Official Site of The State of New Jersey

The NJDA Division of Animal Health is alerting livestock owners to take steps to address the winter weather and upcoming winter cold air dropping into the United States. Livestock owners may need assistance in protecting their animals from unseasonally cold conditions. 

The Division of Animal Health was made aware recently of a shipment of poultry being brought into New Jersey during which some of the birds died along the way. Although it is not conclusive that extreme cold played a role in their deaths, it may have been a contributing factor.

In a related matter, Governor Philip Murphy announced he has declared a State of Emergency starting at 9 a.m. on Friday, December 12, 2025, due to a significant shortage of propane fuel resulting from power-outage issues at a gas refinery in Marcus Hook, Pa.

The Governor noted in his announcement that approximately 186,000 New Jersey residents depend upon propane as their primary source of home-heating fuel.

If you are a livestock owner in New Jersey and are having trouble keeping your animals warm in these frigid temperatures, whether you normally heat them using propane or any other method, please contact the Division of Animal Health at 609-671-6400, or, in the alternative, your County’s Office of Emergency Management or your County Agriculture Board.