🩺 Common Ailments of Sheep and Goat

This lesson covers core livestock production and management concepts for practical farm application and exam-oriented preparation.

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Common ailments of sheep

Class 21: Common ailments of sheep and goat-Sheep pox-Foot and Mouth-Blue tongue-

Enterotoxaemia – Ecto and Endo parasites.

Blue Tongue : Viral Disease

Infectious non contagious disease

transmitted by Culicoides midges

Virus – Orbivirus - Reoviridae

Sheep are mainly affected – congestion, oedema and haemorrhage, fever lameness

Symptom : Inflicting Mucous membrain of the Buccal Mucosa and

Gastro intestinal tract

Epithelial desquamation of sensitive laminate of hoof udder etc.

No vesicle formation

Pyrexia

Congestion oedema and Haemorrhage of Buccal cavity

Control : A live attenuated polyvalent vaccine

prior to rainy season

Annual vaccination

Pregnant animals vaccinated prior to Lambing

Routine hygiene and sanitation.

Vector control is very important in disease prevention.

Sheep pox : Viral Disease – pox virus

Symptom : Contagious Disease : Inflicting severe losses

High fever – Dullness – Isolation from herd discharge from Natural orifices – Eyes and Nostrils

with swelling of eye lids – ‘Pox’ eruptions on the skin of ears, head, inside of thighs, scrotum,

lower side of the base of the tail. infection affection – Pneumonia in lambs is more common and

death.

Treatment: No specific treatment – Nursing is important. Tissue culture vaccines may be

administered.

Skin lesions – dressed which sulphanilamide and neem oil

Broad spectrum antibiotic therapy to prevent secondary bacterial infections.

Control: Sheep pox vaccine,

Enterotoxaemia:

Bacterial Disease - Clostridium perfringens type D and Cl. welchii type ‘D’

Symptoms: Young stock – death occurs instanteneously, convulsions in lambs prior to death.

Adult: Initially calm and Quiet, frothy mouth,champing of jaws, rolling of eyes, convulsions.

Treatment: Sulphadimidine 33 1/3% 1/r +antibiotic therapy- tetra cycline, streptomycin +

Penicillin.

Lambs: 3-8 weeks – Pulpy kidney disease

Control : Proper disposal of dead animals

Vaccination : Lambs – 2 weeks of age

sheep – yearly – endemic areas – pregnant ewes – before Lambing.

FMD – refer cattle disease notes.

Ecto parasite and Endo parasites

1. Blue bottle fly : Black Blow fly a) Fascioliasis – loss of condition

Eggs – dirty area of open wound b) Round worms – Anemia

2. Lice and ticks – wool damaged c) Tape worms–bottled jaw–distended Abdomen

weak, anemia, Stunted growth Profuse yellow dark watery faeces

3.Mites – sheep scab –restlessness diarrhoea – deworming.

wool loss -treated by using melathion 0.5%

Sumithion 0.1% Sevian 0.8%

Dip – lime sulpher 0.4% W/V

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Summary Cheat Sheet

Topic	Key Point
Main lesson	Common ailments of sheep and goat
Important diseases listed	Sheep pox, Foot and Mouth Disease, and Blue tongue
Sheep pox	Important viral disease causing skin lesions and production loss
FMD	Contagious viral disease affecting small ruminants also
Blue tongue	Major vector-borne viral disease in sheep
Disease control	Vaccination, isolation, sanitation, and vector control are central
Health management	Early diagnosis lowers flock loss and spread
Economic importance	Ailments reduce growth, reproduction, and market value
Farm-level strategy	Biosecurity and routine preventive care are better than only treatment
Exam trap	Blue tongue is vector-borne; control is not based on vaccination alone in all situations