Kyuyoung Lee, Ph.D., a previous Ph.D. candidate working with the lab, gave a presentation to the Conference of Research Workers in Animal Health 2021 last December. 

"Backyard farms have grown rapidly in California and also prompted concerns about their disease management. Our study evaluated knowledge and behavior of backyard farmers in California regarding animal health management and antimicrobial use. 

Our study characterized the backyard farms in California using a survey of 253 backyard farmers. They generally raised chicken or small ruminants with small herd size, for personal use. Backyard farmers mainly used antibiotics for individual treatment with the guidance of veterinarians and rarely used antibiotics as preventive measures. Current two legislation, VFD and SB27 positively led backyard farmers in terms of antibiotic use. But still, many backyard farmers had the lack of access to veterinary services. Better access to veterinary services for backyard farmers could help to minimize the risk of AMR in California."