Animal shelters in Jordan closed for 14 days due to foot and mouth disease

AMMAN, February 6 (Xinhua) -- Jordanian state television Al Mamlaka announced that all animal shelters were closed for 14 days after a new type of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) was detected in the country on Sunday. According to Al Mamlaka, Jordan's Ministry of Agriculture has decided to temporarily suspend roughage imports from Iraq following the spread of the disease. The ministry noted that most of the foot-and-mouth disease cases in the Al Dhuleil region in northern Zarqa province were infections caused by a new strain of the disease. The ministry reported that it has taken various precautionary measures and has contacted ministries and local government to move forward on veterinary quarantine, sanitation and vaccination. The ministry also launched a campaign to vaccinate livestock and establish veterinary hospitals. Ali Ghabayen, Chairman of the Al Dhuleil Dairy Cattle Association, said that 90 percent of the cows and calves on the farms in the Al Dhuleil district are infected ...