Animals infected with foot-and-mouth disease are less than 60km from Inner Mongolia, which has mobilised thousands of veterinary staff and police to fight the threat.
Xu Yanhui, director of veterinary services of Inner Mongolia, said yesterday that by March 6 more than 60,000 animals in Mongolia had contracted the disease, with some cases less than 60km from the border. 'It can spread very quickly. One member of a herd is infected today, tomorrow 30 and the entire herd the day after,' he said. 'We are taking all measures necessary to stop the entry of the disease into China. So far there have been no cases here.
'Since the end of last year, our staff have been working overtime. We are working closely with the frontier police and the authorities in Mongolia. I cannot tell you all the steps we are taking but can assure you that they have been effective,' he said.
Inner Mongolia, in the north of China, has vast grasslands that are home to some of the country's biggest herds of sheep, cattle and goats, with an estimated 40 million animals.
The latest outbreak in Mongolia began in May last year. Since then, in accordance with instructions from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, more than 4,000 staff from Mr Xu's department have been visiting the scattered homes of herdsmen and nomads who live close to the border, to vaccinate their animals against the disease. 'We have imposed controls on the movement of the animals,' he said.
'We told the shepherds not to take their herds near the border and have set up inspection centres on the border. We have also taken measures to prevent the disease among wild animals.'
