Livestock Management
Slumping lean hog prices have made for trying times recently in the industry, but producer interest was high at trade show
BRANDON — Anyone who wanted to meet a young, competitive, chatty hog producer last week just had to hang outside the glass-fronted hog cooler at the Brandon Hog and Livestock Show. There, throughout the event, groups of young men, mostly Hutterites, came by, approached the glass and appraised the top five carcasses on display. To […] Read more
Livestock Management
Colostrum can be used to treat diarrhea in calves
Transition milk, which comes from cows after initial colostrum production, has also been shown to improve calf health
Canadian dairy farmers are doing a better job of getting colostrum to their calves and making sure they have absorbed enough to create passive immunity. However, researchers are pushing the boundaries on uses for colostrum. Dr. Dave Renaud, a veterinary epidemiologist in the University of Guelph’s Department of Population Medicine, has found that colostrum can […] Read more
Researcher takes deeper look into how avian flu spreads
Coughing, sneezing, runny beaks and diarrhea are signs a flock is sick, and avian influenza is likely the cause. When signs are present, producers can have samples from the flock sent to the provincial laboratory for testing to confirm that bird flu is responsible and to determine whether it is a high-pathogenic or low-pathogenic variety. […] Read more
Evaluate semen as close as possible to breeding season
Many bulls are bought early in the year when most bull sales are held from February to April. For earlier sales, those occurring in December or January, purebred producers usually have semen evaluations carried out before bulls are delivered or picked up at the farm. When is the gap too big between when a semen […] Read more
Alta. residents to appeal biodigester approval
CALGARY — The fight by High River, Alta., and area residents against a proposed $70 million biodigester will continue despite the Alberta government’s approval of the project. Residents opposed plan to appeal the decision to the provincial Environmental Appeals Board, said Benita Estes, whose rural home in Foothills County is about 200 metres from the […] Read more
Import levy provides valuable funding
Over $10 million has collected since the import levy was created in response to a similar levy in the United States
Ten years of a beef cattle import levy have resulted in about $1 million per year invested in growing the domestic market for beef. The Beef Cattle Research, Market Development and Promotion Levies Order came to be in June 2013. Melinda German, general manager of the Canadian Beef Check-off Agency, said the levy charged to […] Read more
Milk data project brings field and barn numbers together
John Deere and DeLaval have created a way for dairy farmers to bring together data from across their entire farms, not just from crops or the barn. The companies have created the Milk Sustainability Center, which will consolidate data from dairy farmers for evaluation and decision-making around sustainability impact and efficiency. Farmers might manage their […] Read more
New study shows emerging parasite also infects muskrats
Human and pet dog cases of a deadly parasitic disease have recently increased in Western Canada. In Alberta, the parasite Echinococcus multilocularis has been diagnosed in 17 people between 2013 and 2020. In pet dogs, there were 27 cases in Western Canada between 2009 and 2021 with 18 of those occurring in Alberta. This is […] Read more
Seneca Valley virus causes headaches for pork sector
Manitoba Pork says wider application of an export requirement the U.S. introduced this fall would have halted shipping
A mild virus masquerading as a more serious disease caused frustration in the hog sector this summer, but it could have been much worse, Manitoba producers heard during an early November meeting of the Manitoba Pork Council. Earlier this year, American authorities started requiring a veterinary export certificate for certain cull sows coming out of […] Read more
Hog industry wants to be ready for new COOL legislation
Sector says feds should have retaliatory tariffs locked and loaded if the U.S. enacts voluntary country-of-origin labelling
Manitoba Pork will support retaliatory tariffs if the U.S. goes ahead with its voluntary country of origin labeling scheme, producers heard at a recent meeting. “It’s my view that if the U.S. moves ahead with these changes, Canada will have the right to impose those retaliatory tariffs … We are again requesting the government of […] Read more
