Ms. P. ELAVARASI,
IV BVSc & AH
VETERINARY COLLEGE AND RESEARCH INSTITUTE,TIRUNELVELI-627358.
TAMIL NADU VETERINARY AND ANIMAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY
Guide: Dr V Ramakrishnan, Assistant Professor, Veterinary College and Research Institute,Tirunelveli-627358 ,Tamil Nadu Veterinary And Animal Sciences University.
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Animal husbandry is a financial action firmly connected to the requirements of neighbourhood utilization and exchange, which essentially impacts the political, social and monetary settings in India. Livestock are one of the most affordable animals in the world and can be accommodated in any kind of weather conditions. Although livestock play an important role in supplying food (protein) and other products to farmers and their families and considered to be a supplementary farm enterprise. Along with the agricultural activities, livestock provide substantial income and employment to rural communities. Especially at time of failure of agriculture due to drought, animal husbandry activities sustain the rural households. The skill and resource input requirements are minimal. Livestock empower women besides improving the family food security. Demand for and production of livestock and livestock products in less-developed countries are expected to double in 2020 from that of 1999. Further, as livestock production has been growing faster than any other agricultural sector, it is predicted that by 2022 livestock will account for more than half of total global agricultural output in financial terms.
Diseases in livestock continue to be a major productivity constraint, especially in the tropics and subtropics. Antibiotics and Anthelmintic resistance has emerged into a serious problem that needs to be addressed. In addition the drug residues in animal products, toxicity, cost, adaptability problem and non-availability of drugs in remote areas has necessitated an intensified effort to find alternative control measures. Ethnoveterinary medicines are used extensively and quite effectively for primary healthcare treatment and maintaining animal productivity. The knowledge is passed on verbally from generation to generation. Cost, inaccessibility and other problems like side effects associated with the conventional western animal healthcare system have encouraged constant dependence on such traditional rural wisdom in this field. Of the literature surveys on Ethnoveterinary Medicine (EVM) from various parts of the world, there is only limited evidence for the usage of plants as anthelmintics in animals. The use of herbal medicines may present cheaper, sustainable, and promising alternatives to conventional treatments that are both sustainable and environmentally acceptable. General observations and studies show that the farmers are using several ethnoveterinary practices for curing various diseases. Some of these have enough potential to cure the diseases, while others are based on superstitions and fabulous religious faiths or there is hardly any basis to be considered as effective treatment. So what I want to insist here is we should make the animal less harm to the diseases and the treatment to diseases should be eco friendly. We can give zero budget veterinary first aid through the herbs. Yeah, the good method of treatment to our livestock is Ethno veterinary practices (EVM).
Ethno Veterinary Practices (EVM)
Ethno Veterinary Practices (EVM) is defined as the application of indigenous knowledge to treat animal disease. Defined as indigenous animal health care system that includes traditional beliefs about the care of their animals, knowledge, skills,methods and practices of a given society.EVM is mostly developed by local livestock holders. EVM is developed by farmers in fields and barns rather than by scientists in laboratory and clinics.Therefore it is less systemic and less formalized and it is usually transferred by word of mouth rather than in writing. Although many rural community farmers use plants to treat livestock diseases the current status status of use of plants in EVM is still inadequate.
Need for Ethno veterinary practices (EVM
Ethno vet practices are appealing to organic livestock farmers whose goal is to improve meat quality without chemical residues.The use of pharmaceutical drugs to manage livestock diseases is anathema to the environment and leads to the development of resistance.Most resource to poor farmers also face problems such as inaccesibility, unaffordability and inappropriate use of chemical drugs. Faced with these constraints livestock farmers turns into indigneous knowledge and as a key to unlock the power of plantsto control various diseases of livestocks.utilization of plant extracts as EVM is perhaps one of the most sustainable methods readily adaptable to rural livestock farming communities.plants identified as a herbal remedies in the management of diseases especially those with antibacterial and antiparasitic properties.
Had any controversy?
Ethnoveterinary medicines is in the danger of extinction beacause of the current rapid changes in communities all over the world.In fact many communities now a days use a mix of local and modern practices.Therefore,promoting conservation and use of ethnoveterinay medicine does not mean that ignore or downgrade the allopathic or modern medicine and attempting to replace with other. However it does mean both recognising both types have their strengths and limitations.
Elements of ethno veterinary practice:
These practices are as important as these are not prone to drug resistance and have very less side effects.
- Application of natural products
- Appeal to spiritual forces.
- Manipulation and surgery
Natural products used here are
- Medicinal plants and byproducts
- Edible earth and minerals
- Parts and products of animals
- Other ingredients.
Threats:
The principal threatening factors reported were deforestation and agricultural expansion. Documenting the medicinal plants and associated indigenous knowledge can be used as a basis for developing management plans for conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plants in the area and for validation of these plant preparations for veterinary treatment. The low cost and almost no side effects of these preparations make them adaptable by the local community.
Advantages:
- It is lower cost and easily accessible and alternative to expensive allopathic drugs and it is more environmental eco – friendly).
- It is available free at a cost in proportion to the value of the animal
- The rural farmer who can’t access the veterinary hospital or doctors in emergency situations can easily use this as a first aid. It can be easily administered eg.topically or orally.
- It is most beneficial and effective to some extent especially in conditions like cold,skin disease, wounds and worms infections. Eg. Eucalyptus grandis in Haemonchus contortus infections.
- These are easy to prepare and can be easily understood by livestock owners.these does not involve any test or research.
- The major threat like chemical drug residues will be as much as reduced
Disadvantages:
- EVMis not as fast working as pharmaceutical drugs.
- Some of the remedies are inconvenient to prepare and use.
- Certain practices are harmful for the animal like cauterizing the vulva of the cow to induce heat or treat uterine blockages.
- Certain plants are only seasonal making the livestock users to depend on alternative or their forms.
- These are not suitable when it comes to large herd and it is not suitable for epidemic and endemic infectious disease such anthrax, black quarter.
In this article we will see about Ethnoveterinary treatment of some Important economic diseases in cattle like FMD, Mastitis, Repeat breeding, RFM (Retained placenta), Bloat or indigestion…etc
FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE (FMD) :
INGREDIENTS FOR FMD MOUTH LESION:
Cumin seeds-10 g,
Fenugreek seeds-10 g,
Black pepper-10 g,
Turmeric powder-10 g,
Garlic-4 pearls,
Cocunut-1,
Jaggery-120g
PREPARATION:
Soak cumin, fenugreek and black pepper seeds in water for 20-30 minutes, then blend all ingredients into a fine paste.add 1 full grated coconut to the paste and mix it by hand only.prepare dose freshly for each application.
APPLICATION:
Apply inside the mouth, tongue and palates. Give this preparation thrice a day for 3 to 5 days.
FMD FOOT LESIONS:
INGREDIENTS FOR THIS FMD FOOT LESIONS:
Acalypha indicaleaves- 1 handful,
garlic -10 pearls,
neem leaves-1 handful,
coconut or sesame oil-250 ml,
turmeric powder-20 g,
mehndi leaves 1 handful,
Tulsi leaves-1 handful
PREPARATION:
blend all the ingredients mentioned above,add coconut or sesame oil to it and boil it and bring to cool.
APPLICATION:
Clean the wound. Apply directly or bandage with a medicated cloth.apply Apply leaf paste or the camphorated coconut oil for the first day if maggots are present.
MASTITIS:
INGREDIENTS:
Aloe vera -250 gm,
Turmeric- 50 grams,
Lime (CaOH)-15 grams,
Lemon- 2 nos
PREPARATION:
Blend all the ingredients into a reddish paste except lemon.cut the lemons into half. APPLICATION:
Then make this paste into watery by adding 150-200 ml of water.wash and clean the udder and apply this mix in the whole udder. Repeat this treatment for 10 times in a day for 5 days.feed 2 lemons for 3 days(twice daily).In case of blood in milk means we can give 2 handfuls of curry leaves paste and jaggery and feed orally for twice daily till condition cured or improved.
REPEAT BREEDING:
Actually it is not the disease,it is the syndrome.it may be due to multiple causes.
TREATMENT:
Treatment should be started on 1st or 2 nd day of estrus.the following treatments should be fed to the animal in fresh form in the given order with jaggery and salt (s.i.d).
1) One white radish daily for 5 days.
2) One aloe Vera leaf daily for 4 days
3) Four handfuls of moringa leaves for 4 days.
4) Four handfuls of cissus stem for four days.
5) 4 handfuls of curry leaves with turmeric for 4 days. then finally repeat the treatment once again if the animal has not conceived means..
RETENTION OF PLACENTA: INGREDIENTS:
White radish-1 full tuber, lady’s finger-1.5 kg, jaggery-as required,salt-As required. PREPARATION:
Cut each lady’s finger into 2 pieces.
APPLICATION:
Feed one full radish to the calves animal within 2 hours of calving.if the retention of foetal membrane persist means feed 1.5 kg of lady’s finger with jagged and salt.if in case of retention of placenta persistent more than 12 hours means tie a knot close to the base of that and make a cut 2 inches below the knot and leave it.the knot will go in.but don’t try to remove the retained placenta by hand ..after that feed one full tuber of radish once a week for 1 month.
INDIGESTION OR BLOAT: This is the sign, it is mostly treated by the farmer by his own treatment..but it may lead to lethal condition to the animal. In ethnopractice method we can give this treatment as a standard method of practice.
INGREDIENTS:
take dry chillies-2 nos,onion-100 grams,garlic-10 pearls,cumin seeds-10 g,turmeric-10g , jaggery-100 g,pepper-10 g,beetal leaves-10 nos,ginger-100g.
PREPARATION:
Soak pepper and cumin seeds for 30 minutes.then blend it with all other ingredients. APPLICATION:
Roll this paste into small balls.administer it as per os (orally)in small portion with salt 3-4 times a day for atleast 3 days..so finally we comes to the end part of this article.. yeah it’s concluding part.
DIARRHOEA:
INGREDIENTS:
Fenugreek seeds-10g,onion-1 no,garlic-1 pearl,cumin seeds-10g,turmeric-10g,curry leaves-1 handful,poppy seeds-5g,pepper-10g,jaggery-10g,Asafoetida-5g
PREPARATION:
Dry fry cumin seeds,asafoetoda,fenugreek and poppy seeds till smoke emanates.cool and powder the fried seeds.then blend with other ingredients to form a paste.
APPLICATION:
Roll the paste into small balls.administer orally in small portions once daily for 1-3 days till condition cured.
Conclusion:
Ethnoveterinary practice has contemporary relevance. Few Ethnoveterinary remedies have been tested clinically in livestock species itself rather than lab animals. High diversity of Ethnoveterinary plants are around us. It’s observed and believed that more pharmacological study and Ethnoveterinary studies must be carried out to improve the better understanding of traditional practices in improving lives and livelihood of us .however the valuable local knowledge has turned increasingly fragile, susceptible to rapid erosions of it and can also leads to replacement of traditional plants with other modern practices.It has cultural,socioeconomic and ecologic importance associate to biological resources usage in EVM. Traditional knowledge and culture including the practices aimed at the cure of animals have been last through the decades. Therefore we are in a urgent necessity to documentation and preservation of this traditional knowledge.This will prevent loss of local knowledge and improve the eco friendly ethno veterinary medicine.
