REGINA – As Dave Smith moved his championship pen of backgrounder steers back to the display barn, he had time to think about how good Agribition had been to him this year. For the second year in a row, the Lockwood, Sask., beef producer won the champion pen of backgrounder steers and sold the five […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Canadian embryo program loses European customers
An unexpected rule has effectively halted the export of Canadian beef cattle embryos to the European Union. As of Nov. 26, the EU decided to accept only embryos created from semen of IBR-negative bulls. Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis is a respiratory disease that causes abortions in cattle. Canadians vaccinate their cattle for IBR so when tested, […] Read more
Several reasons for feedlot pneumonia
A confounding pneumonia striking feedlot cattle without warning may be triggered by a series of events. Feedlot checkers may not realize an animal has acute interstitial pneumonia until they find a dead one in the pen. A study based at Agriculture Canada’s Lethbridge Research Centre found this pneumonia, also called AIP, may arise from a […] Read more
Western promoter dies at 77
Jack Horner, a former Alberta member of Parliament and rancher, died Nov. 18 in Calgary after a short battle with cancer at the age of 77. He was first elected to the House of Commons in 1958 as a Conservative under prime minister John Diefenbaker. Known for his outspokenness and strong voice for the West, […] Read more
White Shorthorn wins top honours for student owner
REGINA – Katie Songer is combining a career in art with her love of agriculture. The title of the Canadian Western Agribition grand champion Shorthorn bull went to the young breeder from Rocky Mountain House, Alta., who is also a full-time student at the Alberta College of Art in Calgary. The creamy white bull from […] Read more
Tory machine keeps on rolling
The Alberta Tory machine has triumphed with a fourth majority win for premier Ralph Klein. While some seats were lost to the Kevin Taft led Liberals, most of the province remained in the grip of the Progressive Conservatives, a scenario that hasn’t changed since 1971 when premier Peter Lougheed defeated the longstanding Social Credit government. […] Read more
Antibiotic link unproven
A lengthy Canadian study shows no major link between cattle production and antibiotic resistance in humans. “Many significant resistance concerns that we were looking for when we started this project turned out not to be an issue,” said Dr. Ron Read of the University of Calgary faculty of medicine. He reported findings at the national […] Read more
Big money paid for Alberta bull
A syndicate of Canadians and Americans has paid $195,000 for a half interest, half possession in an Alberta-raised bull. Offered at the Remitall Cattle Co. annual production sale in October, the polled Hereford calf born in January 2004 was named the Canadian national Hereford champion at the recent Toronto Royal Winter Fair. The bull, Remitall […] Read more
Dead animals need to be ruled out for BSE
If a farmer finds a dead cow in the pasture, it could be a candidate for Canada’s BSE surveillance program. While the 2004 national target of 8,000 tests has been exceeded, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency wants producers to continue submitting potential cases. By the end of October, 9,476 cases had been tested and all […] Read more
Producer records crucial
If another positive case of BSE is found, it is unlikely entire herds will be destroyed, says the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Instead, the agency would look at animals in specific risk categories, said Darcy Undseth of the agency’s BSE team. If the disease is found in a mature cow, it would look for its […] Read more
