Abstract

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) remains a critical threat to livestock economies worldwide, including Africa. This report documents an atypical case of FMD in Holstein Friesian cattle, in which four animals suddenly died overnight in an intensive dairy farm located at the Kubau Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Nigeria. Post-mortem examination revealed bloody nasal and oral discharges from the carcases. Based on this post-mortem observation, anthrax was suspected, which limited the clinicians from collecting more samples. Lameness and anorexia with reduced milk production were also observed in other animals from the shed and herd where the dead animals were identified. The bloody oral and nasal discharges were sampled for laboratory analysis. Gram staining of samples revealed a gram-positive rod, while a more specific confirmatory diagnosis for Bacillus anthracis performed using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) turned out negative. Further laboratory analysis using real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (rRt-PCR) produced positive result for FMD. This finding presents an unusual FMD disease, and reveals challenges in controlling FMD outbreaks and the potential impacts on the dairy industry in Nigeria. This case underscores the importance of strict biosecurity measures, routine surveillance, rapid diagnosis and timely implementation of appropriate control measures to prevent FMD outbreaks in livestock farms.

Key words: Cattle, Dairy, Foot and Mouth Disease, Kaduna State, Real Time PCR