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Todd Applegate, associate head of the Department of Animal Sciences at Indiana’s Purdue University, has been tapped to lead the University of Georgia’s Department of Poultry Science. He will take the helm starting on Jan. 8.

The current highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5 outbreak in the United States is a concern for the commercial poultry industry, not the general population, says a University of Georgia poultry expert. Humans won’t be infected with avian influenza by eating chicken or other poultry products. Nearly all previous cases of human infections with other avian influenza viruses involved close, direct contact with infected poultry, but little to no direct transmission from person to person. While the HPAI H5 virus has caused some severe devastation for the U.S. commercial poultry industry, there have been no reports of infections in humans, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considers the risk to people from this virus to be low.

University of Georgia researchers have completed a county-by-county analysis of when motorists should be more aware of possibly hitting a deer. They looked at breeding data and then compared it to deer-vehicle collision statistics across Georgia.

Avian influenza is not a problem in Georgia, yet. Commercial chicken producers are prepared to fight the virus that kills birds, and backyard chicken flock owners should prepare, too.

Georgia cattlemen are struggling to feed their herds and fighting the affects of poor quality forages. With calf prices at a high, selling off stock may be the best option, says one University of Georgia expert.

If you have bats in your belfry, or your attic, now is the time to remove them before they hibernate in your home for the winter.

Back to school means more potential outbreaks for pink eye, a bacterial disease also called conjunctivitis. Thanks to increased rainfall this summer, pinkeye is also affecting the cattle industry.

University of Georgia Extension will offer the Master Cattlemen’s Program this fall in Jackson County. The program will be held on Thursdays from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. beginning Aug. 22 and ending Oct. 10.

Organic farmer Will Harris of White Oak Pastures in Bluffton, Ga., has been named the Georgia state winner of the 2013 Swisher Sweets/Sunbelt Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year.

The University of Georgia student chapter of the American Association of Equine Practitioners will host its annual Horse Owner’s Seminar on Aug. 10.