Cape Wools urged wool producers to vaccinate their sheep timeously against Rift Valley fever (RVf), since the disease usually breaks out in late summer to autumn (February to March) during high rainfall seasons.
The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Daff) in December last year warned about a possible new outbreak of RVf as a result of high rainfall forecast for the months of December to February due to possible La Niña conditions over South Africa, which may result in an increase in mosquito numbers. RVf-invested mosquitoes transmit the virus to animals.
Mr Louis de Beer, Manager of Cape Wools, advised farmers to use the Clone-13 vaccination. He said preliminary results from trails conducted in co-operation with Onderstepoort, the University of Pretoria, the National Woolgrowers’ Association and a private veterinarian to evaluate the efficiency of vaccines showed that Clone 13 was more efficient in producing antibodies.
Dr Bob Swanepoel, a world-renowned expert on haemorrhagic viruses, also endorses Clone 13.
Producers are reminded that any vaccine can fail due to various factors, including faulty handling, breaking the cold chain or failure to follow the instructions.
