Dr. Patrick Webb
Director, Swine Health Programs
National Pork Board
Dear Dr. Webb,
Thank you for your comments regarding our Feral Swine Survey. We share your concerns regarding the potential for feral swine to spread a variety of diseases to livestock. The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will be conducting the Feral Swine Pilot Study through a cooperative agreement with The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Wildlife Services’ (WS) National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC).
Our general plan for examining the broad issue of feral swine damage will commence in stages. In this first stage, NWRC’s plan is to address feral swine damages to crops. NWRC is also using this initial survey to generate some pilot data about producer’s perceptions of disease risks. This will help in formulating follow-up studies addressing livestock diseases more explicitly. This initial survey is designed to capture feral swine damage to select crops. In subsequent stages, NWRC plans to capture data that will allow them to quantify the monetary loss to states and pork producers as a result of disease control measures, disease surveillance, and testing for pseudorabies or swine brucellosis which, as you mentioned, could help benchmark one of the top risks to commercial swine. Perhaps as we are preparing this future survey, you would be willing collaborate with us on the crafting of this instrument.
David Hancock
NASS OMB Clearance Officer
| File Type | application/msword |
| Author | ITSC |
| Last Modified By | Hancock, David - NASS |
| File Modified | 2015-04-15 |
| File Created | 2015-04-15 |