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1. Potential High Risk Area around TB Positive Deer Established [MI]
Michigan Dept. of Agriculture & Rural Development News Release
April 20, 2016
LANSING - On April 14, 2016 a bovine tuberculosis "Potential High Risk Area" was designated by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development after the Michigan Department of Natural Resources confirmed a bovine TB positive free-ranging white-tailed deer in Presque Isle County.
An informational meeting will be held to discuss the bovine TB program and the "Potential High Risk Area" designation at the following time and location:
April 26, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Presque Isle District Library,
181 East Erie Street, Rogers City, MI 49779
A "Potential High Risk Area" is an area where bovine TB has been diagnosed in wild animals only; and is established when a TB positive free-ranging deer is found. This designation requires all cattle and bison herds, located within a 10-kilometer radius of a TB positive deer, to be tested for bovine TB within the next six months. All impacted herd owners are being contacted by MDARD to schedule testing. Cattle and bison herds are tested to assure our trading partners the disease has not been transmitted from local deer to cattle or bison.
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2. Howard County, Maryland, Horse Tests Positive for EHV
By Edited Press Release
TheHorse.com
April 20, 2016
Animal health officials in Maryland reported April 20 that a Howard County horse has tested positive for equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1).
The Maryland Department of Agriculture said the affected horse tested positive for non-neuropathic EHV-1 and was euthanized by a private veterinarian. Diagnosis was confirmed on April 18 by the Maryland Department of Agriculture Frederick Animal Health Laboratory.
The farm is presently under a 30-day investigational hold and strict biosecurity measures are in place while Department of Agriculture inspectors perform additional epidemiologic and infectious disease testing. Stables near the one where the sick horse resided are being notified of the situation and owners are cautioned to monitor horses at their premises carefully.
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3. Pennsylvania Horse Tests Positive for EIA
By Edited Press Release
TheHorse.com
April 20, 2016
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture announced April 20 the quarantine of an equine barn in Halifax, in Dauphin County, after a horse at the barn tested positive for equine infectious anemia (EIA) on April 18.
There are 19 other horses quarantined on the premises as part of the quarantine order. The EIA-positive horse had a routine health check, which included a Coggins test for EIA, less than a week after the horse moved from another barn elsewhere in Dauphin County.
The horse was stabled previously at a farm in Williamstown, where another 13 horses are also under quarantine. The department is in the process of tracing the positive horse's movement history.
The barns and horses are quarantined for at least 60 days. The quarantine can be lifted after the remaining horses are determined not to be infected.
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4. Killer disease: K-State meeting to focus on anaplasmosis in cattle
By Kansas State University
Drovers CattleNetwork.com
April 20, 2016
An unwanted visitor has arrived in parts of Kansas, and the results have been cattle death loss in some cases.
Anaplasmosis is a crippling, blood-borne disease carried by ticks and flies that can kill mature cattle if left untreated.
A May 11 meeting is planned in Salina to bring cattle producers, veterinarians, extension agents and others together to inform, educate and work toward a coordinated response to the disease, which surged into Kansas in 2015. The meeting starts at 11:30 a.m. at Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus's College Conference Center, at 2310 Centennial Road.
The meeting is hosted by the Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory and K-State Research and Extension, and it involves beef-focused faculty from K-State's College of Veterinary Medicine and College of Agriculture, plus leadership from the Kansas Livestock Association, Kansas Farm Bureau and Kansas Veterinary Medical Association.
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5. Organic Study Uses Domestic Sheep to Facilitate Sustainable Farming
Posted by Kelly Flynn, National Institute of Food and Agriculture
USDA Blog
April 20, 2016
Environmental and economic management of weeds and pests is a priority for organic farmers and they typically use tillage to address these issues. However, frequent mechanical tillage can reduce soil integrity, which increases costs for farmers and negatively impacts future crop growth. Now, Montana State University (MSU) researchers are studying an alternate technique to manage these issues-domestic sheep.
Instead of using traditional tilling machinery or herbicides, MSU's project features domestic sheep that graze farmland to eliminate the cover crop and control weeds. The study will determine if an integrated animal and crop production system is an economically feasible way to reduce tillage for certified organic farms.
USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is supporting the research with a four-year, $742,907 Organic Transitions grant. The project involves faculty, graduate and undergraduate students from varied fields that include agronomy, weed ecology, animal and range sciences, community development, political science, entomology, soil science, and agricultural economics.
"Our goal is to reduce tillage in organic systems. The ideal system would probably be where both grazing and tillage are employed strategically to accomplish a site specific service," said Patrick Hatfield, MSU animal and range sciences professor who is part of the research team.
The processing of the cover crops through the sheep's digestive tracts also lends itself to long-term soil health benefits.
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6. University of Alberta-led swine study tackles next health frontier
Study focuses on using genomic tools to protect swine exposed to multiple disease threats
By Meristem Land And Science
Alberta Farm Express
April 20, 2016
If Canada is going to maintain a successful position in the global pork marketplace, swine health and animal care promises to be one of the deciding factors. Sustainable production and competitive pricing will be priorities and swine health and welfare is both a social requirement and necessity for sustainable production.
Porcine health management represents a tremendous opportunity for the application of innovative genomic tools, University of Alberta professor and genomics expert Michael Dyck said at the 2016 Banff Pork Seminar.
Disease constantly evolves and presents new pressures, said Dyck. There is a need to develop genomic tools and production management practices to help protect animals exposed to multiple disease threats including the most significant disease currently affecting the pork industry.
At the same time there is pressure on antimicrobial use in pork production which may require more robust pigs to maintain production, he says.
The next phase of research will take a more broad approach and concentrate on disease resilience, which is a combination of tolerance and resistance, he said. Pigs with increased disease resilience are better able to respond to health challenges and maintain reproductive and grow-finish performance.
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7. House committee approves ag appropriations bill [edited]
Source: House Appropriations Committee
Farm Futures
April 20, 2016
The House Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year 2017 Agriculture Appropriations bill on April 19. The proposed legislation funds agricultural and food programs and services, including food and medical product safety, animal and plant health programs, rural development and farm services, marketplace oversight and nutrition programs.
Amendments adopted by the full committee include:
- Prevent the slaughter of horses for human consumption within the United States. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 25-23.
- Allow the use of $1 million in USDA funding within the bill for loans and grants under the Healthy Food Financing Initiative. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 28-22.
- Stop the implementation of a Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration regulation that would place restrictions on poultry, beef and pork marketing arrangements. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 26-24.
- Clarify that certain existing, unobligated funding within the Departments of State and Health and Human Services shall be available to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the Zika crisis, both domestically and internationally. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 30-20.
The bill was adopted on a voice vote.
For a summary of the bill, visit:
For the text of the bill, visit:
For the bill report, visit:
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