The webinar will be presented by Dr. Joe Paschal, AgriLife Extension livestock specialist in Corpus Christi. He will discuss internal and external parasites of livestock, primarily beef cattle, methods of control and economic impact.

This webinar is part of a series offered as a way to earn Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units online, according to Brittany Grube, graduate assistant and webinar coordinator.

The webinar is scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. There is no charge to participants not seeking continuing education units. However, if participants want the Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education unit – one in integrated pest management – there is a $10 fee.

"Internal and external parasites are not just pests to control, many of them can carry contagious diseases to other animals," Paschal said. "Livestock, horses, dogs and even humans are at risk for disease transmission or parasitism from many of these parasites."

Blood-sucking insects can transmit a variety of diseases just as easily as contaminated needles or surgical instruments, he said.

Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent annually on the control of external and internal parasites through chemical control, yet these parasites continue to exist. "Many of those dollars were spent using the wrong product targeting the wrong parasite at the wrong dose on overcrowded pastures and pens," Paschal said.

Click here to access this webinar, as well as others in the 2011 and 2012 series. For more information on the webinars, email Grube. 

—From AgriLife Today news release