Seminole County is facing several days of elevated fire danger this week as springlike conditions return following a stretch of cold weather that began Friday.

“Fire danger will be a recurrent theme through the week across Oklahoma. Tuesday and Friday point to more widespread concern,” the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food & Forestry’s fire situation report stated in part on Monday. “While significant fire potential remains low, large fire probabilities increase.”

Fourteen counties, including neighboring Hughes and Pottawatomie County, have implemented burn bans, but as of press time no ban had been issued for Seminole County.

On Monday, Governor Kevin Stitt signed an executive order temporarily easing certain transportation regulations to expedite the delivery of water, hay, and other livestock feed as wildfires continue to impact communities across the state.

The order suspends International Registration Plan (IRP) requirements for qualifying commercial vehicles registered in one of the 48 contiguous states that are hauling livestock feed into or through Oklahoma. It also suspends oversize and overweight permitting requirements for divisible and non-divisible loads transporting agricultural feed products for emergency livestock support.

“The damage caused by these wildfires places a heavy burden on communities across the panhandle, especially our farmers and ranchers,” Stitt said in a news release. “Oklahomans always step up for one another, and this order helps us get critical feed and water where it is needed so our producers can begin to recover.”

All federal safety, licensing, and insurance requirements remain in full effect under this order, and motor carriers currently under an Out-of-Service Order are not eligible for this regulatory relief. The order applies only to the transportation of agricultural feed products, providing direct assistance in response to this wildfire emergency, and does not

extend to any other goods.

Monday’s executive order remains in effect for 14 days and can be read in full at .sos.ok.gov.

As Oklahomans and their nearby neighbors in Kansas endure wildfire season, Oklahoma State University Extension specialists offer tips to keep your livestock safe, as well as help with recovery efforts.

Monitoring surviving animals is crucial in the days after a wildfire, Rosslyn Biggs, DVM, OSU Extension beef cattle specialist, said.

“We need to be thinking about long-term repercussions,” she said. “Thermal injuries, burns can be a big issue on these animals. We also need to be thinking about smoke inhalation and the systems that those affect.”

Enhanced monitoring of the surviving animals is crucial after a wildfire, Biggs explains. In addition to nutrition, hydration is key. Cows that are in the later stages of pregnancy need to be thought about, too. Consider their capacity to care for either calves on the ground or those they will soon birth.

Post-wildfire evaluation can lead to difficult decisions, too.

“It’s very important in these disaster-type situations that animal welfare needs to be our first consideration,” Biggs said. “How are those animals that have survived going to be able to recover from those injuries? In many cases, unfortunately, euthanasia may be the most humane decision that we have to make.”

Protecting horses during wildfires Have your horses loaded and ready to go before you see a wildfire reach your property, Kris Hiney, OSU Extension equine specialist, explains.

“So many animals, when fire is coming, it causes panic,” Hiney said. “They may be harder to handle, so if trouble is coming, have the horses already up in a small lot where you can catch them. In a burning building, horses won’t want to leave, but now we’re talking about a threat to human safety as well.”

Horses will often be reluctant to leave an environment they deem safe, Hiney said. Keep the horses together and avoid isolating one horse at a time, as this could cause further panic.

“The calmer the handler can be, the better the horses will act,” Hiney said.

Preparation is also key. Maintaining your property, like mowing fence lines and creating fire breaks, is important. Be aware that fire structures, such as hay storage, can be extremely dangerous for animals to be near. Have photographs and records of all your horses, Hiney said.

If smoke is high in the air, even if not directly where fire is impacting your land, respiratory health in horses is important. Hiney recommends not working the horses when the smoke particulate matter is high.

Emergency cattle nutrition Wildfires can ravage forage, requiring producers to pivot in the aftermath.

There are several strategies to minimize weight loss until hay can be secured. One option is to provide a commercial “creep feed” product for four to five days. Commercial creep feeds will generally contain 12 to 14% protein and are aneasily accessible option, with this feed bagged and ready to ship immediately.

The feeding rate is equivalent to eight pounds of feed per day, assuming cows weigh 1,200 pounds. If hay is more abundant, 15 pounds of grass hay fed with five pounds of a 28% to 32% range cube can maintain a 1,200-pound cow in the last trimester of pregnancy.

Mineral supplements with a high calcium level are essential to offset the high phosphorus levels in concentrate feeds. Work with your local OSU Extension educator to ensure a well-balanced diet for your cattle in limit-feeding scenarios.

The priority is to meet nutritional needs while stretching hay supplies.

Documenting losses After a wildfire, documenting losses will be crucial for producers. Review your existing records and then create a line of documentation on a day-to-day basis after a disaster.

“Having documentation becomes very important from a financial aspect,” Biggs said. “It can be as simple as, if we have losses, documenting those with photographic evidence. Most people can use their cellphones to take pictures that can be timestamped. For many emergency-type programs, it’s going to be necessary to have verifiable records.”

Carcass disposal Burial will be the best option for disposing of livestock carcasses, said Doug Hamilton, OSU Extension water management specialist.

“You need to be in a high spot,” Hamilton said. “You need to be well above a flood plain. You’re going to have to dig a hole 4-6 feet deep and be at least two feet above where the water table may rise.”

It is also important to keep burial sites at least 300 feet away from water sources.

The state of Oklahoma has five methods for disposing of livestock: landfilling, rendering, incineration, composting and burial. Finding a landfill to take a dead animal will be difficult, even in an emergency. Rendering will be hard if the animal has been dead for several days and incineration requires expensive and specific equipment.

Composting is viable, but it will require wood shavings or sawdust and management. An advantage of composting is that once you’ve completed it, the land site will be viable for use again.

If you are affected by the wildfires and have agricultural, livestock care or forage questions — or wish to donate or receive hay — contact OSU Extension by calling (405) 780-4569 or emailing DisasterSupport@okstate.edu.

(Livestock safety tips story by Dean Ruhl)