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Corvallis, OR, United States
My personal obsession with prion diseases with smidges of music I like and rescue dog advocacy from a disabled Oregonian.

8.16.2009

Mad Cow News, June 2009


US: Where's the beef?

Heaven, a Brown Swiss cow with expressive eyes and a patch of curly hair, has three ID cards. The inside of her left ear is tattooed with one number; yellow plastic name tags with another number dangle from both ears; and a silver clip with a third number clings to the top of her right ear. The Obama administration thinks farm animals like Heaven should just have one number and one ID. Heaven's owner, dairy farmer Melissa Greenback of Durham, agrees. Some of Greenback's records refer to her 350 cows by one number, and some by another number, depending on the purpose. "One uniform system would be beneficial," she says.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture wants to require all farmers to register their animals with one unique identifier, buy and install microchips or radio frequency identification "buttons" in their animals and report their animals' movements to a national database. Hartford Advocate News


US: Ranchers say 'no' to mandatory animal ID

No. No. No. That was the resounding message that area ranchers delivered to federal agriculture officials here to gather their opinions on a proposed mandatory National Animal Identification System. More than 300 ranchers packed into a meeting room at the Rushmore Plaza Holiday Inn for a U.S. Department of Agriculture listening session on the proposed NAIS. The system would use a combination of identification devices and computerized records to track livestock in the event of a disease outbreak. Of the approximately 60 people who spoke Thursday morning, only two voiced support for the proposed mandatory system of animal ID. Rapid City Journal Link



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