Foot-and-Mouth Disease: What Livestock Owners Should Do
Foot-and-mouth disease in cattle, goats and sheep: the signs to spot early, what to do on day one, how to nurse sick animals, and how to protect your herd.
Health guide
Not a substitute for a vet. If your animal is unwell, in pain or getting worse, contact a qualified veterinarian straight away.
Quick answer
Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease of cattle, buffalo, goats, sheep and pigs. It causes fever, drooling and painful blisters in the mouth, on the feet and on the teats. If you suspect it, isolate the animals, stop all movement on and off the farm, call your vet and report it to the local veterinary authorities as your local rules require. There is no cure. What protects a herd is good nursing, vaccination and strict biosecurity.
Why FMD matters
FMD rarely kills adult animals, but it spreads extremely fast and the losses are heavy. Milk yield collapses. Animals lose weight because eating hurts. Pregnant animals may abort, and young stock can die suddenly from heart damage. Where FMD is absent, one case can bring trade bans and mass control measures. Where it is endemic, it is one of the most expensive livestock diseases farmers deal with year in, year out.
FMD is not considered a meaningful health risk to people, and it has nothing to do with the childhood illness called hand, foot and mouth disease.
Signs to look for
Cattle and buffalo usually show the clearest signs. Sheep and goats often get it more mildly, so it's easy to miss in them.
Early signs
- Fever, dullness and loss of appetite
- Sudden drop in milk yield
- Heavy, stringy drooling and lip-smacking
Blisters and sores
- Blisters on the tongue, gums, dental pad and lips that burst within a day or so, leaving raw, red patches
- Blisters between the claws and around the top of the hoof (coronary band)
- Blisters on the teats, which can lead to mastitis
Other signs
- Lameness, shifting weight between feet, reluctance to stand or walk
- Weight loss over the following days
- Sudden death in young calves, lambs or kids, sometimes without blisters
Look-alike conditions
Other diseases can also cause mouth sores or lameness, among them some viral diseases and foot rot. Only a vet, with laboratory testing, can confirm FMD. If several animals have drooling, mouth sores and lameness in any combination, treat it as suspected FMD until you're told otherwise.
How it spreads
The virus is in the blisters, saliva, milk, dung and breath, and it survives on surfaces for a while. It usually gets about through:
- Direct contact between animals, especially at markets and shared grazing
- Newly bought animals that look healthy but are incubating the virus
- People, boots, clothes, vehicles and equipment moving between farms
- Contaminated feed, milk, water troughs and bedding
- Airborne spread in some conditions, usually over a few kilometres but occasionally much further
What to do on day one
- Isolate sick animals in a separate pen or area with their own feed and water containers.
- Stop movement. Don't sell, buy, lend or move animals, and keep them away from markets and shared grazing.
- Call your vet and report to the local veterinary authorities as your local rules require. Follow their instructions on quarantine and testing.
- Keep people out. Visitors, traders and other farmers stay off the farm. Use separate clothes and boots for the sick pen, and wash your hands after handling sick animals.
- Clean and disinfect boots, equipment and vehicles. Ask your vet which disinfectant works against FMD virus, because not every common product does.
- Be careful with milk. Rules on using or disposing of milk from affected animals vary, so check with your vet or the authority.
Nursing sick animals
Nothing treats the virus itself. A vet will usually concentrate on pain relief and on stopping bacterial infection setting into the mouth, feet and udder. Follow the vet's dosing and any withdrawal periods for milk and meat.
Good nursing at home speeds recovery:
- Soft food: fresh green fodder, soaked or chopped straw, soft mashes. Hard, dry fodder hurts to chew.
- Clean, cool water close by, so lame animals don't have to walk far.
- Clean, dry, soft bedding to protect sore feet and cut down infection.
- Mouth care: your vet may suggest a mild antiseptic mouthwash for the sores.
- Foot care: keep feet clean and dry and keep flies off open lesions.
- Udder care: milk out affected cows gently and watch for mastitis.
- Keep young stock away from infected adults where you can, and don't feed raw milk from infected animals to calves without your vet's advice.
Most adults recover over two to three weeks. Some cattle are left with long-term problems such as reduced milk, poor heat tolerance or chronic lameness.
Prevention
- Vaccinate where FMD is endemic. The vaccine has to match the virus types circulating locally and protection has to be topped up, so follow your vet's or livestock department's schedule.
- Quarantine new animals away from the herd for at least two to three weeks and watch them closely.
- Buy from sources you know and ask about vaccination history.
- Control who comes in: a footbath or boot change at the farm entrance, and limited access for traders and vehicles.
- Don't share equipment with other farms unless it has been cleaned thoroughly first.
For everyday herd health basics, see Raising Cattle, Goats and Sheep: A Beginner's Guide.
When to see a vet
Call a vet the same day if you see:
- Drooling with mouth blisters or sores in any animal
- Lameness in several animals at once, especially with foot blisters
- A sudden drop in milk with fever across the herd
- Sudden deaths in calves, lambs or kids
- Blisters on teats or signs of mastitis after mouth or foot sores
- An animal that cannot stand or has stopped eating and drinking
In Pakistan
FMD is endemic in Pakistan, and outbreaks in cattle and buffalo are common. They are often reported to rise in the cooler months and around times of heavy animal movement such as Eid. Vaccines are available through provincial livestock departments and private suppliers; ask your local veterinary hospital which vaccine to use and when to give it. Quarantine animals bought from mandis before they mix with your herd. Before Eid, look carefully at mouths and feet; see Eid al-Adha: How to Choose a Healthy Sacrifice Animal.
Buying new stock? Ask sellers about vaccination and health history, and browse livestock on Paalo.
Frequently asked questions
Is foot-and-mouth disease the same as hand, foot and mouth disease in children?
No. They are caused by different viruses. Foot-and-mouth disease affects cloven-hoofed animals such as cattle, buffalo, goats, sheep and pigs. Hand, foot and mouth disease is a common childhood illness that does not come from livestock.
Can animals recover from foot-and-mouth disease?
Most adult animals recover in about two to three weeks with good nursing, but milk yield and weight gain can stay low for a long time. Young calves, lambs and kids are at much higher risk of dying because the virus can damage the heart muscle.
Does one vaccination protect for life?
No. Protection from foot-and-mouth vaccines is relatively short-lived and specific to the virus types in the vaccine, so animals usually need repeat doses. Your vet or local livestock department will advise on the right vaccine and schedule for your area.
