Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) cases have been reported in several areas of central Kashmir and the Jammu region, prompting urgent attention from veterinary and public health authorities. This is a serious, contagious, vector-borne viral disease of cattle and buffaloes, caused by the Capripox virus. It is critical to emphasize that the disease is not zoonotic, and there is no risk of transmission from infected animal to human. A sick cow poses no threat to its owner’s health; however, the threat it poses to agricultural livelihoods is profound and demands immediate, coordinated action.
The virus is transmitted primarily by arthropod vectors, including mosquitoes, biting flies, and ticks, making LSD a truly seasonal disease that surges precisely when vector populations peak during the monsoon and post-monsoon months. Transmission can also occur through direct contact with an infected animal’s secretions, as well as through contaminated feed, water, and equipment. A single infected animal introduced into a herd, or a single uncontrolled vector population on a farm, is sufficient to trigger a devastating outbreak.
The disease typically begins with a sudden high fever, and then development of stiff, raised, circular skin nodules (2-5 cm) appear across the body on the head, neck, limbs, udder, genitals, and perineum. These firm, well-defined nodules eventually ulcerate, developing necrotic centres that later scab over. Affected animals show lethargy, loss of appetite, profuse nasal and ocular discharge, excessive salivation, and lesions inside the mouth and throat that make eating painful. Enlarged lymph nodes are a consistent finding, and swelling of the legs, udder, and brisket also occurs.
In milking animals, milk production can drop by eighty percent within days, and this reduction may persist long after recovery. Pregnant cows may abort, and calves can die from generalised infection. The infection can also lead to temporary or permanent infertility—a severe long-term blow to herd productivity. Morbidity can reach forty-five percent in unvaccinated herds. Mortality in adults typically stays below ten percent, but the economic fallout from lost milk, infertility, trade restrictions, and animal deaths far outweighs the death toll alone.
It is important to note that between 2023 and June 2026, 1,861,098 animals in Jammu and Kashmir were vaccinated against LSD. However, vaccine-induced immunity wanes over time. Antibodies can persist in cows for only four to nine months post-vaccination, and in young cattle vaccinated with the heterologous Goat Pox-based vaccines most widely used in India, immunity wanes even more rapidly.
Researchers recommend booster doses five to six months after the first vaccination, followed by annual boosters. Furthermore, the Goat Pox vaccine has a documented efficacy of 70 to 80 %, meaning that 20-30% of vaccinated animals may remain susceptible even immediately after vaccination. This does not make vaccination futile; rather, it makes comprehensive vector control, isolation, and biosecurity the essential complements to the vaccine, not optional additions.
A persistent hurdle for the Animal Husbandry Department is owner reluctance. Many livestock keepers fear that vaccination itself will cause fever, temporary milk drop, or general illness in their animals. This apprehension, often based on mild post-vaccination reactions rather than serious harm, leads to skipped or delayed vaccinations, leaving herds dangerously exposed. Overcoming this fear through clear, honest farmer education is as vital as ensuring vaccine supply.
In addition, there are significant gaps in vaccination coverage across the region. Of the 1,861,098 animals vaccinated, not all received timely boosters, and not all migratory livestock—particularly the vast herds of the Gujjar-Bakarwal community, moving between Jammu’s winter plains and Kashmir’s summer meadows—were consistently reached during migration periods. The LSD risk alert issued under India’s National Animal Disease Referral Expert System for September 2026 covers twenty-eight states and Union Territories, indicating that the current J&K outbreak is not an isolated local failure but part of a nationally documented re-emergence driven by waning herd immunity, a seasonal vector surge, and gaps in programmatic implementation.
Control of an LSD outbreak requires the coordinated implementation of multiple simultaneous measures. The following advisory covers every level at which action is now required. Isolate any animal showing fever, skin nodules, nasal discharge, or lameness from the rest of the herd immediately. Move the sick animal to a separate shed or enclosure with no shared ventilation, feed, or water with healthy animals, and report the case to the nearest veterinary dispensary.
Implement insecticide spraying on all animals in the herd twice weekly during the current outbreak period, and apply residual sprays to the walls and floors of animal shelters. Any animal purchased from a market, fair, or another farm must be kept in strict isolation for a minimum of thirty days before being allowed contact with existing animals. During the outbreak, the sale and purchase of cattle should be suspended entirely, which is both sound biosecurity and a regulatory obligation.
In the event of animal mortality, the carcass must be disposed of by deep burial. Disinfect the area and all equipment using phenolic disinfectants, sodium hypochlorite solution, or quaternary ammonium compound. The immediate priority is emergency ring vaccination—vaccinating all healthy, unvaccinated, or previously vaccinated animals within a defined radius around every confirmed case. Surveillance must be intensified, not merely through passive reporting but through active, systematic farm-by-farm inspection in affected and adjacent areas.
Awareness campaigns regarding clinical signs of LSD, immediate reporting, and the steps for home-level biosecurity must be launched. The coordinated application of vaccination, vector control, and isolation measures can significantly reduce LSD transmission and the persistence of outbreaks, but no single measure alone is sufficient.
