Features , Latest & Featured - Canadian Cattlemen

Les Halliday finds cull potatoes to be highly palatable to cattle. Like any feed, they need to be introduced slowly. To avoid choking hazards, they should be chopped or ensiled before feeding.

Making food waste work in your feeding program

There are several benefits and challenges to weigh when introducing food waste as a feed source

By Piper Whelan October 26, 2021

When customers visit Mike Buis’ on-farm retail store to purchase beef, they often ask what unusual product he’s feeding his cows that day. “It keeps it interesting,” says Buis, who farms at Chatham, Ont., and feeds cull vegetables and processing byproducts to his herd. “They need to almost drive directly by the feed bunk to […] Read more

The preconditioning study includes 250 calves raised at W.A. Ranches and fully preconditioned, along with another 250 purchased, conventionally weaned calves.

Cow-Calf, Features, Livestock

Study delves deeper into preconditioning calves

Researchers are exploring disease prevention, economics and performance benefits on feeder calves

By Piper Whelan October 20, 2021

Though the practice of preconditioning calves is relatively well known, not everyone agrees on the definition of the term. Confusion over what preconditioning entails may be partly to blame for reports of inconsistent returns on investment, says one researcher. “To me, it’s way more than just optimizing a vaccination protocol,” says Dr. Karin Orsel, veterinary […] Read more

Fertility, calving ease, good udders, mothering ability, good feet and legs, robust health and temperament are top traits to look for in cows when trying to build a profitable operation.

Features, Livestock

Developing the right cattle for profitable ranching

Whether you’re culling cows or selecting bulls, look for the animals that can perform in your environment

By Burke Teichert October 19, 2021

For too many years I was like most of you. I thought profitable ranching started with the cattle. Truly profitable ranching starts with the soil, moves through the plants to feed the animals and then finally we manage the animals to provide a good profit. We will talk about soil and plants in later articles, […] Read more

How does your feed measure up? This livestock nutritionist decodes the numbers.

Features, Forages, Livestock

A closer look at your feed test

A ruminant nutritionist provides us with an in-depth look at a real-life feed test for hay

By Piper Whelan October 15, 2021

In a year like this, feed testing is “prudent,” says Courtney O’Keefe, ruminant nutritionist with Blue Rock Animal Nutrition at Innisfail, Alta. “It’s going to help you make those decisions and balance that ration accordingly.” O’Keefe takes us through a recent feed test (see example below) for mixed grass-legume hay, noting that nutritionists tend to […] Read more

When asking lenders for money, make sure you know your expected revenues, expenses, net worth, cash flow and how you’ll make payments. Don’t be afraid to ask lenders questions, especially around ratios.

Features

Financing for first-timers

Two bankers offer tips for young producers preparing to talk to a lender

By Lois Harris October 14, 2021

Getting prepared to meet with a banker to get a loan can be fraught with anxiety, especially if you’re young, eager to build a cattle business, and don’t have a lot of financial experience. Canadian Cattlemen talked to two experts about how to better equip yourself for success. “First and foremost, I’d want to know […] Read more

Larkspur, which contains many toxic alkaloids, can affect the next year's calf crop if gestating cows eat enough of it at the wrong time. It's just one example of toxic plants found in some regions in North America.

Features, Forages, Livestock

Unconventional: Salvaging crops and feeding weeds during drought

Whether you’re eyeing a flax crop or baling ditches and sloughs, here’s what you need to know about alternative feeds

By Heather Smith Thomas October 12, 2021

In drought years it’s often challenging to provide adequate forage for cattle. Sometimes producers use alternative feeds which might include drought-stressed or salvaged crops. Dr. Bart Lardner, professor in the department of animal and poultry science at the University of Saskatchewan, says some of the drought-stressed crops that might be available include annuals such as […] Read more

Holly Sparrow’s experience on her family’s mixed farm sparked a passion for raising high-quality beef while protecting the environment.

Beef Cattle, Features

Focusing on the big picture

Whether it’s managing the cow herd or lobbying on Parliament Hill, Holly Sparrow is in a learning frame of mind

By Heather Smith Thomas October 5, 2021

Even for those raised on a ranch, there’s always a learning curve in the beef industry. Third-generation rancher Holly Sparrow is leveraging what she’s learned on the farm and in school with her work and board experience to climb that curve. Sparrow’s passion for the beef industry is rooted in her experience on her family […] Read more

Dr. Volker Gerdts, director and CEO of the University of Saskatchewan’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO).

Features, News

Livestock research a high priority for VIDO

COVID has highlighted the need to connect human and animal health, and for resources to address pandemics in either sphere

By Lois Harris September 28, 2021

Canada’s ability to rapidly respond to emerging human and animal diseases was given a $59.2 million shot in the arm last fall in the federal budget, due to the pandemic. The funding is going to the University of Saskatchewan’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO). It, combined with $15 million from the province, $250,000 from […] Read more

Checking cattle in a Canadian feedlot. Bovine respiratory disease remains the most common disease affecting feedlot cattle.

Features, Livestock

New nasal spray may provide relief from BRD

By focusing on the microbiome in the respiratory system, a new startup hopes to control shipping fever without antibiotics

By Lois Harris September 27, 2021

Research into a promising alternative to antibiotics that prevents and treats bovine respiratory disease (BRD) has investors and the beef industry buzzing. “My interest is to understand how the microbiome influences the animal’s overall health and response to disease,” says Dr. Christopher Belnap, co-founder and CEO of Resilient Biotics, based in North Carolina. The Microbiology […] Read more

Gillian Arraial, Alexandra Shepherd and Bailey Hove learning to castrate calves while interning with Chelsea Geiger Pellerin and her family.

Features, News

Mini-internships give ag students hands-on farm experience

A University of Alberta program connects urban students to farmers, and gives farm kids new ag experience, too

By Heather Smith Thomas September 24, 2021

A unique internship program at the University of Alberta has become increasingly popular with students since its creation in 2016. Poultry professor Dr. Frank Robinson helped create the program, which is a partnership between the faculty of agricultural, life and environmental sciences and the University of Alberta Career Centre. Robinson set up mini ag internships, […] Read more

Canada had constructive talks with China over canola dispute, Ottawa says

U.S. grains: Corn, soybeans tick higher ahead of USDA report

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures bounce on short covering

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