title: Distribution of cow-calf producers' beliefs regarding gathering and holding their cattle and observing animal movement restrictions during an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.
abstract: The voluntary cooperation of producers with disease control measures such as movement restrictions and gathering cattle for testing, vaccination, or depopulation is critical to the success of many disease control programs. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in Texas in order to determine the distribution of key beliefs about obeying movement restrictions and gathering and holding cattle for disease control purposes. Two questionnaires were developed and distributed to separate representative samples of Texas cow-calf producers, respectively. The context for each behavior was provided through the use of scenarios in the questionnaire. Belief strength was measured using a 7-point Likert-like scale. Producers surveyed were unsure about the possible negative consequences of gathering and holding their cattle when requested by authorities, suggesting a key need for communication in this area during an outbreak. Respondents identified a lack of manpower and/or financial resources to gather and hold cattle as barriers to their cooperation with orders to gather and hold cattle. Producers also expressed uncertainty about the efficacy of movement restrictions to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease and concern about possible feed shortages or animal suffering. However, there are emotional benefits to complying with movement restrictions and strong social expectations of cooperation with any movement bans put in place.
authors.affiliation: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services, Centers for Epidemiology and Animal Health, Fort Collins, CO, USA. Electronic address: amy.h.delgado@aphis.usda.gov.
authors.forename: Amy H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Delgado
authors.affiliation: Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Norby
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: H Morgan
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.affiliation: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Alexandria, VA, USA.
authors.forename: Wesley
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Dean
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, College of Liberal Arts, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: W Alex
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: McIntosh
authors.affiliation: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services, Centers for Epidemiology and Animal Health, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bush
mesh_terms: D000822:Animal Husbandry / Q000379:methods*; D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D003140:Communicable Disease Control; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000662:veterinary*; D005536:Foot-and-Mouth Disease / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013781:Texas / Q000453:epidemiology; D014186:Transportation
keywords: Beliefs; Cattle producers; Cow calf; FMD; Foot-and-mouth disease; Foreign animal disease control; Movement ban; Theory of planned behavior