(Continued from page 15)

cattle. That's partly because aggressive programs to fight diseases such as sheep scabies have already resulted in widespread identification of those animals, said Neil Hammerschmidt, APHIS' animal disease traceability program manager. Tracking cows has been less of a concern over the past decade because earlier programs targeting diseases that affect them have been successful, he said.
• Still, tracebacks -- in which a sick animal's movements are reviewed as part of the effort to control the spread of a disease -- aren't unusual. Dr. Paul McGraw, the state veterinarian in Wisconsin, a top dairy state, recalled a number done because of tuberculosis in cattle.
• "It's probably safe to say nationwide, there's probably been five or six of those in the last two to three years," McGraw said.
• The rules that went into effect March 11 require dairy cows and sexually intact beef cattle over 18 months of age to be registered when they are shipped over state lines and outline acceptable forms of identification. In most cases, farmers and ranchers are likely to use ear tags that assign a number to each animal.
• "I'd say it's very similar to a license plate on a car," Hammerschmidt said.
• In Wisconsin, many of the larger dairy farms have already switched to ear tags that can be scanned electronically, said Mark Diederichs, president of the Board of Directors of the Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin. The tags meet federal standards but aren't required because of the cost.
• Diederichs and his partners, who have about 5,400 cows split between farms in Malone and Poy Sippi, began using them eight years ago in part because they save time. Workers with hand-held devices can scan the tags and immediately pull up animals' birth, medical and other records.
• The tags also are important as companies like McDonald's want to know where their food came from and be able to trace it back, Diederichs said, adding, "I think that's going to be the bigger push" for others to switch.
• The federal rules allow two states to agree on alternative forms of identification, such as brands, for use with animals shipped between them.
• South Dakota rancher Kenny Fox said this is an improvement over the earlier program, but he still believes the federal government should recognize brands. Ear tags can fall off, but brands are a permanent mark of ownership, he said. And brands can be registered and assigned a number in computer systems so that they can be quickly tracked back to a farm or ranch.
• Fox, the animal identification committee chairman for R-Calf USA, an advocacy group for ranchers, said the program won't mean a big change in practice for him. He has about 500 cows plus their calves in Belvidere, S.D., and already tags his

(Continued on page 17)