Possible Outbreak of Peste des Petits Ruminants in Qazvin Province

An official from the Environmental Protection Organization has reported the discovery of several carcasses of wild goats in Qazvin Province, which are suspected to have died from the disease Peste des Petits Ruminants. Siavash Shamsipour, the director of the Environmental Protection Department of Qazvin, stated on Tuesday, October 20, in an interview with ILNA news agency, "The presence of this disease in the province has not yet been confirmed, but the carcasses of 8 wild goats have been seen at the border between Qazvin and Alborz provinces." According to him, "Currently, more than 30 personnel from the Environmental Protection Department of Qazvin are engaged in patrols and monitoring in various groups, and it is still too early to determine whether the carcasses belong to Qazvin or if they are from livestock passing through Alborz Province." Alborz Province, located on the eastern border of Qazvin, has recently faced severe livestock losses due to the outbreak of Peste des Petits Ruminants. The latest statistics indicate that 175 wild goats have died from this disease in Alborz Province. This disease has also caused significant losses in the central provinces and Zanjan, where officials and rangers have taken action to vaccinate other livestock, although the Environmental Protection Organization has stated that there is not enough vaccine available in the country to combat the disease. If it is confirmed that the 8 carcasses of wild goats in Qazvin have died from Peste des Petits Ruminants, Qazvin will become the fourth province affected by this outbreak. Although the director of the Environmental Protection Department of Qazvin emphasized that the organization is taking measures to prevent the spread of Peste des Petits Ruminants by spraying all water sources and springs used by small ruminants every 2 to 3 days, more than 5,000 livestock have been vaccinated with the help of veterinary services.