The global onslaught of emerging diseases never ceases. The role animals play in the emergence of new diseases and the transmission of those diseases to humans is under constant scrutiny. BSE, SARS and influenza are examples of pathogens that jumped the species barriers over the last decade. While their encroachment on human health was less […] Read more
Norovirus: a potential concern for the livestock industry
Good cows don’t just happen
The beef cow is the heart and economic engine of the beef industry. Millions of acres of grass would go to waste if these unique eating machines didn’t turn cellulose into protein while successfully generating a calf at foot. While the foundation of profitable beef production, cows are too often taken for granted, like the […] Read more
Could it happen here?
British agriculture seems constantly trammelled by bad news. If it isn’t serious outbreaks of uninvited disease, it’s about the human capability to do bad and stupid things with food. From the land where mad cow disease was allowed to smoulder for two decades comes the recent scandal of horsemeat in beef products. For some, the […] Read more
Selling the value of simple things
For years we have missed marketing pre-arrival management of calves into Canadian feedlots. Practices important to feedlots are commonsense things most producers follow as they prepare calves for fall markets and yet producers still have difficulty extracting value for their efforts. Does the system for marketing calves need to change? U.S. feedlot owners and managers […] Read more
Is besnoitiosis in store for North America?
Bovine besnoitiosis, caused by a cyst-forming protozoan parasite called Besnoitia besnoiti (B. besnoiti), is widespread in Africa, Asia, southern Europe and South America. Where present, B. besnoiti leads to major economic losses in beef and dairy cattle as a result of decreased milk production, infertility of bulls, unthriftiness and mortality. Carcass trim and condemnation at […] Read more
Eight Game Changers
There are things that happen to industries that have a significant impact on how they succeed year in and year out. The beef industry struggled desperately in the wake of BSE and as it now climbs out of the doldrums it is important to recognize those things that helped create the transition and are going […] Read more
How Are We Doing?
On September 22, 2011 in Calgary, the Council of Canadian Academies released a report on Canada s capacity to conduct animal-health risk assessments into the 21st century. The event will go unnoticed by many in the livestock industry and given only a cursory glance by a large number of people who support it; veterinarians included. […] Read more
Preconditioning pays
The argument over the economics of preconditioning has always been out there. The debate has primarily centred around: Who incurs the cost? Who enjoys the benefits? Does it add value? The word preconditioning is implicit in the credo raised right. With greater attention given to beef quality and safety, good animal husbandry practices and a […] Read more
Leptospirosis: Re-emerging or rediscovered?
Leptospirosis is an economically important bacterial infection of livestock that causes abortions, stillbirths, infertility, and loss of milk production. Leptospirosis is caused by pathogenic spirochetes of the genus Leptospira and is an important cause of abortion and infertility in North American cattle. Leptospirosis is a re-emerging infectious disease that tends to fluctuate in prevalence as […] Read more
Preventing the blemish of downer cows
Animals unable to stand or walk without assistance are a major welfare issue for the beef and dairy industries. Unfortunately, it took the Westland/Hallmark Meat Company incident in 2008 to sound the need for review. Video footage of downers being dragged or treated inhumanely in processing facilities varnished an entire industry and created an attitude […] Read more
Canadian Cattlemen Presents: Depth of Field
