Animal Welfare

The tiny, annoying pest can wreak $6 billion in losses annually to U.S. cattle production due to decreased weight gain or milk production, veterinary needs and control measures.

USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins says the agency is hyper-focused on poultry, but no vaccine is yet available. The agency has ‘separate work streams’ to address the virus in the ‘cattle and dairy’ industries, but dairy is not part of USDA’s primary focus for now.

ENSO-neutral means conditions could be close to average, but Eric Snodgrass, Nutrien’s principal atmospheric scientist, says that doesn’t mean the weather will be normal this spring and summer with growing concerns about drought.

Outgoing USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack sent a letter to Mexico’s Secretary of Agriculture acknowledging the progress made in reopening cattle trade between the two countries following the detection of New World Screwworm, but says more action is needed to resume trade.

The report echoes calls by other scientists to ramp up the surveillance of felines, which are susceptible to the virus and have a high mortality rate. The AVMA says several cases in cats linked to poultry or wild bird exposure had been reported before the outbreak began in dairy cows last spring.

USDA announced on Oct. 30 the first reported case of H5N1 in a pig in an Oregon backyard farm.

Parts of the Texas Panhandle, Kansas and Nebraska could get some rain as early as this weekend. Other parts of the Midwest might have some moisture relief as well by early next week.

Floodwaters breached levees in parts of Iowa on Tuesday, with more flooding anticipated for Wednesday. The damage to row-crop and livestock operations is likely significant, according to state officials.

Michigan’s ag department will provide the grant money for to up to 20 farms from its emergency response funds.