Indigestible Plastic Bags are Hindering Profitability of Dairy Production in Peri-Urban Kampala

Many Ugandans living in the urban and peri-urban areas have started dairy farming to tap into the demand for milk and its products, driven by the population growth. Unfortunately, they operate on a small scale because land and cattle feeds in the urban and peri-urban areas are limited. In addition, the peri-urban areas are contaminated with indigestible materials such as plastic bags which once consumed by the cattle impair health, cause loss of milk productivity and death. This report documents the findings from three cases referred to the ambulatory clinic at the Central Diagnostic Laboratory (CDL) in 2018. The cases were diagnosed as hardware disease and surgically treated by rumenotomy. In addition, a review of the patients’ data sheets in CDL was performed to identify other cases of hardware disease documented in 2018. Both metallic and non-metallic indigestible materials were recovered from the rumen and reticulum of the three animals operated. The indigestible foreign materials included nails, wire, plastic bags and a sisal rope. The common clinical signs coherent with the presence of indigestible materials were chronic emaciation and loss of appetite. The review of the patients’ data sheets showed that blood samples of 23 cases of suspected hardware disease were submitted to CDL in 2018 for diagnosis. It is paramount that farmers are sensitized about the effects of indigestible materials on the production of dairy animals. For, such an intervention would liberate the peri-urban dairy farmers from losses attributed to hardware disease.