UTAH LIVESTOCK OWNERS ENCOURAGED TO JOIN THE NATIONAL ANIMAL IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM (NAIS)

Utah livestock owners are encouraged to help protect animal health by registering their premises as part of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS). The voluntary program is needed to help protect American animal agriculture from the intentional or accidental introduction of a foreign or domestic disease.

"Utah is joining numerous states across the country in the creation of an important tracking system that can speed up the identification and control of any serious animal disease in our state," said Dr. Michael R. Marshall, State Veterinarian. "I encourage owners of cattle, sheep, swine, and other livestock to fill out the Premises Registration Form that is now available and return it to our office," he added.

Dr. Marshall emphasizes that the program will be administered by the same Utah Animal Industry employees that livestock owners have come to know and trust, and that no personal or financial information will be gathered in the Premises Identification process.
Premises Registration Forms are available at the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) (801) 538-7166 or on the Internet at: http://ag.utah.gov/animind/Utah_NAIS.html.

NAIS is a voluntary national program from USDA that is intended to identify all agricultural animals and track them as they come into contact with, or are inter-mixed with, animals other than herdmates from their premises of origin.

Already, many species in U.S. animal industries can be identified through some sort of identification system, but these systems are not consistent across the country. The NAIS program will eventually replace the sheep identification system that is currently in use in the United States.

Finding potentially sick or exposed animals early in a disease outbreak is essential to containing or eradicating the disease quickly. The NAIS would allow for rapid tracing of animals in the event of an outbreak, helping to limit the scope and expense of the outbreak and allowing us to minimize impact on domestic and foreign markets.

The UDAF has anticipated the start up of the program and is currently one of only 17 states prepared to issue premises identification numbers. The program is currently operating under a federal grant making the system free to the public. It is uncertain how long such grants will be available to the UDAF and how long the program will remain free to the public.

Hear comments from Dr. Mike Marshall, UDAF State Veterinarian:
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For more information contact Terry Menlove at: (801) 538-7166.

Posted November 1, 2004