The Livestock Project has created a Self-Assessment Disease Prevention Checklist for use on organic or alternative livestock and poultry farms. This easy to use checklist can help point out your strengths as well as areas for improvement This short checklist can be printed and filled out, or filled in online and saved. If you participate … Read more
Items moving on and off your farm or ranch can bring disease. Recognizing movement risks can help you prevent them. The Livestock Project has created a Step 1: Movement risks checklist that can help you recognize and think about the types of movements that happen on your operation. In addition, the checklist can help you … Read more
If you have ever traveled abroad, upon arrival back in the U.S., there are several questions you have to answer. “While you were traveling, did you visit any farms?” is one of them. A separate screening is often required if your answer is yes. Along with the prohibition of bringing fresh produce, meats, and cheeses … Read more
The Livestock Project just posted new resources. The reportable and foreign animal disease FAQ and infographic are available on our website in the Resource section: Reportable and FAD FAQ for organic/alternative producers. With highly pathogenic avian influenza making its way across the US, and African Swine Fever in our hemisphere, it’s more important than ever … Read more
Practicing good animal husbandry helps your herd or flock stay healthy and happy. To do this, we need to train ourselves to monitor the health of our animals. Animal health monitoring involves keeping a close eye on your livestock for signs of illness to catch problems early and prevent minor dilemmas from becoming significant issues. … Read more
Animal stress is different than human stress We may experience stress from a lack of rain to grow our crops, tax season, or just having too much on our plate. Our animals experience stress quite differently. Small things, things we might not even notice, can cause our animals to stop eating. A sunny day in … Read more
What is African Swine Fever (ASF)? Like Foot and Mouth Disease and Classical Swine Fever, African Swine Fever is a foreign animal disease (FAD), meaning it is not known to exist in the United States. In late July of 2021, African Swine Fever (ASF) was found in the Dominican Republic, and soon after, an outbreak … Read more
Animal diseases can be spread by dirty or shared vehicles, ATVs, equipment, and machinery. Having a plan to limit vehicles, equipment, and their movement on your farm or ranch can help prevent disease introduction. Vehicle and equipment movement risks What kinds of vehicle or equipment movement occurs on your farm? Have the vehicles that come … Read more
As organic and alternative producers, we like to allow the animals we raise to exhibit their natural instincts, such as grazing, rooting, and frolicking in open spaces. Many of our animals spend their lives outside to allow this behavior. No matter where you’re located, some sort of wildlife inhabits the same land that you raise … Read more
One of the best ways to teach people about agriculture is to show them firsthand what happens on your farm. This can be through an onsite store, farm tours, or holding workshops on your property. You may need extra farm help and hire an employee or have a friend wanting to learn the ins and … Read more