The non-medicinal prevention of livestock disease in African rangeland ecosystems

Abstract

Disease of domestic animals on rangelands is caused by a wide variety of agents (some infectious and some non-infectious). Disease is primarily a function of the ecosystem, where a shift in the relationships of the system components has led to an imbalance between the animal and its environment. The control and prevention of diseases is by interventions that change the system's composition and/ or function so that the imbalance is corrected. Medicinal interventions play a major role, but may be costly and sometimes are ineffective and deleterious to the environment. Non-medicinal interventions may be just as effective where appropriate, mostly use resources from within the ecosystem and so have the advantage of often being more readily available and cheaper. This is particularly advantageous in the developing world.