The Best Disinfectant for Hoof-and-Mouth Disease

Hoof and mouth disease is an extremely contagious viral disease affecting livestock. It does not affect people, but people can certainly carry and spread it. Once noted, serious effort should be used to contain it. Only personnel trained in isolation quarantine methods should handle the animals after they are diagnosed.

  1. Containment

    • Hoof and mouth disease causes blisters on the mouth and feet of the infected animal and massive weight loss. It can be fatal. The virus can be carried on shoes or clothing of a person who has come in contact with an infected animal. It can also be carried by animals, like dogs, that are not affected but transmit the disease. Because the disease is so easily transmitted, containment is a serious concern.

      Affected animals must be quarantined. Personnel who must feed and care for these animals should use disinfectants. A bleach foot bath should be placed at the entrance to the isolation area. The foot bath should be a 10 percent bleach solution and should be changed three times a day. Bleach is the best disinfectant as it kills 99 percent of organisms. It should be used to wash clothing that has come into contact with effected animals.

      Disinfectants like povidine-iodine or chlorohexadine can be used to wash hands. These disinfectants rely on contact time, or time of exposure, to kill, so hand washing must last at least five minutes. Both can be purchased at a drug store In high enough concentration.

      It is often necessary to destroy both affected live stock and flame treat the affected areas. Flame treatment acts as a medical sterilizer like an autoclave, raising the temperature too high for the virus to survive on surfaces. This should be done under the supervision of trained professionals to minimize fire damage and ensure that the disease is truly eradicated.