Look for the signs of foot-and-mouth disease
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Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a viral disease that spreads rapidly between cloven-hoofed animals including cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, deer, buffalo, alpacas and camels. It does not affect equines.
It is highly contagious, and livestock can contract the virus through the breath, saliva, mucus, milk or faeces of an infected animal, up to four days before symptoms appear.
Be alert for signs of FMD in livestock. These could include:
- high rate of death or sickness in animals
- excessive nasal discharge or salivation
- reluctance to move, eat or drink
- drop in milk production
- blisters on the feet, mouth or mammary glands
- any unusual disease symptoms.
At first suspicion of sickness or a disease that concerns you, contact your local vet or notify Agriculture Victoria on the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline 1800 675 888.
More information
Look for the signs of foot-and-mouth disease
Sheep and goats with foot-and-mouth disease
Goat with open mouth, showing whitish raised tongue lesion
Large red ruptured blister on the gum of the upper jaw of a cow
Large red ruptured blister on the gum of the upper jaw of a cow
Close-up of a pig’s snout showing a red lesion on the lower lip
Images courtesy of The European Commission for the Control of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (EuFMD)