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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1975-07-24, Page 10• Y1 SEVENTY ONTARIO MILITIAMEN left for Resolute Bay on Tuesday, July 22, to take part in Exercise New Viking, a summer Arctic familiarization course. Prior to their departure, the men were at the Cen al Militia Area Rank and Trade School honing their military and technical skills and in `.easing their physical fitness. Since the magnetic compass is inaccurate in the far north, the men are learning to use the Astro compass. One of these men is Pvt. John Keet,,_. R 5, Wingham. Pvt. Keet is a member of the 4th Battalion, Royal Canadian R rea surve ays coverage for brucello ' is hard to come bi Most insurance companies specializing . inivestock have dropped coverage for brucellosis, a highly contagious disease which attacks the reproductive organs of cattle. But a • check of insurance companies revealed that one in Brampton is offering policies through Lloyd's of London, .Eng- land. „ "As far as 1 know, we are the only ones offering brucellosis insurance," Ronald Brown • of Ronald H. Brown Insurance said. The policy. has become popular with Ontario farmers owning high-priced purebred cattle since brucellosis outbreaks flared in the -Ottawa Valley more than a year ago, he said. . There are now 554 herds under brucellosis quarantine in the province and some dairy far- mers, including one of the largest — Flinkert Farms Ltd. of Dray- ton - have lost entire herds to the disease. Lloyd's of London included the insurance against brucellosis as • part of its normal package cover- age until a year, ago, Mr. Brown said, when a one -per cent „sur- charge was added for the special coverage. The surcharge came as a result of the flareup of the disease in Ontario. The flareup followed a federal government campaign which reduced the incidence of the' disease to less than a tenth of one per cert of the national herd, and came as farmers stopped vaccinatng cattle. The flareups were expected by federal government officials because unvaccinated cattle are exposed to the few remaining dis- easecarriers in the nation. The next step, one which farm organizations and Mr. Brown want the federal government to take soon, is to ban the use of the vaccine so the last vestiges of the disease can be quickly spotted and eliminated. Vaccinated cattle can carry a low rate of infection without Showing evidence of the disease and can be the source of con- tinued spread. But the farm organizations don't want -.the vaccine. banned until the federal government moves to increase compensation for animals ordered slaughtered. Mr. Brown said Lloyd's of Lon- don charge premiums amounting to 41/2 per cent of insured vale, plus one per cent for the brucello- sis coverage. The policies are for one year. The brucellosis coverage in- cludes all cases where animals are ordered slaughtered by federal government inspectors, Mr. Brown said, but is called brucellosis coverage because that's the most likely reason for such an order. Other diseases covered by the one per cent sur- charge include hoof and mouth disease and tuberculosis. "It's a very popular option," Mr. I rown said. He has insured cattle for up to $250,000 for an imported European beef breed and has written several policies for more than $100,000 for purebred Hol- stein dairy cattle in Ontario. Brucellosis infection claims entire milking herd in Drayton The entire 28o -head milking herd of Flinkert Farms Ltd. in Drayton will be slaughtered as the result of widespread brucello- sis infection. The decision was reached Wednesday, July 16, after federal health inspectors spent several days studying the results of tests conducted July 7, said Arend Flinkert, the son in the father - and -son team which has built up the herd since they immigrated from Holland about 25 years ago. It follows the earlier loss of a 302 -head herd of dry (pregnant) cows and heifers and 22 animals culled from the 300 head milking herd. The decision brings total losses at Flinkert Farms Ltd_ to about 600 cattle. Mr. Flinkert said the verdict is a heart -breaker and the family hasn't yet decided what it will do toward rebuilding a new dairy herd. It will be at least a month before the Flinkerts can begin to buy a new herd. He said the family will stay in the dairy business, but doesn't know where it can buy replace- ment ca y e, if the new herd will be pureb or grades, or if they will e- the cattle -dealing basins °eb up to now has been a sideline of the dairy accretion. The herd. made up mostly of grade cattle, isnot insured. The Flinkerts will receive about $400 each for grades — half from the government. half from meat salvage — and about $650 for purebreds. Mr. Flinkert earlier put the cost of replace- ments at between $800 and $900 and said that even at that price. he could not duplicate the quality he has developed over years of selective breeding to purebred balls. Mr. Flinkert has been trying for several weeks to reach Eugene Whelan. federal agri- culture minister. to penally discuss his situation "but he never returns the calls." This is a big a cuglo thing that he should call." Mr . Flinkert said. The Flinkert operation had ane of the largest dairy herds in Canada. including seven herds walling 1.064 cattle and about 1,500 acres of land. Five of the herds remain free of tcrucelllosis, but they are young '•elves and heifers. The herd of dry cows and heifers was kept in Ion* stall housing and was ordered killed in early Jame when federal govern - ment o a rn- ment inspectors spatted sick animals in a shipment to the Most accidents inv The majority of fin asci involve teenagers and y a ' a is under 30 years of age, Farah Safety Association of of ce Ontario reports. Preliminary data for j 74 reveal that of the 471 repo. accidents in Ontario's tobaccoIn dustry, 283, or about 60 per Wit, occurred an the 10 to 30 year-old age group. The figures show that in the general farming sector, 224 of 491 mishaps --about 46 Kr cent took place in this age group. J. K. Weeden, agricultural engineer with the Ontario Minis- try of Agriculture and Food, says one reason for the high incidence of accidents involving the young is that the shortage of farm labor in some areas has resulted in many people taking part in farm work without previous knowledge"' or experience of farming, such as younger brothers or "city cousins." "The problem is that young people are not prepared for farm machinery. It's bigger and more complicated than ever before, and the kids simply don't know how to operate it," Mr. Weeden says. One of the ways to reduce youthful accident statistics is through training. He lists a few pointers for both farmers and newcomers -to the farm. Tractors are more a part of farm accidents than any other piece of equipment. A great many of these accidents are caused by faulty or improper shielding of the power takeoff. Kitchener -Waterloo Stockyards north of Waterloo. The checks at the stockyards led to a complete herd test at Flinkert Farms. The June tests also revealed 10 positively infected animals and 12 suspects at the milking herd, also kept in loose stall housing on the outskirts of Drayton. That herd was placed under quarantine pending further test- ing. "We felt it was better to take the whole herd." Mr. Flinkert said, rather than attempting to continue to struggle with the dis- ease by culling out sick animals and suspects. He said between 10 and 20 per cent of the herd was identified as suspect in the July 7 testing. with less than 10 per cent falling into the definitely diseased category. Condemned animals are followed closely through meat packing plants by inspectors t0 determine if the meat is safe for human consumption. Properly processed meat and milk are safe. Brucellosis. which attacks the reproductive organs of cattle, cuases loss of milk production and abortion arid in severe cases can lead to death. In humans it can Tawe undulant fever. Ivo Mr. W i ; follies** to ensure that $.14 lda 4r ;pap in a4 � Uleaf any` ments to etpiptrtent,ore make ahtt ll*t 1y 64re the PTO has been shut oft. If, for example, the baler has become clogged, do not attempt to clear it without first disengaging the power take- off. This rule extends to all other machinery as well -- turn it off before r.aldng adjustments or repairs. High tractor Speeds lead to serious accidents in the form of side roll-overs. Speed -induced accidents are a particular prob- lem with the under -20 year-olds. Farmers should emphasize that tractors must be driven at low speeds. Mr. Weeden advises farmers to follow the example of other in- dustries and provide 15 -minute coffee breaks in the morning and afternoon. "It's a known fact that accidents aie often caused by fatigue and boredom," he says. Farm workers should be in- structed to wear personal safety equipment. Hard hats, gloves and steel -toed boots reduce the risk of serious injury. The wearing of loose -fitting clothing around operating machinery should be discouraged. 'Training is just a- matter of taking the time to show a person how to operate a piece of equip- ment," Mr. Weeden emphasizes. "and it will pay off in the long run by helping to reduce physical injury and economic loss." it I* eiltiMA ventorY nit srt o motto r fro • FOR THE ADVANCE -TAMES STAFF WILL BE AUGUST 4 —AUGUST 16 There will be no publications on August 7 or August 14 News items to appear in the August 21 issue should be mailed to Box 390 the week prior to publication Look. for e label that wers e price. This week. this month... even next month. Now you can buy Coca -Co a, Sprite or Fanta at reduced prices in large -size bottles labelled "Value Priced" And that means greater value than ever. So look for the "Value Priced" label wherever you buy Coca-Cola, Sprite, or`Fanta in bottles. UR CHOICE OFANY26 OUNCER OF prite or v c.. Avoiiable at participatirg dealers thr., rirF'i served by: 3/891 REFILLABLE •p ; .'‘,,.,finble bottle deposit ERIE IL HURON BEVERAGES LIMITED 658 ERIE STREET, STRATFORD, ONTARIO N5A 2P1 AiJtt-cr,zr.-s .4 cr d Coca-Cola, Spate and Fort() under contract with Coca-Cola ltd. Both Coca-Cola and Coke ore registered trade ��,K ,•, r h identify only the product Cf COCCI -COLO ltd. Sprite and Fanta ore also registered trade marks of Coca-Cola' ltd.