Management course sparks changes to calving and winter feeding to improve bottom line and quality of life
ANOLA, Man.— Many farmers try to use every piece of land to its full potential, but paying attention to achieving maximum profit while also looking after the health of the land and the people is the driving philosophy of the Bouw family farm. The farm in Anola, Man., was started in 1960 by Peter and […] Read moreFarm Living
Dealing with job loss
Q: Our son is home now. He left us a little over three years ago to work in the oil patch. Of course, the oil patch is pretty slow at the moment and any chance of work there for our son is, at best, remote. He came back to the farm a couple of months […] Read more
Farm stewardship recognized
BANFF, Alta. — Shane and Kristin Schooten of Diamond City, Alta., are this year’s outstanding young farmers for the Alberta-Northwest Territories. Shane is president of Schooten and Sons Feedyards located near Lethbridge. Total capacity is 40,000 head and they also have 300 commercial cows. The farm includes another 6,300 acres for crop and grazing. Shane […] Read more
Manitoba company tailors shifts around employees
It’s hard to fit stay-at-home moms into a regular workday shift. So Colleen Dyck decided to make the workday fit the moms. “At first it seems like a little bit of a headache to design our shifts this way … but we found our employees were incredibly grateful, incredibly happy,” said Dyck, who founded the […] Read more
Study examines farmer stress
An Ontario researcher is attempting to determine what triggers stress among Canadian farmers. “There’s a quite surprising lack of research done into the mental well being of Canadian farmers,” said Andria Jones-Bitton, a veterinarian and epidemiologist in the population medicine department at the University of Guelph’s Ontario Veterinary College. “So we decided in the summer […] Read more
Dairy couple enthusiastic about educating
INNISFAIL, Alta. — Stan and Marg Coleman are fiddling with their iPhone as they sit at the kitchen table. They are trying to figure out how to work the Google maps app. Stan, a former truck driver, doesn’t need Google maps to find his way around Alberta, but they’re still interested in how it works. […] Read more
Bitter feelings with siblings
Q: Sometimes I think that life has been more than unfair to me. I was the oldest in a family of five children. I was the one who hid my brothers and sisters when my father came home from the bar, drunk and violent and always threatening us. Some weekends, both of my parents would […] Read more
Hearts talk the language of flowers
He loves me He loves me not He loves me. Anonymous When plucking flower petals one by one, the last petal remaining represents whether the object of one’s desire reciprocates the sentiment. This whimsical game of love is simple flower symbolism. For centuries flowers have represented heartfelt emotions. Those emotions become public on Valentine’s Day, […] Read more
ABCs of getting enough zees
It’s bedtime and the baby is crying. The toddler wants one more drink of water. The pre-schooler is worried about a monster under the bed. And the parents need sleep to prepare for another work day. Sleep issues? Sleep consultant Amanda Hudye says they are becoming more prevalent. The Saskatoon-based founder of SleepWell Baby works […] Read more
Bison breeders see future in big beasts
NIPAWIN, Sask. — It’s only appropriate that Don and Paulette Scott have a “buffalo room” in their farm home. Bison-themed photographs, art and awards from nearly 30 years in the industry decorate the walls, while a hide drapes the couch. And the view through the window is the real thing: hundreds of them. The couple […] Read more
