Foot-and-mouth disease reported in Tibet

BEIJING - Foot-and-mouth disease infections have been confirmed in livestock in Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region, the Ministry of Agriculture announced Thursday.

A total of 123 live head of cattle and 108 pigs at a village in Bomi county, Nyingchi prefecture, showed symptoms associated with foot-and-mouth disease, according to the MOA.

The National Foot-and-Mouth Disease Reference Laboratory on Thursday confirmed that the livestock were infected with type O foot-and-mouth disease after testing samples collected at the farm, the MOA said.

Local authorities have sealed off and sterilized the infected area, where a total of 612 head of cattle and pigs have been culled and safely disposed of in order to prevent the disease from spreading since the case was confirmed, according to the MOA.

Foot-and-mouth disease is a contagious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovid.