Vaccinate livestock during the autumn-winter season; don't wait until it's too late.

Although two-thirds of the autumn-winter season has passed, in many localities, vaccination of livestock is only just beginning. This delay is creating dangerous immunity gaps, directly threatening disease safety and the economic well-being of livestock farmers.

Veterinary staff in Hung Loi commune are vaccinating the buffalo herd of residents in Phan village.

Slow progress - what are the reasons?

According to epidemiological principles, transitional seasons and winter are when livestock's resistance decreases, creating favorable conditions for disease outbreaks. Veterinarians warn that delayed vaccination can lead to serious consequences: the animals' bodies produce antibodies slowly, failing to create a protective "shield" against viral attacks. When proactive disease prevention mechanisms are ineffective, the risk of disease transmission increases significantly. This not only causes heavy economic losses for livestock farmers but also directly impacts public health and the environment.

In early December, the Regional Veterinary Station I was able to increase its workforce to support Hung Loi commune in implementing the vaccination program. Mr. Hoang Van Phong, an officer at the Regional Livestock and Veterinary Station I (responsible for Hung Loi commune), stated: "The vaccination plan was originally scheduled to begin in September, but the recent reorganization of commune-level administrative units has caused significant personnel disruptions." According to Mr. Phong, Hung Loi commune is now formed by merging two former communes (Trung Minh and Hung Loi). Previously, there were two veterinary staff members, but now only one remains. Meanwhile, the commune's large and fragmented area makes it impossible for one person to handle the enormous workload of vaccinating the entire livestock population of thousands of animals.

This situation is not unique to Hung Loi; in Hoa An and Yen Nguyen communes, the vaccination schedule is also at risk of falling behind schedule. The core reason is that these communes currently lack local veterinary staff, while only one officer from the regional veterinary station is responsible for the area covering two communes.

Besides the "shortage" of manpower for large livestock, the vaccination of poultry, which farmers should be fully responsible for, faces obstacles stemming from the farmers' own perceptions. Many households are complacent, believing that livestock have a short lifespan, coupled with volatile market prices, and therefore are reluctant to invest in vaccines to save costs. This is truly a risky gamble, as reality has proven that dangerous viruses such as avian influenza do not spare any stage of livestock development.

According to reports from localities within the province, the buffalo herd numbers over 217,000; the cattle herd over 175,800; and the pig herd approximately 1.2 million. Currently, only the buffalo and cattle herds have achieved about 70% vaccination rates, while the pig herd has very low rates.

Mobilize all resources, race against time.

Given the urgent need to accelerate vaccination efforts and protect livestock from the upcoming severe cold spell, the Department of Agriculture and Environment has requested the Livestock, Veterinary and Fisheries Sub-Department to deploy veterinary staff to regional Livestock and Veterinary Stations, especially in communes lacking veterinary personnel, to support livestock farmers in vaccinating their animals.

Comrade Le Hai Nam, Head of the Department of Livestock, Veterinary and Fisheries, said: To speed up the vaccination process, localities need to flexibly mobilize veterinary staff from villages or contract with professionals on a seasonal basis to support the phased vaccination of each area.

To address existing shortcomings, Hung Loi commune is decisively directing and requiring youth, women's groups, and village heads to directly participate in guiding, compiling statistics, and holding livestock... so that veterinary officers can focus solely on vaccination. Mr. Hoang Van Phong, a veterinary officer in Area I, affirmed: Thanks to the quick and decisive response of the commune government, the vaccination rate for livestock in the area has increased significantly. By December 5th, 80% of the buffalo and cattle herds had received the full course of foot-and-mouth disease vaccination. In Tan An, Hoa An, Yen Nguyen communes, etc., veterinary officers from regional veterinary stations are also being reinforced to speed up vaccination work within the seasonal timeframe.

According to veterinarians at livestock stations, local veterinary services need to intensify propaganda and provide complete information on vaccination schedules and existing disease risks. More importantly, the economic viability of vaccinations needs to be clarified for livestock farmers so that they proactively and actively cooperate in vaccinating their animals. When vaccinations are successful, they will be an effective "shield" to prevent disease outbreaks, protect livestock, and preserve profits.

Text and photos: Doan Thu

Source: https://baotuyenquang.com.vn/kinh-te/202512/tiem-phong-vu-thu-dong-cho-dan-gia-suc-khong-de-nuoc-den-chan-moi-nhay-f7f6929/