A big loss in Pakistan’s agricultural and livestock sectors was noted during the flood in the year 2010. The scenario nowadays is not different in large parts of the country. The flood has not only caused death losses of cows, buffaloes, goats, sheep, and donkeys but has also washed out the poultry and fish farms. Not only have this, but acres of standing crops and fodders have also been washed away. The leftover fodder has been destroyed and is not usable for livestock feeding. This damage has topped up the problem of livestock feed scarcity for the survivors. The farmers who could luckily save their livestock from the flood are now worried about their feeding. Farmers are also waiting for veterinary health specialists to take care of sick and starved animals. In this alarming situation, the remaining livestock will die in the coming days if vaccinations/medications and feed are not made available. Therefore, post-flood feeding and health care of surviving livestock are of utmost importance.
Post-flood livestock health care
Animals surviving floods are prone to several diseases and toxicities. Generally, animals at this stage are under stress due to evacuation, relocation, starvation, feed changes, and mixing with other animals. These multiple stress factors increase livestock’s vulnerability to different threats that can lead to outbreak of diseases, particularly infectious diseases.
Among diseases, the commons are Tetanus, Anthrax, Blackleg, Botulism, Listeriosis, Footrot, and Mastitis. All livestock, especially horses, sheep, and goats, are susceptible to tetanus. During an evacuation, animals get injuries, therefore such animals are in need of wound treatment and tetanus vaccinations. Anthrax is another post-flood disease. Animal affected by anthrax is in apparently good condition, but dies suddenly without showing overt signs of ill health. Excessive bloody discharges from natural openings of dead animals is a common sign of Anthrax. Proper disposal of dead carcasses is recommended by burial or burning to prevent and minimise the spread of the infection to other animals and humans.
Blackleg, a clostridial disease mainly characterised by high fever and hot, painful swellings of hindquarters muscles, can be fatal in post-flood areas. Like other clostridial diseases, vaccination is the better option.
Horses and birds are generally susceptible to botulism, which causes paralysis. The initial symptoms include weakness, and difficulty in eating and swallowing. Antibiotics are of little use in treating botulism. Only good supportive care is the mainstay of treatment.
Animal health can be better managed by avoiding exposure to stagnant water, decaying carcasses, and vegetables. Listeriosis, caused by Listeria moncytogenes, is a disease of the central nervous system. The affected animals move in a circle, have blindness, and show other abnormal behaviour. Affected animals can be treated with antibiotics and protected by avoiding grazing in wet areas.
Footrot in cattle, sheep, and goats, while thrush in horses may develop in animals standing in mud or water for prolonged periods. The cure is to remove the animals from the muddy and wet areas. The soft tissue and hooves should be properly cleaned and disinfected.
In severe conditions, antibiotics can be used for treatment. The major problem faced by animals standing in mud or water is Mastitis. The bacteria present in mud and water can cause acute, severe Mastitis in dairy animals. In such severe cases, it is better to first clean, sterilise and dry the teat ends and administer antibiotics intra-mammary, followed by systemic antibiotics treatment.
Livestock exhibiting any sign of ill health should be treated by the veterinarian available in the flood-affected areas. Livestock owners should immediately contact the local veterinary teams rather than wait for their arrival or self-treatment.
Post flood livestock feeds and feeding
The starving animals require an immediate supply of good quality fodder and small quantity of concentrates. The post-flood situation does not focus much on provision of livestock feeds in sufficient quantity. Major relief and rehabilitation activities during disasters usually surround around human beings rather than livestock feeds and housing.
The feeds and fodder requirements of livestock are many times higher than that of human beings, thus making it difficult to provide as per their needs. In emergency conditions, an adult cow requires at least 25-30kg of green fodder for its body maintenance. However, more quantity is required to fulfil nutritional demands, when cow or buffalo is producing milk.
The supply of green fodder in sufficient quantities is not possible during the relief operations. The present scenario demands the supply of dry fodder in the form of hay, dry corn stovers, and wheat/rice straw.
Concentrates like cotton seed cake, wheat bran, and cereal grains should also be supplied for livestock feeding. Such items could reduce the weight to be transported and decrease the risk of spoilage as dry fodder can be secured for many days.
Although the consumption of dry fodder could increase the animal water requirements at the same time animal would feel satiated with less consumption than green fodder. Supply of concentrate is required along with dry fodder to meet energy and protein demands of animals.
However, if this is not possible, the protein requirements of cattle, buffalo, sheep, and goats (ruminant animals) can be met through the addition of urea in the dry fodder. Urea is a source of nitrogen and ruminants can convert this nitrogen into body protein. However, precautionary measures must be followed while feeding urea to stressed animals. It is better to thoroughly mix 1kg of urea in 10 litres of clean water and then sprinkle this water over 50kg of dry fodder or wheat straw. Care must be taken that urea mixed water should be sprinkled all over the straw and then the straw should be mixed thoroughly. This urea-treated dry fodder / straw then can be used for feeding purposes.
In a cattle / buffalo relief camp, having 100 animals of different ages, a minimum of 10 tonnes of dry and 30 tonnes of green fodder, 8-10 tonnes of concentrates, 0.4 tonnes of mineral mixture, and 0.2 tonnes of salt is required for 30 days.
Livestock owners must take care of the abrupt animal feed changes because such changes are stressful and can cause significant disease and even death, so feed changes should be minimised as much as possible. However, when feed changes are unavoidable then only one-fourth of the total feed should be changed daily and animals should be brought on the new feed in total after 4 or 5 days.
Owners should not offer flood-damaged feed to the animals due to the presence of dirt, contaminants, and mould growth. Animals should not be allowed to graze in unknown areas in flood-hit areas. This might increase the chance of toxicities. Tree leaves can be used for animal feeding, but it is advisable not to feed in high amounts. The extra care during this emergency period would protect the animals from ill health.
The writer is an Associate Professor, Animal Nutrition at Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University