Ranchers to hear about persistent BVD

Washington Ag February 17, 2009 Washington State University’s Bovine Viral Diarrhea Control and Eradication Project will be the subject of a lunch time telephone presentation for ranchers scheduled for Wednesday, February 25th. Dr. John Wenz of WSU’s Field Animal Disease Investigative Unit will review first year findings of the project that started last year. Wenz: “And the goal of the project is to identify and eliminate these persistently infected BVD animals, because that is the source of continued infection in the herd. So we can eliminate them from the herd with the idea of reducing disease and death loss, reproductive losses, that are associated with BVD.� The project’s first year results show a higher than normal herd BVD infection rate in Washington, although Wenz cautions that this rate could decrease as more herds are tested. And that’s one thing Wenz is doing, recruiting as many herds as he can for the project. Wenz: “The project is not only a testing project, we are also trying to institute best management practices that are going to improve cow herd health. That includes just some good record keeping, comprehensive vaccination program and otherwise reducing the risk of exposure to infectious disease.� The teleconference February 25th is at 12:15 p.m. Contact WSU Extension in Davenport to register at 509-725-4171 or download a flier at http://livestocktopics.wsu.edu Registration is $5 for a series of conferences. I’m Bob Hoff and that’s Washington Ag Today on the Northwest Ag Information Network.