Certified Poultry Technician

[jhoughton]

Hello, I wanted to offer my services as a CPT. I am located in Dover PA in between York and Harrisburg. Anyone needing my services (Specimen collection from their fowl for NPIP or other) can e-mail me at [email protected] and we can talk. Thanks all, Jason H.

 

[MuranoFarms]

Just another idea to advertise.......put it in your signature!

 

[3riverschick]

I wanted to NPIP my former flock but the lady told me not to even try. she said it was so difficult in Pennsylvania with all the additional regulations that added to the NPIP program. it was so expensive and so much paperwork to just forget about it.
Said she only knew of two people in her area who managed to negotiate all the obstacles and finally get NPIP on their flocks. Karen in Ligonier, PA

 

[StacyRoma84]

I'm sorry to hear that, Karen! When did you inquire about it? There are some guidelines that have to be met, but it's not impossible.

 

[dheltzel]

I think the rules are much stricter for larger operations. A hobbyist that simple wants to keep a few birds could get NPIP fairly easily, but someone with hundreds of birds is going to have a much tougher go of it.

 

[3riverschick]

I asked a couple of years ago .the lady was really definite. she acted like I didn't have a chance to get NPIP. so I just decided since it was a voluntary program it wasn't worth it . I'm hatching new chicks now and when they grow up I'd like to be NPIP. but from the way that lady sounded, it was going to cost a fortune and take forever. I will only have about 24 Birds Max. Except when I'm growing up chicks but I don't grow them out any more than about two or three months. Then they're out of here except for the few that I keep.
Karen

 

[AllynTal]

I wanted to NPIP my former flock but the lady told me not to even try. she said it was so difficult in Pennsylvania with all the additional regulations that added to the NPIP program. it was so expensive and so much paperwork to just forget about it.
Said she only knew of two people in her area who managed to negotiate all the obstacles and finally get NPIP on their flocks. Karen in Ligonier, PA

I wouldn't take someone's word on how difficult it is to get certified. Check into it yourself. I didn't have chickens for the few years I lived in PA so I can't speak to that, but in Mississippi, it is quite easy. Small flock or large flock, the process is the same. If you have 10 chickens or less, they test all the chickens. For a flock larger than 10 chickens, they test 10 chickens at random among the flock members. There are also different levels of certification. I can transport birds from my flock to other NPIP flocks within the state and visa versa, but in order to transport eggs or birds across state lines, I have to up to the next level of certification. There is also a separate egg certificate if I want to sell more than 6 dozen eggs per month or if I want to sell eggs at farm markets. I didn't do any paperwork. The agent who came to do the testing did all the paperwork and at least up until 2016, there was no fee, though rumor has it that there will be a fee starting this year or next.

I understand that things could be different in PA. All I'm saying is to check into it yourself because what you need to do to get NPIP certified may be different than that other person's experience.

Edited to add:

In PA, contact
DR NAN HANSHAW
PA DEPT OF AGRICULTURE
BUREAU OF ANIMAL HEALTH & DIAGNOSTIC SERVICES
HARRISBURG, PA 17110
Phone: 717-783-6677 Fax:717-787-1868
[email protected]

and "send the State NPIP agency a request for NPIP participation including your name, address, phone number, fax number if applicable, e-mail, type of business (hatchery, independent breeding flock, or dealer) type of poultry you handle or breed (egg-type chickens, meat-type chickens, turkeys, waterfowl, exhibition poultry, game birds, and/or ratites)" to get information.

(quoted from USDA APHIS - How to Become a Participant in the National Poultry Improvement Plan https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/home/ )

 

[StacyRoma84]

for NPIP in PA, it is voluntary and your flock has to get checked frequently for AI and Pullorum. Someone from the state has to visit your farm once (maybe twice) a year to make sure everything is operational and in good, sound condition. Hope that helps!

 

[3riverschick]

Well okay maybe I will check again . according to the lady , NPIP wasn't the problem. it was all the regulations the Commonwealth added to NPIP which made things so difficult. I'll wait till my chicks grow up and then maybe I'll check again .
Thanks everybody,
Karen