WACO, Texas (AP) — A recent decision to ban a tool to treat a deadly tick could put cattle at risk, according to Texas ranchers and several government agencies.

Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller last month halted the use of 15 cattle fever tick spray boxes in South Texas for lacking ventilation, the Waco Tribune-Herald reported. The boxes spray livestock with a chemical to eliminate ticks that spread bovine babesiosis. The disease kills 90 percent of the animals it infects, according to the Texas Animal Health Commission.

But Miller said he's received reports of cattle dying from the boxes'...