UNAIR NEWS – Foot and Mouth Disease (PMK) indications in livestock in Blora, Central Java, have reached an alarming level. To deal with the outbreak, a team from Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) conducted a therapy and education event on Monday, June 13, 2022 to Tuesday, June 14, 2022.
The team consisted of two supervising lecturers, a team from the Research and Community Service Institute(LPPM), ten co-assistance students from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (FKH), 20 students from FKH, Faculty of Public Health (FKM), and the Faculty of Science and Technology (FST) was deployed to ten villages in nine sub-districts with high indications of PMK symptom.
The area includes Pengkolrejo Village, Japah Subdistrict, Nglengkir Village, Bogorejo Subdistrict, Kalen Village, Kedungtuban Subdistrict, Gempolrejo Village, Tunjungan Subdistrict, Jati Village, Jati Subdistrict, Jiken Village, Jiken Subdistrict, Karanggeneng Village, Kunduran Subdistrict, Jegong Village, Jati Subdistrict, Talokwohmojo Village, Ngawen Subdistrict, and Sumber Village, Kradenan Subdistrict.
For two days, the UNAIR team provided treatment and therapy to livestock with PMK symptoms, by spraying a Betadine solution of 0.05 percent to the oral mucosa of livestock, and a solution of Cupri Sulfate (CuSO4) on the hooves of cows with symptoms.
Preventive measures in the form of injections of vitamins and antibiotics are also carried out to increase the body’s resistance in other livestock.
Education for breeders
In addition, to keep the cowshed clean, the team also educated farmers on making and using a disinfectant solution on the floor and walls of the cowshed. Separation of sick and healthy livestock, knowledge about the transmission of PMK, and independent handling of livestock with PMK symptoms were disseminated directly on this occasion.
By maximizing the management of PMK symptoms independently, the recovery percentage is expected to increase to 95 percent.
These community service activities are expected to increase the number of recovered animals from PMK, which contributed on decreasing mortality rates and the spread of PMK virus in livestock.
Head of LPPM UNAIR Dr Gadis Meinar Sari dr MKes said if the community still needed help, UNAIR would try to fulfill it. “Assistance is not only in the form of materials, for example, in the FMD outbreak in the form of medicines. However, further education and assistance will be provided to the community so they can recover from this problem,” she said. (*)
Author: Stefanny Elly
Editor : Binti Q.Masruroh
