Livestock Management
Technological advances in agriculture range from feed additives to more complex satellite and drone applications
Technology will help farmers and ranchers meet challenges imposed on them by the growing population and climate change, said Alison Sunstrum, chief executive officer of CONSRV-X Inc. As the developer and former owner of GrowSafe Systems, Sunstrum has a long history in agricultural technology. She told the recent Saskatchewan Beef Industry Conference that technology runs […] Read more
Livestock Management
Dairy farm fined for worker’s death
A Saskatchewan dairy farm has been fined $80,000 after the 2020 death of a worker from Mexico. Jimlee Farms Ltd. of Summerberry pleaded guilty in February after an occupational health and safety investigation into the Nov. 19, 2020, death of Jesus Heinar Zavala Guevara. The temporary foreign worker’s clothing became caught in an unguarded power […] Read more
Greenhouse gas project focuses on farms
The federal government plans to spend $182 million to help farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including $40 million for a 26-month project in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The Manitoba Association of Watersheds (MAW) will lead the group overseeing the project, which will encourage and financially support producers who adopt rotational grazing, improve nutrient management and use […] Read more
Making the case for livestock grazing
Prof says those who argue rangeland is too fragile for livestock forget it supported millions of animals before settlement
Grass and grazing animals evolved together in North America, where bison, pronghorns and elk grazed the plains while elk, deer, bighorn sheep, mountain goats and Wood bison grazed more rugged and mountainous regions. Given that natural history, a grazing expert with Utah State University says he is disappointed by those who think livestock grazing is […] Read more
Researchers hope to reduce spread of CWD
The development of an oral vaccine for chronic wasting disease may ease fears that it could cross over into livestock
Scientists in Western Canada have joined forces in a $1.28-million research project to try to develop an oral vaccine to reduce the spread of chronic wasting disease among wild deer species. The rapid growth of the illness in Alberta and Saskatchewan is sparking concerns that it could eventually evolve to cross over into livestock, said […] Read more
Body condition scores determine calf crop productivity
This winter has been difficult for many cow-calf producers. Many ranchers had difficulty harvesting adequate good quality forage because of last summer’s drought and the shorter grazing season. In addition, we’ve had some fairly cold weather across parts of Western Canada recently, which increases the nutritional requirements of our cows. I’ve often talked about the […] Read more
Rake-bunched hay a winter option
Raking windrows into numerous piles can keep cattle grazing longer but the piles must be big enough to find in the snow
Rake-bunched hay is one option to reduce winter cattle feed costs, which are generally the most expensive aspect of owning cattle. If cattle can graze longer and feed themselves in the field, they also tend to stay healthier, says David Bohnert, beef extension specialist with Oregon State University. Rake bunching involves raking windrows into numerous […] Read more
Intercropping study takes a look at corn
Intercropping corn for grazing in late fall and early winter is the focus of a multidisciplinary research project at the University of Manitoba. “This idea is not unique to us here in the Prairies, but we need to evaluate and adapt it for our short growing season,” said Yvonne Lawley, assistant professor of agronomy and […] Read more
Making corn strip-grazing work
Farmers who grow corn and raise cattle often use cornstalks as winter feed. This works best if the corn is strip-grazed rather than turning cows into the whole field. The latter tactic allows cattle to select the ears and most palatable parts of the plants, leaving only less nutritious parts at the end of the […] Read more
Instinctive migratory grazing makes a return
Learning how to manage cattle as a herd the way nature intended allows producers to more easily move their animals
Cattle evolved as herd animals, grazing together as they moved. Domestication and confinement disrupted herd dynamics and only recently have people learned how to best manage them in pasture. Rotational grazing was a start, followed by mob grazing. The latest but oldest management tool is instinctive migratory grazing. Bob Kinford of Van Horn, Texas, gives […] Read more
