The Federal Role in Regulating Alternative Livestock Operations

This paper discusses one aspect of federal regulation for alternative livestock, namely that concerned with the health status of animal agriculture. Federal responsibility for animal health programs rests with Veterinary Services (VS), a unit of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The objective of this paper is to briefly describe three aspects ofVS\u27 policy that have a potential to impact alternative livestock as well as free ranging wildlife. These are (1) using cooperative state-federal programs to eliminate diseases in alternative livestock, (2) collaborating on health issues with a variety of federal and state agencies, and (3) reducing the risk of disease transmission between traditional or alternative livestock and free ranging wildlife.