810 infected sheep to be culled

BY PMA RASHEED

The Gulf Today, 13 July 2010

The Ministry of Environment and Water (MOEW) will cull as many as 810 imported sheep that were found to be infected with contagious diseases.

The animals, imported through the ports of the country for meat production purpose, were seized for serious violations of the regulations pertaining to public health safety and import of cattle, according to a senior MOEW official.

Abdulla Salem Janan, Director of Veterinary Quarantine Department at the MOEW, said that laboratory tests conducted on the animals by the ministry have proved that they were infected with plague of small ruminants, dengue fever, foot-and-mouth disease and Brucella.

"The sheep shipment with the infectious bacterial disease was inspected by veterinary specialists at the ministry. The operation was aimed at preventing spread of the disease among the country's existing livestock,” he added.

"All necessary steps have been taken by the MOEW, in coordination with other authorities concerned, to destroy the shipment of infected animals which violates quarantine procedures and other regulations related to animal welfare and transportation,” pointed out Janan.

“The violations come under the ministerial resolution No. 548/2008 and the Federal Law No.6/1979 on the procedures of veterinary quarantine, as well as the law No.16/ 2007 on animal welfare that specifies the condition for transfer of animals,” he said.

“The MOEW wanted to ensure highest safety for the health of human and domestic animals of the country, with protection from abortion-causing bacteria, which often transmits to human beings by contact with infected animals or infected meat or milk products,” he elaborated.

According to Janan, the ministry's strategic objective is to strengthen the country's food safety with highest global standards by increasing levels of bio-security measures like preventing transmission of epidemic diseases through implementation of tighter control over imported animals and birds.

He noted, “The ministry wanted to raise vital safety measures for preventing the community from various biological risks and epidemic diseases. The MOEW usually updates with the global veterinary and health organisations like the World Organisation for Animal Health about the current pandemic situation of the world and adopt necessary measures to prevent outbreak of such diseases.”

The environment ministry also has urged all the traders in the field of cattle business to visit the MOEW office to gain better knowledge on the conditions required for importing livestock and regulations for transporting them.