A day after the death of 40 chickens and hens in a farm on the outskirts of the city triggered panic due to prevalence of H5N1 virus in nearby Kerala, 15 goats died of a mysterious disease in a village in the same area, police said.
A goat farm owner approached Animal Husbandry Department officials in Vellamadai, some 25 km from here, after the animals showed symptoms of extreme tiredness. They gave injections to 18 goats, including 10 fully grown ones. However they did not respond to the treatment and died, they said.
Villagers at Vellamadai panicked as they had heard about the deaths of 40 chickens and hens on a farm at Kallipalayam in the same area.
Animal Husbandry department officials took blood samples from the dead goats and sent them for lab tests.
