Animal Transboundary Diseases: European Union and Asian Network of Veterinary Research Cooperation for Quality Livestock Production

Summary

Transboundary animal diseases (TADs) constitute a global threat that afflict livestock. They are characterized by the suddenness, acuteness, the rapidity with which they can spread in susceptible livestock populations and the widespread nature of the losses that they can produce. The havoc they play renders individual farmers and private veterinary services relatively powerless to take effective action. As TADs do not recognize national borders, there is a great demand for regional cooperation which must be put into a global term. From the epidemiological point of view, the prospects for eradication of a disease with minimal production losses and other costs are best, if the disease can be recognized early where it is localized and then a disease control programme be quickly implemented.