PPR in Sindh Ibex in Kirthar National Park
Lab reports cleared the ambiguity about the death of Sindh Ibex at Kirthar Park. After postmortem, experts sent the samples to the Veterinary Diagnostic Lab Tandojam, in addition to Sindh Institute of Animal Health Karachi. Reports have confirmed the presence of PPR in Ibex in Kirthar National Park. Peste des Petits Ruminants is a disease of primarily small ruminants. Besides this, DG Livestock Dr. Nazir Hussain Kalhoro has also confirmed the disease. Furthermore, he has talked about the different steps, including vaccination. He emphasized not to mix the wild animals with local sheep and goats. However, he is focusing on the vaccination of local sheep and goats to protect the wildlife also.
ڈاکٹر نازنین امان نے آئی بیکس کا شکار کرنے والی پہلی خاتون شکاری کا اعزاز حاصل کر لیا
پی پی آر کنٹرول و تدارک، نیشنل پی پی آر پروگرام ٹیم کی آگاہی سرگرمیاں
Mystery Behind Ibex Deaths Solved
The mystery of the deaths of ibex in Kirthar National Park in Jamshoro has been solved. The disease was diagnosed from the samples sent to the laboratories. PPR (cut) disease has been confirmed in the ibex.
According to the details, more than 30 ibex have died in the Kirthar National Park in the last two months. According to a report by Qurban Ali Khushk for Dawn, post-mortem of the dead animals was conducted and samples were sent to the Central Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory Tando Jam and Sindh Institute of Animal Health Karachi. According to experts from both laboratories, the cause of death of the ibex is PPR.
Livestock Department Confirms PPR in Sindh Ibex
Director General of Livestock Sindh Dr. Nazir Ahmed Kalhoro has confirmed PPR in wild goats in Kirthar Park.
He says that the initial symptoms of the disease include depression and lack of food. After two to three days of the disease, diarrhea leads to severe dehydration and high fever. Further severity leads to the death of the animal.
Vaccination Campaign Planned to Control the PPR in Sindh Ibex
He told Dawn News that the department has taken several steps to prevent the deaths of ibex. These steps include routine vaccination in the affected area as well as vaccination of wild and domestic animals.
He said that the Livestock Department is planning to vaccinate all domestic animals, especially sheep and goats, around Kirthar Park. He said that out of 24 million sheep and goats in Sindh, the department’s target is to vaccinate 9 million annually, of which 5 million doses will be provided by the federal government and 4 million by the provincial government.
Experts Stress Separation of Domestic and Wild Animals
Dr. Nazir Hussain Kalhoro stressed the need to separate domestic and wild animals to prevent further deaths. He said that if they mix with wild animals, the consequences could be dire.
Dr Om Prakash, a senior research officer at Tando Jam Laboratory, told Dawn that there is an urgent need to implement strict vaccination protocols for all animals in the park and take other stringent measures to prevent the spread of the deadly disease.
Wildlife Experts Call for Stronger Protection Measures against PPR in Sindh Ibex
Wildlife expert Dr. Aftab Ahmed Bhand said that the current measures have proven to be insufficient to stop the wave of the disease.
He stressed that comprehensive protective measures are needed to protect the wild animals present in the park. He said that Kirthar Park is spread over 700,000 acres in Jamshoro and Malir districts. The park provides natural habitat to over 500 different species of wildlife.
According to Wajid Sheikh, Deputy Conservationist of the Hyderabad Wildlife Department, the ages of the ibex that died were between two and ten years.
According to him, all the deaths occurred near a natural spring that was stored due to rains and has become polluted over the past four months.
Similar Outbreak of PPR in Sindh Ibex Reported in 2016
It should be noted that according to a report by Qurban Ali Khushk for Dawn, this disease had also killed more than 40 animals in the park in 2016.
