Working Group Discusses Herd Security
Group explores strategies for maintaining herd health security, with particular attention to bovine viral diarrhea (BVD).
by Troy Smith for Angus Journal®
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Feb. 5, 2014) — Scheduled during the 2014 Cattle Industry Convention, hosted Feb. 3-7 in Nashville, Tenn., were meetings of “working groups,” which function as subcommittees of National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) policy committees. The Beef Cattle Herd Security/BVD Working Group’s charge is to explore strategies for maintaining herd health security, with particular attention to bovine viral diarrhea (BVD), and report the NCBA’s Cattle Health & Well-Being Committee.
Speakers at the meeting included Eileen Thacker, a research veterinarian with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service. Thacker spoke about ongoing BVD research, including studies of various strains of the disease virus found in the field, which are being compared with strains currently included in vaccines. Thacker said the objective is to determine if vaccine composition needs to change, based on prevalence of problematic strains of the BVD virus. Thacker also discussed research of the HoBi virus, which, due to its similarity to the BVD virus, could confuse test results.
Mississippi State University veterinarian David Smith spoke about risk analysis for herd security decision making, outlining steps including risk assessment, risk mitigation and documentation of the process. Smith said risk analysis may reveal that, contrary to popular opinion, routine vaccination is not always justified economically. Factors influencing the decision include herd size, the level of risk presented by a specific disease, and the cost of vaccination compared with potential costs of a disease outbreak.
“There are situations where it may not be economically advantageous to vaccinate,” stated Smith. “The decision is unique to each operation. For some, a decision not to vaccinate may be logical.”
Also on the agenda was University of Hawaii veterinarian Ashley Stokes, who explained protocols associated with preparation and transport of weaned calves from Hawaii to feedlots on the mainland. Protocols address health, sanitation and nutrition, along other management associated with nine-day shipment by sea.
University of Nebraska veterinarian and Working Group Chairman Dale Groteleuschen praised the Hawaii program as good example of preconditioning, attention to animal well-being and biosecurity measures, which involves planning and execution of protocols before, during and after shipment.
Also announced during the meeting were plans for future BVD symposia to be convened in College Station, Texas, and Kansas City, Mo.
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