Goat Parasite Workshops Set for Spring 2008

The Alabama Cooperative Extension System’s Urban Affairs and New Nontraditional Programs Unit at Alabama A&M University in partnership with the Goat and Sheep Producers of Alabama will offer a series of free gastrointestinal parasite identification and FAMACHA training workshops.

The workshops are slated for Bullock County April 26, Baldwin County May 3, Chilton County May 17, and Marshall County May 24. All workshops will be at the county Extension offices from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. with a one-hour lunch on your own.

The workshops are conducted at the beginning of the grazing season in early spring because spring is a time when gastrointestinal parasite (worms) infections are prevalent. The objective of the workshop is to educate farmers, veterinarian practitioners, Extension agents and others on a number of topics.

• Small ruminant production and alternative herd management
• Life cycle of gastrointestinal worms
• Consequences of parasite-host interactions
• Parasite deworming treatments to reduce infection among goat and sheep herds

Participants will also learn how to administer FDA-approved and non-FDA-approved products effectively to minimize the use of chemicals in the control of GI parasites. The FAMACHA test was developed by South African scientists and is a management tool used to control barber pole worm infection of sheep and goats.

The workshop brochure is also available online at http://www.aces.edu/urban/Parasiteworkshops08.pdf. For additional information, contact Dr. Maria Leite-Browning, Extension Specialist at Alabama A& M University, at
(256) 372-4954.

Posted by lawremc at April 24, 2008 01:36 PM | TrackBack