Michael Raine

Pat Ryan, Saskatchewan’s first trained equine dentist, said she intends to continue her work despite being convicted of practising veterinary medicine without a licence. The Saskatoon woman said she was only guilty of administering a restricted drug to calm a horse and reduce its pain while she attempted to remove its wolf teeth. Ryan said […] Read more

It is going to be a hot one, Joe thinks as he finishes servicing his flock of new ag bots. Last year at this time, he could look forward to a sweaty day of field spraying, but this morning he has scheduled a meeting with his consulting agrologist to determine if there’s money to be […] Read more

Tomorrow’s farms will likely use new technology to produce crops for new markets. In our special report on pages 10-11, Western Producer reporter Mike Raine examines what agricultural futurists, economists and engineers predict for the prairie farm. They say robotics, information management, genetic engineering and new energy-livestock production loops are the future. Joe e-mails his […] Read more

Joe waves goodbye to Fred, the driver of the truck carrying his new high starch wheat to the ethanol co-op in town. Fred and his family have recently returned to Fred’s home town to live, lured by the jobs at the ethanol plant. Joe hopes the threatened rain holds off because the truck is supposed […] Read more

New anthrax incidents in cattle have almost disappeared, but a bison herd near Wynyard, Sask., fell prey to the bacteria last week. Neither Manitoba nor Alberta had new cases of the disease last week. On a bison farm near Wynyard, 30 head died from anthrax in a herd that is estimated to be several hundred. […] Read more

Findings in a Canadian investigation of a BSE-infected Jersey cow have raised questions from one U.S. group about how the disease develops and at what stage animals should be tested. However, Canadian Food Inspection Agency veterinarian George Luterbach says investigation results tend to confirm what is already known about the brain-wasting cattle disease. The matter […] Read more

New anthrax cases are fewer this week, but authorities warn that producers still need to be vigilant in their approach to the disease. In Saskatchewan 30 new cases were found in the week ending Aug. 27, with four new premises having deaths. In Alberta’s first instance of the disease this year, eight dead bison tested […] Read more

Alberta has reported its first cases of anthrax this season, but to the east incidents of the disease are on the decline. For the first time in two months, no new cases of anthrax were found in Manitoba. At the same time, Saskatchewan cases have dried up along with that province’s sloughs. Alberta’s first cases […] Read more

New name, same college. Agriculture and Bioresources is the new title for the 100-year-old agriculture department of the University of Saskatchewan. After a year of debate, discussion and dissention, the change of name from College of Agriculture to College of Agriculture and Bioresources is complete. With an official announcement in late September, the college will […] Read more

A federal government anti-poverty income program for farmers may not be serving some most in need of help. The Canadian Farm Families Option Program was launched earlier this month to aid producers who had a gross farm income of more than $50,000 and who failed to net $25,000 as a family or $15,000 as an […] Read more