A farmer signs vaccination document after having all her cows vaccinated against the foot-and-mouth disease in a barn in Limankoy village, Kirklareli province, Türkiye, on Aug. 11, 2025. Turkish authorities and veterinarians are warning of the swift spread of foot-and-mouth disease, which has placed farmers nationwide, particularly in the Thrace region, on high alert, and forced local livestock markets to close. (Photo by Zeynep Cermen/Xinhua)

KIRKLARELI, Türkiye, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkish authorities and veterinarians are warning of the swift spread of foot-and-mouth disease, which has placed farmers nationwide, particularly in the Thrace region, on high alert, and forced local livestock markets to close.

The outbreak, first detected on July 10 in Ardahan province, is rapidly advancing westward from the eastern provinces of Ardahan, Kars, and Igdir, noted Gulay Erturk, president of the Turkish Veterinary Association.

Emphasizing the high risk in Thrace, Erturk said close monitoring is required as even vaccinated animals are showing mild signs of the virus.

More veterinarians need to be deployed swiftly to reach and vaccinate animals in the field, she said.

In response to experts' call of swift action, the Ardahan Governorship has imposed quarantine measures in over 50 villages and restricted animal movements. Local teams are collecting and burying deceased animals to protect public health.

On Sunday, Turkish Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Ahmet Gumen visited the affected areas in Ardahan, informing producers about containment efforts and emphasizing the importance of vaccination.

In Limankoy village, Thrace's Kirklareli province, efforts began early Monday with veterinarians working to inoculate all scheduled cattle.

"In the Demirkoy district we have 4,000 cows to be vaccinated this week," one veterinarian reported, adding that concerning reports of sick cows in Thrace are pending test results.

Local authorities have urged all livestock owners to vaccinate their animals immediately and prevent outsiders from entering barns, noting the disease spreads rapidly, potentially even via tire tracks.

The highly-contagious viral illness is affecting cloven-hoofed animals like cattle, sheep, and goats, veterinarian Metin Orenel told Xinhua.

"The disease causes fever, blisters, and painful sores in the mouth and on the feet, making it difficult for animals to eat or walk," he said.

Meanwhile, farmers are facing a difficult choice. Nurcan Gokyildiz, a livestock farmer in Limankoy, told Xinhua on Monday that she is caught "between a rock and a hard place," torn between protecting her pregnant cows and the threat to her herd.

"I have five cows, four of them pregnant, and the district agriculture and forestry office sent me a message saying they all need to be vaccinated this week," she said.

"The vaccination is risky for the pregnant cows, which can cause miscarriages, while the disease itself is dangerous too," she noted.

Despite these fears, Gokyildiz said she decides to vaccinate all her pregnant cows by the end of the day, hoping the difficult choice will protect her herd from the disease. ■

A veterinarian vaccinates a cow against the foot-and-mouth disease in a barn in Limankoy village, Kirklareli province, Türkiye, on Aug. 11, 2025. Turkish authorities and veterinarians are warning of the swift spread of foot-and-mouth disease, which has placed farmers nationwide, particularly in the Thrace region, on high alert, and forced local livestock markets to close. (Photo by Zeynep Cermen/Xinhua)