About 1,500 sheep died due to smallpox infection in the village of Suyunduk, Kurmangazinsky district, Atyrau region.

Sheep and lambs began to die as early as this spring. But specialists from the National Reference Center for Veterinary Medicine could not confirm this diagnosis, despite the visible signs of smallpox.

After that, the samples were sent for research in the laboratory of the Republican Scientific Research Institute of Biological Safety. According to the results of the experiments, a conclusion was obtained that confirmed that the sheep died precisely from smallpox.

Edilbaevskaya breed of sheep

In total, about 1,200 lambs and 260 adult sheep fell victim to a dangerous disease in the village. They were all of the Edilbayev breed. Smallpox caused damage to the economy, where 100 workers work, in the amount of 60 million tenge.

Previously, when the diagnosis was not confirmed, the farm was not entitled to claim state compensation for the dead cattle. For this reason, farm workers tried to prove that smallpox killed the sheep.

Now that the diagnosis has been confirmed, the farm is awaiting compensation, said Bauyrzhan Isakulov, head of the Suyunduk farm.