Heather Smith Thomas

Letting cows feed themselves during winter reduces feed costs. A lot of time and expense can be saved if you don t have to haul feed in from the fields and then haul it back out to the cows. Bale grazing provides economic and environmental advantages over traditional confinement feeding. Lorne Klein, grazing and forage […] Read more

Extending the grazing season can help reduce production costs for cattle. Even though about 95 per cent of swath grazing in Western Canada is done with perennial forages, some producers are using summer annuals to extend their grazing period in the fall and winter. Lorne Klein, a grazing and forage specialist with the Saskatchewan Ministry […] Read more

To be effective, vaccines must be properly stored and handled. When in doubt, do what it states on the label, says Dr. Chris Clark, an associate professor at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM), University of Saskatchewan. It s always important to follow the label directions, because there are no absolute generalities about vaccines […] Read more

There are two kinds of lump jaw in cattle. Soft tissue abscesses are relatively easy to treat and clear up, whereas lumpy jaw is a deeper infection, within the bone and much more difficult to treat. Dr. Chris Clark of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon says many cattle develop swellings or abscesses […] Read more

Coccidiosis is a protozoan disease that exists wherever there are cattle. Nearly all cattle carry a few of these parasites in their digestive tract. Most cattle have encountered these protozoa and have developed some immunity, but may continue to shed a few oocysts (the egg form of the protozoa) in feces, which may contaminate feed […] Read more

Clostridia are sneaky bacteria. They have the ability to form a protective waxy covering in a dormant stage, morphing into spores in reaction to adverse conditions such as drought. In this state they can survive in the soil almost indefinitely just waiting to be eaten or rubbed into an open wound by unfortunate cattle. Spores […] Read more

There are many factors involved when making decisions about when to calve. Whether you calve in January-February (early calving), March-April (spring), May- June or June-July (summer) or September- October (fall) often hinges on region and climate, marketing goals, feed costs and availability, breeding season considerations, constraints of management, and other factors that enter into this […] Read more

The bonding process, as the cow learns to recognize her new calf, and commits to caring for that calf, is a complex blend of hormonal- induced and learned behaviour. Mature cows that have had calves before are more apt to quickly mother their offspring than first-time heifers. Understanding maternal behaviour in cattle and how to […] Read more

Calving problems, especially with first-calf heifers, can usually be minimized by selecting bulls that sire lowbirthweight calves. Even with the best planning, however, some calves need assistance at birth. Dr. Matt Miesner, assistant professor, clinical agricultural practices at Kansas State University veterinary teaching hospital, tells producers they should have three goals. “First is a live, […] Read more