Sheep and goat pox outbreaks are growing in Andalusia

The new outbreaks have been detected in two farms located in the Granada towns of Cúllar and Benamaurel, both located in the surveillance radius of the first outbreak.

In the first case, Cúllar, the disease has been detected in a facility with 170 sheep and 20 goats following the visit that the official veterinary services of the Government of Andalusia are making to all the farms included in the restriction area.

As for the Benamaurel outbreak, it has been located on a farm that has a herd of 352 animals (340 sheep and 12 goats). This is the third outbreak declared in Andalusia.

Let us remember that VOC is a disease of viral origin that had been eradicated in Spain since 1968, until on September 19, an outbreak was identified in the Granada municipality of Benamaurel.

Sporadic cases had previously been detected within the EU, the last in Greece and Bulgaria in 2014. Likewise, it remains endemically in Africa (including countries in the north of the continent, such as Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia), as well as in Middle East and Asia.

It is a non-zoonotic disease, which exclusively affects sheep and goat species, and in no case can it be transmitted to humans, either through direct contact with animals or through their products.

The Ministry reminds us of the importance of applying adequate biosecurity measures on sheep and goat farms, as well as in animal transport. Likewise, it is essential to guarantee the proper functioning of passive surveillance systems to detect the possible entry of Sheep and Goat Pox into other farms, hence the importance of communicating any signs of the disease to the official veterinary services.