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Frequency of nose and tail injuries in cattle and water buffalo at livestock markets in Bangladesh

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2023

MR Alam ,
NG Gregory ,
MS Uddin ,
MA Jabbar ,
S Chowdhury  and
NC Debnath
MR Alam*
Affiliation:
Department of Physiology, Biochemistry and Pharmacology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chittagong, Bangladesh
NG Gregory
Affiliation:
The Royal Veterinary College, University of London, Hatfield AL9 7TA, UK
MS Uddin
Affiliation:
Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chittagong, Bangladesh
MA Jabbar
Affiliation:
Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chittagong, Bangladesh
S Chowdhury
Affiliation:
Department of Pathology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chittagong, Bangladesh
NC Debnath
Affiliation:
Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chittagong, Bangladesh
*
* Contact for correspondence and requests for reprints: [email protected]
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Abstract

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A total of 560 cattle and water buffalo were examined at livestock markets in Bangladesh. The aim was to assess the frequency of nose and tail injuries that could have occurred during handling and transport. The frequency of nose piercing was 64%, and 69% of the cattle and 54% of the water buffalo had rubbing or tearing injuries at the nostrils from nose ropes fitted through the pierced hole. Almost half of the nose-pierced animals (47%) had lacerations and ulcerations where the nose rope had rubbed against the nose. Pus at the nostril was observed in 56% of the animals, and 57 and 58% had severe and extended nose injuries, respectively. Nose injuries were more severe in imported Hariana cattle compared with exotic and local breeds. In cattle plus water buffalo, 39% had tail injuries of which the two major abnormalities were absent tail end (2%) and kinked tail (98%). Tail injuries were more common in cattle (51%) than water buffalo (15%). Among the cattle breeds, the frequency of tail injuries in Hariana was 65%. In conclusion, the cattle and water buffalo experienced a number of serious injuries and this calls for greater attention to be paid to handling methods in draught animals in south Asia.

Keywords

animal welfarecattleinjurylivestock marketnosetail
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Welfare , Volume 19 , Issue 3 , August 2010 , pp. 295 - 300
Copyright
© 2010 Universities Federation for Animal Welfare

References

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