Help needed to survey small-scale livestock and poultry owners

Cooperative Extension specialists are trying to identify the needs of small-scale farms and urban animal agriculture in the western United States.  Alda Pires, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis, requests your help in reaching livestock and poultry owners to complete a survey.

“We are seeking help in this needs assessment regarding animal health concerns on small-scale farms and for peri-urban and urban animal agriculture in California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington State,” said Pires, who is leading the study with Dale Moore of Washington State University and Ragan Adams of Colorado State University.

Peri-urban and urban animal agriculture refers to raising food animals within residential areas with the goal of producing animal products to eat themselves or to distribute locally. The farms included in this study have gross annual sales of less than $500,000 with a maximum of 500 goats or sheep, 100 cows or 100 pigs, or are poultry producers who process or sell fewer than 1,000 chickens per year.

The increasing popularity of local food production and sustainability has boosted interest in small-scale farming and urban animal agriculture.

“This survey aims to identify the needs of livestock and poultry owners related to animal health, animal husbandry and food safety; and the role that veterinarians play on small farms,” Pires said. “This study will serve as a benchmark for designing effective educational programs to train farmers, backyard producers and veterinarians working within this sector.”

The survey takes about 15-20 minutes and can be accessed at http://ucanr.edu/smalllivestocksurvey.

All answers will remain completely confidential and no personal information will be recorded.

For more information, contact Pires at (530) 754-9855 or apires@ucdavis.edu. A flyer can be downloaded at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/240951.docx. 

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