ISU Extension and Outreach Dairy Team webinar on December 19 Explains Extra-Label Drug Use in Cattle and How Aspirin Fits In

Nov 13, 2024

The Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Dairy Team monthly webinar series continues Thursday, Dec. 19, from 12 noon to 1 p.m. Allison Vander Plaats will discuss the topic of extra-label drug use.

Aspirin has never gone through the process of being approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in cattle. However, FDA considered aspirin to be of “low regulatory concern,” so its use in scenarios where a veterinarian determined there to be no other option for treatment was acceptable. The agency has now reversed that stance and released a letter to veterinarians this week emphasizing that aspirin use in dairy cattle and other food animals is prohibited.

Allison Vander Plaats is a postdoctoral associate at Iowa State University Veterinary Field Services, where she is working towards a food animal specialty residency and graduate degree. A California native, she attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo for her undergraduate work, then went to Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine for her DVM with a production animal focus. After graduation, she moved back to the Central Valley to join a six-doctor primarily dairy practice for a few years, before then moving to a teaching and staff vet position at a community college. Her professional interests include antibiotic stewardship, veterinary education, and ruminant medicine.

Producers, dairy consultants, and industry representatives are encouraged to attend the free webinar from 12 noon to 1 p.m. on Dec. 19 by registering at least one hour prior to the webinar at https://go.iastate.edu/ASPIRINWEBINAR.

Source : iastate.edu

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.