Reading vaccine labels ensures proper use and dosage, whether producers are branding or otherwise treating cattle.  |  File photo

Read the label to be safe when using vaccines

Close attention to labels not only ensures the proper dose is administered but also that the vaccines are mixed correctly

The labels on cattle vaccines have important information and producers should make a point of reading them. Lauren Carde, programs director for the Canadian Animal Health Institute, notes they contain information on route of administration, correct dose, timing, animal age and whether boosters are needed. Attention to these specifics “ensure the safety of the human, […] Read more

Implementation is not without challenges, says Andrea Stroeve-Sawa of Shipwheel Cattle Feeders. It’s hard to find employees who either know stockmanship or are willing to learn and implement it. | File photo

Handling called key to feedlot

Andrea Stroeve-Sawa of Shipwheel Cattle Feeders learned stockmanship from the man himself: Bud Williams, the guru of low-stress cattle handling. Her father met Williams at a conference and invited him to visit Alberta. Stroeve-Sawa said her father and Williams worked cattle together for two weeks, 12 hours a day, and Williams taught the ins and […] Read more

Instead of focusing too much on sensitive animals and riling them up, cattle handlers are instead encouraged to use them to help manage the rest of the group.  |  Canada Beef photo

Handling tied to cattle health

Low-stress handling called an important tool that producers can use to improve their cattle’s health

Lee Sinclair’s interest in low-stress cattle handling emerged during a summer job at a feedlot and carried through to his career with Merck Animal Health. “Nobody had ever told me position, distance and angles make the difference. All we were taught is, ‘we’ve got to get this done’,” Sinclair said of his initial experience working […] Read more



Cow-calf producers are in the driver’s seat now because of high demand for calves from feedlots and processors as calf crops shrink. That provides opportunities as well as challenges.  |  File photo

Beef producers have risk management options

Weather, feed availability and trade barriers affect markets, making it important to understand what tools are available

Glacier FarmMedia – Cattle prices remain strong in Canada and look to stay that way in 2024. However, the market can change quickly, as producers saw in March when avian influenza was first detected in U.S. dairy cattle. Introduction of risk in a red-hot market affected prices and price insurance. That may have cattle producers […] Read more


A pilot project in Saskatchewan will test virtual fencing technology on forested land, but proponents say it is also suited for open prairie.  |  File photo

Farm tries virtual fencing

Glacier FarmMedia – Virtual fencing is being studied in a pilot project on John and Deanne Chuiko’s CJ Ranching operation near St. Walburg, Sask. “Up in St. Walburg, they’ve been having really good luck,” said Andre Bonneau, a range management extension specialist with Saskatchewan Agriculture. Related story: Sask. hosts virtual fence pilot project The system […] Read more

Kelln Solar is a remote watering system company based out of Lumsden, Sask. While the company was originally created for the agricultural industry, they have expanded into work for cabins, lighting and small power solutions. | Screencap via instagram.com/kellnsolar

VIDEO: Kelln solar makes waves in beef industry

Glacier FarmMedia – Providing accessible, affordable water systems to cattle producers is the goal for Derek Verhalst. “We’ve been doing it for 35 years,” said the CEO of Kelln Solar at the Ag in Motion farm show near Langham, Sask., last week. Kelln Solar is a remote watering system company based out of Lumsden, Sask. […] Read more

A trial with a wireless virtual fencing system near St. Walburg, Sask., offers an alternative to phyical posts and barbed wire.  |  File photo

Virtual fencing piloted in northern Saskatchewan

Virtual fencing was one innovation discussed at the Livestock AgTech Happy Hour on the last day of Ag in Motion. Andre Bonneau, a Range Management Extension Specialist with the Government of Saskatchewan, spoke about technology that’s being tried in Saskatchewan regarding virtual fencing. A pilot project of the virtual fencing company known as Vence is […] Read more


Jodi Suchoplas, creator of TestiGrip, wins the Innovation Award for LIvestock at Ag in Motion. | Melissa Jeffers-Bezan photo

Testigrip cuts off circulation at Ag in Motion

Glacier FarmMedia – When Jodi Suchoplas helps her dad castrate, she is usually the one holding down the testes while he applies the band. That’s why she decided to design her product, TestiGrip. TestiGrip was created to look like a hand and to hold the testes firmly, without the need for a second person while […] Read more