Fit for a Pet: The Truth About Pet Foods: Introduction to an Developimg Online Nutrition Cou...

Fit for a Pet: The Truth About Pet Foods: Introduction to an Developimg Online Nutrition Cou...: "“To repeatwhat others have said requires education; To challenge it requires brains” Mary Pettibone Poole Nutrition affects every living..."

Fit for a Pet: The Truth About Pet Foods: Introduction to an Developimg Online Nutrition Cou...

Fit for a Pet: The Truth About Pet Foods: Introduction to an Developimg Online Nutrition Cou...: "“To repeatwhat others have said requires education; To challenge it requires brains” Mary Pettibone Poole Nutrition affects every living..."

Let's discuss bio security

Bio security what  does this mean to you personally as a livestock producer, one who rises sheep or goats? How many of you have experienced losses in your animals  from diseases that  you innocently brought on your property:

·        through the purchase of already infected animals,

·        by visiting a farm, a livestock auction, a livestock show

·         through the purchase of feedstuffs

·         perhaps through the shearer

·         by bringing in kittens for mouse  control

·         perhaps you have no idea how your animals became infected.

·        Purchasing animals that have a genetic predisposition

When this happens the losses can be devastating .  There re  many common diseases of sheep and goats that a producer must be particularly vigilant . Some of these diseases are:

·        Johne's disease

·        Caprine Arthritis and Encephalitis

·        Enzootic Abortion

·        Orf

·        Q fever

·        Scrapie

·        Caseous Lymphadenitis

Bio security is a word conjured up by possibly academics or governmental people that describes measures by which a producer can prevent these devastating diseases. One can be cynical about the use of these terms but this cynicism is quickly lost when a producer becomes a victim to one of these problems.

Many of these problems have far reaching implications as to the viability of the operation involved.

The reason why I am sending out this e-mail to all my contacts and posting this on my blog www.theamazinggoat. blogspot.com is to try and promote this concept of bio security and a healthy discussion about what  you as sheep and goat producers think should be done to prevent these diseases from occurring. Also one has to consider the some of the programs recommended in the prevention of these diseases can be quite costly to the producer. This raises the question who should be paying for some of these procedures. The majority of sheep and goat operations are small and do not have the resources that the large pig and  poultry producers have to implement strict bio security measures

Causes of Early Embryonic Death in Goats

Conception to 90 days:

Signs

•Early Embryonic death

•Delayed return to heat/ prolonged  breeding season

•impaired placental growth

•Decreased # of live kids

•sporadic malformations

•Small weak kids

•Does in poor body condition

Causes:

•Urea/NPN in diet

•Remove Urea from diet

•If protein required add protein

•Internal/external  \parasite 

•Check for parasites prior to breeding 

•deworm

•Fed 20 to 30 % Below nutritional requirements

•Formulate an appropriate ration  Put on a rising plane of nutrition at breeding

•Heat stress 1o increase in body temperature

•Provide shelter from the heat

•Chronic disease johnes, scrapie, pneumonia, caseous lymphadenitis

•bad teeth

•Cull

Update on Nepal Goats in Namibia

By Barry Burtis  http://www.baycitiesanimalhospital.ca/ Hi Meg, Thanks again for your help with our trip to Nepal. Everything went well. Here I am asking for your help again, This time it is for a family with goats in Namibia. I am sending two of my pet columns that appear in the Burlington Post to help explain the situation. I want to try to get them some help. I will be a challenge. However, I thought that if you might be able to send me another of your goat health books, I would contact the supervisor of the train we travelled on to see if he would deliver the book to them, next time he passes through Rehoboth. As you can see, it is a remote spot in this world. Thanks again for any help you can offer, Barry

Up Date on Round Up

More information on Round up. THIS NEWS IS JUST BREAKING – February 18, 2011an open letter to the USDA has been just made public by COL (Ret.) Don M. Huber, Emeritus Professor, Purdue University title: Glyphosate Roundup or Round Up Ready Crops May Cause Animal Miscarriages – and the revelation is shocking .THIS IS WHY RONNIE CUMMINS of the ORGANIC CONSUMERS ASSOCIATION IS 100% CORRECT IN HIS ABSOLUTIST STAND –

When were goats actually domesticated?

An interesting article on the domestication of Goats By Ravi Wells