CATTLE producers have been provided with an updated "new" Cattle Health Declaration form, available on the Farm Biosecurity website.
Described as "one of the most important biosecurity tools in a cattle producer's arsenal", the form has been updated and made easier to use regardless of the production system.
The declaration is designed to capture important information about the health of a cattle herd at the time they are sold, assisting the buyer in managing their introduction to the property and their integration into a new herd.
Animal Health Australia senior manager biosecurity Rob Barwell said the declaration had sections on current vaccinations and treatment history.
"This lets you see a more complete picture of how the health of the cattle has been managed in their original herd and how you should proceed with their health management ," Dr Barwell said.
The update has brought information about both Johne's disease and pestivirus into line for both beef and dairy cattle and follows the release of the revised Johne's Disease Dairy Score (JDDS) in 2019 and the Johne's Beef Assurance Score (J-BAS) in 2016, both of which are voluntary, self-assessed tools for determining and communicating Johne's disease risk.
"This also means we'll be retiring the Dairy BJD Assurance Declaration, as its function is now a part of the broader Cattle Health Declaration," Dr Barwell said.
"Though the production systems are quite different, the more we can align health and biosecurity information for all breeds of cattle, the easier it will be for a producer to make use of a toolkit of resources."
The declaration is available on the Farm Biosecurity website, as part of the resources found under both Beef Cattle and Dairy Cattle and is available as a printable and fillable form, meaning producers can print as many copies as they need, or save a digital version with some of their key information already filled in.
"While the Cattle Health Declaration is a voluntary document, we highly recommend you request one whenever you buy cattle and provide one when selling them," Dr Barwell said.
"To that end we've made it as easy as possible to access, to fill in and to hand over when the sale or transfer is completed."
The industry has had a similar form to the declaration for nearly a decade (previously the Cattle Health Statement until about 2016).
This had been revised every 12-18 months based on feedback received on the document.
The declaration is recommended by cattle industry member bodies and use of animal health declarations more broadly is a recommended practice within the biosecurity module of the Livestock Production Assurance program and can be used as a way of demonstrating that producers are managing the risks of introduced livestock to their herd/property.
