<h5>What is the history of lumpy skin disease?</h5>  <p>Lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV) causes lumpy skin disease (LSD). This disease was first discovered in Zambia in 1929. From there, it quickly spread to other African countries, West Asia, South-eastern Europe, and Central Asia.</p>
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In 2019, it spread to China and South Asia. Bangladesh was the first South Asian country to get affected and from there it moved to India. LSD spread between Bangladesh and India in July-August 2019. While the outbreak in 2019 eventually stopped, the current outbreak in India began in June 2022.
</p> <h5>How does it spread?</h5>  <p>LSDV is not a zoonotic virus. So, the disease cannot spread to humans. However, it is a contagious disease that is spread by mosquitoes, certain biting flies, and ticks. It mostly affects animals such as cows and water buffaloes.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) states that infected animals spread the virus through nasal and oral fluids. This can contaminate feeding and drinking buckets that are shared by the animals and spread the disease. Studies also say this disease can spread through animal sperm during artificial insemination.</p> <h5>How does this disease affect animals?</h5>  <p>The lymph nodes of animals are affected by LSD. This causes the nodes to enlarge and look like lumps on the skin, hence the name. They appear on the infected cattle's limbs, neck, head, as well as other body parts.</p>
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The lumps may eventually grow into ulcers and scabs on the skin. Some other symptoms of this disease include a decline in milk production, high fever, lack of appetite, weakness in animals, etc. According to the FAO, the time between infection and the showing of symptoms is around 28 days.
</p> <h5>Is it safe to drink the milk of cows affected by this disease?</h5>  <p>According to research, it has not been possible to detect the presence of live and infectious LSDV in milk collected from infected animals. The FAO says that since a large amount of milk in Asia is treated after collection and is boiled or pasteurised, the virus gets destroyed or inactivated.</p>
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Also, the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) has said that milk from cows infected with LSD can be consumed as LSD is non-zoonotic.
</p> <h5>How bad is the situation in India and what are we doing about it?</h5> <figure>
        <img src="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/newsahoot.appspot.com/o/cattle-dying-from-lumpy-skin-disease%2Fcattle-dying-from-lumpy-skin-disease-section1.jpeg?alt=media&token=4a5f6e2e-d94f-449d-9def-4a377c84f9ec" alt="How bad is the situation in India and what are we doing about it?" >
        <figcaption>A person treating a cow suffering from lumpy skin disease. Photo by TOLFA (Tree Of Life For Animals).</figcaption>
      </figure> <p>The recent spread has affected cattle in various states of India. According to reports, more than 16 lakh cattle have been infected in 197 districts of the country. Roughly 75,000 cattle have died from this disease, out of which 50,000 were from Rajasthan alone.
FAO has said that certain steps must be taken to control the spread of this disease. The cattle must be vaccinated, infected cattle must be quarantined, and their sheds must be sanitised and cleaned. The Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying said that the ‘Goat Pox Vaccine’ is "extremely effective" against LSD.
States have also imposed movement bans on cattle and are isolating the infected ones. Insecticides are also being spread to kill mosquitoes and flies so that they don’t spread the disease.
Two Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) institutes have produced a vaccine for LSD. The Indian government is planning to release it in the next 3 or 4 months. We hope the vaccine works and helps in stopping the spread of this disease.</p>

There have been reports of cows suffering from lumpy skin disease in several Indian states. What exactly is this disease, and what are its effects?

Cattle Dying from Lumpy Skin Disease

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Cattle Dying from Lumpy Skin Disease

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