Meeting June 23rd at Medina Co Fair Hall
By Kayleen Holder
Editor
Screwworms have already begun to take a toll on livestock within 60 miles of here. The first was reported June 3 in LaPryor where a calf came down with it, and within days three more cattle and a goat were reported between Zavala, LaSalle and Gillespie Counties. A Texas vet had also reported an infected dog, however, the dog was actually located in New Mexico. Officials say now is the time to get prepared and take action to prevent losses here at home.
We spoke to Bob Bendele, of Devine, who lived through the Screwworm battle of the 60’s.
“I’m 80 years old, and I’ve been in and out of ranching for most of my life, mostly in,” Bendele said.
We asked if he had any advice for younger ranchers as we go towar with the New World Screwworm.
“Keep an eye out, but keep a nose out too,” Bendele said. “Stand downwind because it stinks terribly, and when there’s Look at your cattle real closely, because you don’t just look for infestation, you need to be looking for the eggs.”
He notes that the art of roping and doctoring cattle every day has been long gone for a while now.
“When we eradicated screwworms it made absentee ranching possible. This is a game changer. Long ago, on those big ranches, you’d have cowboys who would ride and doctor cattle daily. Is that gonna come back now? Because every single calf has to be caught and doctored. Just stop and think about that,” Bendele said.
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