzle
• Discharging nostril/ dry mouth
 Wet/ moist mouth
 Pink/ Red mucus membrane
• Pale mucous membrane (Anaemia)
 .
- Sick animals show abnormalities
- These abnormalities are conventionally referred to as
clinical signs
Symptoms of disease
- Sick animals are caused by:
a) Pathogens (Diseases causing)
b) Poor nutrition( feed/ food)
c) Poisoning/ Poison
d) External environment
METHOD OF TESTING ANIMAL HEALTH
TESTING FOR THE PATHOGENS
1.Taking body samples

2. Post mortem

3. Histology
1. TAKING BODY SAMPLE ‘
Blood
- Collected from jugular vein, milk vein and caudal vein
Urine
- Manual stimulation and catherisation of bladder
Semen
- Artificial vagina and electro-ejaculator
Skin scraping sample collection
- Use of blade / sharp scarpel blade
Milk sample collection
- Milk harvesting from the teat
2. POST-MORTEM/ NECROPSY
.
- Is carried from the dead animal
- WHY ???
• Cause of death, identify the sequence of events that led to
death

3. HISTOLOGY OR BACTERIOLOGY
- Study of the tissue and the study of bacteria
- Here, the organs are observed one by one
ADMINISTERING MEDICATION TO ANIMALS
• Oral administration
• Dipping
• Spraying
• Drinking water
• Eye drop
• Footbath
• Feed/ food
• Skin pricking / fowl pox
• Injection (intramuscular; intravenous and intronasal)
• Injection (Vaginal, Rectal and Udder)
• Dustin
• Peros
 Sustainable use of medication
• Sustainable approach
-Method of using resources, so that the resources is not depleted or
permanently damaged
• Sustainable medication
- New medication system or approach that combines the advantages
of modern, traditional and complementary treatment system to
provide better health care for human and animals
Reason to promote sustainable medication:
1) Uncontrolled disease outbreak
2) Resistant pathogens
3) Difficult and cost of treating antibiotic-resistant bacteria
4) Threat to human health
Infectious, Non infectious and Metabolic animal
diseases

1. Infectious/ contagious animal diseases/ organic diseases

- Are caused by pathogen (Bacteria, virus, protozoa and fungi)
ticks and other insects
- Disease that spread from one to another animal by contact with
infected animal
- Spread by means of infected feed/ water
- Breathing/ inhaling infected air(sneezing and coughing)
- Liver diseases, kidney disease and heart failure.
 .
2. Non infectious diseases
- Caused by direct or indirect effect of all environmental factors on animal
health. NB: ARE OPPOSITE OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
- Poisoning (dipping fluids)

3. Metabolic animal disease

Metabolism: Are all activities and processes that occurs in the human body
- Are divided into two
Catabolism and Anabolism
- Metabolic disorder – poor provision of food/ Malnutrition
Providing immunity to animals/ Defence
mechanism
. Natural
Nature

actively
Immunity

Passively
artificially

Artificially
Level of seriousness of animal disease(chronic, per-
acute and acute)
Disease level Per-Acute Acute Chronic
-develop very rapid - Develop rapid
- Very severe - Severe
Seriousness Not deadly Deadly Animals are
uncomfortable

Effect on animal Loss in production Animal usually dies Loss in production

Duration of disease Intermediate Short period Long term

Example Anthrax FMD Mastitis

 ANIMAL DISEASES
• Animal diseases are caused by pathogenic organism such as:
- Bacteria
- Virus
- Protozoa
- Fungi
• Diseases can spread from one animal to another
• Pathogens are disease agents.
 Viral disease
• Caused by simplest and smallest organism
• Viruses are infective agent that typical consist of the nucleic acid
molecule in a protein coat
• Viral diseases cause large direct losses
• Loss in condition
• Loss in milk production
• Abortion
• Poor quality of carcass and skin
• High death rate
Disease Animal host Transmission mode Symptoms Treatment/
prevention control
Newcastle diseases Poultry • Pollutes -Drooping wings - Quarantine
(NCD) - Food/ Feed - Sneezing and nasal measures
- Footwear discharge - Disinfect houses
- Clothes -Circling - Destruction of tools
- Tool and cages -Twisting neck/ head - Disinfect hands
• Contaminated secretion -Thin shelled and tools
and excretion of infected -Production loss/ drop - Control movement
birds (feaces and blood) -Diarrhea of animal premises
- Vaccinate
NB: Viral is not treated
Avian/ bird flu Birds Transmitted via: - Sudden drop egg - Proper nutrition
- Chicken - Faeces production - Good management
- Ostrich - Saliva - Loss appetite - No effective
- Ducks - Nasal discharge - Fever treatment
- Turkey
Rabies Warm Biting with infected - Aggressive - Destroy infected
(Mad dog diseases) blooded saliva - Bellow often animals
animals - Chewing odd - Burnt carcass
(Foxes, jackal, object - Vaccinate
dogs, cats, - Excessive - No treatment
cow, donkey) salivation once symptoms
Disease Animal host Transmission mode Symptoms Treatment/ prevention control

Rift Valley Farm - Mosquito agents - Anorexia - No effective treatment

Fever animals - Aborted foetus - Abortion - Sustained vaccination
(RVF) - Vaccinated needled programmes
FMD Cloven- - Semen of infected bull - Isolation
hoofed - Close animal contact - Anorexia - Avoid contact of
animal - Feed supplements - Depression animals
- Uncontrolled animal - Shivering - Avoid illegal movement
movement - Blisters in buccal - Slaughtering infected
- Direct/ indirect contact mucosa - Quarantine measures
- Animates - Blisters in tongue - Prohibition of
- Clothes and skin of - Blisters in dental movement animals
animal handlers pad
- Long distance by air - Drop milk
production
- Excessive salivation
- Halitosis
Swine flu Pigs - Contacts - Depression - Vaccinate
- Contaminated objects - Coughing and - Follow good
sneezing management to
- Nasal discharge prevent spreading
 Bacterial Disease
Disease Animal host Transmission mode Symptoms Treatment/
prevention control
Anthrax Warm blooded - Inhalation of bacteria - Difficult breathing -Quarantine measures
(splenic fever/ animal - Wounds (spores) - Swollen neck - Destroy carcass
Malignant (a) Spores in soil - Anorexia - Burn carcass
carbuncle) (b) Spores enters wounds - Enlarged spleen - Vaccination
- Transmitted by: - Death of animal programme
(a) Contaminated Water and food - Inform nearest Vet
with blood - Fever is only
- Close contact with infected treated by
animal oxytetracyline
penicillin

Tb - Farm - Drinking infected milk - Affects respiratory - Antibiotics

animals - Inhalation of droplets tract
- Human - Ingested affected fodder - Coughing
(saliva)
Mastitis Lactating - Lying in dirty water - Dropped milk - Sanitation
animals - Lying in dung and manure production - Infused antibiotics
- Sharing machine with infected - Infected milk after milking cow.
cows - Red and painful udder
Disease Animal host
Protozoa
Transmission Symptoms Treatment/ prevention
mode control

Heartwater - Farm animals - Ticks (Bont - Excessive salivation - Dipping

(cowdriosis) - Rumnants tick) - Grinding teeth - Vaccinate
Sheep, Goat, Cattle - Tick’s saliva - Licking lips - Large injection of
- Blinking eyelids terramycin; coopermcin
- Circling movements and alamycin
- Galloping movements
- Animal lies down with
extended head
- Hydrothorax

Gallsickness Farm animals Ticks - Loss of weight - Dipping

(Anaplasmo Sheep; Deer and (Blue tick) - Enlarge liver - Vaccinate (ion)
sis) Goat - Enlarge gallsickness - Use antibiotics
Cattle - Thick-brown or green jelly like - Inform local Vet
Disease Animal host Transmission Symptoms Treatment/ prevention
mode control

Redwater Cattle Transmitteed by - Diarhea - Dipping

infected blue-Tick - Anaemic mucus - Inject Imizol
Tick fever membrane
(Babesiosi - Aggressive
s) - Red urine in bladder

Coccidiosi Farm Oocyst are - Anorexia - Anticoccidal treatment

s animals excreted from - Loss weight - Good management
faeces - Diarrheal practice
- Dehydration - Isolate sick animals
- Blood in faeces - Sanitation
- Death in chicken - Keep animals away
from faeces
- Avoid overcrowding
 Fungal Diseases
Disease Animal host Transmission Symptoms Treatment/
mode prevention
control

1. Lumpy - Sheep - Contacting - Secrete pus - Antibiotics

wool infected animals - Sore skin - Fungicidal
- Spread rapidly in - Cause scab dipping after
wet animals shearing

2. - All farm - Contacting - Bare patches - Treatment

Ringworm animals infected animals - Round wound mixture of
- Humans - Scabby surface iodine and
glycerine
 Economic implications of animal diseases
• Income loss
• Stock loss
• Loss of production (quality and quantity poor)
• Low supply of products
• High cost of control and treatment
• Trading contract terminated
• Serious low value of animal (decrease condition)
• Threaten and affects workers jobs
Prevention and control measures for
animal diseases
• Isolate sick animals
• Apply sanitary measures in shelter
• Provide animals with balanced diet
• Follow good herd management
• Follow good breeding programme
• Control diseases agent
• Sterilised tools and equipment
• Destroy any part of infected animal
 PARASITES
• Symbiosis
Any type of close and long term biological interaction between two
different species
It can be divided into three types
a) Mutualism
b) Commensalism
c) Parasitism
 Parasites
• Any organism (Plant, insect or animal), that lives and depend on the
other organism for survival
• Parasites are divided into two types
- Endo-parasites (Internal parasites)
- Ecto-parasites (external parasites)
Internal and external parasites
Factor Internal parasites External parasites

Groups - Liverflukes - Ticks

- Tapeworm (milkworm and - Mites
Tapeworm) - Blowflies
- Roundworm (Nodularworm, - Lice
Wireworm, Bankrupty worm and - Nasal worm
hookworm)
Liver flukes
• Occur in bile ducts
• After infestation, young liver fluke migrate through the gut wall and liver tissue,
to the bile duct
• Eggs matured in the bile duct of the liver, and will be pass down the duct into
the gut and excreted with faeces
LIFE CYCLE OF LIVERFLUKES
• Adult flukes in liver of the primary hosts, lays eggs
• Fluke egg released in faeces
• Eggs hatched into larvae (miracidium) on grass
• Miracidium swims, and enters the secondary host (snail)
• Carcaria leave snail and form into cysts (resting stage) on grass
• Cysts are eaten by an animal and developed into flukes
 Symptoms and treatment of liverflukes
SYMPTOMS TREATMENT
- Anaemic - Use of chemicals designed for flukes
- Anorexia - Deworming products (Injection and pour-on)
- Weakness - Destroy intermediate host
- Diarrheal - Avoid grazing on wet pastures
- Drop milk production - Broad-spectrum anthelmintics
- Wasting disease - Narrow –spectrum (Specific target )
- Bottle jaw wormers
- Watery swelling under the skin
 Taperworms
• Consists of many segments and it lives in the intestines

• Each segment has male and female reproductive organ

• Requires/ needs two host to complete their life cycle

 Life cycle of tapeworm
• Segment breaks off and excreted with faeces

• Intermediate host eats eggs from the ground

• Eggs are hatched in the host intestinal canal

• Immature worms migrate to the blood vessel and are transported by blood to
other parts of intermediate host where they form bladder worms or measles

• Further development to mature stage only starts when the bladder worms is
ingested by natural host
 Symptoms and treatment of Tapeworm
SYMPTOMS TREATMENT AND CONTROL
- Look unhealthy - Rest pastures
- Potbellies/ bloated bellies - Dosing
- Grow badly/ retarded growth - Farming with resistance breed
- Weight loss - Control movement of animal by fencing
- Diarrhea infected areas
- Digestive disorder
- Poor wool production
- Dry, rough hair coat (Skin and hides)
Roundworm
• Thread-like small and often white organism
• Lives in different parts of the gut and lungs
• Mainly lives in the ABOMASUM

LIFECYCLE OF ROUNDWORM
• Lives in the abomasum
• Female lay many eggs (faeces cow)
• Eggs are eaten by cattle when grazing
• Larvae hatched in the intestine
• Larvae enters the bloodstream and moves to the lungs
• Larvae coughed up and swallowed back
• Larvae absorb nutrients and develop into adult worms
Financial implications and detrimental effect of
internal parasites
• Tissue damage
• Poor production (Milk and wool)
• Reduced reproduction
• Income loss
• Stock losses
• High treatment cost
• Poor and low quality and quantity products
• Consuming infested carcass may lead to death
• high cost involvement in inspection (Abattoirs)
 Preventative and control measures
• Deworming
• Isolation
• Nutrition
• Sanitation
• Control animal numbers
• Handling manure
• Providing clean manure
• Use of feeders
External parasites (Ectoparasites)
• Lives outside the host animal body
• They are as follows:
- Lice; Mites; Nasal worm; Blowflies and Ticks
 1. Nasal worm
• Nasal bot fly lays larvae around the nostril of sheep
• Larvae enters nasal cavity, it causes irritation and infection
• Matured larvae are sneezed out and pupate
SYMPTOMS TREATMENT

- Ram refused to mate - Dosing

- Ewes refused to suckle their lambs - Injection (Ivermectin)
- Loss appetite
- Weight loss
- Sneezing
- Thick yellow discharge
- Shaking head (trying to get rid of the parasites)
- Grating teeth
 2. Lice
• There are two types of lice
a) Sucking lice (blood sucking)
b) Biting lice (chewing skin)
• Completes life cycle on single hosts
TRANSMISSION MODE SYMPTOMS TREATMENT

- Physical contact - Skin irritation - Dipping

- Animates - Skin biting - Use insecticides (Pour-on; spot
- Shearing - Loss appetite treatment)
material - Pulled out wool around - Use insecticides
flanks - Use insect growth regulator
- Weakness - Backlines applied within 24hrs
after shearing
 3. Blowflies in sheep
• Lay eggs on living sheep
• Occurs to any part of the sheep, where there is fleece is wounded, dirty
or infected with bacteria
• Open wounds attract flies
Symptoms Treatment Chemical control
- Skin irritation - Tail docking - Dipping
- Skin breaks - Breeding sheep that are - Use of pour-on
- Tail wagging (shaking) resistance to fly strike - Cleaning wounds
- Restlessness - Timing of shearing and - Treatment with antibiotics
- Rubbing affected areas crutching - Use of insect growth
- Biting affected areas - Clipping and cleaning of regulators
affected coat areas.
Mites
• Host-specific organism that lives permanently on their hosts
• Infect head, leg, body or tail region
• Most of the mites cannot be seen with the naked eyes
• Mites causes sheep scab (sheep) and mange
• Causes the skin to become crusted
SYMPTOMS TREATMENT

- Loss of hair, feather and wool - Diagnose

- Infected areas itches - Dipping of animal
- Animal seen scratching
- Biting and rubbing
- Skin irritation
 Ticks
• Ticks harm animals by:
a) Biting
b) Sucking blood
c) Transmitting diseases
• Ticks are divided into three groups
a) Single host ticks- Blue ticks
b) Two host ticks – Bont legged ticks
c) Three hosts ticks- Bont ticks
Three host tick life cycle
• Female lays eggs on the ground
• Larvae is hatched from the eggs
• Larvae feeds on the primary host
• Larva changed into nymphs
• Nymphs feeds on the secondary host
• Larvae drops off and moult
• Larvae feed on the third host
 Symptoms/ effects and treatment of
Ticks
SYMPTOMS/ EFFECTS TREATMENT

- Loss of meat, wool, milk and feathers - Use chemicals, specific to ticks
and production - Shearing
- Loss of teat, ears and tails - Dipping (Complete immerse sheep/
- Loss of weight lamb and calves)
- Loss of blood - Injection with chemicals
- High mortalities - Spraying; Pour-on and spot treatment
- Causes wounds
- Irritation to animals
- Loss of body condition
Financial implications and detrimental effect of
external parasites
• Loss of appetite
• Cause anaemic
• Cause wound
• Poor production
• Causes death to animals
• Weakens animals system (susceptible/ vulnerable to diseases)
 Financial effects
• Poor quality and quantity of products
• Low production
• Damaged animal organs
• High cost of chemical control
• High or expensive equipment
• Eradication campaigns place huge financial burden on the government
• High capital cost for building treatment facilities
Preventative/control measures of external
parasites
• Application of chemicals
- Dipping; hand dressing and spraying
• Use of systematic toxic substance
• Burning veld
• Use biological control
PLANT AND METALLIC SALT POISONING
 Animal poisoning
• Toxicity of plants can be affected by:
- Soil type
- Season
- Climatic factors
- Age of plant
- Species of animal
- Condition of the animal
- Stage of growth
- Part of plant
 The most important plant poisoning
• Maize fungus
• Poison bulb
• Thorn apple, etc.
Maize Fungus, Poisoning Bulbs and Thorn Apple
Name of Plant Symptoms Treatment
Maize fungus - Lack of appetite - Add vitamins and proteins in feed
- Stomach pains - Removal of affected feed
- Anaemic - Remove animals from the source
- Vomitting of poisoning.
- Death
- Sweating
- Liver damage
- Lowered / reduced production
Poisonous bulb - Diarrhea - Avoid contact with other plants
- Bloat - Contact Vet
- Stiffness of hindlegs - Avoid animals from drinking water
- Excessive urinating - Use of intravenous solution
- Abdominal pains
- Animals often thirst
Thorn Apple - Reduced feed intake - Obtained during - Remove source of poison
- Retarded growth harvesting - Administer charcoal into the
- Muscle tremor stomach
- Extreme mouth
dryness
The preventative/control measures of plant
poisoning
• Mechanical or chemical eradicate poisonous plants
• Avoid overstocking and overgrazing
• Camps off infected areas/ fencing camps
• Prevent veld fires
• Manage nutrition
• Practice rotation grazing
• Avoid overgrazing and overstocking
• Apply chemical in infected camps
 PREVENTION AND CONTROL
• Always supply animals with clean and fresh water
• Measure ingredients correctly
• Monitor animal behaviour
• Cover urea lick against rain
• Accustom animals to urea and salt lick
 Metallic Salt Poisoning
Symptoms Treatment
1) Salt poisoning - Loss appetite • Removes source salts
- Dehydration • Provision of fresh water (small quantities)
- Blindness(Pigs) • Administer hypertonic dextrose
- Excretion
- Mortalities
- Excessive salivation
- Vomiting pigs
- Leg paralysis
- Increased thirst
- Fluid leaks from beaks

2) Urea poisoning - Cause bloat • Use large volume of water (drench the
• Non- protein nitrogen - Frequent urination animal with large volume of cold water 45L)
supplements in ruminants. - Wild animal • Dose with vinegar/ acetic acid (restore the
CAUSES OF UREA POISONING - Tetany pH to normal)
-excess consumption of urea - Animal death
- Irregular consumption - Trembles and staggers
- Wet supplements containing - Nervous symptoms
urea
- Sudden introduction to high
quantities of urea
 PRINCIPLE OF GOOD HEALTH
1) Vaccination (vaccine programme)
2) Shelters
3) Sanitation
4) Handling manure
5) Sterilised tools and instruments
6) Isolation
7) Control pest and disease
8) Destroy carcass, skin and other material from infected animals
Role of Government/State in animal health and protection
• Research
• Legislation
• Vaccination (vaccine production)
• Notifiable diseases
• Import bans/ import control
• Export of animals and animal products
• Importation of remedies
• Quarantine service
• Movement permits
• Animal health schemes
• State veterinarians and livestock inspectors
• Control over livestock remedies
• Rural disease control
• Duties of animal owner