Cattle Pond on a Lazy Summer Day

Water fight brewing

Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen

Imagine a scene from an old spaghetti western, where two ranches are battling for control over the only waterhole around. The hired guns squint at each other from behind the sagebrush, waiting for the chance to unleash a hail of bullets at their foe, until the Texas Rangers ride in to restore peace. Just replace […] Read more

RVP 51X ABLAZE 7A winning National Champion Female at Canadian Western Agribition with her heifer calf Harvie RSK Ms Autumn 32D. (read more below)

Harvie Ranching Hereford named 2016 Miss World Champion

Purely Purebred with Mike Millar: News about you from the March 2017 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

Jacob Onyschuk is the new director of business development for the Canadian Hereford Association. He spent the last four years with Northlands in Edmonton growing the number of purebred cattle entries at Farmfair International. He graduated from the University of Alberta in 2013, with a BSc in agriculture and a major in animal science. Prior […] Read more


university of Manitoba forage breeder doug Cattani says there’s not much incentive for private companies to invest in perennial crops for which they can’t sell seed every year.

Who will breed the next generation?

Forages aren’t only suffering from a shortage of research dollars, but a shortage of researchers to do the work if the money were available

See if you can answer these two skill-testing agricultural questions. What is the largest crop in Canada? Which crop has one of the poorest records for funding research and breeding programs? If you answered “forages” to both, you’re right. You’ve also put your finger on a chronic problem in Canada’s forage industry. Statistics show the […] Read more

‘Change’ is the watchword in a warming world, says researcher

‘Change’ is the watchword in a warming world, says researcher

Longer summers and milder winters sound nice, but even the pluses come with some negatives

How will the Canadian cattle industry fare if global temperatures continue to rise? Count a reduced feed demand, a longer grazing season, and higher forage production among the benefits — but also expect more extreme weather, pests, and transport headaches, according to University of Manitoba research scientist Kim Ominski. “We know the future of our […] Read more


History: There’s a certain something about an Arabian

Reprinted from the April 1950 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

There’s a certain something about an Arabian By J. W. Grant MacEwan, Dean of Agriculture, University of Manitoba ‘Interest in horses for certain types of harness work has dwindled. But in spite of mechanization, the horse has a place to fill in this and succeeding generations. There are still some jobs in agriculture that the […] Read more

Researchers chosen for Beef Researcher Mentorship program

Newsmakers from the October 2016 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

The Beef Cattle Research Council (BCRC) has selected four bovine researchers for its 2016-17 Beef Researcher Mentorship program that puts young researchers in touch with producers and industry representatives to introduce them to the wider Canadian beef industry. They are: Dr. Getahun Legesse, a research associate at the University of Manitoba who is part of […] Read more


A healthy balance of cattle and crops isn’t just better for the balance sheet, say father Jim and Ryan Boyd, it’s better for the soil too, which will pay long-term dividends.

A strategy for regenerative agriculture

Ryan Boyd believes he has the right strategy to get him off the expansion treadmill

About 10 years ago, Ryan Boyd came to his father Jim with some new ideas, and Jim knew it was time to listen. Ryan talked about a new strategy, adopting regenerative and sustainable approaches in order to enhance their productivity. “Dad was more than willing to try something else,” Ryan says. “He’d always believed the […] Read more

cattle herd

The environmental hoofprint of Canada’s beef industry

Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen

Our industry is maligned for producing greenhouse gas. Practically every living organism produces greenhouse gas, even plants, but cattle produce more than other livestock because rumen bacteria produce methane as they digest feed. Additional greenhouse gas comes from manure (methane and nitrous oxide) and fossil fuel use (carbon dioxide). However, like the industry’s “water footprint,” […] Read more


"Certain groups of bacteria seem to become more abundant in the rumen of bloated cattle." Elnaz Azad, researcher at the University o Manitoba.

Rumen microbes and bloat in cattle

Key to the prevention of bloat is understanding the role the bacteria community plays

Bloat is marked by impairment in the ability of cattle to expel gas from the rumen, a process known as eructation. Gases including carbon dioxide and methane are produced during normal fermentation and their accumulation in the rumen causes severe distention of the first two compartments of a cow’s stomach, compressing the lungs and heart […] Read more

black heifer

Peak Dot Ranch donates sale proceeds of heifer to SSGA

News about you, from the Nov. 2014 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

Peak Dot Ranch is donating the proceeds of the sale of a Peak Dot heifer (see photo above) to the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association. Peak Dot Barbara 258S is a purebred heifer that comes from one of the most popular, longest-running cow families at Peak Dot Ranch. She is sired by Peak Dot Volt 950U, […] Read more