Peste des Petits Ruminants: Goat Plague

Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is an acute or subacute viral disease of goats and sheep characterized by fever, necrotic stomatitis, gastroenteritis, pneumonia, and sometimes death. It was reported first in Côte d’Ivoire (the Ivory Coast) in 1942, and subsequently in other parts of West Africa. In India, the disease was first reported in 1987 in a small sheep flock in the village of Arasur in Tamil Nadu state, Goats and sheep appear to be equally susceptible to the virus; however, goats exhibit more severe clinical signs. The virus also affects several wild small ruminant species. Cattle, buffalo, and pigs are only subclinically infected. Humans are not at risk.