CamelVet.com

[jcfalcon]

Not long ago all our younger camels in northern Kenya got Orf. Their heads swelled specifically around the mouth and eyes and blistering sours appeared on their lips. the smell was disgusting. from our books we gathered that there was nothing we could do and so we just washed all the blister with salt and water and hoped they would all get better. fortunately they did but not after seriously loosing weight and fitness. i became curious about this disease and wondered how far it reaches and if it is specifically bad in Kenya or all over the world too. i would love to hear from anyone else who has experience with this bizarre virus.
many thanks, james christian

[onezebra]

Orf, also known as contagious pustular dermatitis, contagious ecthyma and scabbymouth, is an acute, debilitating, skin disease of sheep and goats world-wide that also affects man. Young animals are particularly affected, commonly around the mouth, and although morbidity can be high, mortality is rare in animals at pasture and can usually be attributed to an inability to suckle or secondary infections with bacteria, fungi or insect larvae. However, orf is a serious problem and can be fatal in stressed or immune-suppressed animals, for example in over-crowded sheep pens or in animals being transported over long distances. As a zoonosis, orf is a recognized occupational hazard amongst sheep and goat handlers.


Currently, two orf vaccines are licensed for use in the UK: Scabivax (Mallinckrodt Veterinary Ltd) and Vaxall Orf Vaccine (Willows Francis Veterinary). Both are live vaccines and work by infecting sheep with a ‘mild field strain’ of the orf virus. Because their use introduces orf onto a premises, they are only recommended for flocks which already have a problem with orf. Neither vaccine produces a strong long-lasting immunity, but their use will reduce the severity of clinical outbreaks of orf in a flock.
The usual practice is to vaccinate pregnant ewes eight weeks before lambing to allow scabs to heal and fall. It is recommended that growing lambs are vaccinated six to eight weeks before an expected outbreak. Vaccination may also be used in the face of an outbreak of orf.


In uncomplicated cases of orf, lesions typically heal between 24 and 30 days. However, if lesions become infected with secondary bacteria, recovery may take much longer.
Being a viral infection, there is no specific treatment for orf. Secondary bacterial infections are treated with antibiotics. Surgery may be necessary to remove lesions from the mouths of lambs.

[onezebra]

Here’s a little something that I found about using WD-40 on Orf

If you notice sores or scabs around the mouth and nose of your lamb, be sure to handle the lamb with rubber gloves so you don't get sores too. The scabs take about 2-3 weeks to heal. There is no really good treatment. However, the spray lubricant, WD-40, seems to hasten the healing better than anything else. Cover the nostrils of the lamb before spraying the sores with WD-40, so it doesn't inhale the lubricant. The disease is very contagious and if the lamb has another lamb as a companion, changes are that it, too, will get soremouth.