BBSAI Blog, October 16, 2022
1) There is a scam which two of our BBSAI members have almost been ensnared in, so be careful with potential buyers! Both members had sheep for sale listed in the Classifieds, but this could happen to you regardless. Both were contacted by a man posing as a buyer who agreed to send a check to cover the price of the sheep plus reimburse for the cost of the shipping which the seller was to pay to the shipper when the sheep were picked up. The check sent by the buyer was a fraud and the shipper would have gotten away with the sheep plus a personal check from the seller for the shipping cost. And who knows what would have happened to the sheep?
The person who contacted the members called himself Dan Overstreet. Please let Bridgett Leslie (recordingsecretary@blackbellysheep.org) know if this individual contacts you (or already has). We can perhaps take action against him/them as a group via the Federal Trade Commission, particularly since sending a fraudulent check to another state involves interstate commerce and mail fraud, which are federal crimes. Any checks or emails received could be used as evidence, so save all email correspondence, snail mail, checks, and takes notes during any phone conversations.
2) You will no longer be able to buy certain antibiotics over the counter for your sheep after June 2023 so prepare now by developing a relationship with a veterinarian who will then be able to write you a prescription for those medications. Up until now you have likely been able to purchase tetracycline and penicillin, etc., at your local farm supply without veterinary oversight. FDA is changing the regulations in order to try to slow the development of antibiotic resistance.
If you do not have an appropriate veterinary client relationship and have an animal emergency, a veterinarian is required to do a farm visit before prescribing any medication which adds considerably to the expense, and will delay treatment. You will not be required to purchase the drugs from that veterinarian if you do not wish to do so, but you must have a valid prescription. Don’t be too tempted to stock up before June 2023 and use expired medication you have on hand after that date to avoid getting a prescription because there are three risks: 1) a drug that breaks down and becomes less effective won’t properly treat your animal and is more likely to cause antibiotic resistance; 2) a drug like tetracycline which breaks down into a toxic substance could cause unintentional damage to your animal; and 3) if an illegal drug residue is found in an animal from your farm (for example, at slaughter) – no matter who administered it or where the drug came from, your veterinarian is liable and could lose his/her license.
3) The US has made strides in eliminating scrapie in sheep and goats. To read the latest published report about the USDA eradication program, click here: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/scrapie/downloads/annual_report.pdf
You can see when the last case of scrapie in your state was found by looking at the maps in this report. You can also continue to do your part in helping eliminate this disease from the US by always being compliant with scrapie regulations about identifying animals before they leave the flock of birth with an official scrapie tag. Once this disease is out of the picture the importance of doing genetic testing on sheep for scrapie resistance will decrease or disappear.
4) Please help your BBSAI board by sending in your comments and concerns to info@blackbellysheep.org. We are really interested in hearing from you about what we can do to help you be successful with your sheep.
5) The BBSAI board is always looking for volunteers and new board members, so please let us know. And thanks for what you do to raise these two valuable breeds.