Best of luck.

Scary.

Heres something to scare you.

Someone I know has chickens, and she called about having her flock pullorum tested.

She came home one day, just as the state vet tech was leaving her property. She didn't know they were coming, and apparently they went around her property looking for animals. They asked her if she had any more there that they didn't see, rattled off the number of animals that they did count, and said that they had already entered her in their database for gps location. The state tech was in the area and decided to check her out.

My friend felt that they shouldn't have done all that without asking her permission first.

It makes me think twice about having my chickens tested....

M

Is this the same ID that cattle producers are getting to identify the origin of possible cattle that test positive for Mad Cow? Eventually , each calf will be tagged and all info for point of origin, vaccinations, and etc will be recorded. Some good reasons for this, some pain in the neck too.

An I.D. number will protect neither your animals nor the public. Disease is spread by industrial agriculture, and they don't want to stop disease, or even find out how big the problem really is, because that would mean no more moving animals. So instead, they put on this window dressing to try to make people think something is being done about the problem, even when it does nothing.

When the scrapie program got started, small flocks suspected of having scrapie were unceremoniously destroyed. They weren't diagnosed first. They were just put down because of someone's suspicion. How many vets does your state have? Mine has just one, and he won't be checking animals during an outbreak to see if they really do have a disease. There are too many animals and not enough vets. They'll just round up animals and kill them. And the animals they'll go for first are those belonging to homesteaders and hobbyists who have I.D. numbers. The big guys who have vets on staff (or at least someone in an out of state office who will sign off) will get a free pass.

The search of property without a warrant is illegal. The person making the search is violating the Constitution.

I solemnly affirm that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

I won't be getting one of those numbers.

Dan

huisjen states:

"When the scrapie program got started, small flocks suspected of having scrapie were unceremoniously destroyed. They weren't diagnosed first. They were just put down because of someone's suspicion. How many vets does your state have? Mine has just one, and he won't be checking animals during an outbreak to see if they really do have a disease. There are too many animals and not enough vets. They'll just round up animals and kill them. And the animals they'll go for first are those belonging to homesteaders and hobbyists who have I.D. numbers. The big guys who have vets on staff (or at least someone in an out of state office who will sign off) will get a free pass."

Everyone has a right to their opinion. However, I get frustrated at the misinformation that is spread and bothered by the fact that people read this and believe it.

Our neighbor culled some of his ewes and sold them at the local sale barn. He received a call from the USDA that one of his ewes tested positive for scrapie (based on the ewe having his flock scrapie tag) at the slaughter plant. The USDA did not destroy his whole herd. They quickly and quietly came in and tested his whole flock. They did find four ewes that tested positive. They required those ewes to be destroyed and paid $250 each.

I'm not defending the animal id program just stating what I know to be a fact about the scrapie program.

ConAgra & Beatrice must love the NAIS - it means less competition. Smaller ranchers are scramblin' & homebodies w/a few animals are reading & re-reading the reg's hoping to find a way out for their half dozen laying hens or their PET goat or their KIDS 4-H project ! ! !

Here's a link to a very informative article written by an extremely knowledge guy. Also, enter 'NAIS' in their site search engine and you'll get to read other folks first hand experiences and opinions (which vary).

I don't own my slice of heaven - yet - but I sure hope that Congress DOES NOT refund the NAIS.

Here is a link that might be useful: Backwoods Home Magazine

Gosh, I can't believe all the misinformation being put out about the NAIS . To start with , many of us cattlemen think the government is dragging its feet on this program. I can only speak to the cattle program, but, I can see many benefits to the program. Most purebred cattle producers allready use some system of identification. How else can you keep track of bloodlines in your breeding stock. I wouldn't consider buying a herd bull from someone who had no idea of the genetics of his herd, along with birth date,parental information,birth weight, average daily gain, yearling wt,and tons more information.. I also see no problem with being able to backtrack to the parent herd any animal which tests positive for mad cow , or tb, or any other serious livestock diseases. If we had a national id system in place last year, I wouldn't have lost as much money when the Canadian cow tested for mad cow. Right now,I can realize a premium from being able to prove age and origin of my calf crop when I sell them to a feedlot.
I really get amused (?) at the "sky is falling" "its all a government conspiracy" balony that some misinformed people put out.

ksfarmer, do you support the constitution or not?

Dan

I don't think it is right to force us small farmers who don't sell or spread our animals anywhere, we only raise them for our own consumption, and if there was an outbreak in my animals of something, I would know where it came from , here.
I don't want the animal people here, to tell me where my animals can be, I don't want to have to report if I ride a horse through the woods and off my property,even for an hour. I don't want to have to report if my goat has a baby and it doesn't live very long and why and etc etc etc etc. It is infringement on the small farm owner. Yes it may be alright for the big farms that provide food to many people in the food market. But leave the small farmer that does it as a hobby and is self contained alone in the matter.
Don't force religion on anybody seems to be the theme most places, well I say don't force government on me.
I pay my taxes and am honest about it, I'm not on welfare or get any money from the government. so leave me out of this.

Dan, Whether or not I support the constitution has absolutely nothing to do with the price of BS.

ksfarmer- Yes you're right, there are many specialty and large scale ranchers/breeders using tracking systems of some sort - but a federally mandated system? Oh Come on! Just on the governments proven track record of (in)efficiency - ya ought to be skeptical.

I'm soo not a conspiracy theorist - but by pure reputation alone
- this will be disassterous.

Why isn't my kid's 4-H project excluded? but the stupid $10,000 parrot down at the pet shop is? Why does Granny have to tell the gov that she gave away her old milking cow? Why should they care if I bring my goat to the state fair? Who's business is it if I give away some meat rabbits? Or buy ducks for slug control in my back yard? Or everytime I want chicken for dinner I've got to fill out a report?

So my question to you is ... how does the CDC backtrack a sickness appearing in human hospitals to the grocery store, then to the meat packer, and then to... who? the buck stops there. The National Animal Insane System DOES NOT REQUIRE the meat packer to track the animal from slaughter to ship. AND if I'm misinformed about that little (BIG) detail, most of the folks who work there don't speak, let alone READ Engligh, hmm... I feel secure.

Test 100% of all slaughter, like other countries do, and we eliniate basic American right to feed ourself without government intervention or interference.

What about mandatory testing of all downer cows? That's at least a reasonalble step in the right direction to public safety.

This is not a deciscion that ought to be made by politicians pandering to the blithely short attentioned public b/c the media ran with a story. There are REAL people's rights to a pursuit happiness at stake here, not to mention a very tempermental commodities market!

I received my number also, it IS the USDA number, the certificate is signed by the PDA vet, there is no other number.

fancifowl, our number is a USDA number, too, with the certificate signed by the PA vet. But the cover letter said we'd be getting a second number from the Federal government. Seems strange to me, I'll post here if/when it arrives.

This whole thing makes me want to upchuck!

Avian Flu is a NON-issue. Only 27 people have died worldwide in the years and years that it has been a known entity. Recently an aquaintance asked me if I wasn't scared of "messing with those chickens". The answer is a resounding, "NO!". My chickens are much less likely to harm me than the regulations, meddling and controls being imposed upon me by this renegade government.

Do you know who is a major investor in the pharma that produces Tamiflu? Better check that out......it might give you a great deal of insight into just why, all of a sudden, those two dozen hens in your backyard are so very dangerous.

I have just been reading some of the proposed/upcoming rules and regulations that we are about to be hit with and it looks to me like I will have to get rid of most if not all of my animals. Who can afford to pay between $5 and $50 to "register" every tiny chick that hatches and then pay more to report the "incidents" in their lives....the deaths due to predators,disappearances, new births/hatchings, who bit the dust for dinner last evening etc. and all movements of those creatures. Your child will not be able to ride his pony to his grandma's overnight without either filing a report (cost unknown) or risking the seizure and destruction of the pony.

This huge bureaocracy that is being foisted upon us is going to cost us untold amounts of money, cause the loss of our backyard flocks and other farm animals,and who is going to profit? The corporations that are producing the ID tags/chips and Microsoft (for producing the computerware to keep track of it all.....not!). We, the people will gain nothing from it!

There is nothing Needed nor Positive about it!

In the next NAIS phase, you will be required to report to the government any/all movements of your farm animals from your property. Does that remind you of a totalitarian society?

In actuality, all to fatten some individual's pockets with money.

Check out the Vermont Agency of Agriculture's recent decision.

Here is a link that might be useful: Barre, VT Times Argus

Does anyone honestly think it can be enforced?

If the local police were asked to track down every unregistered animal in a municipality, they would certainly be overwhelmed.

I'm sure that the federal government wouldn't be able to enforce it. What are they going to do, send the national guard door to door in every rural home to check for prohibited animals?

Even if it is mandated for small owners, I think NAIS will be just one of those laws thats impossible to enforce.

It seems unenforceable. However, for the individual it could well be extremely costly and damaging.

NAIS needs to be stopped!

Of course large scale producers are in favor of NAIS, they will get a number for a whole group of animals, they will not have to have individual numbers. There is no reason a person with backyard flock or milk cow for their own use should be part of this program. No disease will be stopped by this, only reported after the fact as usual. Anyone that trusts the government or USDA is a fool. Sure the big guys are looking at the money for exports etc. and other countries actually care what goes into their food supply. This government is real good at playing the game of making us think we are safe, but it does very little to actually make us so.

I would like to reiterate my earlier statement that there is too much misinformation about the animal id system... I speak only about cattle because that is my concern. The large producer will have to id each animal, every calf born on my farm will get a ID tag,not one id for the whole herd, and each calf will have information recorded about what vaccinations he has,,,when he leaves my farm and is put in a feedlot, that will be recorded. Thus the more animals, the more cost. I am quite sure that there will be errors and incompetence in the system, (after all it is a goverment program). However we do need a method of backtracking any possible contamination of our food system. After all, look at the problem of the e-coli spinach. What if no one could identify where it came from? If your milk cow gets old and no longer produces, what will you do with her? Eat her? Bury her in your back yard? Or, will you put her into the food system by taking her to a sale?

From what I've read, from much more informed persons than I, slaughter houses will not be affected - their USDA rules haven't been changed or altered and the NAIS is not superceding their current regulatory agency rules and guides.

Soo... does that mean slaughter houses will still be exempt from individually accounting for each & every animal? Will it still be up to each facility as to what kind of accounting & tracking system they chose to operate in and under as their own corporate choice with American freedom?

USDA and the FDA co-operate, I hold my sides laughing.