African swine fever, classified by the World Organisation for Animal Health as a highly contagious viral disease affecting domestic and wild pigs, has been reported from the Janakikkad Eco-Tourism Centre near Perambra in Kozhikode district. This is for the first time the flu is being reported from here though there had been cases from Wayanad district earlier.
Sources in the Department of Animal Husbandry told The Hindu on Wednesday that the samples collected from a wild pig found dead in Janakikkad were sent for lab tests last month after Nipah infection was reported from Maruthonkara, a nearby village. Though the samples tested negative for Nipah, they tested positive for African swine fever at the State Institute for Animal Diseases, Thiruvananthapuram. These lab results were later confirmed at the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
Domestic pigs in farms within a one-km radius of the affected area, which is termed as the contagious zone, are normally culled if the infection is reported. As there are no pig farms nearby the Janakikkad forests, this cannot be done. Though there are wild pigs in the forests, it is not possible to cull them all too. The Animal Husbandry department, along with the officials in the Department of Forests and Wildlife, are now planning to train pig farm owners within a 10-km radius about the threats posed by African swine fever. There is no threat to human life from the virus. But, there are no vaccines or effective treatment methods as well. Pig farmers have been told to inform the officials if they come across anything unusual. They have also been told to ensure hygiene in the farms and not to feed domestic pigs with the food left half eaten by wild pigs.
The Animal Husbandry department is planning to hold a training session in Kozhikode on October 6 for the pig farm owners in the district.
