25 Nov 2015

Cattle in Ngamiland are dying in large numbers due to drought. According to veterinary officer in Maun, Dr Kennedy Ndlovu, the situation was aggravated by overstocking of cattle.

Speaking in an interview recently, Dr Ndlovu said villages around Lake Ngami had over 100 000 cattle, which depended on the lake for survival. However, he said the area around the lake could only sustain about 30 000 cattle.

He advised farmers to provide supplementary feeds to their cattle.

Dr Ndlovu said some cattle died in Lake Ngami since they drank water on empty stomach and their strength fail to carry them outside the lake after drinking.

He noted that only 66 cattle had been reported to the veterinary department, but said many cattle had succumbed to the drought.

Dr Ndlovu pointed out that cattle in places around Lake Ngami would not be vaccinated during the periodic Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccination since the drought had taken its toll.

However, Dr Ndlovu said his department had brought about 10 doctors to assess and advise farmers promptly during vaccination to avoid more deaths of cattle.

Furthermore, Dr Ndlovu expressed happiness that there had not been FMD outbreak since the Haina Veld outbreak in August.

He therefore said the cattle movement restriction at Haina Veld and surrounding areas might be removed soon.

However, Dr Ndlovu said the market for live cattle from Haina Veld to Zimbabwe had stopped since the Cold Storage Company (CSC) which purchased live trade had ceased operation. BOPA