Author: Anita Duscher

The Livestock Conservancy invites you to celebrate International Heritage Breeds Week  Sunday, May 21 through Saturday, May 27. During the ninth annual celebration, the Conservancy is sharing the critically important message that rare breeds of livestock and poultry are an important part of the climate solutions needed for a changing planet.

Biodiversity matters.  Today, ¾ of the world’s food supply draws on just 12 crops and five livestock species according to the United Nations.  Yet, global demand for livestock products is expected to increase 70 percent by 2050.

“Many of our breeds contain traits carefully developed over hundreds of years,” describes Dr. Judy Brummer, Interim Executive Director for The Livestock Conservancy.  “Today, heritage breeds serve as primary reservoirs of the genetic diversity found within most domesticated species of animals.  Up to 50 percent of a breed’s biodiversity is found nowhere else within the species.”

Breeds of livestock and poultry depend on individual breeders for their survival, as they exist only in domesticated species.  That’s why the Conservancy’s 4,000+ farmers, ranchers, and shepherds throughout America serve as a volunteer army in the fight to save irreplaceable genetics.  Embedded within the DNA of 192 breeds on their Conservation Priority List are sustainable solutions to face tomorrow’s changing environment.  And they’re exquisitely suited to meet today’s small-scale farming and homesteading goals.

Today, Santa Cruz Island sheep are being used for fire mitigation in the drought-stricken west.  Brahma chickens thrive in cold climates as good winter egg layers.  And long-lived Florida Cracker cattle produce excellent beef in hot and humid regions with poor pasture quality.

“Failures in breed conservation are easy to recognize because numbers tell nearly the whole story,” continues Brummer.  “They either fall drastically or the breed becomes extinct, such as the Narragansett Pacer horse in the mid-1800s.  The Pacer’s popularity for crossbreeding led to insufficient pure-blooded breeding stock and eventual breed collapse.  The Livestock Conservancy has worked for more than four decades to ensure that never happens again.”

By raising awareness about these endangered breeds through International Heritage Breeds Week, The Livestock Conservancy promotes their usefulness in providing fiber, meat, milk, work, sport, or conservation grazing. A major factor in successful breed prosperity is the steady demand for the breed’s products and services.

“Each breed best fits a specific environment,” concludes Brummer.  “Yet, when a breed goes extinct, those genetics are lost and can never be recovered.  Many heritage breeds retain traits like natural immunity, drought tolerance, easy birthing, flavor, mothering instincts, and foraging abilities that are important both today and tomorrow.”

To learn more about International Heritage Breeds Week, where to locate heritage breed products in your local area, and how you can get involved in the rare breed conservation of cattle, chickens, donkeys, ducks, geese, goats, horses, pigs, rabbits, sheep, and turkeys, please visit www.LivestockConservancy.org.

Why is genetic diversity important?

Like all ecological systems, agriculture depends on genetic diversity. In domestic animals, genetic diversity is revealed in distinct breeds, each with its different characteristics and uses. Diversity is necessary to adapt food systems to an ever-changing environment. Heritage breeds retain essential attributes for survival and self-sufficiency. These include fertility, foraging ability, longevity, hardiness, maternal instincts, and resistance to diseases and parasites. As agricultural needs change, this genetic diversity will be necessary to ensure adequate food and fiber production. Once lost, genetic diversity is gone forever.

What Are Heritage Breeds?

Heritage breeds are traditional livestock and poultry breeds raised and stewarded for generations. Some of the breeds on the Conservation Priority List have been found in America for more than 500 years.  These breeds were carefully selected over time to emphasize the traits that made them successful in their local environments. They thrived under farming practices and cultural conditions often very different from those found in our modern agricultural systems.

Heritage breeds are in danger of extinction. As agriculture changed over the years, many of these breeds fell out of favor. Heritage breeds store a wealth of genetic resources that are important for our future and the future of our global agricultural food systems.

For more information, please email erjohnson@livestockconservancy.org or call The Livestock Conservancy at (919) 542-5704.  Staff specialists are available for interviews and additional high-resolution photos can be provided upon request from the world’s largest collection of heritage breed photos.

Issuance Date: December 1, 2022

Effective Date: Immediately     

Effective immediately, sheep and goat in-vivo embryos and oocytes from the United Kingdom of Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales) and Northern Ireland will be eligible for import into the United States. Importation of such commodities is only permitted for direct transfer to recipient females in U.S. flocks or herds listed in the National Scrapie Database, or to an Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)-approved embryo storage facility where they may be kept until transfer to the aforementioned recipient females.

The importer of record must meet post-entry requirements pertaining to further distribution of imported embryos/oocytes, identification of any progeny derived from the imported embryos/oocytes, and recordkeeping. The import requirements and post-entry requirements are available on the Live Animal Imports website.

APHIS requires an import permit for importation of sheep and goat embryos/oocytes from the United Kingdom. The shipment must also be accompanied by a health certificate endorsed by the competent authority of the exporting region (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in Great Britain; Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland). Examples of the required health certificates can be found on the APHIS website.

For any questions regarding import of sheep and goat embryos/oocytes from the United Kingdom for transfer to eligible U.S. recipient females, please contact Dr. Mary Kate Anderson at (301)851-3300, Option 2 or e-mail LAIE@usda.gov.

For importation of sheep and goat embryos/oocytes for any purpose other than reproduction, please consult the Veterinary Services Permitting Assistant (VSPA) to determine the relevant import requirements.

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Please share the following link with others who may be interested in these updates. Click here to subscribe to the VS Animal Health Stakeholder Registry. This link will also allow you to change or cancel your subscriptions.

Check out the latest learning opportunity on 11/30/22 from the University of Rhode Island!

Topics will include controlling GI parasites, genetic selection and your breeding program, and use of estimated breeding values (“EBV”), followed by a Q & A with speakers

Sheep and Goat Producers:

The following very timely article comes from Michael Metzger, Michigan State University/ Jackson County Extension’s Small Ruminant Instructor:

As fall approaches, so does the normal breeding season for most sheep and goats. Consideration for things like parasite count, hoof health, body condition scoring, and overall health of breeding stock should be evaluated prior to breeding.

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).

From ASI Weekly, the American Sheep Industry’s newsletter dated September 2, 2022 comes the following item of interest:

This week, Condé Nast Traveler offered online readers a look at wool clothing they should add to their travel wardrobes.

“When you think of wool clothing, your mind probably goes to chunky socks, stiff slacks, or expensive cashmere that you’re afraid to ruin. But a recent push toward sustainable fashion has put wool under a new spotlight, with more brands using the fabric to create clothes that are both functional and fashionable, and wearable in all seasons.

“But what makes wool the perfect fabric for travel clothes? Some may say that wool is too thick and itchy to be comfortable, but wool comes in many forms. Merino wool – for instance – is an ultra-fine and super soft wool that’s lightweight and breathable, creating clothes that are great for adventure travel and city trips in both cold and warm climates. Wool is also odor-resistant – the absorbent fibers in the fabric wick away sweat and lock in odor – so even if you sweat through a wool shirt during a hike in the Adirondacks or a summer day in Paris, once it dries it will be odorless and ready to wear without washing, making it easier to pack light. Wool is also wrinkle-proof, so opting for a wool T-shirt or shift dress on your travels means that you’ll look fresh and polished, even if you forgot to pack a steamer.

“While adventure and performance clothing brands have been harnessing the power of wool for decades, recent fashion-forwards brands like Babaa and Nadaam are putting a stylish spin on the material, creating everything from shoes to dresses – and of course, sweaters – that are perfect for today’s travelers.”

Click Here to find out which eight pieces of clothing the magazine recommended for frequent travelers.

Source: Condé Nast Traveler

GSSB member CB Katzenbach is sharing the following message from NJ extension agent Mike Westendorf regarding the current drought and the potential health problems for all ruminants that may be caused by increasing nitrogen levels in pastures & forage. It’s very timely as most of the area is in moderate to severe drought:

With a large portion of New Jersey receiving abnormally low rainfall during the 2022 growing season there is concern about excess nitrate accumulation in forages.  Excess nitrate in forages can result in sickness and death in cows, sheep, goats, and other ruminants consuming these feeds.

It might be helpful to understand the danger forages containing higher levels of nitrates pose to animal health.  Nitrate is a common form of nitrogen found in the soil, which is taken up by plants and converted to protein in the plant.  Under normal growing conditions, nitrates do not accumulate in the plant. However, when plants are stressed with dry growing conditions, photosynthetic and metabolic processes are inhibited and the potential for accumulation of nitrates increases.

Utilizing drought-affected crops for livestock feed is a common practice; however, producers must consider the potential risks of nitrate toxicity.   Harvesting forage crops that are more susceptible should be done so that the lower segments of the plant stalk, which has the highest chance of storing nitrates, are not harvested.

Ruminant animals can convert nitrate to nitrite and ammonia in the rumen and detoxify nitrate.  When the level of nitrate builds up in the rumen due to higher levels in the diet rumen microbes cannot convert all the nitrate present to ammonia because the conversion of nitrate to nitrite occurs more quickly than the conversion of nitrite to ammonia. If levels of nitrate are great enough, nitrite will accumulate in the rumen and be absorbed through the wall of the rumen into the blood supply.  Nitrite can combine with hemoglobin in the blood and convert it to methemoglobin, which will carry very little oxygen to the tissues.  The first sign of nitrate poisoning is often dead animals.  Other physical signs of nitrate poisoning include difficult breathing, muscle incoordination and staggering, diarrhea and frequent urination, heavy salivation, cyanosis, and collapse.  Sublethal poisoning may result in a loss of appetite, lowered milk production, slow growth, abortions, and poor fertility.

A couple precautions about feeding drought affected forages containing high levels of nitrates:

1. Order of feeding priority: Silage > Hay > Grazing > Green chop. Ensiling will destroy 40-60% of nitrates. Therefore, silage crops will have the lowest levels of nitrates due to bacterial destruction. Producing forage for dry hay does not destroy nitrates. Green chop will be the riskiest to feed. If nitrate levels are high enough, ensiling may be the only way to salvage the forage.
2. Never feed forage containing greater than 1.5% nitrate.  Ruminants, especially cows, can be fed forage containing <1.5% nitrate if slowly adapted and provided the forage is only a portion of the diet.
3. If contamination is suspected or if animals are showing signs of toxicity, the best option is to call a veterinarian, they will be able to provide veterinary treatment.

The attached factsheet and the link to a Plant and Pest Advisory https://plant-pest-advisory.rutgers.edu/feeding-nitrate-containing-forages/ article will give you more information if you get questions.

Educational material will be provided, and meetings are planned to help with questions. The State Department of Agriculture is planning a testing program through their feed laboratory to assist producers in managing affected forages.

Contact Meredith Melendez, Agricultural Agent II and Associate Professor, Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Mercer County, by calling 609-989-6830 for additional  information.