Another 25 animals were culled. Most were unvaccinated by their owners, and their animals had shown symptoms of lumpy skin disease, the bovine disease that has resurfaced in Sardinia.

The Cagliari Local Health Authority's operations on the farms between Sarrabus and Gerrei, where the disease was confirmed on April 28, concluded this morning. The unvaccinated animals had been found to exhibit "clinical symptoms of the disease, with characteristic skin nodules scattered throughout the body and resulting positive laboratory tests," the health authority explained.

The Local Health Authority is now issuing a warning to all farmers: according to reports, resistance is emerging in the countryside, hampering the ongoing monitoring efforts to track the disease's potential spread.

Hence, "a sincere appeal to all farmers for maximum cooperation and to agree to have their cattle examined by veterinary staff. Certification of favorable clinical examinations," the health authority explains, "is closely linked to proof of disease absence and the lifting of restrictions: only in this way can we ensure the resumption of all live cattle trade activities, particularly the movement of live animals currently suspended."

Enrico Fresu