Farm & Ranch

Ty Woods: ‘Headed’ to the NFR

Published

5 years ago

March 1, 2019

NTFR

When Ty Woods arrived in Las Vegas for the Junior National Finals Rodeo, his thoughts weren’t on winning the open with a pint-sized 10-year-old he had never met. He was there to win a championship with his best friend and roping partner, Catcher Gasperson.

“I had expectations of winning the number 10 division. Catcher and I were good enough, there’s no reason we shouldn’t have won, but we just didn’t do any good. That’s why we were there, we worked all year for it,” explained Woods.

The best friends from Decatur, Texas, had spent the last year traveling the country, from Decatur to Colorado, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico, working to qualify for the Junior NFR.

Halfway through the year, Woods decided to throw his hat in the opens, with a shot at qualifying for both in Vegas, and managed to do just that by the hair on his chinny-chin-chin. The 15-year-old son of Tony and Christi Woods and Dianna Woods would go to Vegas ranked sixth with partner Gasperson and 15th – last for the open.

“We had our standards set to win, but not the open. Winning it came from our blind-sides,” recalled Woods.

To read more pick up a copy of the March 2019 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.

Farm & Ranch

Hazards of Backyard Poultry

Published

1 week 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.