Pre-Survey Letter

Month XX, 2014

Dear Producer:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will soon conduct an in-depth study of U.S. cervid operations. The Cervid 2014 study will yield critical data that will benefit the entire cervid industry. I hope that we can count on your participation.

This study, which is the first national cervid study conducted by USDA’s National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS), will benefit you and your fellow cervid producers by:

• Providing a baseline description of the U.S. farmed-cervid industry, including inventory, species, operation size, and operation type;

• Describing current U.S. farmed-cervid production practices and challenges, including animal identification, fencing, animal care and handling, trade and movement, and disease testing;

• Describing the producer-reported occurrence of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) and the management and biosecurity practices important for controlling EHD on cervid farms; and

• Describing health management and biosecurity practices important for the control of infectious diseases on cervid farms.
  
  
  

USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will conduct the survey in all 50 States. You can complete your survey and return it in the self-addressed envelope or one of our telephone enumerators will be contacting you between August 1 and September 1, 2014, for a telephone interview.

Please be assured that your survey responses will be kept strictly confidential as required by law and used only in combination with other responses to report regional estimates. We value your input and look forward to your cooperation in making the NAHMS Cervid 2014 study a success for the entire cervid industry.

Sincerely,

Name

Director

National Agricultural Statistics Service