On October 31, the International Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) recognized the Slovak Republic again as a country without the occurrence of diseases and without vaccination against foot-and-mouth disease. The State Veterinary and Food Administration (ŠVPS) of the Slovak Republic informed about this on Monday.
- Slovakia is once again recognized as a country without foot-and-mouth disease.
- WOAH announced the official situation of Slovakia without the occurrence of this disease.
- The virus affects ruminants such as cattle, goats and sheep.
- Breeders are encouraged to observe biological measures in their farms.
- The first occurrence of foot-and-mouth disease was recorded on March 21, 2025 in the south of Slovakia.
“On behalf of the ŠVPS SR, I want to thank everyone who participated in any way and helped manage this difficult situation in a short time,” said the chief veterinarian, Martin Chudý, and added that it is important to learn from the disease and be prepared to fight it.
“I want to once again ask all breeders for a high degree of responsibility, for constant compliance with the prescribed measures, especially biological ones, to prevent the introduction of diseases into farms,” added Chudý, saying that this will prevent similar tragedies, when animals in outbreaks must be destroyed and various strict, often unpopular measures must be taken to prevent the spread of the disease.
Chudy reminded all cattle breeders of the obligation to register farms. According to him, this obligation facilitates mutual communication, as well as the guarantee of healthy breeding through actions within the framework of veterinary prevention and protection.
Foot-and-mouth disease, or foot-and-mouth disease, is a highly contagious viral disease of animals. It mainly affects cattle, goats, sheep, pigs, but also wild game and other even-toed animals. The first case of foot-and-mouth disease in our country was confirmed by tests on March 21, 2025 on three farms in the south of Slovakia after more than 50 years. A total of six outbreaks were recorded. How the virus got into the Central European area is still the subject of scientific investigation.
