Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 2, February 2024
ARKANSAS REGULATIONS FOR CONCENTRATION POINTS OF CATTLE
(AUCTION MARKETS, FARM SALES, PRIVATE SALES, ETC.) INVOLVING INFECTIOUS,
CONTAGIOUS AND COMMUNICABLE DISEASES
Dealer Licensing
All persons who deal in livestock must have a dealer license.
Such license will be renewed yearly.
Records and Document Requirements
A. Individuals, dealers and auction market
operators shall retain records for a minimum of five (5) years (for each intact
bovine involved in a transaction over eighteen (18) months of age and dairy
animals and rodeo animals of all ages) containing the following information:
(1) Name and address of consignor
(seller)
(2) Name and address of
consignee (buyer)
(3) Date and
location of transaction
(4) A
record of the back tag sequence (from beginning number to ending number) used
per sale day.
B.
Employees and representatives of the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission
and Veterinary Services of the USDA shall be granted read access to, and given
assistance with, said records upon request.
C. Removal of official identification from
cows will be prohibited. When existing permanent tags for identification are
already in place, that number will be used instead of adding another one.
Sanitation and Husbandry Requirements
A. Regular concentration points shall be
inspected for adequate sanitation and husbandry practices on a periodic basis
by a representative of the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission or
Veterinary Services.
(1) The following will be
evaluated:
(a) In the opinion of the
aforementioned inspector, the yards, chutes, pens, alleys and associated
pastures must be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition.
(b) Animals infected with any contagious,
infectious or communicable disease shall be segregated from the other animals
in a pen by themselves as directed by an official authorized by the Arkansas
Livestock and Poultry Commission. After they are removed, the pen shall be
cleaned and disinfected before it is used again.
(2) Cleaning and disinfecting equipment
(including a pressure sprayer) and a USDA approved phenol-coefficient
(cresylic) disinfectant shall be maintained on the premises.
B. Sanitation requirements
concerning the handling of exposed animals and other quarantined animals (as
determined by the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission) at the facility:
(1) A quarantined pen shall be distinctly
designated, marked accordingly as "Quarantine Pen", and maintained:
(a) It shall be constructed so that there is
no contact between reactors and non-restricted animals.
(b) The floor shall be covered with an
impermeable surface.
(c) Drainage
from the pen shall not drain back into an area accessible to non-restricted
animals.
(d) It shall be thoroughly
cleaned and disinfected after each sale day and before it is used
again.
(2) In the event
of an inordinate number of reactors, exposed animals, or other quarantined
animals, other pens shall be designated as "overflow pens" and treated as a
reactor pen after they are used.
Requirements Regarding the Management of Infected and Exposed
Animals Flowing Through or Disclosed at the Sale
A. Sanitation standards, as described in
Section
VI.B, must be maintained in order to
protect the health and safety of both the livestock and the personnel working
them.
B. Logistics and Procedures:
(1) Disease exposed animals shall be sold at
the last of every sale and must be maintained separately from non-restricted
animals.
Testing and Vaccination Facility Requirements at Regular
Concentration Points
A. Testing chute and alley:
(1) Must be judged to be safe and humane by
the designated inspector for both the animals and personnel involved in
handling animals.
(2) Must have
adequate lighting and ventilation as judged by the inspector.
(3) Adequate help must be provided by the
auction market or dealer for:
(a) Adequate
restraint of the animals being tested or vaccinated.
(b) To provide a flow of animals to the
testing and vaccinating chutes so that all procedures can be completed on
timely basis.
(4) Must
have adequate structural strength and design to facilitate completion of the
required procedures without undue delay.
B. Laboratory:
(1) Located in close proximity to the testing
chute and secluded away from other market activities.
(2) Must be sufficiently heated to maintain
at least a 70 degree temperature in cold weather.
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(3) Must have sufficient cooling
and ventilation to maintain a temperature of between 70 and 75 degrees in warm
weather.
(4) Must have adequate
lighting and electrical outlets for equipment needed for testing
procedures.
(5) Must provide a
refrigeration unit sufficient to maintain antigens and vaccines in a viable
state.
(6) Must have running water
and a sink to facilitate proper cleanliness in the laboratory
procedures.
(7) Must have a secure
door which can be locked to prohibit the unauthorized entry of those other than
auction market and animal health regulatory personnel.
Results of Non-Compliance
A. If the designated inspector finds that the
auction market operators, dealers, or individuals involved in change of
ownership transactions are not in compliance with the above stated standards,
that person or establishment will:
(1) Be
notified in writing explaining the deficiencies and recommendations made on
what improvements should be made to achieve compliance.
(2) Notify the Commission within fifteen (15)
days after receipt of such notice to certify that the steps have been taken to
comply with the standards:
(a) If there is a
failure to respond, or if the Commission or its designated inspector determines
that the establishment has not complied with the standards, the market shall be
inspected by a committee consisting of one (1) livestock market representative,
two (2) livestock producers, and the State Veterinarian. Members of the
committee shall be appointed by the chairman of the Livestock and Poultry
Commission and those members shall be from outside the incriminated
establishment's trade area. Per diem and mileage for committee members shall be
paid as provided for by the state of Arkansas.
(b) If the committee finds that the
incriminated establishment does not meet the prescribed standards, the Arkansas
Livestock and Poultry Commission shall order the market closed immediately
until the market is found to be in compliance with the defined
standards.
(c) That they have
knowingly sold for dairy or breeding purposes livestock which were affected
with livestock diseases.
(d) That
they have demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Arkansas Livestock and
Poultry Commission their inability or unwillingness to carry out the record
keeping requirements of this regulation.
(e) That they have ceased to operate the
business for which the license was issued.
3. Records Required-Each licensed person or
firm shall keep a record of all livestock purchased, sold or otherwise handled.
The records required shall be recorded in an appropriate record
book or other system that will permit the recording of information relating to
each transaction in such a manner that will enable personnel of the state and
federal animal health agencies to identify the origin and disposition of each
required animal purchased or sold.
4. Contents of Records-
The records shall include the following information:
(a) Ear tag numbers or other identifying
numbers carried by, or assigned to the animal at the time of purchase by, or
consignment to, and at the time of sale by a dealer, broker, auctioneer,
auction market operator, or other intermediary or agent. Any animal requiring
identification which does not carry such individual identification at the time
of purchase or sale, shall be at that time identified with acceptable
identification tags, brands, and/or tattoos. Official back tags will be
acceptable individual identification for animals purchased in the country for
immediate sale at regular scheduled auction sales, stockyards yards of
slaughtering establishments.
(b)
The name and address of the person who consigned the animal for sale or from
whom the animal was purchased. If such animal was purchased at an auction, the
name and address of the auction market, and the date of such consignment and
purchase.
(c) The name and address
of the person or firm to whom the animal was sold and the date of such sale or
consignment.
(d) The breed, sex,
approximate age and weight of each animal.
(e) The date and result of any test required
for sale or movement of each animal, or a copy of the official test record may
be identified to the transaction and filed with the records.
The required information relating to the purchase shall be
recorded immediately upon completion of the purchase (but no later than 24
hours after the purchase) and the required information relating to the sale of
such animals shall be recorded immediately (within 24 hours) upon completion of
the consignment or sale.
5. Retention of Records -
The records of livestock sales, purchases, and transactions shall
be kept and retained in the possession of the dealer, auctioneer, commission
company, for a period of at least five years for bovine animals and two years
for other species after each purchase or sale of any livestock. All records,
together with the entries therein shall be available for examination by agents
of the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission.
6. Fees-
(a) There will be a $10.00 fee for each
application or renewal. Fee will be refunded if application is
rejected.
(b) Fees must be paid on
or before July 31st each year.
Non-compliance of any part of this regulation is a Class A
misdemeanor.
