We are about to turn the corner from COVID-19. Im sure you will be shocked to discover that we have another problem heading towards the United States. African swine feverhas ravaged sub Saharan Africa and China, Mongolia, Vietnam, and could be headed towards the United States.
Thanks to a bipartisan pair U.S. senators and the dogs they support, America may be in a position to stop it spreading to the USA.
Sen. Raphael Warnock invited my to attend a Newnan press conference. It was held on the 1st of March. I was able to meet a rare ally in the fight against African Swine Fever: the Beagle Brigade.
Fortunately, African swine flu isn’t fatal to humans. It is fatal to pigs and causes many deaths. Farmers are forced to slaughter their herds to protect those not infected. My dad was raised on a farm that produced hogs, so I know how difficult it is for them to face such a deadly enemy.
I have to admit that the beagle was something I was skeptical of. My wife and me had one when we lived in Tallahassee’s trailer park. Emily was probably the most unruly animal I have ever seen. The USDA’s National Detector Dog Training Center proved to me that agricultural department personnel know how to train a beagle in order to find a variety of invasive pests.
Jennifer Moffitt, USDA Undersecretary, shared with me details about other problems these beagles can detect, along with their fellow pooches, Jack Russell terriers, and yellow Labradors. The spotted lantern flee, which has traveled from China to Pennsylvania, is now on the east and west coasts, attacking everything, from forests to fruit orchards. The brown tree snake is another threat that attempts to get into cargo. It bites very dangerously on children, and has decimated bird populations as well as other species in areas where it is after all kinds of animals.
Moffitt said that these dogs are well-trained, food-motivated, and can sense their noses.
If they’re so great, why is this only happening now? I asked.
I discovered that the USDA user fees have funded these beagles and other dog breeds, and not Congress. The Beagle Brigade Act will provide legislative funding to expand the program and allow them to deploy on a larger scale. This is a vital resource in today’s global cargo-based economy. These adorable canines are much less aggressive than larger dogs that are used in law enforcement.
Plus, I learned from USDA trainers, that these dogs are usually adopted by their handlers upon retirement. This is before any formal adoption process takes effect.
Warnock, a Democrat is not the only one who is pushing for this. He has a strong supporter in Republican Senator Joni Ernst from Iowa. When I asked him about strategies to reduce Build Back Better into smaller, more manageable bills, he said that he cares more about the outcome than the process.
He documented the positive impact of the American Rescue Plan on his arm, the increased child tax outcomes, the reduction of child poverty, as well as finding ways to provide health care for residents in states that refused to expand Medicaid.
It is clear that the bipartisan Beagle Brigade Act will be a crucial piece of legislation that will keep our farm economy, and environment, from being destroyed by the dogs.
