3.11 Three Steps for Disease Prevention

Step 1—Movement risks

Items moving on and off operations can bring disease. Recognizing movements can help farmers/ranchers prevent them. It’s not only the risk itself but how often the movement type occurs that leads to acceptable or unacceptable risk. As with all disease prevention actions, taking them a step at a time, picking one or two to start. Movements can include animals and animal products. Including manure, milk, eggs, and compost. Deliveries—which may or may not stop at other farms with animals, delivery, or pick up like mail, packages, or trash. Personnel—these can be people with or without animal contact. The movement risks document can help farmers and ranchers consider actions to prevent disease introduction or spread via these routes.

• Download the Movement Risks Assessment Tool

Step 2—Assessing disease prevention O/A farms

Checklists can help identify areas that could be troublesome concerning disease introduction. It can help point out what farmers are doing well and places where they might be able to reduce risk. Categories include protecting the herd/flock by limiting those people, vehicles, and equipment that can enter, monitoring the herd/flock and good husbandry, having good C&D protocols, protecting people who enter, including those who might be coming for agritourism, animal movement, carcass disposal manure management, etc. and wildlife rodent and other animal control and feed and water considerations. A disease prevention plan is another way to consider how your operation will adapt to its unique situation and prevent disease introduction and spread.

• Download the Disease Prevention Assessment Checklist

Step 3—Disease Prevention Plan

Disease prevention actions are needed daily to help ensure the health of your animals. Disease prevention actions also protect people from diseases that spread from animals to humans. Disease prevention plans don’t have to be complex to work. Your plan should address how disease could enter or spread on your farm or ranch and describe actions to prevent it. The disease prevention plan template is customizable by replacing the bracketed text—that looks like this [text]—with information specific to your property. Attach a labeled premises map to the end of this plan. Use this disease prevention template to write a disease prevention plan. Once written, manage disease prevention actions and train others about what is needed.

• Download the Disease Prevention Plan Template