Highlands County Florida Cattlemens Association Annual Steak Dinner

At our recent local Florida Cattlemens Association Annual Steak Dinner, we had a great attendance of cattlemen and cattlewomen from within the county. I was able to meet with different ranchers that are involved in several aspects of agriculture. The evening was full of good food and great fellowship! Several leaders within the industry were able to speak and give us updates on the local and national politics that effect Highlands County’s agriculture industries, along with disaster relief programs that may/will be able to help our farmers and ranchers.

One particular presentation was given by Dr. Liz Steele, a veterinarian that serves this county along with surrounding areas. Her main topic of discussion for the night was Ovarian Follicular Dysplasia (OFD). OFD causes morphologic changes in the ovaries and prevents rebreeding in a cattle herd. In her veterinary practice, she has seen an increase in OFD in cattle in the South Florida region within the last few years.

OFD has been seen in other species of animals, but it is concerning on how often it is becoming more prevalent in our area. This is a poorly described condition in cattle with little reference found in literature. The University of Florida conducted a study and the abstract can be found here.

There are currently many theories on what causes this histological change, but none have been confirmed yet. This topic of discussion has me intrigued and I am interested in the studies that will come with learning more about this dysplasia, what causes it, and how to prevent/manage it within cattle operations.

Pictures: Laurie Hurner

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