Farms.com Home   News

DO TRANSPORT REST STOPS PUT CALF HEALTH AT RISK?

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency revised the Transportation of Animals regulations a few years ago. Among other things, the revised regulations require longer and more frequent feed, water and rest stops during long-haul transport. Over the past few years, this column has summarized three research trials conducted by Karen Schwartzkopf-Genswein’s team at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Lethbridge Research Station. Those results repeatedly demonstrated that rest stops during long-haul transport do not provide measurable benefits for recently weaned beef calves.

In fact, new data suggests that those rest stops may pose a risk to calves. Nasal samples were collected and tested for respiratory bacteria during the three trials. The first results from those analyses have just been published (“Auction market placement and a rest stop during transportation affect the respiratory bacterial microbiota of beef cattle”; doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1192763).

Click here to see more...

Trending Video

Could Screwworms Threaten Cattle? Market Impacts Explained

Video: Could Screwworms Threaten Cattle? Market Impacts Explained

Derrell Peel, OSU Extension livestock marketing specialist, provides an update on the New World screwworm situation and what it means for cattle health. He also discusses wheat pasture prospects this season and the potential impacts on cattle markets for Oklahoma producers and beyond.