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Producer participation requested in AgriLife Extension predator survey

published: September 20th 2018
by: Blair Fannin
source: Texas AgriLife Today

SAN ANGELO – The 2018 Predator Survey by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will paint a more accurate picture of real returns for the state’s livestock operations in numbers and economic losses.

"Predators cause economic hardship on Texas livestock producers annually,” said Bill Thompson, AgriLife Extension economist based in San Angelo. “When you tally the losses annually across all sectors of livestock, whether it’s lambs, goats or calves, the dollars add up quickly.”Thompson said the last comprehensive survey was conducted about 10 years ago.“These were done primarily by paper and were costly when factoring in postage expense and compilation of data,” he said. “With this new survey, producers can go online at their convenience and provide their responses. This is a statewide survey and we are hoping to get a complete assessment of how much predators are costing Texas livestock producers.”To access the survey, visit https://tinyurl.com/PredatorSurvey. Thompson said the survey aims to answer the following:

• What predators are causing losses?
• What livestock are primary predator targets?
• What control measures are being used?
• How much are control measures costing producers?

Thompson said federal surveys, while important, do not include county estimates and other specific loss estimates.“This survey will also give us a more comprehensive, accurate picture of the real returns for Texas livestock operations,” Thompson said. “Paper copies are available, but we prefer all responses be done online.”For a paper copy of the survey, call Thompson at 325-657-7306 or email w-thompson@tamu.edu.