Volume 23 • Issue 01 • 2019
plants was of major importance because since
then the much-feared problem has become
minor, thanks to sustainable veld management
and knowing the danger signs. Challenge accepted wisdoms
Fig 3. Geeldikkop – recovery case Form teams, use expertise and
acknowledge contributions.
Be alert to emerging or ‘new’ problems
It was ‘authoritatively’ stated by theOnderstepoort
fraternity in the 1970s that RSA was free of ovine
footrot. But when I was transferred to Allerton
RVL in Natal in 1981, farmers and vets confronted
me with something I had never seen before.
Descriptions in overseas literature indicated
that we were probably dealing with footrot.
Proving this was another matter – the organism
Dichelobacter nodosis is a strict anaerobe with
very particular nutrient growth requirements,
and it had to be isolated out of a bacteriological
zoo! In time, given persistence and good support,
we were able to show that footrot was indeed
present, leading us to applying the correct control
measures.
They can be wrong, like the following:
Domsiekte is often (mis)diagnosed instead of
milk fever – but by chance some ‘domsiekte’ ewes
had been routinely tested for Calcium, which
was shown to be low. Intrigued, I treated the
recumbent ewes for milk fever and suddenly they
arose and disappeared! This led us to showing
that the two diseases could occur together, and
that hypocalcaemia was often missed as the
primary diagnosis. Examples of footrot, enzootic
icterus and geeldikkop have already been
mentioned, but worm control can be added here
since conventional practice has led us to cause
severe and extensive drug resistance in parasites.
Nobody has all the knowledge or expertise. By
working together and using the strengths of each
member of the team, more progress can be made
and more quickly. Researchers depend on a team
that includes technical and administrative staff as
well as farmers and farm workers in many cases,
and they should all be acknowledged. We would
never have made the progress we did in holistic,
sustainable worm management (including
Famacha and the 5 Point Check) without such
teamwork. Using the legume Lespedeza cuneata
(Smart Man’s Lucerne) for veld improvement,
grazing, haymaking and worm control is a good
example of integration of expertise.
Diseases and problems are often
multifactorial.
Too often there is a fundamental and false
assumption that there must be a single cause
and therefore a single solution to a presenting
problem, but usually there are many factors
involved; sorting out their relative contributions
can be daunting.
Fig 4. Footrot, differentiated from other foot diseases (Image
provided by Dr Gareth Bath)
The occurrence of a mystery untreatable non-
febrile condition in goats, that otherwise looked
like heartwater, was shown to be caused by
peripituitary abscessation. Probably initiated
by ticks that escaped treatment under the very
back-swept horns of Boer Goats. Much later at
Onderstepoort we solved a strange skin disease
that we showed was caused by a dermo-necrotic
strain of the well-known Staphylococcus aureus.
Controlling internal parasites is a prime
example since by seeking to eradicate worms by
suppressive treatment the problem was actually
worsened – but by addressing all causative
factors with the Big Five approach, sustainable
control is attainable. The problem of eye infection
(ophthalmia) is difficult to control because there
are many organisms and factors involved; the
same is true of pneumonia.
Plan, design and modify the research.
Good planning and design are essential for
efficient and effective investigations and
research. Where this was lacking, we made
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