BERLIN, Jan 10 (Reuters) - German authorities confirmed the country's first outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in nearly 40 years on Friday in a herd of water buffalo on the outskirts of Berlin.

Foot-and-mouth disease causes fever and mouth blisters in cloven-hoofed ruminants such as cattle, swine, sheep and goats.

Measures to contain the highly infectious disease, which poses no danger to humans though they can transmit it, are being implemented, and the affected animals have already been euthanised, said local authorities.