For a number of years, beef cattle producers have been asked to administer all intramuscular and subcutaneous injections to their cattle in front of the shoulder in an area known as the injection triangle. This beef quality assurance (BQA) recommendation has proved beneficial to the beef industry, as the number of injection-site blemishes found in higher priced cuts of meat has greatly been reduced but not totally eliminated. Today, producers are being asked to administer intramuscular injections into a modified injection zone in the neck region of an animal. The new injection zone is a hand’s width in front of the shoulder and several inches shorter than the previous zone (Figure 1).
The recommendation to modify the injection zone comes from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) BQA Task Force. This step is an effort to reduce the incidence of greenish discolorations showing up on chuck steaks in meat cases where retailers use modified-atmosphere packaging (MAP). Modified-atmosphere packaging (80 percent oxygen and 20 percent carbon dioxide) is used by retailers to prolong/extend the bloom (bright cherry red color) of beef.
Studies conducted at the University of Nebraska - Great Plains Veterinary Education Center (UN-GPVEC) estimate the incidence of the greenish discolorations in chuck steaks to range from 15 to 20 percent. The discolorations are probably not new and have only come to light as retailers employ the use of MAP, and expanded their use of the chuck roll. In many instances, the chuck roll and surrounding tissue were processed and used as ground beef. Today however, as retailers work to capture more value from the beef carcass, the chuck roll is being sliced into steaks.
From the start, BQA recommendations asked producers to use the subcutaneous route of administration for injections when given as an option on product/package labels. The injection triangle for subcutaneous injections has not changed.
The greenish discolorations that have been identified are a management and beef quality issue and should not be considered a food safety issue. The discolorations have not been associated with any one animal health product. Reducing the incidence of these discolorations can be accomplished by: (1) administering animal health products subcutaneously (as label allows), (2) modifying the injection zone for intramuscular injections, and (3) BQA guidelines for administering injectable animal health products (Table 1).
TABLE 1
1. Follow label directions.
2. Give all injections in front of an animal’s shoulder.
3. Choose route of administration that minimizes risk of tissue damage.
(i.e. subcutaneous vs. intramuscular)
4. Select sharp, sanitary needles of correct length and gauge.
5. Do not use bent, burred, or broken needles.
6. Do not inject more than 10cc of product in one injection site.
7. Keep injection sites at least 4 inches apart.
8. Adhere to withdrawal periods.
9. Keep accurate records.
A microscopic creature, Faciola hepatica, the common liver fluke of cattle, can cost producers dollars in lost production. Liver flukes cause production loss thru direct damage to the liver resulting in weight loss, diarrhea and condemned livers at processing. Liver flukes also create a favorable environment for the bacteria that causes Redwater. Studies also show a decrease in reproductive performance.
In a study sited by Duane Maye, DVM, productivity losses in beef cattle include reduced average daily gain, lower feed conversion, reduced milk production and lower weaning weights. Most damage occurs eight weeks post infection once the flukes have entered the bile ducts. One study in the United States showed that rate of gain may be reduced by 8% to 28% in feeder steers with 40 to 140 liver flukes. A trial where steers were treated with flukicide vs not treated, animals treated gained 24.3 pounds more than the control which was a .20 difference in average daily gain.
A survey of Florida cattle producers indicates that cows treated for liver flukes weaned calves 30 to 45 pounds heavier and 1 to 3% increase in number of calves produced. Cows that were culled were 18 to 22 pounds heavier when treated. This same survey indicated that a fluke control program could yield a return of $15.19 to $31.01 per cow.
A demonstration conducted by Bob Loucks, Lemhi County, in 1998, utilized two different flukicides. The heifers were weighed on January 30 and again on September 1. There was a statistically significant rate of gain difference in the heifers treated when compared to the control. Heifers treated for flukes had a mean weight gain of 328.3 and 339.3 pounds compared to 304.3 of the control group.
The liver fluke’s life cycle is different from most internal parasites. Cattle graze grass that is infested with liver flukes in the encysted (within a hard coating) stage of the fluke. The juvenile fluke then "burrows through the lining of the intestine into the abdomen and then to the liver. Once the fluke enters the liver, it lays eggs in the bile ducts for 6 weeks or more. The fluke eggs then pass from the animal in the manure. After the fluke eggs hatch, they migrate to fresh water snails which they infect and continue their development. As young flukes, they migrate from the snail and encyst on the blades of grass and the cycle is complete once the cow ingests them.
Liver flukes are found where irrigation water or heavy rainfall causes flooding of low lying pasture lands. They are also found in low marshy areas next to lakes, ponds and streams. Liver flukes also require the presence of intermediate snail host.
Think about it. Mother Nature has been getting her plants through the winter for a long, long time. She could probably teach us a thing or two. On the other hand, Mother Nature has never tried to grow a hybrid tea rose in southern Idaho. So, it may not be enough to just let things happen. We may need to take extra steps to ensure our plants are ready to spring forth next year.
Winterizing our landscapes is not something we can do properly at the last minute in October. It’s like going camping. It needs prior planning to be successful. When I was a teenager, I went with a group of young men on a weeklong horse back trip. We spent a month making sure we were ready. At the last minute, two additional young men decided to go with us. Without proper time to prepare, they spent a cold, miserable week in the mountains. I’ll have to admit I took advantage of the situation and sold them a single, small, raw potato for $5. The lesson here is that sufficient preparation will give our landscapes a much better chance to survive and thrive. So, here are some dos and don’ts:
Do:
1. Plant appropriate plants in the appropriate places. This topic could fill a book. So, I cannot give much detail here and you will need to consult with your local nursery operator. However, there are a few basic principles. First, check the hardiness of new plants and make sure they are adapted to your climate. Second, don’t assume that a southern exposure is best for tender plants (dry conditions and fluctuating temperatures can be worse than constant cold). Third, avoid warm, windy locations for plants that easily dry out (such as Alberta Spruce).
2. Keep plants healthy all summer by providing adequate water and nutrition and by controlling diseases and insects. Healthy plants can survive where stressed plants cannot.
3. Mulch around trees, shrubs, and perennials. This will conserve moisture and insulate against deep frost penetration.
4. Fertilize after fall growth ceases (after leaves turn or fall) to improve root growth and spring recovery.
5. Reduce water application around trees and shrubs during late September and October to encourage onset of dormancy. Let the top 2 to 3 inches of soil dry completely between irrigations. After leaves fall, follow up with 1 or 2 deep irrigations.
Don’t:
1. Apply any fertilizer that includes nitrogen during the time plants are preparing to enter dormancy (August through early September). This delays dormancy and makes the plants susceptible to cold.
2. Till around trees and shrubs in the fall. This damages roots and makes plants more susceptible to winter desiccation.
3. Prune trees and shrubs in the late fall. This leaves unhealed injuries that make the plant prone to other disease and injury problems.
Even Mother Nature looses a few plants in the winter. But, by doing a few things right,
we can limit our own losses and reduce the amount of replanting required next spring.
You probably know to rake your leaves in the fall, but do you know how long to keep watering your lawn, or how late to fertilize, or how about spraying for weeds? Taking a few important steps in the fall can go a long way in allowing your landscape to sleep comfortably through the long cold winter ahead.
Cleaning up leaves is more than making the lawn look nice. If left on the ground during the winter, leaves become wet, mat down, and smother the grass during the winter. Grass does not completely stop growing, even in the dead of winter. As it grows, grass needs to breath and matted down leaves reduce air flow. Leaves also cause quite a bit of shading during the fall and early winter before snowfall when the grass is trying to store up energy. Just as chipmunks store food underground for the winter, grass uses sunlight to make food which it stores in its stems growing underground. If you have just a few leaves and a mulching mower, mulching the leaves and letting them filter into the grass is OK too, as long as they are not too thick.
Speaking of mowing, it is a good idea to mow your lawn well into October and even into November. These late mowings will not only help chop up any leaves you may have missed, but more importantly, will help prevent winter diseases. You may have heard the advice to lower the mowing height a notch or two on your last mowing. This can help alleviate disease, but be careful not to overdo it. You are better off to leave the mowing height the same, but mow well into late fall instead.
Fertilizing during late fall also is a good idea since the grass, as we mentioned before, is still growing underground, even though leaf growth as stopped. Since the underground part of grass is what allows it to make it through the cold winter and green up in the spring, a light late fall application is a good idea. Again, be careful not to overdo it, no more than a pound of nitrogen (N) per 1000 ft2 is plenty.
If you have an automated irrigation system and have not touched the timer since the summer months, now is the time to do so. Grass uses much less water in the fall than it was during the heat of the summer, less than half as much. That means you should only be irrigating your lawn about every 10 days or so and applying about an inch of water when you do. Irrigate your lawn well into the end of October and even into the second week of November if possible. A final deep watering just before you blow your irrigation system out is a good idea. This will help prevent winter desiccation damage to your lawn especially if we have a winter without much snow cover.
What about controlling those darned perennial weeds like dandelions and white clover? If you have not already done so, fall is the best time to kill these perennial weeds. As with the grass, weeds are preparing for winter and sending food reserves underground and applying an herbicide now will be most effective.
Lawns are generally care-free and it is sometimes easy to forget they need a little TLC. A little work to ensure winter survival will improve their appearance next year.
And mama was right. In addition to the well known fact that fish with high levels of omega-3 fatty acids are heart healthy, omega-3 fatty acids are essential for fetal development during the last trimester of pregnancy due to the rapid synthesis of brain tissue at that time. What is the source of omega-3 fatty acids for the fetus? The maternal blood supply is critical for the transfer of fatty acids to the fetus because the fetus does not have the capacity to initially synthesize omega-3 fatty acids.
Due to the importance of the maternal blood supply an assessment was conducted of the demands placed on mothers during pregnancy and lactation for omega-3 fatty acids and the ability of mothers to meet these demands. The assessment concluded that for a significant proportion of women it is very likely that the demands of pregnancy and lactation exceed the levels of omega-3 fatty acids found in their bodies. This suggests that a significant proportion of women are potentially at risk of inadequate omega-3 fatty acids status; however, the data currently available from which to draw this conclusion are limited.
Studies assessing the affects of maternal omega-3 fatty acids dietary intake and infant neurodevelopment observed that children whose mothers ate oily fish during pregnancy, compared with those who did not, tended to have better visual function when assessed at 3.5 years of age and that a positive association was suggested between infant human milk docosahexaenoic acid intake and visual acuity for four month old breast-fed infants. Another study of pregnant women found that low consumption of fish was a strong risk factor for preterm delivery and low birth weights.
Given the proven health benefits of fish consumption, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Health and Human Services in the newly revised 2005 dietary guidelines recommends Americans double their consumption of oily fish to two four-ounce servings per week. Currently Americans eat only about 5 ounces per week of all fish (16.3 pounds/year per capita consumption in 2003). Unfortunately the vast majority of Americans are not taking advantage of the health benefits derived from fish consumption and especially from oily fish.
Oily or fatty fish have more omega-3 fatty acids than leaner fish. Oily fish generally have 5-20 % fat compared with 1-2 % fat for lean fish. An average oily fish provides 2 grams of omega-3 fatty acids per 100 grams, whereas an average lean fish provides only 0.3 grams per 100 grams (SACN, 2004). Oily fish include rainbow trout, sardines, pilchards, mackerel, herring, and salmon.
Fish and other seafood may contain organic mercury that the developing brain is particularly vulnerable to. The relevant question for women making food choices is whether eating seafood during pregnancy will impair their children’s development. The Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency recommends pregnant women, women intending to become pregnant, nursing mothers and young children avoid shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish. Large long-lived fish such as these tend to have higher mercury levels. The FDA/EPA recommends for this particular population to eat up to 12 ounces per week of a variety of fish and shellfish low in mercury to derive the important health benefits associated with seafood consumption for both mother and child Species low in mercury include rainbow trout, canned light tuna, shrimp, catfish, pollock and salmon.
A recent study published in Environmental Health Perspectives supports the recommendation by the U.S. government. The study found an association with women who ate more fish during pregnancy and better infant cognition. The study authors recommend women continue to eat fish during pregnancy but choose varieties with lower mercury levels.
Clearly qualified authorities are recommending increased consumption of oily fish due to the health benefits in spite of media reports that confuse and scare away seafood consumers. So remember what else mama always said, "clean your plate and you cannot always believe what you read in the paper.
Kris-Etherton PM, WS Harris, & LJ Appel. Fish consumption, fish oil, omega-3 fatty acids, and cardiovascular disease. Circulation November 19, 2002, 2747-2757.
Oken E, RO Wright, KP Kleinman, D Bellinger, CJ Amarasiriwardena, H Hu, JW Rich-Edwards & MW Gillman. Maternal fish consumption, hair mercury, and infant cognition in a U.S. cohort. Environmental Health Perspectives October 2005 Volume 113 Number 10, 1376-1380.
http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines/
http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2004/jun/fishreport2004
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