Kyrgyz Farmers at Risk of Brucellosis
So many people in Kyrgyzstan keep livestock that the authorities are struggling to impose health regulations, leading to a heightened risk of animal-to-human disease transmission.
Kyrgyz Farmers at Risk of Brucellosis
So many people in Kyrgyzstan keep livestock that the authorities are struggling to impose health regulations, leading to a heightened risk of animal-to-human disease transmission.
Rita Borbukeeva reports from Issykkul region, where brucellosis is seen as a threat. In just one of the region’s districts, Zhety Oguz, there are 1,000 infected animals.
The small-scale farmers she interviewed were unaware of the risk of catching brucellosis from cattle. They said they took no precautions such as wearing rubber gloves when milking.
Bakyt Amanturov of the state veterinary service complains of a shortage of medicines for cattle and a lack of resources to check herds for signs of the disease.
He said brucellosis outbreaks were dealt with swiftly in the Soviet period, when entire herds were sent off to be slaughtered when an outbreak was identified. Now that livestock is owned by private individuals, the government no longer has the ability to order a mass cull, unless it is prepared to compensate owners.
“That’s why it’s spreading,” he concluded.
