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State vet explores options to keep cattleman in business

South Dakota State Veterinarian Dr. Dustin Oedekoven says South Dakota beef cattle that tested positive for bovine TB will be removed from the herd, but with an eye toward keeping the herd owner in business.

“Sometimes those two goals are tough to reconcile,” Oedekoven told Brownfield Ag News Monday, “but we’ll be working with the area ranchers and trying to take the best measures possible to make sure we can eradicate TB from the area.”

Bovine TB was confirmed in a Northwest South Dakota beef herd.  Oedekoven says the state has been officially bovine TB-free since 1982, despite confirmed cases in 2009 and 2011.

“This case is progressing similarly,” he said.  “We are working as quickly as we can with neighboring ranchers to evaluate the extent of the disease and consider our options, and I think so long as we continue to thoroughly and timely investigate this occurrence, there should be no effect to our TB-free status.”

Bovine TB is respiratory and does not spread easily.  Infected animals can transmit the infection to other animals even if they appear healthy.  Milk pasteurization and meat inspection have prevented bovine TB from being a food safety threat, according to Oedekoven.

AUDIO: Dr. Dustin Oedekoven (14 min. MP3)

 

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