Just How Prepared Are We For The Event Of A Foreign Disease Outbreak In The Heart Of Cattle Country

Feb 24, 2017

The most dangerous animal diseases can be found in a laboratory on Plum Island just off the coast of New York, at least for now. Currently, there is an effort to transfer these contained pathogens to a biosecurity safe laboratory at Kansas State University in Manhattan. Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Farm Director Ron Hays spoke with Dr. Kathy Simmons, chief veterinarian for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association recently. According to her, this upgrade of facilities will certainly help advance the research being done on infectious agents such as Foot and Mouth disease, to keep our food supply safe from contamination.

“I think it’s important to have the new facilities simply because the old facilities limited some of the work that could be done,” she said. “Having the facility in Manhattan should be able to secure the agents and allow us to have some advanced work done with some of these agents.”

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Video: WARNING! Rough Start To Breeding Season!!

WARNING! Sheep Breeding Season Begins With A Bang! Breeding season is officially underway at Ewetopia Farms, but it didn’t exactly start the way we planned!

This vlog begins with us sorting through our rams to find the perfect match for a customer’s breeding program. What should have been routine quickly turned dangerous when one of our more nervous rams panicked. In seconds, Arnie’s knee was injured, and then I was slammed hard onto the concrete floor — both of us taken down by one ram!

Thankfully, it was just bruises, but it’s a reminder of how unpredictable and powerful mature rams can be. Once we recovered, it was time to get back to the real work — the start of breeding season.

We sorted the ewes into four breeding groups (two Suffolk and two Dorset), checking parentage as they ran through the chute, deworming those that needed it, and setting aside thinner ewes for session two of breeding season in a month’s time.This staggered approach keeps lambing organized and prevents overcrowding in the barns.

From rogue rams to the excitement of new breeding groups, this episode is full of action. Stay tuned for the next vlog, where we’ll share how we chose the rams for each group!