DADU, Jan 16: Livestock in the Kachho belt of Dadu district have been found to be suffering from the warble disease. Under directives of the federal livestock ministry, a team of experts of the livestock and animal husbandry department, led by Dr M. Qasim Khan of the National Agricultural Research Centre, Islamabad, visited the Bari village in Johi on Monday. The experts found that animals were infected with warble.

The team took blood samples of goats and sheep and cows infected with the disease and also captured the warble fly.

The district officer, livestock, Dr Saeed Ahmad Abbasi, had informed the NARC and the federal livestock ministry after receiving reports from cattle owners about the disease.

Dr Abbasi told Dawn that cattle lost up to 3kg weight and reduced milk production by 10 per cent in three months after being bitten by the warble fly.

He said the warble fly resided in hilly tracks and it attacked animals from December to February while grazing. He said the warble fly was very dangerous because it laid eggs on backs of animals which burned their hairs and skin.

He said cases of the disease had been also reported from Faridabad, Mehar taluka, and the Imam Bux village, Khairpur Nathan Shah taluka.

The DO said the team had captured warble flies for laboratory tests at the NARC.

He said that to control the disease, four teams had been constituted in the district and local veterinary doctors had been directed to record such cases.

Dr Khan said the warble fly was coming from hilly areas through nomads and cattle. He advised veterinary doctors and herdsmen to take preventive measures to control the disease.

Dr Manzoor Hussain said cattle did not die of warble disease but they reduced weight and milk production.

He said a warble fly laid 800 eggs in a season.

BIRTH ANNIVERSARY: Under the aegis of the Bukhari Academy, the 76th birth anniversary of Sindhi poet Ustad Bukhari was celebrated at the press club here on Monday.