Feral pigs spreading from north western NSW to Queensland have been found to carry Brucellosis, prompting NSW Labour to call on the state Government to review its preparedness.
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Hunting feral pigs is the number one risk factor in catching the infectious disease in NSW and farmers and hunters who shoot or trap feral pigs have a high risk of infection.
Dogs used for pig hunting also have a high risk of catching the infection and of passing it on to other dogs and humans.
Earlier this year there were report of feral pigs in Rossmore in Sydney’s southwest, Londonberry and Penrith in western Sydney, Hawkesbury and the Blue Mountains. Management of the diseases involves both NSW Health and NSW Primary Industries.
NSW Shafow Health Minister Walt Secord also a targeted public health warning to western Sydney recreational pig hunters with dogs.. He criticised the state Liberal-National government for its failure to issue the appropriate state-wide health warnings.
The last major Brucellosis outbreaks in NSW were in 014 and 2015. Brucellosis (Brucella suis) is a serious infectious disease of pigs that can be passed on to other animals and people through contact with urine, blood, saliva and reproductive materials.
The Brucella suis infection in people causes severe flu-like symptoms including intermittent fever, sweating, lethargy, loss of appetite, headaches, and joint and muscle pains.
People get infected when handlling feral pigs and feral pig meat and potentially from infected dogs.
In Australia people may become infected through:
- Direct contact with tissues or body fluids of an infected animal (such as feral pigs or dogs) the risk is greater when a person has skin cuts or grazes that comes into contact with infected tissues and body fluids, like bloody, urine, vaginal discharges, birth products and aborted fetuses.
- Eating under cooked meat from an infected animal.
Sadly, the DPI recommends that dogs confirmed infected with Brucellosis be euthanased because of the potential risk to people.
The National Communicable Diseases Surveillance Report for the fortnight ending June 30 showed there were 10 confirmed cases of Brucellosis in the first 6 months of 2017.
Shadow Health Minister Walt Secord said the risk to humans of this disease can be devastating.
“We have had a major outbreak in Gunnedah and the community has not been told,” he said.
“The state government needs to review its preparedness for outbreaks of diseases like Brucellosis.”