Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is caused by the Foot and Mouth Disease Virus. FMD can spread from animal to animal and from human to animal through air, touch, and mating.

The impacts of FMD include decreased production, death of livestock, decreased selling value of livestock products, decreased fertility, delayed sales of livestock and livestock products, decreased birth rate, and trade restrictions.

The clinical symptoms of infected or FMD-affected livestock appear after 2-8 days from the time the livestock is exposed to the FMD Virus. Symptoms that appear in FMD-infected livestock include:

Blisters on the mouth, nose, mammary glands, heels, and feet
Sores on the inside of the mouth (buccal mucosa), such as the tongue, gums, and cheeks
Sores on the hooves (hooves fall off in severe cases of infection)
Excessive salivation (hypersalivation) with foam
High fever up to 40^oC
Livestock prefer to lie down and tend to be unable to stand
Drastic decrease in appetite

Prevention Methods

Prevention of foot and mouth disease in the Integrated Oil Palm Cattle System can be done through biosecurity and medically (Amiruddin et al. 2022 and WOAH, 2022). Prevention of FMD can be done by:

Ensuring that livestock to be purchased are healthy and have been vaccinated
Vaccinating newly purchased livestock before they are combined with old livestock
Ensure that the purchase of new livestock is always coordinated with the relevant agencies (livestock and animal health)
Buying livestock from trusted sources (sellers have a certificate of animal health)
Vaccinating livestock raised in the Integrated Oil Palm Cattle Area
Limiting the mobility or movement of livestock with the outside environment and visitors (guests)
Disinfecting contaminated equipment and materials
Destroying carcasses, garbage, and animal products in areas infected with FMD.

Curative Method

The handling of foot and mouth disease (FMD) in the Integrated Oil Palm Cattle System can be done in the following ways:

Quarantine or individual separation from other livestock
Reporting cases of FMD-infected livestock to the authorized veterinarian in the local area
Providing antibiotics and vitamins as directed by a veterinarian
Applying for and vaccinating livestock
Restricting access for human resources in and out of the SISKA livestock area
Conducting routine monitoring or surveillance of the health of sick livestock
Cleaning and spraying disinfectant on areas and equipment suspected of being contaminated with virus material (saliva, feces, etc.) equipment, vehicles and clothing
Handling dead livestock, used bedding and the environment suspected of being contaminated by the virus properly and correctly
Always maintain personal hygiene by washing hands, shoes, work clothes and equipment after working at SISKA farms.

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Cattle Production Model