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Biosecurity
Commentary.
A man in southwest Missouri is trying to find answers for the sudden and inexplicable death of most of the 250 cows in his dairy herd. He believes the cause to be either criminal or environmental.
The story is heartbreaking. No neighboring farms suffered losses. The cattle rations were fine – they were getting enough to eat and drink. . .but something went awry. No one seems to have an answer.
You hear about things like this happening in other countries, but not here in the United States. This sad story reinforces my belief in the importance bio-security on our farms and ranches. No one knows what happened on that dairy farm in southwest Missouri, but there is something that we all can do to prevent something similar from happening on livestock farms across our great country.
It’s very simple. It only takes a couple of minutes. When you travel outside the United States and visit a farm, be sure to check the YES box on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection questionnaire that asks you if you have been on a livestock farm.
Tags: biosecurity
The dairy where all the cows died may look at the trace minerals in the feed. I had a similar experience when the feed company mixed a mineral supplement “4-plex” in the feed at rates that were too high. The consultant missed a decimal in the calculations. 3 weeks later cows were dieing from no reason just dropping dead. The copper from the mineral had plugged the livers on the cows. The cows that lived most had stress lines in the toes that exhibited for several month after. Many early term abortions up to 5 months. Birth defects on others. As the livers regenerate and clean out many cows will pass blood in the urine.
Please pass this on.