Screw worm warning!

[S-3 ranch]

Where fly maggots were used to clean some wounds by clearing dead flesh from an infection, the "screw worm" feeds on living flesh!

No , verified NWS on a neighboring ranch , they had 2 more cows with them
In zone #8

 

[Crossweaponary]

These thread brings back the nostalgic memories when I was a child

 

[Amos Keeto]

No , verified NWS on a neighboring ranch , they had 2 more cows with them
In zone #8

I fear it's going to get worse before it were better!

These thread brings back the nostalgic memories when I was a child

I remember the screw worm epidemic. I also remember the "blackleg" scourge around that same time!

How many of you are aware that anthrax in America was discovered in Jim Hogg County in South Texas?

 

[naked wombats]

How many of you are aware that anthrax in America was discovered in Jim Hogg County in South Texas?

Man, certain years around rocksprings and leakey we always wondered why animal numbers seemed down. Come to find out a wet spring followed by hot summer equalled anthrax outbreak.

 

[Customweld]

Man, certain years around rocksprings and leakey we always wondered why animal numbers seemed down. Come to find out a wet spring followed by hot summer equalled anthrax outbreak.

Wait... I thought Anthrax was one of the original Big 4 thrash bands!

 

[S-3 ranch]

Man, certain years around rocksprings and leakey we always wondered why animal numbers seemed down. Come to find out a wet spring followed by hot summer equalled anthrax outbreak.

Yeah we have been lucky anthrax hasn’t crossed I-10 in years.
But one year a neighbor got hit hard, killed about 200+ head of cattle and all his deer, government came in with bulldozers and dug a giant hole and drug all the dead stuff in dumped thousands of old tires on them and set it on fire and then covered it back up with new dirt.
Anthrax is usually sporadic and spotty, so after about 4-5 years of natural recruiting the deer are back . I not as optimistic about this NWS spreading

 

[RockAndSage]

Yeah we have been lucky anthrax hasn’t crossed I-10 in years.
But one year a neighbor got hit hard, killed about 200+ head of cattle and all his deer, government came in with bulldozers and dug a giant hole and drug all the dead stuff in dumped thousands of old tires on them and set it on fire and then covered it back up with new dirt.
Anthrax is usually sporadic and spotty, so after about 4-5 years of natural recruiting the deer are back . I not as optimistic about this NWS spreading

That's interesting about the tires being used, and makes sense in adding heat and toxins over the anthrax spores. Natural anthrax isn't like other bacteria or viruses that livestock have to deal with. It's endemic to the soil, especially in areas that are grassy but slightly arid. It's mostly an issue of bad luck in any given grazing animal turning some up out of the soil, but a sheep is the most likely to get hit first, due to how they graze, and with a smaller body mass it means a harsher, quicker infection from a smaller number of spores. It doesn't spread animal-to-animal though - it's more of an environmental contaminant. The biggest danger comes from the dead carcasses, which essentially turn into spore bombs and infect the plants and soil around them. Flies are what transmits a lot of that bacteria from the carcasses to the live animals.