Viral encephalitis is spread by ixodid ticks that live among the grass, on the lower branches of shrubs. The infection is transmitted through a bite, the incubation period lasts 7-30 days. Symptoms are pronounced or absent in the case of carriage. Is it possible to drink milk if a goat has been bitten by a tick than it threatens, further in our article.
Flies and ticks in goats
Flies serve as a good indicator: when there are especially many of them around the goat, it means that the animal is not healthy. Flies and ticks. In the hot summer time, various flies are terribly disturbing to goats both in the pasture and in the barn, and especially if there are any abrasions or wounds. Flies lay their testicles under the root of the tail (if goats suffer from diarrhea) or in other places (where there are wounds), mainly attacking young animals. You can protect goats from these insects by lubricating those places where flies are more willing to land with tar or fish oil, adding antler oil or ASD-2 to them.
Ticks usually appear on goats grazing on scarce forest pastures or feeding on hay from peat meadows. Ticks live on goats all year round, accumulating mainly near the larynx, where they pierce the skin and suck blood, causing unbearable pain. The harm they cause in woolen goat breeding is extremely great. It is very difficult to get rid of them, the most reliable remedy is a haircut, then the goat should be washed with tobacco (400 g per 1200 g of water) or moistened with a 3% solution of creolin. Manure from such goats must be disinfected.
Bad habits of goats.
Among the bad habits of the goat, in addition to self-milk, which was mentioned above, the following should be noted.
Overturning a bucket of swill, in order to get to a more tasty sediment at the bottom, is observed very often in goats. Once the goat begins to do this overturning of the bucket, it is impossible to wean it; the only way is to stand with her inseparably until she drinks, or to water her from a flat bowl. It should be noted that often free goats keep themselves much calmer in the barn than constantly tied goats.
Being on a leash for a long time, goats strive in every possible way to gain freedom and for this purpose they help one another to free themselves from the chain or rope. This tendency must be borne in mind by the owner, since a freed goat will always strive to leave.
Horned goats often butt the walls of the barn, tear off the feeders, so it is advisable to sheathe the walls with boards, and tie the feeders to the ceiling with ropes.
Igor Nikolaev
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In males, the scutellum covers the entire body. It does not allow the body to grow in size. Therefore, the male drinks a little blood. In females, the scutellum is small. There is still a lot of space under it. The female can drink a lot of blood, while the body increases in size by 5 times.
The first insect attack on animals occurs in March or April. The period lasts 40 days. After the female has drunk blood, she falls to the ground: lays eggs, from which larvae appear. In August-September, the larvae turn into nymphs. They need blood to exist.
In September, there are 2 insect attacks on livestock. The nymph develops rapidly, turning into a female or male. The cycle repeats itself.In November, depending on the region, insects fall to the ground. They can survive for up to 7 months without food. What happens if a tick bites a cow? Can you drink her milk?
Why are ticks dangerous?
What do experts say about dairy products? If a cow is bitten by a tick, can you drink milk? Ixodids attack both animals and humans. The insect clings to the skin with its limbs. Inserts the proboscis into the skin. There are hooks on the proboscis that securely hold the tick. The puncture is painless.
Animals are carriers of the encephalitis virus. Together with the blood, the DNA of the virus gets to the insects. It will be viable not only in adult males and females, but also in larvae and nymphs.
A tick, getting on the skin, transfers the virus along with saliva to a new host, animal or person. A person gets sick with tick-borne encephalitis. Cattle are resistant to this disease. It is not dangerous for them, but the DNA of the virus can stay in their body for a long time.
If a cow is bitten by an encephalitis tick, the animal will remain healthy. Tick-borne encephalitis is a human disease. It is transmitted through blood. The disease is very terrible. A large number of people remain disabled. The encephalitis virus is not fully understood.
Experts warn that causative agents of the disease may be transmitted through the gastrointestinal tract, so they do not recommend drinking raw cow or goat milk. After boiling, it becomes completely safe. If a cow has been bitten by a tick, then you can drink boiled, but not raw milk.
In adult animals, the following signs are noted:
- body temperature rises sharply to 41 C; animals are thirsty, refuse food, milk yield decreases;
- there is rapid breathing and pulse;
- hyperemia of the mucous membrane of the eyes occurs; after 3 days they turn yellow;
- on day 2, cows excrete urine with blood splashes; it turns red;
- on day 3, the animal stops getting up, loses weight, its chewing gum disappears;
- death occurs on the 5th day.
The veterinarian examines the cow. Take a blood and urine test. The seasonality of the disease is taken into account, the pasture is examined, and ticks are examined. Treatment is reduced to the destruction of pyroplasmas. Chemotherapy is prescribed. Intramuscularly injected "Azidin", a solution of 7%, dosage 0.0035 mg / kg.
Before releasing animals to pasture in March or April, it is necessary to treat the skin of animals from ticks. The simplest thing is to use vegetable oil. You can add any flavoring to it. Often the oil is combined with essential oils, cinnamon, vanilla, lavender.
The solution is applied to the hair of animals throughout the body. Particular attention is paid to problem areas: groin, udder, peritoneum, inner side of the limbs. Among the chemicals that repel insects are used:
- "Dust sevina": manufacturers warn that this product does not contain the prohibited substance DDT; for adult animals use a solution of 1%, for calves 0.75%;
- "Proteid"; bathing animals;
- "Butox"; a solution of 0.005%, the livestock is sprayed from a spray bottle;
- Sebacil; for lactating cows are not used, for calves it is better not to use; the product is intended for irrigation of animal hair.
The instructions for chemicals indicate for how long milk should be discarded. Harmful substances can enter it and cause poisoning in calves and humans. You should not neglect the instructions.
Today, it is not uncommon to find tick-borne encephalitis and other infections in goat's milk. The highest risk of catching a tick is in the spring, when the weather is just getting warm. The infection enters the goat's body along with the grass, without harming the animal.For humans, tick-borne encephalitis is a very dangerous disease, causing disturbances in the functioning of the brain and nervous system.
The use of repellents
- Destructive emulsions. Developed on the basis of the following compounds with insecticidal activity:
- FOS;
- pyrethroids;
- cypox, cyperil;
- fipronil insecticides.
FOS
There are many drugs that are used to treat goats from ticks. When choosing them, you should pay attention to the restrictions on their use. So, many drugs are contraindicated in pregnant goats. The most famous are Dichlorvos, Diazinon, Blotik. When using the last drug, milk cannot be used for food for a day, meat - for two weeks.
Pyrethroids
The most numerous family of insecticidal preparations. They are designed to kill insects on the skin of animals, protect against their attack, and can be used to process pasture land. The most famous are Neostomazan, Butoks. Tsifox, Entomazan. Manufacturers issue instructions for use that are common for most drugs, differ in dosage, as well as withdrawal periods. So, when irrigating goats with Entomazan C, milk can be used for food, starting from the second milking. Withdrawal for meat is 10 days.
How is infection carried out?
As a rule, pets are carriers of the infection. This method of transmission of bacteria is called alimentary. Most often, goats are sick. Once in the bloodstream of animals, the infection persists in the body for a long time, the milk becomes infected and becomes dangerous for consumption. The foodborne transmission of infection is characteristic of groups and families. Every year the number of sick people is increasing, this is due to an increase in the number of goats. During its life, an animal can get sick with encephalitis several times. Cow's milk practically does not tolerate the presented virus due to the short time of its preservation in the blood.
A person can become infected with tick-borne encephalitis after drinking infected raw milk.
The infection comes into contact with the digestive tract, is retained in the epithelial tissues. After a short period of time, the bacterium enters the bloodstream, then into the internal organs and the immune system. The final destination is the central nervous system.
Symptoms of the disease
When infected with tick-borne encephalitis, the following symptoms appear:
- heat;
- nausea, vomiting;
- insomnia;
- loss of appetite;
- runny nose, cough;
- headache.
With the right approach and timely detection of the disease at the initial stage, the disease can be easily cured. In some cases, infection affects the nervous system, and diseases such as meningitis, encephalitis, and meningoencephalitis develop. Such situations can lead to unforeseen results, sometimes fatal.
The disease can be diagnosed based on the presence of symptoms and antecedent factors. If, after consuming raw milk, the symptoms indicated above began to appear, then the suspicion of tick-borne encephalitis is justified. However, only appropriate analyzes can give complete confidence. To determine the presence of damage to the nervous system, a lumbar puncture is done. The study allows you to diagnose meningitis and hemorrhage. To get a complete picture of the disease, to be sure whether a person has become infected or not, should be carried out. The presence of antibodies G and M in the blood indicates an infection of the body. To determine if a tick is present in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid, PCR (polymerase chain reaction) is performed. In addition to mandatory studies for tick-borne encephalitis, tests are performed for the presence of other infections, such as tick-borne borreliosis and others.
Treatment of the disease is carried out with antipyretic drugs, droppers, massage and physiotherapy.The infection is not transmitted by airborne droplets, an infected patient does not pose a threat to others.
Tick infestation
First of all, the result of the disease is a violation of the rules for caring for sheep and improper conditions for keeping flocks. This refers to the violation of sanitary standards, poor-quality food, the transfer of various infectious diseases.
Young lambs are usually infected from adult rams and sheep. It is important to identify infection in time and take appropriate measures to combat them. To do this, you must familiarize yourself with the symptoms of the disease.
Learn about the major diseases of sheep and lambs.
Symptoms
The main signs and symptoms of insect infestation are:
- severe itching. It is noticeable how the sheep begin to gnaw their own skin, rub against hard objects;
- pronounced redness and scratches on the skin appear on the neck, tail area and sides;
- the skin in the combed areas looks rough, the hair in this part falls out in tufts, and the places become bare;
- abrasions and cracks appear;
- loose pieces of hair hang around the affected area.
Course of the disease
There are three forms of the disease:
- latent;
- chronic;
- sharp.
Lambs and the adult herd react very poorly to parasites. They scratch on various objects all the time, and because of this, wounds and skin irritations appear, which begin to rot. Symptoms are most severe due to long journeys and in damp weather, when the humidity is high. The acute form is considered the most dangerous for animals.
Did you know? Ticks lead in the list of all arthropods in terms of the variety of infections they carry. More than 100 viruses and dozens of types of bacteria have been found in nature.
Sheep suffer greatly from infection, have a poor appetite, their body is completely depleted, as a result of this, death is possible. In the event that the infection was not detected, the whole body of the sheep will be affected by the tick after a few months. The chronic course of the disease can usually be found in young lambs. They lose weight, their fur falls off.
In contrast to the acute form, with chronic infection, itching appears less, but it is present. The period of infection most often falls in the summer. Before the onset of frost, the wool begins to grow back, and the disease flows into an acute form.
The latent form of the disease is characterized by mild symptoms. This form is found exclusively in adult sheep at high temperatures outside, when the parasites hide from the heat in thick folds of skin. With this form, there is a slight itching.
Treatment activities
Tick-borne encephalitis is afraid of high temperatures, dies at 60 ° C within half an hour. At a temperature of 37 ° C, the bacterium lives for several days. You can get rid of the virus by boiling goat's milk for 2 minutes. Experts recommend eating only boiled or sterilized products.
People who keep pets need to follow simple rules, creating an unfavorable environment for the development of ticks. To prevent goats from contracting tick-borne encephalitis, you should regularly mow the grass, actively fight rodents, remove the leaves and take care of the territory. Goats that produce milk must graze on specially prepared pastures.
By following these instructions, you can limit your chances of contracting tick-borne encephalitis through goat's milk.
Encephalitis is a whole group of several diseases that are inflammatory in nature. At the moment, this term is used not only for infection, but also for infectious-allergic, toxic and allergic brain damage.
Harmfulness
Insects injure the skin, transfer contagia.Contradictory information comes from various sources about the disease of goats with tick-borne encephalitis, which is dangerous to humans. There are no clinical manifestations of this pathology in ruminants, but there is a possibility of the virus being isolated in milk within 8 days after the tick attack.
Infection methods
If several individuals parasitize the goat, they suck out a significant amount of blood, which causes anemia. An attempt to remove the tick can cause significant harm to the victim. The insect head remains deep in the skin, causing severe inflammation.
Blood mite
Virus research history
Medicine has long been studying encephalitis, while doctors and scientists from different countries of the world, including the Russian Federation, do it. The author of the first clinical description of the disease was the domestic scientist A. Panov, who provided the necessary information about the disease back in 1935.
Soon a group of scientists from Pavlovsky, Zilber, together with other specialists, studied in more detail the clinical picture of encephalitis, its epidemiology, and developed some preventive methods and rules.
For the first time, the virus was removed in 1937 by scientists from the brains of dead patients, as well as during an experiment with ticks and wild vertebrate animals from the Far East.
Employees of Rospotrebnadzor every year remind the citizens of the country that before drinking milk, it must undergo a sufficiently effective heat treatment, at least, it is necessary to boil this product well.
As statistics show, almost every year in Russia there is an infection with viral encephalitis through milk. The main route of infection is the use of a sheep or goat, less often a cow's dairy product becomes a carrier, in which harmful bacteria live for about 14 days, and in sour cream made from contaminated milk - 60 days.
Scientists report that if an animal is bitten by an infected tick, then they themselves become carriers of the disease in erased forms, and in the future they become chronic carriers when the virus lives in the blood and milk of an animal: goats, cows, etc.
In any market in any city in the country, you can buy raw milk, unauthorized sour cream, cottage cheese, cream and other dairy products from local farmers. Many families like to send their children to the countryside, where ticks not only bite people directly, but also animals that provide seemingly healthy foods. Before eating, any milk must be boiled without fail.
Treatment of pyroplasmidosis
The effectiveness of therapy and the life of cattle depend on how quickly drug treatment is started. Medicines for cows from ticks: pyrotropic medicines: Azidin-vet, Berenil, etc.
In order to prevent cow tick bites, it is necessary to take preventive measures:
- to protect the cow, you need to use special sprays and emulsions to scare off blood-sucking pests that are sprayed on animal skins;
- graze cows only in clean areas of pasture, for which they should be pre-checked at the beginning of the grazing season;
- after returning from the pasture (in the period of danger of the appearance of "bloodsuckers") all cattle must be carefully examined for parasites and immediately remove the tick, if any.
Milk from a cow suspected of having a disease can only be drunk after boiling, since the virus can be transmitted to humans.
Signs of encephalitis
The main symptoms of encephalitis are the following:
- General cerebral symptoms include frequent and severe headaches, often localized in the frontal region, nausea, vomiting, fear of light, epileptic seizures. The person can be just lethargic or even fall into a real coma.
- The central nervous system also begins to malfunction: limb paresis, severe irritation, seizures.
- Fever, high fever, chills.
In some cases, the disease can be asymptomatic, which complicates the diagnostic process. And later treatment is often not effective and the disease is fatal.
Aerosols, sprays
As already noted, for therapeutic and prophylactic purposes, insecticidal aerosols and sprays are very often used to treat animals.
The most effective remedies for ticks, midges, gnats, horseflies:
- Alezan.
- Extrasol.
- Oksarep.
- Centaur.
Spray Extrasol
Sprays are very convenient to use, but, like water-soluble insecticidal-acaricidal preparations, they do not have a prolonged effect. Therefore, the processing of cows should be carried out systematically, adhering to the frequency, dosages indicated in the instructions.
Protection methods
Anyone knows that the treatment of encephalitis often ends in defeat, after which the patient dies. Therefore, in this case, it is better to prevent the disease, to prevent infection, than to try to cure it.
The main methods of protection against tick-borne encephalitis:
- The most effective way is a vaccine that healthy people can use. You can give injections only in those institutions that have a licensed right to do so. In such an injection there is a "killed" virus of the disease, this makes it possible for the human immune system to learn how to fight the infection, as a result, the body produces antibodies that stop the development of the disease.
- As mentioned above, any milk obtained must be boiled well, and only then used for food or for preparing various dishes. This will help avoid a real tragedy.
- In order to reduce the number of tick attacks on pets, you need to create unfavorable environmental conditions for these infectious insects: constantly clean your territory, do not let the grass grow, get rid of last year's foliage, exterminate rodents. It is better to graze milking animals on specially created pastures, and after walking, examine the animal for the presence of a sucked tick.
Attention! If you suspect encephalitis, you need to see a doctor immediately! Early treatment can help a person get rid of the disease completely, avoid unpleasant consequences and death.
Protecting the cow's mammary gland
To protect the udder of cows from the bites of blood-sucking insects, veterinarians recommend using special antiparasitic ointments, liniment, pharmacy talkers. Most varieties of bloodsuckers prefer tender, hairless areas of the skin, so the udder of the cows suffers first.
To protect the mammary gland of cows, preparations are used that include eucalyptus, rosemary, lavender, laurel, menthol, and camphor oil. Ointments have a specific pungent odor, thereby scaring off blood-sucking insects. They have an antiseptic, decongestant, anti-inflammatory effect.
Cow udder handling
How is tick-borne encephalitis transmitted through milk?
The virus enters the human body through the digestive and gastrointestinal tract after eating raw milk, where it is fixed in epithelial cells and tissues. Then, through the capillaries, it enters the circulatory system, multiplies in blood vessels and blood leukocytes. From there it migrates to the organs of the immune system, is introduced into the internal organs, where it replicates. In the future, damage to the central nervous system develops. Thus, the link between goat milk and tick-borne encephalitis is obvious. The role of infected cows is much smaller due to the short viremia, but this likelihood must also be borne in mind.
What does it look like and on what parts of the body it manifests itself
The foci of the disease appear in the head, chest, back and shoulder blades.The mite penetrates the hair follicle, on its way it destroys the epithelial cells of the hair root sheath both from the outside and from the inside.
Read about other cattle diseases caused by parasites: cysticercosis, hypodermatosis, dictyocaulosis, thelaziosis, anaplasmosis and babesiosis.
As a result of this effect, the hairs can no longer be restored. The defeat of the hair follicles is accompanied by necrotic processes, which further lead to suppuration. The risk group includes young individuals aged 3 months and older. The most favorable period for the reproduction of demodex mites is spring-summer.
Symptoms of demodicosis are:
- the presence of bumps on the skin, the diameter of which does not exceed 10 mm;
- loss of hair at the site of the lesion of the animal;
- the appearance of a white-gray waxy substance in the place of pressure on the tubercles;
- the presence of vortex formations of hair with a sticky content;
- itching and redness in cows is absent.
Did you know? The sense of smell of cows is weaker than that of many other animals, despite this cows sniff the ground in the meadow before starting to eat grass. They will refuse to eat if they find fresh fertilizers, for example.
What to do to avoid contracting encephalitis through goat's milk
The causative agent of the pathology is destroyed in hot milk at a temperature of 60 ° C after 20 minutes. Stored at 37 ° C for 2 days. To inactivate it, 2 minutes of boiling is enough. Therefore, you need to use only boiled or pasteurized milk. Such simple preventive measures are enough to avoid contracting foodborne encephalitis.
To reduce the likelihood of tick attacks on domestic animals, it is necessary to create unfavorable conditions for their habitat: to clear the territory, mow the grass, remove last year's foliage, carry out deratization measures (to fight rodents). Milking goats and cows should preferably be grazed on specially designated cultivated pastures. If they are absent, it is necessary to inspect animals returning from grazing every day for the presence of sucked ticks.
The alimentary route of infection is of secondary importance for the preservation of the tick-borne encephalitis virus in the environment, but it characterizes the intensity of the epizootic process.
Can acarodermatitis be cured with folk remedies?
Folk remedies for a scabies mite may not be enough for a complete recovery. As additional procedures are used:
- Application of a mixture of sour cream with gunpowder.
- Rubbing with garlic laundry soap.
4 tablespoons of ghee are mixed with elecampane root, boiled, filtered and cooled. Add sulfur (2 tablespoons) and the same amount of tar. A pig or another animal walks with the product on the body for a couple of hours. Further, a liter of water is needed for 50 grams of root. The product is boiled for 20 minutes. The ointment that has already been on the affected areas is washed off with the resulting broth. All this should be done twice a day.
In addition, the skin is lubricated with green nuts, sunflower oil, lavender, and cigarette ash.
