site.btaAuthorities Track Animals from Sheep Pox Hotspot Hidden Away by Owners

Acting on an alert from residents of Zhelyu Voivoda, veterinarians from the Sliven Regional Food Safety Directorate and Interior Ministry officers tracked animals hidden away by their owners, the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency reported on Sunday. The Zhelyu Voivoda area is officially declared a primary hotspot of sheep and goat pox (SGP).

A herd of 84 sheep was found to have been taken from Zhelyu Voivoda to Kabile, in the neighbouring Yambol Region. The animals were unmarked and had not been subjected to measures under the national programme for fighting animal diseases, which represents a violation of the Veterinary Medical Practice Act. The owner refused to cooperate and did not sign the order issued by the Yambol Regional Food Safety Directorate.

The order was to confiscate the sheep and to cull them immediately on the spot as they posed a high epizootic risk, given that they had been moved from a primary SGP hotspot.

The food safety authorities of Yambol and Sliven were instructed to conduct checks for illegal trade and movement of animals in the respective regions. In the event of such malpractices, the inspectors should present the owners with written statements of violation of administrative regulations, the animals should be culled immediately, and their bodies should be incinerated in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009.

The Bulgarian Food Safety Agency noted that the movement of animals from hotspots of Category A diseases, such as SGP, is absolutely forbidden by EU law, specifically Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687, which says that sick animals and contacts originating in safety zones around disease hotspots must be culled.

The agency warned that violations of veterinary medical requirements affect not only the health of the animals but also the epizootic safety situation in Bulgaria.