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Livestock News

Solar power waters cattle on Washington ranch

ARLINGTON, Wash. (AP)--Solar power is delivering water to cattle on a farm near Arlington and keeping the animals and their waste out of a salmon stream. A pump run by a battery and solar panel sends water from Eagle Creek into troughs for 50 cattle belonging to Vernon Beach. Fences keep the cattle out of the creek, which runs into the Stillaguamish River. [Read More]

TAMU Fit-to-Finish Show Cattle Camp Dec. 12 and 13

Texas The TAMU Fit-to-Finish Show Cattle Camp is scheduled Dec. 12 and 13 at the Pearce Pavilion on the campus of Texas A&M University in College Station. "There is no question that the 4-H and FFA members who exhibit cattle in the state of Texas represent some of the most competitive and well respected exhibitors in the nation. [Read More]

U.S. Pork Center of Excellence receives grant

Iowa The U.S. Pork Center of Excellence has been granted nearly $300,000 from the U.S. Department of Education to implement the Professional Swine Manager/Technician Certification Program for community college students and pork production workers. The grant, provided by the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, will run from Jan. 1, 2010 to Dec. 31, 2011, and will cover the implementation phase of the current project funded in ... [Read More]

Commissioner Staples welcomes announcement that China will soon re-open market to U.S. pork

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples Oct. 30 applauded the news that Texas pork producers will soon regain access to an important international trade market. U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack recently announced that China intends to re-open its market to U.S. pork and live swine. "I am relieved to see sound science has finally prevailed over political ... [Read More]

USDA: Six pigs tested positive for H1N1

WASHINGTON (AP)--Final tests confirm that six pigs from the Minnesota State Fair contracted swine flu, three more than initial research had indicated. The U.S. Agriculture Department said Oct. 29 follow-up tests confirmed the presence of the H1N1 virus, more commonly known as swine flu, in six samples taken as a part of a university research project at the Minnesota State Fair between Aug. 26 and Sept. 1. The tests confirm the first cases of pigs ... [Read More]

USDA-funded swine genome sequencing project succeeds in completing first draft

An international team of scientists, funded with a $10 million grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, has completed the first draft of the genome of a domesticated pig. This first draft sequence will spur advancements in swine production and human medicine. "Understanding the swine genome will lead to health advancements in the swine population and accelerate the development of vaccinations for... [Read More]

CDC: Tainted ground beef may be linked to 2 deaths

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP)--Contaminated fresh ground beef caused a possible E. coli outbreak that killed two people and sent 16 others to hospitals, federal health officials said Nov. 2. Twenty-eight people may have become ill after eating beef produced by Fairbank Farms of Ashville, N.Y., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. All but three of the suspected infections are in the northeastern U.S. and 18 are in New England, ... [Read More]

Angus champions named at 2009 American Royal ROV Show

Angus enthusiasts gathered for the 2009 American Royal Super Point Roll of Victory Angus Show, Oct. 30 in Kansas City, Mo. Jeff Mafi, Stillwater, Okla., evaluated the 149 entries, which included 115 females, 30 bulls and four cow-calf pairs. Dameron First Class claimed grand champion and junior champion bull honors. Express Angus Ranches, Yukon, Okla., and Dameron Angus Farm, Lexington, Ill., own the April 2008 son of EXG RS First Rate ... [Read More]

NCBA member testifies

Arthur Uhl, member of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association and chairman of NCBA's Tax and Credit Committee, testified Nov. 4 during a U.S. House of Representatives Small Business Committee hearing on the estate tax. Uhl, a rancher, cattle producer and attorney from San Antonio, Texas, highlighted the need for swift reform of this burdensome tax--considered one of the leading causes of the breakup of multi-generation family farms and ranches. "At the end of the day,... [Read More]

Livestock producers urged to have plan

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP)--For many Nebraska livestock producers, the tough times are raising stress and anxiety. A common question: "What should I do?' David Goeller is a farm transition specialist for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. [Read More]

Texas cattle industry groups meet to discuss tick fever prevention

Texas Representatives from Texas' cattle industry recently discussed future research and educational partnerships related to fever ticks at a summit hosted by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service. The fever tick is a major concern to the livestock and wildlife industry, said Dr. Tom Hairgrove, livestock systems program coordinator with AgriLife Extension Service and Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. [Read More]

The top line

By Miranda Reiman If Wal-Mart were in the cattle business, it would probably serve as an operating definition of "least-cost producer." People might refer to its cowherd enterprise as the model for slashing expenses. [Read More]

Commercial pigs test positive for H1N1

WASHINGTON (AP)--The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Nov. 4 that pigs in a commercial herd in Indiana have tested positive for swine flu, making it the first time the virus has been found in such hogs. The USDA said it discovered four tissue samples that tested positive for the virus using its swine surveillance program. The sample was collected in late October, and the USDA said the pigs as well as the people caring for the animals have recovered. [Read More]

NM calf fitted with prosthetic legs

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)--Meadow the yearling black Angus calf spends her days frolicking in northeastern New Mexico's cattle country, all with her prosthetic hind legs. The bucolic scene seemed impossible just a few months ago, when rancher Nancy Dickenson and her stepdaughter, Martha, found Meadow on a neighbor's property. The 11-month-old calf had lost her back hooves and half of her ears to severe frostbite. [Read More]

Equine piroplasmosis disease investigation continues in Texas

Canada and a number of U.S. states have imposed movement restrictions or additional entry requirements for horses from Texas after equine piroplasmosis, a tick-transmitted blood disease of equine animals, such as horses, donkeys, mules and zebras, was detected in south Texas in mid-October. Equine piroplasmosis may be carried and transmitted by as many as 15 species of ticks. Although ticks have been collected from the south ... [Read More]

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