AnimalNet Jan. 6/09
SWITZERLAND:
China confirms bird flu death
OPINION: NBAF
is a perfect fit for a college town
UK: Bovine TB
outbreak on Pembrokeshire farm
ARKANSAS:
Lawmakers want tougher animal cruelty law
MISSOURI
Cattlemen Association endorses eradication of feral hogs
UK: New
slaughterhouse requirement for calves
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SWITZERLAND:
China confirms bird flu death
06.jan.09
New York Times
Reuters
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2009/01/06/world/international-birdflu-china-hongkong.html
GENEVA -- China's health ministry has confirmed that a
19-year-old woman died of the H5N1 bird flu virus in
Beijing, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on
Tuesday.
China recorded three bird flu cases last year, all fatal.
The bird flu virus is constantly mutating, and experts fear
it could change into a form that is easily transmitted from
person to person and kill millions of people worldwide.
At present, H5N1 remains mainly a bird virus, but WHO data
released in mid-December showed 247 people had died from it
out of 391 cases since the virus resurfaced in Asia in 2003.
"We received confirmation of the case from the Chinese
health ministry. A 19-year-old woman died on Monday in
Beijing of H5N1," WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said in
Geneva. He had no further information.
OPINION: NBAF
is a perfect fit for a college town
06.jan.09
K-State Media
Ralph Richardson, DVM
MANHATTAN -- Much has been written about the advantages and
disadvantages of locating the National Bio- and Agro-Defense
Facility, or NBAF, on the mainland of the United States.
Further discussions have been held about the pros and cons
of locating this facility in Kansas, near our nation's
epicenter for beef production.
One point of agreement by all interested parties is that the
United States does need a new, advanced facility to replace
the aging Plum Island Animal Disease Center in New York.
What have not been central to most public discussions are
the reasons why a college town like Manhattan, Kan., and a
university like Kansas State University create an ideal
setting for the NBAF.
As a result of federal support, K-State has a long and rich
history for addressing the needs of agriculture. We have a
responsibility to hold true to that heritage. Originally
named Kansas State Agricultural College, K-State is one of
the first -- if not the first -- land-grant institutions
created under the Morrill Act of 1862. Land-grant
universities are institutions of higher education that have
been designated by each state to receive the benefits of the
Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890. These acts support the
liberal and practical education of working classes of people
with an express emphasis on agriculture, military tactics,
the mechanical arts and home economics.
The mission of the land-grant universities was expanded by
the Hatch Acts of 1887, which provided federal funds to
states to establish a series of agricultural experiment
stations under the direction of each state's land-grant
college. What greater academic heritage could we wish for to
support the bio- and agro-defense needs of our country?
Top-notch research faculty members are attracted to
universities where good science, modern facilities and a
supportive environment exist. K-State has been known as a
great place to work for nearly 150 years and, particularly
in the past decade, has become known as one of the leading
institutions in the country where scientists can pursue
research in food safety, infectious diseases, animal health
and productivity, and public health.
As a result of focusing on these important areas of
research, K-State is already attracting outstanding faculty
members to campus. Since 1999, the number of scientists
working in these areas has increased from about 125 to more
than 150.
One of the university's newest faculty members is Juergen
Richt, a specialist in emerging viral diseases, who moved to
K-State from his former position as lead scientist at the
U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Animal Disease
Center and has been named as a Regents Distinguished
Professor by the Kansas Board of Regents, a Kansas Eminent
Scholar in Animal Health by the Kansas Bioscience Authority,
and lead investigator of the animal facility for K-State's
Biosecurity Research Institute, or BRI, in Pat Roberts Hall.
Although they would not be traditional faculty members, NBAF
researchers in Manhattan -- coupled with the animal health
and comparative medicine work forces associated with the
Kansas City Animal Health Corridor, the medical schools of
Kansas City and the K-State Olathe Innovation Campus -- will
create a critical mass of scientists that will catapult
K-State to the world's hub of animal health and food safety
investigators. Such outstanding researchers and teachers
will make K-State a better academic institution and
Manhattan a better community. Because prospective faculty
members want to be part of a progressive program, future
faculty recruitment will be enhanced.
Students are the reason universities exist, and K-State is
home to some of the best and the brightest. If you don't
believe that, just ask President Jon Wefald about K-State's
Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater and Udall scholarship
winners. Preparing students to address the agricultural and
biological threats that face our world fits well with the
educational mission of K-State. Whether they are
undergraduate, graduate or professional students, they come
from around the world and, at least for a while, make
Manhattan their home.
Why do they come? The reasons are many, but signature
programs are key factors in attracting and retaining
outstanding students. Already the BRI has brought great
recognition to K-State and has increased student interest in
infectious disease research and public health. With the
NBAF, K-State students will be even more aware that
important research is going on in our community. With that
increased awareness, some will be drawn into careers that
will make them educators or research scientists, and make
them more engaged in biosecurity programs for their
communities, states, our nation and the world. In addition,
access to federal laboratories and role-model researchers
will be markedly enhanced, particularly compared to the
current ability to gain access to the scientists and aging
facilities at Plum Island.
The next generation of scientists will emerge from a
background that understands agriculture, animal diseases and
food production. K-State graduates will have the opportunity
to be at the forefront of this wave of work force
development. When they leave our community, K-State
graduates will help make this world a better place.
Great faculty members, fantastic students, outstanding
programs and facilities -- what more could anyone ask for to
make a wonderful university and community even better? The
NBAF will elevate Manhattan's commitment to education and
create an environment that will make it an even more
wonderful place to live. Generating new knowledge through
research, enhancing opportunities through education, and
building programs that meet societal needs are foundational
responsibilities for land-grant institutions. The NBAF needs
to be located in close proximity to a major university, and
I cannot think of a better one than Kansas State University.
UK: Bovine TB
outbreak on Pembrokeshire farm
06.jan.09
Tivy-Side Advertiser
http://www.tivysideadvertiser.co.uk/news/4019965.Bovine_TB_outbreak_on_Pembrokeshire_farm/
A local organic milk company whose customers include the
Welsh Rugby Union and Chelsea Football Club is this week
having its pedigree herd slaughtered because of a bovine
tuberculosis outbreak.
Hundreds of Holstein Friesians in a herd of more than a
thousand at Ffosyficer Farm, Abercych, that provide milk for
the Trioni company which has customers worldwide, have
already been put down after the disease was discovered
recently.
The outbreak, which is confined to one north Pembrokeshire
farm, has prompted fresh calls for a badger cull as a means
of controlling bovine TB.
ARKANSAS:
Lawmakers want tougher animal cruelty law
06.jan.09
Arkansas Matters
Lauren Lea
http://arkansasmatters.com/content/fulltext/news/?cid=172411
Arkansas is one of five states in the nation without a
felony provision for animal cruelty, but some lawmakers want
to change that. On Monday, Dr. Mary Lou Randour with the
Humane Society of the United States spoke before the
Arkansas Legislative Task Force on Abused and Neglected
Children about the link between abusing animals and abusing
children.
"When you think about it, it obviously makes sense families
where there is child abuse, there is also animal abuse
occurring," Randour said.
MISSOURI
Cattlemen Association endorses eradication of feral hogs
06.jan.09
Southeast Missourian
Brian Blackwell
http://www.semissourian.com/article/20090105/NEWS01/701069990
The Missouri Cattlemens Association has endorsed the
Missouri Department of Conservation's efforts to eradicate
feral hogs, a species the organization of 5,000 members
believes could pose a threat to its industry.
Found mostly in the southern part of the state including
Wayne and Bollinger counties, these domestic hogs turned
wild compete with native species for food and are known to
kill fawns and eat eggs of ground-nesting birds. This can
result in feral hogs uprooting pastureland, which may
contribute to soil erosion.
Jeff Windett, executive vice president of the Missouri
Cattlemens Association, said between 200 and 300 members of
his organization recently passed a policy during its annual
meeting to address this problem.
"The feral hogs do a lot of damage to pastureland and they
can cause a lot of damage to private property as well,"
Windett said. "Even a small [number of hogs] can cause a lot
of headaches for farmers."
Rex Martensen, field program supervisor and feral hog expert
with the Missouri Department of Conservation, said that four
to five pigs can uproot 10 to 20 acres of pastureland
overnight.
He said they also may carry such diseases as swine
brucellosis, pseudorabies, trichinosis and leptospirosis.
Martensen said if the disease were transferred from feral
hogs to domestic swine, it could force the owner to
quarantine his whole herd or, if an infected domestic hog
was sold before the problem was discovered, may even shut
down the import and export of pork in the state of Missouri.
That could result in millions of dollars lost for the
industry, Martensen said.
To curtail the problem, the department of conservation has
suggested trapping or shooting the feral hogs on sight.
However, the department said intentionally setting the wild
hogs free and then hunting them is illegal.
The conservation department warns the public to use extreme
caution when encountering the hogs.
"They're not like these cute little pigs you may commonly
associate with swine," said A.J. Hendershott, regional
supervisor for outreach and education with the department of
conservation office in Cape Girardeau. "They're very
dangerous to humans and tend to have very bad attitudes."
Martensen said while no one has been injured yet, the feral
hogs have chased some individuals.
"It's a matter of time when someone gets hurt," he said.
In addition to the eradication of feral hogs, the cattlemens
association passed other policies endorsing the Missouri
Department of Agriculture's efforts to both control Bovine
Viral Diarrhea-persistent infection and increase funding in
its Animal Health Division.
The association wants breeders to voluntarily test herds
each year to certify they have a clean heard in efforts to
control Bovine Viral Diarrhea-persistent infection, a virus
which affects cattle. Windett also hopes the Missouri
Department of Agriculture can receive full funding for its
Animal Health Division, which has seen its county
veterinarian staff dwindle from 45 in the 1990s to nine
today, according to Dr. Taylor Woods with the department.
"Funding has dwindled in the past decade," Windett said. "If
we're going to protect the state's livestock industry, we
need a very viable department of agriculture."
UK: New
slaughterhouse requirement for calves
06.jan.09
Food Standards Agency
http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2009/jan/calves
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has announced the
implementation of new regulations that require
slaughterhouses to ask for information about calves received
for slaughter.
The new legal requirement for Food Chain Information (FCI)
applies to calves, which are defined as animals less than
eight months of age. FCI includes information about the farm
from which the calves came, their history of rearing and
their health, including details of medicines they may have
received.
The responsibility for obtaining the FCI will be with
slaughterhouse operators. The FSA has worked closely with
them and other stakeholders to develop guidance, which can
be found at the link below, and to make them aware of the
new requirements for calves, which were implemented on 1
January 2009. This follows a similar process that came into
force at the beginning of 2008 where operators were required
to provide FCI for pigs.
Kenneth Clarke, FSA Veterinary Adviser, said: 'Food chain
information is an important element of the farm-to-fork
approach to food safety and can contribute to the
application of risk-based inspection systems at
slaughterhouses. We wish to encourage slaughterhouse
operators to use the guidance we have published to develop
FCI systems that best suit their businesses. We have a
bigger task ahead to implement FCI for all cattle and sheep
in 2010, and will continue to work with industry to produce
useful and practical solutions.'
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