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FARMERS in Matabeleland region are continuously losing a considerable number of cattle due to the early effects of drought amid concerns that the figures might rise if the dry spell persists posing a threat to the national herd.
Matabeleland North provincial veterinary officer Dr Polex Moyo said the Department of Veterinary Services has received 12 cases of cattle succumbing to the effects of drought in Tsholotsho District, Matabeleland North.
The latest report comes in the wake of the same number of cattle dying due to drought in Gwanda in Matabeleland South Province two months ago and a further 17 succumbing to the same fate in Bulilima in the same province.
Dr Moyo said the death of cattle in Tsholotsho was as a result of lack of adequate water sources in the district.
“There is a critical issue in Tsholotsho, there hasn’t been enough rain for some time in that area and the water table is now very low in most areas reaching about 100 metres making it difficult to pump water using a borehole under such circumstances.
“The situation is bad in wards 1, 2, 3 and 7 whereby you find cattle having to drink once or twice a week. As a result 12 animals have been lost to ‘poverty death’. The number could be more than this because the 12 are reported cases,” he said.
Water is the most important nutrient for cattle.
It accounts for 50 to 80 percent of an animal’s weight and is involved in every physiological process.
“Cattle can stay longer without feed but can’t do so without water. There is a need to find a permanent solution for water problems because we are also having a challenge where people are competing with livestock for the resource and obviously people take the first preference. The situation is deteriorating and there is a need for a policy decision to be taken soon. We don’t want to see action when there is already catastrophe,” Dr Moyo said.
Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union Matabeleland North provincial chairman Mr Winston Babbage took a swipe at Government department authorities for failure to highlight the effects of poverty deaths to Government culminating in the province losing out in stock feed distribution programmes.
“Matabeleland North is a drought prone area but the problem we have is that our provincial agriculture officials don’t highlight problems of poverty deaths and as a result we rarely get any form of aid or assistance,” he said.
Matabeleland South chief livestock specialist Mrs Simangaliphi Ngwabi said it was important for farmers to adequately prepare their own supplementary stock feed through utilising stovers obtained from previous harvests.
“Farmers are also liable to the poverty deaths of their cattle due to lack of preparedness. If it wasn’t for the showers we received in September the situation will be really bad but prior to that we had lost 12 animals in Gwanda and recently 17 animals were lost to poverty death in Bulilima,” Mrs Ngwabi said.
Matabeleland region used to be the country’s prime cattle producing area but recurrent droughts since 1992 reportedly killed about 60 percent of the province’s herd.
Reports said over 12 000 cattle were lost due to drought in Matabeleland South in 2013 due to drought related challenges.
Online Reporter