Foot dragging again

[rusty1]

Interesting reading - wish I knew were the truth lies. Another thing that seems to be lost is that BSE is a comunicable disease to all species - I mean that must be true if we can't even send a rodeo bull to the US finalls and bring him back to Canada even he never never rubs his hide against another bovine.

[cowman]

It almost seems Lyle VanClief has pretty much given up doing much and is just going with the flow. You know don't make waves in his last few days type of thing. And hope for a sweet job from Martin? I would think the next minister coming in will be pro-American? After all he will be a Martin man and Martin is pretty cozy with the Yanks?
It would look good if Martin could get the border open shortly after taking over and I suspect Bush will be very happy to have someone who doesn't call him a moron! And will go along with his Napoleonic fantasies?
So I suspect we will have the feeder deal real soon! Is there anyway we can vaccinate for these diseases?

[rsomer]

In 2002, the Italian Ministry of Health decided to vaccinate all domestic ruminants in the bluetongue affected areas. In those areas where more than 80 percent of susceptible animals were vaccinated, there was a significant decrease in the number of new cases compared to those areas where less than 50 percent of susceptible animals were vaccinated. Italy’s efforts mark the first attempt to use vaccination to reduce the bluetongue virus circulation and eventually to attain eradication of the infection. Once the disease gets a foothold it can be very hard to eliminate because it can carried by wildlife such as deer who are very susceptible to bluetongue. As vaccination will mask infection it would be very unlikely that vaccination would be allowed in Canada. Up to this point, bluetongue infected herds in Canada were destroyed by CFIA and Canada is presently considered free of all list A diseases such as bluetongue.

"Anaplaz" is available in some areas of the US to prevent anaplasmosis. Also continual medication with tetracyclines during the vector season will prevent symptoms developing.

[dalek]

Cowdude you'll be "excited" to know that Craig Oliver and others are now picking TheLyle as a cabinet survivor, although no one will guess which ministry.

[pandiana]

It is extremely frustrating to think that we will have to once again give up and roll over in order to survive. I just get more and more angry that we have no way of getting the government to stand on principal but instead to think they have to give up something else in order for the US to play the game.

[cowman]

Dalek: When you consider Lyles record he did a good job! Not for the farmers but he was good for the Chretien government! No major scandals, kept costs down, no big blowups! He was actually a good middle management type.
He wasn't a crook. He wasn't a pervert. He wasn't too inventive. A good drab little administrator? What more could you ask for?

[rusty1]

Leadership

[carebear300]

Passion and committment to agriculture. If he would have spent half as much time dealing with farmers as he did flying around the world he might have accomplished something. Right at this moment am trying to think what department that Paul Martin hates as much as Chretien did farmers.

[dalek]

Carebear maybe transportation, or in charge of VIA rail, or anything else that would eliminate competition for CSL

[carebear300]

Dalek, just figured it out our old buddy Lyle could be the head of the privy council. As his first act could make it mandatory, outside of Toronto and Ottawa, for everybody to use outside privies(outhouses). Sorry just a wee bit of weird type humour from grouchy old farmer that slept in this morning.

[dalek]

Carebear we're already closer than you think in Ontario. Our new environment minister has just announced that, instead of banning the practice of spreading septage in 5 years like the old gov't was going to do, she's going to do it sooner, even though the city sewage treatment plants can't handle their OWN sewage and they're refusing to take any rural septage. So next time we go to get our septic system pumped out, there won't be anywhere to take it. Guess we'll just let it fill then build a two-holer

[rsomer]

I note the comments on leadership yet there is no mention or criticism of our beef industry leadership (CCA) who ignore the risk of bringing in serious disease and the resulting financial hardship for Canadian cow calf producers in order to save doing a $5 blood test on US feeders coming into the 100 big Canadian feedlots during the summer. We are told that we need to infect our cow herd with bluetongue and anaplasmosis so that the Americans will accept our feeder calves which have never been found to carry BSE. I am left wondering what other diseases our industry leaders will expect the Canadian cow calf operator to accept five, six or seven years from now in order to get our American friends, neighbours and NAFTA partners to allow our animals over 30 months of age years across the 49th parallel?

[kato]

I told my boss, the vet, about this anaplasmosis/bluetongue/border thing, and he just shook his head and said, "You really really don't want those diseases here!"

A blood test is not a barrier to trade, but a disease is. As we know all too well. Why add more problems to our lives? Haven't we had enough grief to last us for a while?

It's like someone is saying, "Now we've got them down, let's give them a good kick to make sure they stay there." There are times when it's really easy to see how the conspiracy theorists get inspired.

[cowman]

It is very obvious we can't win on this one. Our leaders?(CCA) have decided that it is a go and it seems our politicians are listening to them. Never mind that our public animal health servants are advising strongly against it! Now why would the animal health people advise that? Is it because they are some sort of American hating left wing kooks? Or is it because they are professionals who know what these diseases might do to our cow herd? Why doesn't the CCA listen to them?
I think the answer is fairly simple...the people who matter to the CCA are the big feeders! Your average cow/calf guy is not lobbying them or supporting more checkoff dollars! Therefore he is the enemy, not the friend of the CCA beuracracy!

[ValueChainFX]

Probably no talk of any specific groups (our leaders) as we are being politically correst. Following the rules of agri-ville. However, you can bet that those that have been in those position for any length of time have more connections on THE OTHER SIDE!

The more reason to design a system that would look after some of the power turned over to them by you!