Preventing the introduction of diseases onto your farm should be a major concern of every goat farmer. But while prevention should be your goal, in reality, control and management must also be your focus because no herd can ever be completely disease free.
Farmers can control the deadly mange disease in goats by using a new treatment method which involves mixing of crude castor seed oil and tamarind fruit solution.
The disease is a major killer of goats in the dry areas of northern and eastern Uganda as it spreads fast and can wipe out the entire herd according to Sam Sewagudde a vet who specialises in animal disease management.
The disease is caused by mites that burrow into the skin causing severe itching, loss of fur, dry rough crust, emaciation and death.
This causes losses to farmers as they cannot sell skin from an infected goat while infected meat is discarded.
In this, use crude castor seed oil (do not use refined castor oil) mixed with tamarind fruit solution. Mix one tin (two kilogrammes) of castor seed oil with one and half tin (one kilo) of tamarind solution.
A kilogramme of tamarind costs roughly Shs5,000 in Kigumba, Soroti and Kumi towns while castor seeds retail at Shs1,000 per kilogramme.
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