Texas Battling Cattle Fever Tick, Cattle Industry Concerned

COLLEGE STATION, TX – While President Trump has been focused on a border wall to keep illegal immigrants out of the country, cattle producers have been worried about another border issue: the cattle fever tick. Though Texas has a half a million-acre permanent quarantine zone, stretching from the Gulf of Mexico near Brownsville to the north of Del Rio, cattle fever tick infestations have spread across another million acres. Cattle fever ticks can carry parasites that cause cattle fever and once infected, these parasites attack red blood cells resulting in acute anemia, enlargement of the liver and spleen, and a high fever. Once infected, mortality occurs in about 70 percent of cattle, a major issue since there are no protective vaccines or approved drugs. Eradication efforts began over 110 years ago and were fairly successful for about 40 years, but the United States has been dealing with periodic incursions over the past 50 years. The main concern for the livestock industries lies in the potential damage that the tick could inflict on U.S. producers if not contained on the Texas-Mexico border.