Fresh air, big sky and Western hospitality were on offer to members and guests attending this year’s Annual General Meeting in Westlock, Alberta. Hosted by Jersey West and Unique Valleystream Genetics, the AGM took place over four days, April 11th-14, and saw upwards of 150 people from nine provinces attending. Friday was tour day. Due to their remote locations, farms in the region don’t get many visitors, but the pristine facilities at Skycrest Holsteins speaks to their attention to detail and pride of ownership. The next farm on the tour was none other than Unique Valleystream Genetics, owned and operated by Jersey Canada president Dave Morey, wife Tracy, and his children Casey and Lee. Many attendees were looking forward to this visit; Unique is well-known in the Jersey industry and has a rich history of
fine animals, both top-producers and show-winners. Unique provided lunch and awards were given out including the All Canadians, Youth of Distinction and Jersey Young Achievers. From there buses travelled to the North Central Livestock Exchange, one of North America’s largest and on to the Canadian Tractor Museum. The tour ran very smoothly and acknowledgement must be given to Casey Morey for organizing an enjoyable and memorable day. Saturday saw attendees make themselves comfortable in the banquet room for a full slate of activities. In the morning 3 invited speakers presented on behalf of the Continued Education program. The venerable Larry Schirm from ABS Genetics gave a thorough presentation on optimising your herd to increase production and profit using genetics. Russell Gammon, past Jersey Canada General Manager and unwavering Jersey booster,
RESOLUTIONS Resolution #1: Whereas, the Jersey breed is known for better fertility and promotes itself as such, and whereas the JH1 trait, (which, when inherited from both sire and dam produces unviable embryos or still births) has been identified in between 10% and 20% of our breed, and whereas, our Canadian farmer owned A.I. Organization lists 6 of 13 available sires (47%) as carriers, be it RESOLVED that Jersey Canada`s Genetic Improvement Committee look at ways to raise awareness and discourage the selection of bulls carrying this trait. ••• Considérant que la race Jersey est réputée pour sa fertilité supérieure, se promeut comme telle et que le trait JH1 (qui, hérité à la fois du père et de la mère, produit des embryons non viables ou mort naissances) a été identifié entre
gave a history lesson on the breed, and called on members to play active roles in the future of the Jersey herdbook. Lastly, Paul Meyer of WestGen gave an informative talk on Building Your Genetic Plan using varied approaches to breeding. The business meeting portion of the day was well attended and engendered lively discussion over varied resolutions. Jersey Canada is proud to have an engaged membership, with a large percentage of members coming to participate in person over such a large country. The remainder of awards followed the meeting, and a vast majority of the winners were on hand to receive their due. Thank you to everyone who made this AGM a success. Jersey Canada exists to serve its members and through your support and enthusiasm the Jersey Breed continues to improve.
Four resolutions were presented at the Quatre résolutions ont été présentées à l’asJersey Canada Annual General Meeting, semblée générale annuelle de Jersey Canto be voted upon by the membership. ada et soumises aux votes des membres.
10% et 20% de notre race et alors que les organisations I.A. appartenant à nos fermiers canadiens indiquent 6 des 13 taureaux disponibles (47%) comme porteurs, qu’il soit RÉSOLU que le comité d’amélioration génétique de Jersey Canada étudie des moyens de sensibiliser et de ne pas encourager la sélection de taureau portant ce trait. In favour / En faveur - 34 Opposed / Opposé - 0 Abstain / Abstenu - 0 CARRIED / ADOPTÉ
Resolution #2: Whereas, our national show being the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair (RAWF), be it RESOLVED that the associate judge be approved by the Jersey Canada Show Committee. ••• Considérant
28 JUNE / JUIN 2019 Canadian Jersey Breeder / Eleveur De Jersey Canadien
que notre exposition nationale est la Royal Agricultural Winter Fair (RAWF), il est RÉSOLU que le juge associé soit approuvé par le comité d’exposition de Jersey Canada. In favour / En faveur - 11 Opposed / Opposé - 7 Abstain / Abstenu - 13 CARRIED / ADOPTÉ
Resolution #3: Whereas, shows subscribe to, and abide by, the Code of Ethics, be it RESOLVED that Jersey Canada review the current Code of Ethics with the Jersey Canada Show Committee, and enact stronger enforcement of those guidelines. ••• Alors que, les expositions souscrivent et respectent le code d’éthique, il est RÉSOLU que Jersey Canada révise
