Garner Deobald’s Charolais heifers eat canola meal from a trough during his work with the canola meal research project.

Canola meal for cattle. What are the gains?

An on-ranch research project analyzes the costs and gains of feeding canola meal to yearlings

Hodgeville, Sask., looks like it could be a postcard for the province — surrounded by flat fields and cattle grazing in nearby pastures, while an old elevator stands watch at the edge of town on Railroad Avenue, just like so many other small towns in the Canadian Prairies.   In contrast, Big Muddy Valley, located near […] Read more

A man on horseback works cattle near Livingston, Montana. Vence’s virtual fencing systems have been used in Montana and other parts of the U.S., but in 2023, the systems will be trialed for the first time in Canada near Big River, Sask.

Virtual fencing pilot coming to Saskatchewan

Project to explore whether new technology is feasible for Canadian producers

Given how time-consuming and expensive fencing can be, it’s little wonder that virtual fencing has piqued the interest of farmers and ranchers in Canada and beyond. But is the juice worth the squeeze? One cattle group in Saskatchewan aims to find out. Chad MacPherson, the general manager of the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA), says […] Read more


Electric fence allows producers to manage their land and cattle at the same time, says Garth Hein.

Electric fencing tips for fall and winter grazing

Industry reps share the ins and outs of using electric fence effectively and safely

Every year, winter grazing becomes more common as it is often considered more sustainable and can cut feed costs. In addition, producers may graze farmland after harvest for the same reason. However, these things can be tough to manage without electric fence, and when it comes to electric fence, producers need to know how to […] Read more

Cover crops, including radish, have grown increasingly popular across Canada.

Farmers for Climate Solutions pilots mentorship programs

Farmers for Climate Solutions, a national coalition of farmer-led and farmer-supporting organizations, launched a mentorship program in 2022. Also known as FaRM, they offer three learning streams on the topics of advanced nitrogen management, advanced grazing systems and cover cropping. Cedric MacLeod with the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) says a few people at […] Read more


Dave Pratt, past owner of Ranch Management Consultants, teaches a Ranching for Profit workshop at the Canadian Beef Industry Conference in Penticton, B.C.

Ranching for Profit challenges paradigms

This business management course draws repeat customers from the ranching community

In 2014, Brett McRae was looking for mentorship as he worked to grow his ranch, located near Brandon, Man. He was picked as a mentee for the Canadian Cattle Young Leaders Mentorship Program and told his mentor what he was looking to do with his ranch and how he wanted to expand and change. His […] Read more

The purchase of the former Carpenter Mountain Ranch includes extensive outbuildings, two residences, over 500 head of cattle and nearly 3,900 acres of deeded land.

B.C. First Nation looking to expand ranch

In 2020, the government of British Columbia purchased a ranch that they then leased out to the Xatsūll First Nation, located over three hours north of Kamloops, as part of a treaty settlement. The government said at the time that purchasing the ranch for the community was a step towards reconciliation.  Now, a year later, […] Read more


Members of the Treaty Land Sharing Network recognize and respect the Inherent and Treaty rights of First Nations and Métis people to practice their way of life throughout their territory.

Treaty Land Sharing Network connects producers and Indigenous people through land access

Farmers, ranchers, landholders offer land access to Indigenous people to practice treaty rights

[Updated: Oct 18, 2022] Amy Seesequasis says for Indigenous people, everything revolves around the land. “When we look at our culture, it’s based on the land,” Seesequasis says in a virtual discussion on September 15, moderated by Canadian Cattlemen editor Lisa Guenther for a webinar with the Canadian Farm Writers’ Federation. “All our teachings, our […] Read more

Manitoba Beef and Forage Initiative event attendees stand in a teff grass field.

Manitoba trials forage grass from Africa

At one of Manitoba Beef and Forage Initiative’s (MBFI) field days this summer, MBFI showed off a new trial — teff grass. Initially grown in a plot trial at the Parkland Crop Diversification Foundation in 2020, MBFI decided to try the crop in a larger trial after seeing the success at the foundation. “I would […] Read more


Calvin Gavelin (centre) is surrounded by field day attendees as he talks about his cover crops during the Prairie South Holistic Management field day.

Saskatchewan family shares passion for cover cropping

The Gavelin family finds their cover crops perform well even under adverse conditions

Dark clouds roll in as a charter bus drives down gravel roads near McCord, Sask. Marla Gavelin, one of the people hosting the field day from the Prairie South Holistic Management group, speaks to the people in attendance. She compares the Gavelins’ farm to the Sahara Desert with a fond laugh, and the 70-plus people […] Read more

Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts taken from a human. Producers dealing with a crypto outbreak should keep in mind that the parasite can infect both cattle and people.

Introducing outside calves heightens crypto risk

Cryptosporidium parvum is a disease that’s easy to introduce and hard to manage in a beef herd

In the cold, wet pastures of a gruelling Manitoba spring near Oakville, Man., Garth McCormick needed a calf to put on one of his cows who had lost her calf, but didn’t have any he could use on his own farm. His hired man brought a calf from his own place to McCormick’s. Immediately, the […] Read more