Disease-control webinars offered to farmers
University of Maine Cooperative Extension and the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry — Animal Health Division will offer webinars in October to help livestock producers lay a strong foundation for disease control ahead of any infection that may be introduced to swine, sheep, goats or beef cattle.
The free webinars will be held at 12:15 p.m. Oct. 7 for swine, Oct. 14 for sheep, Oct. 21 for goats and Oct. 28 for beef cattle. Veterinarians and livestock staff from UMaine Extension and MDACF will review the basic elements of livestock biosecurity, introduce suggested record-keeping and official animal identification systems, and demonstrate these tools in action using a hypothetical livestock disease event.
Discussion will include the use of the USDA Animal Disease Traceability program to implement farm-level contact tracing to prevent disease and prepare for verification of livestock health if there is an animal disease outbreak in the region.
Registration is required online on the Nip Livestock Disease in the Bud: Create Your Own Contact Tracing Program page. Register in advance with this Zoom Meeting Registration Form.