Ozarks Farm & Neighbor Newspaper – written for, by & about farmers

Where do you stand on the NAIS issue?

Legislation to address global climate change squeezed through the U.S. House in June, but action in the Senate has been postponed, and farm interests remain divided on the issue.

With a wet summer coming to a close, pink eye is as much of a threat as ever. Pink eye, or Infectious Bovine Keratoconjunctivitis (IBK), is a bacterial disease of the eye in cattle (though another form can be found in goat herds as well). The disease is usually not fatal, though the economic damages from decreased weight gain, decreased milk production and treatment were estimated to be at least $150 million per year in the United States alone.

A tax case, Mullins v. United States, decided in the United States District Court in Knoxville, Tenn., considered an individual who owned and operated a cattle-raising operation who claimed he was entitled to deduct losses over a period of years. The court issued an opinion which focused on the fact that the taxpayer had consulted industry and legal experts, and that the land used for the cattle operation had appreciated in value. The court held that these factors indicated the individual's profit motive.

Pneumonia is one of the most common respiratory problems encountered by sheep and goat producers. While pneumonia may be much less common a problem than other health concerns such as internal parasites, it can still cause significant losses in production and occasional death loss within any given herd. Occasionally, producers may experience an outbreak of disease that leads to numerous animals affected and severe losses. My experience suggests that summertime represents an increased number of cases in southwest Missouri.

Name:  Amy Crawford
Family:  Greg and Lynne Crawford; older sister, Emily
FFA:  Marshfield FFA