Animal Health Alert: Protect Livestock During Extreme Cold and Fuel Shortage

Dec 15, 2025

The NJDA Division of Animal Health is alerting livestock owners to take steps to address the winter weather and upcoming winter cold air dropping into the United States. Livestock owners may need assistance in protecting their animals from unseasonally cold conditions.

The Division of Animal Health was made aware recently of a shipment of poultry being brought into New Jersey during which some of the birds died along the way. Although it is not conclusive that extreme cold played a role in their deaths, it may have been a contributing factor.

In a related matter, Governor Philip Murphy announced he has declared a State of Emergency starting at 9 a.m. on Friday, December 12, 2025, due to a significant shortage of propane fuel resulting from power-outage issues at a gas refinery in Marcus Hook, Pa.

Source : nj.gov

Video: ASF Control Lessons - Dr. Mary-Louise Penrith

In this episode of The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, Dr. Mary-Louise Penrith, Extraordinary Professor at the University of Pretoria, shares what decades of work have revealed about ASF control. She explains why vaccine development remains difficult, how human activity and food waste drive disease spread, why resistant pig populations are an important research area, and how strict biosecurity with the right disinfectants can help to stop transmission. Listen now on all major platforms!

"It's really a very human-driven disease because people move pigs, decide how they're raised, how they're sold, and good biosecurity can do anything to ensure control."

Meet the guest: Dr. Mary-Louise Penrith / mary-louise-penrith-2b12bb42 is an Extraordinary Professor in the Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases at the University of Pretoria, South Africa. A veterinarian and internationally recognized researcher, she has dedicated decades to African swine fever epidemiology, control, and pig health, supporting FAO and WOAH initiatives while advancing research and education. Listen to Dr. Mary-Louise Penrith on the Swine Health Blackbelt Podcast, available on all major platforms.