By Charles Akpeji, Jalingo

Cattle owners in Dorofi, Kwarakwara, Furmi, Mayo-Ngada, and other villages in the Sardauna local government council of Taraba State are currently facing significant losses due to an outbreak of cow diseases.

The disease, identified as haemorrhagic septicaemia, has claimed thousands of cows at the time of filing this report.

When reached for confirmation, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Food Security, Professor Nicholas Oliver, confirmed the outbreak yesterday in Jalingo.

The state government, as made known by him, has deployed veterinary officers to the affected communities to contain the disease.

Oliver urged local residents to support the efforts of the veterinary officers deployed to the affected communities in treating and vaccinating the remaining cows.

Governor Dr. Agbu Kefas, in collaboration with the ministry, has initiated measures to prevent the disease from spreading to neighbouring communities, the commissioner said.

The response plans, which according to him, are in two phases, including the treatment and vaccination of the affected cattle, he believed, would go a long way to remedy the situation.

Also confirming the incident, the Council Chairman, Salihu Yerima, praised the governor’s prompt response and reiterated the council’s commitment to facilitating the vaccination team’s work.

Saddened by the development, the Sarkin Fulani of the council, Alhaji Saidu Bawa, confirmed that over a thousand cows have died from the disease.

In his part, the First-class traditional ruler of the area, Audu Baju, said he had previously alerted the state government and the National Veterinary Center to the outbreak.

He commended the governor’s swift intervention and appealed to authorities to provide assistance to the affected cattle owners.

Some herders, who expressed their distress to our state correspondent, urged both the state and the federal governments to provide immediate relief to mitigate the impact of the disaster.