Farm & Ranch

North Texas Cattleman’s Conference set for Oct. 24

Published

10 years ago

October 9, 2014

NTFR

DENTON – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in Denton County and the Denton County Extension Agriculture Committee, in conjunction with Cooke, Grayson, Collin and Fannin counties, is hosting the North Texas Cattleman’s Conference.

The conference will be held from 8:30 a.m.-4:15 p.m. at the church located at 8690 Liberty Road, said Brandon Boughen, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agent for Denton County.

Preregistration is required by Oct. 20 to receive lunch. Registration will be $35 per person if preregistered or $40 at the door, he said. Registration forms can be found on the website for AgriLife Extension for Denton County at http://denton.agrilife.org/agriculture-natural-resources. Participants will receive two pesticide applicator continuing education units and two Beef Quality Assurance credits.

The main entre of lunch will be steak, and refreshments will be made available throughout the day, Boughen said.

“This year we have chosen the topic of ‘Managing Risk to Increase Economic Sustainability in Your Cattle Operation,’” he said. “Anyone who raises cattle for profit understands that sustainability equals staying in business and there are more and more factors today than ever before.”

The keynote speaker will be Dr. Jude Capper, a self-employed sustainability consultant and an adjunct professor in the department of animal sciences at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, he said.

“She specializes in communicating the importance of livestock industry sustainability and the factors affecting sustainability,” Boughen said. “Dr. Capper also specializes in enhancing the knowledge and understanding of stakeholders within food production from the rancher and farmer through to the retailer, policy-maker and consumer.”

Boughen said six other speakers will round out the day’s program, speaking on topics ranging from “replacement heifers to adding value to your product and marketing.”

Agricultural equipment dealers and representatives from several feed, pharmaceutical and other agricultural sector companies will be on hand to answer questions.

“Today we hear the word ‘sustainable’ everywhere, and I’m not sure most people understand what it means for a business to be sustainable,” Boughen said. “Producers who attend this conference will not only learn what economic sustainability is, but will get ideas to put to use in their operation.”

For more information, contact Boughen or Pamela Hill, office manager at the AgriLife Extension office in Denton County, at 940-349-2894.

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Farm & Ranch

Hazards of Backyard Poultry

Published

3 days ago

April 21, 2024

NTFR

By Barry Whitworth, DVM

Having backyard poultry is a popular agriculture enterprise. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, 0.8 percent of all households in the United States have chickens. People keep chickens for a variety of reasons with table eggs being one of the more common reasons.

Unfortunately, some of these poultry producers are not aware of the hazards that come with keeping poultry because many times they carry pathogens but appear healthy.
Chickens are carriers of several zoonotic diseases. These are diseases that can be passed from animals to humans. According to a recent survey in Pennsylvania, a majority of backyard poultry producers were aware of the dangers of avian influenza. However, this study also revealed that far fewer producers were aware of the risk of possible exposure to Salmonella and Campylobacter.

The lack of knowledge about the hazards of raising poultry likely contributes to the continued issues of Salmonella outbreaks associated with backyard poultry. In 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 1,072 illnesses of Salmonella linked to backyard poultry, and 272 of those patients required hospitalization. Oklahoma reported 43 individuals with the disease.

To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.