Effects of COVID-19 on poultry and livestock health in Bangladesh

Abstract

Background: Poultry and livestock are a leading sub-sector of agriculture, playing an important role to fulfill the protein requirements of the human diet and contributing to the national economy in Bangladesh. This sub-sector is often vulnerable due to frequent outbreaks of diseases in animals and unrest situations worldwide that hamper earning a profit up to the expected mark. Due to pandemic COVID-19, the Bangladesh government was bound to announce a countrywide lockdown and periodical restriction of movement in March 2020 to minimize the spread of the infection. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on poultry and livestock health. Methods: This study was conducted at Keshabpur, Jashore before 3 months of lockdown, during lockdown and periodical restriction of movement in Bangladesh. Data on livestock and poultry were collected from the upazila livestock office register book. The impact of Covid-19 was calculated by comparing the number of animals brought to the veterinary hospital for treatment before, during, and after lockdown. Results: The effect of COVID-19 was most severe in the poultry and livestock sub-sector from April to May 2020, as animals were not being advised or treated at the upazila livestock office and veterinary hospital. In poultry, Newcastle disease, parasitic infestation, duck plague, and pigeon pox were mostly recorded, whereas deficiency diseases, non-specific diarrhea, non-specific fever, and endoparasitism were frequently recorded in livestock. We do not know exactly how many poultry and livestock died due to failure of management and treatment during the period of lockdown, but certainly, COVID-19 hampered the health of animals and farmers were affected due to the outbreak of the pandemic COVID-19. Conclusion: It might be concluded that the pandemic situation significantly hampered poultry and livestock health in Bangladesh.