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TETANUS WORRIES 路 LEPTOSPIROSIS RED FLAG THE BEEF MAGAZINE

SEPTEMBER 2013 $3.00 WWW.CANADIANCATTLEMEN.CA

HEALTH A SHARED CONCERN

For grazing co-op

Clint Linford

Manager, BT Grazing Co-operative

Publications Mail Agreement Number 40069240

Look for your copy of the

CUSTOM FEEDLOT GUIDE

inside this issue. Sponsored by:

Canadian Angus Rancher Endorsed Sales for Angus Tagged Cattle

BRITISH COLUMBIA

BC Livestock Producers Co-op Assoc. Kamloops 250-573-3939 October 15 Okanagan Falls Stockyard 250-573-3939 October 14 Valley Auction Ltd. (Armstrong) 250-546-9420 October 24; November 14 Vanderhoof Auction Market Ltd. 250-570-2143 October 18 VJV Dawson Creek 250-782-3766 September 23; October 21 Williams Lake Stockyards 250-398-7174 October 16 & 17

ALBERTA

Balog Auction Services Inc. (Lethbridge) 403-320-1980 October 22, 25 & 29; November 1 & 5 Bow Slope Shipping Association (Brooks) 403-362-5521 October 21, 22 & 28; November 4 Burnt Lake Livestock Mart Ltd. (Red Deer) 403-347-6100 October 3 & 24; November 7 Calgary Stockyards (Strathmore) 403-934-3344 October 12; November 9; December 7 DLMS 780-699-5082 Check the DLMS Market System Dryland Cattle Trading Co. (Veteran) 403-575-3772 November 4 Grande Prairie Livestock Market 780-532-3949 October 16; November 20 Innisfail Auction Market 403-227-3166 October 7 & 21; November 4 & 18

2013 & 2014

Medicine Hat Feeding Company Ltd. 403-526-3129 October 21, 23, 25 & 28; November 1, 6, 8, 11, 15 & 22 Nilsson Bros. Inc. Clyde 780-348-5893 September 10; October 8; November 12 Vermilion 780-853-5372 October 19; November 2 Olds Auction Mart 403-556-3655 October 4 & 25; November 15 Perlich Bros Auction Market Ltd. (Lethbridge) 403-329-3101 October 2, 9, 16 & 26; November 2 & 9 Provost Livestock Exchange 780-753-2369 October 28; November 11 Sekura Livestock Ltd./Rimbey 403-843-2439 October 24; November 21 Southern AB Livestock Exchange Highwood Livestock Auction (High River) 403-652-3343 November 1 Fort MacLeod Auction 403-553-3315 October 8, 17 & 19; November 7 Stettler Auction Mart (1990) Ltd. 403-742-2368 October 11; November 1 TEAM Electronic Sale 403-234-7429 October 11; November 8; December 6 Triple J Livestock (Westlock) 780-349-3153 October 25; November 22 Viking Auction Market 780-336-2209 October 8; November 5; December 3 VJV Foothills Livestock Auction (Stavely) 403-549-2120 October 7 & 21; November 4 Vold, Jones & Vold (Ponoka) 403-783-5561 October 26

SASKATCHEWAN

Assiniaboia Livestock Auction 306-642-5358 October 19; November 2, 9, 16 & 30 Cowtown Livestock Exchange Inc. (Maple Creek) 306-662-2648 October 22, 24, 26, 28 & 31; November 2, 5 & 7 Heartland Livestock Services Lloydminster 306-825-8831 October 22; November 4 & 27 Moose Jaw 306-692-2385 October 22; November 5 & 19 Prince Albert 306-763-8463 November 5 & 8 Swift Current 306-773-3174 October 19; November 2, 9, 16, 23 & 30 Yorkton 306-783-9437 October 2 & 30 Mankota Stockmenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Weigh Co. Ltd. 306-478-2229 October 18* & 25; November 1 Meadow Lake Stockyards Ltd. 306-236-3411 October 3, 10, 17, 24 & 31; November 7, 14, 21 & 28 Parkland Livestock Market Leross (Kelliher) 306-675-2077 October 31; November 7 & 21; December 5 Saskatoon Livestock Sale 306-382-8088 November 4 & 18; December 2 Spiritwood Stockyards 306-883-2168 October 9 & 23; November 6 & 20 Weyburn Livestock Exchange 306-842-4574 October 7 & 28; November 11 & 25 Whitewood Livestock Sales 306-735-2822 October 15 & 29; November 12 & 26

MANITOBA

Gladstone Auction Martket Ltd. 204-385-2537 March 4 Grunthal Livestock Auction 204-434-6519 October 15; November 12 Heartland Livestock Services Brandon 204-727-1431 October 15; November 5 Virden 204-748-2809 October 16; November 6 & 20 Interlake Cattlemens Co-op Association Ltd. (Ashern) 204-768-2360 October 30 Killarney Auction Market Ltd. 204-523-8477 October 21; November 18 Ste. Rose Auction Mart Ltd. 204-447-2266 November 7 Winnipeg Livestock Sales Ltd. 204-694-8328 October 4 & 18; November 8

ONTARIO

Brussels Livestock 519-887-6461 November 29 David Carson Farms & Auction Services Ltd. (Listowel) 519-291-2049 October 28 Kawartha Lakes Cooperative Auction Market Inc. (Woodville) 705-439-4444 October 16 Keady Livestock Market (Tara) 519-934-2339 October 31 Ontario Livestock Exchange Ltd. (Waterloo) 519-884-2082 September 18; October 16; November 20 Ontario Stockyards Ltd. (Cookstown) 705-458-4000 October 17 Ottawa Livestock Exchange (Greely) 613-821-2634 October 31

QUEBEC

Encan Sawyerville Inc. 819-875-3577 October 24; February 13 Marche d’Animaux Vivant & Freres Inc. (La Guadeloupe) 418-459-6832 October 23 Réseau Encans Québec (Saint-Isidore) 418-882-6341 October 25; February 14

NEW BRUNSWICK

Sussex and Studholm Agriciculture Society Auction Barn 506-432-1841 September 18

NOVA SCOTIA

Atlantic Stockyards 902-893-9603 October 19; April 12

Market your 2013 Angus tagged calves at these Angus feature sales at participating auction markets. These auctions are recognized supporters and sellers of cattle identified as Angus through the Canadian Angus Rancher Endorsed Tag. • Dates are subject to change. Call auction markets for more information. *all tagged sale

CONTACTS

Director of Field Services:

Brian Good 403-391-4037

Fieldmen:

Auction MArt of the YeAr presented to VAlleY Auction of ArMstrong, British coluMBiA

Ken Cox, Western Canada 780-672-6860 Laird Senft, Saskatchewan 306-332-4823 Jack Brown, British Columbia 778-593-7410 Blair McRae, Manitoba 204-728-3058 Matt Bates, Ontario 705-341-9510 Wayne Gallup, Quebec 819-826-3026

Read more about the Auction Market of the Year.

Canadian Angus Association 142, 6715 – 8 Street NE Calgary, AB T2E 7H7 Phone: 1-888-571-3580 www.cdnangus.ca email: cdnangus@cdnangus.ca

Contents CANADIAN CATTLEMEN · SEPTEMBER 2013 · VOLUME 76, NO. 9

 HEALTH

Established 1938 ISSN 1196-8923 CATTLEMEN EDITORIAL Editor: Gren Winslow 1666 Dublin Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3H 0H1 (204) 944-5753 Fax (204) 944-5416 E-mail: gren@fbcpublishing.com Field Editor: Debbie Furber Box 1168, Tisdale, SK S0E 1T0 (306) 873-4360 Fax (306) 873-4360 E-mail: debbie.furber@fbcpublishing.com ADVERTISING SALES Deborah Wilson RR 1, Lousana, AB T0M 1K0 (403) 325-1695 Fax (403) 944-5562 E-mail: deb.wilson@fbcpublishing.com HEAD OFFICE 1666 Dublin Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3H 0H1 (204) 944-5765 Fax (204) 944-5562 Advertising Services Co-ordinator: Arlene Bomback (204) 944-5765 Fax (204) 944-5562 E-mail: ads@fbcpublishing.com Publisher: Lynda Tityk E-mail: lynda.tityk@fbcpublishing.com Associate Publisher/Editorial Director: John Morriss E-mail: john.morriss@fbcpublishing.com

HEALTH IS A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY ON THIS CO-OPERATIVE PASTURE 22  HEALTH

FEATURES Pain, pain, go away . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 No simple fix for bovine respiratory disease . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Early detection the key to BRD cure . . . . 18 Health is a shared responsibility on this co-operative pasture . . . . . . . . . . . 22

No simple fix for 15 bovine respiratory disease It’s a complex disease.

Watch for tetanus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 The evolution of my bale truck . . . . . . . . . 32 Wet weather raises concern about leptospirosis in the West . . . . . . . . . 38 Verified Beef Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

 HEALTH

DEPARTMENTS Comment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Newsmakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Our History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Nutrition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Vet Advice. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Watch for leptospirosis

Holistic Ranching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 Research on the Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Straight from the Hip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Wet weather raises red flags.

Prime Cuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Congratulations!

News Roundup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

CCA Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

To our September survey winner, Kelly Mitchell, Russell, Man. This month’s survey is on page 48.

Purely Purebred . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Cover Photo: Supplied by Tannis Linford.

Sales and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

C AT T L E M E N · S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 3

The Markets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Market Talk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Production Director: Shawna Gibson E-mail: shawna@fbcpublishing.com Circulation Manager: Heather Anderson E-mail: heather@fbcpublishing.com President: Bob Willcox Glacier Media Agricultural Information Group Email: bwillcox@glaciermedia.ca Contents of Cattlemen are copyrighted and may be reproduced only when written permission is obtained from the editor and proper credit is given to Cattlemen. Cattlemen and Canadian Cattlemen are Trade Marks of Farm Business Communications. Cattlemen is published monthly (with the exception of July and 2 issues in January and October) by Farm Business Communications. Head office: Winnipeg, Manitoba. Printed by Transcontinental LGMC. Cattlemen is printed with linseed oil-based inks. Subscription rates in Canada — $36.75 for one year, $55 for 2 years, $99 for 3 years (prices include GST). Manitoba residents add 8% PST. U.S. subscription rate — $35 (U.S. funds). Subscription rate outside Canada and U.S. — $55 per year. Single copies $3. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund of the Department of Canadian Heritage. Publications Mail Agreement Number 40069240. Canadian Postmaster: Return undeliverable Canadian addresses (covers only) to: Circulation Dept., PO Box 9800, Winnipeg, MB R3C 3k7. U.S. Postmaster: Send address changes and undeliverable addresses (covers only) to: Circulation Dept., PO Box 9800, Winnipeg, MB R3C 3k7. PRINTED IN CANADA

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The editors and journalists who write, contribute and provide opinions to Canadian Cattlemen and Farm Business Communications attempt to provide accurate and useful opinions, information and analysis. However, the editors, journalists, Canadian Cattlemen and Farm Business Communications, cannot and do not guarantee the accuracy of the information contained in this publication and the editors as well as Canadian Cattlemen and Farm Business Communications assume no responsibility for any actions or decisions taken by any reader for this publication based on any and all information provided. Our commitment to your privacy: At Farm Business Communications we have a firm commitment to protecting your privacy and security as our customer. Farm Business Communications will only collect personal information if it is required for the proper functioning of our business. As part of our commitment to enhance customer service, we may share this personal information with other strategic business partners. For more information regarding our Customer Information Privacy Policy, write to: Information Protection Officer, Farm Business Communications, 1666 Dublin Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3H 0H1. Occasionally we make our list of subscribers available to other reputable firms whose products and services might be of interest to you. If you would prefer not to receive such offers, please contact us at the address in the preceding paragraph, or call 1-800-665-1362.

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 COMMEN T

By Gren Winslow

the beef muddle Every decision has consequences

ur history item this month is entitled, “the beef muddle.” That headline is lifted from an article in the March 1944 issue of Canadian Cattlemen that refers to the unintended consequences of the government’s wartime food policy. The intension was to ensure we produced enough beef to feed ourselves, the troops and help out Britain as well, but by 1944 the combination of price controls, closed borders and patriotism turned scarcity into a surplus, and the government’s floor prices weren’t holding up. Unintended consequences. History is full of them. You can never be sure what the outcome will be with any decision. A recent case in point was the decision by Tyson Foods to stop buying cattle fed the beta-agonist Zilmax on September 6. It was a shocking announcement seeing the majority of U.S. and Canadian fed cattle are given betaagonists, either Zilmax or Optaflexx, to boost lean meat yields at the end of the finishing period. It was also a bold step because Tyson was potentially stepping away from a large number of cattle at a time of tight supplies. Tyson clearly stated this was not a food safety issue. There had been instances of cattle showing up at their plants that were stiff, unable to walk or even stand and, as Steve Kay points out in his column this month, one of the core values of Tyson’s business is to ensure the wellbeing of animals. So this decision was a natural extension of that business philosophy. It is certainly a legitimate concern. No one involved in today’s livestock industry questions the need to make the welfare of animals a priority. The question is the level of this concern. There is a mountain of research, much of it done by university researchers to show Zilmax is safe for cattle. This includes research looking into its effect on cattle behaviour and movement. Regulatory agencies in a number of countries have gone over this data and certified that this betaagonist is indeed safe. In its letter to feeders Tyson admits it did not know the specific cause of why these cattle had difficulty moving but some animal health experts had suggested the use of Zilmax as one possible cause so the company decided to take this precautionary action to back up it branded core values. Staff at JBS USA plants had noticed a similar trend and, in fact, a member of its welfare team was briefing the semi-annual meeting of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association meeting on their findings the same day Tyson announced its decision. Initially, JBS decided to continue buying Zilmax cattle until it had more evidence about what was causing the problem. All the other major packers took a similar stand.

C at t l e m e n · s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

A few days later the manufacturer Merck Animal Health announced a plan to ensure Zilmax was being properly used. They would recertify every feeder, nutritionist and veterinarian that feeds Zilmax to cattle, perform a scientific audit in co-operation with third-party experts to follow Zilmax-fed cattle from the feedlot to the packaging plant to document potential causes of lameness. Findings will be relayed back to the industry so changes can be made to avoid these issues in the future. Merck also established an expert advisory board to review the results of the audit. Animal behaviourist Temple Grandin was the first person to sign on.

ne short-term consequence O of Tyson’s decision is that a useful tool for cattle feeders was pulled from the market for a time without any clear evidence that it was at fault Friday of that same week Merck temporarily suspended the sale of Zilmax in the U.S. and Canada. That turned some heads. By the end of the next week Cargill, JBS USA and National Beef Packing started cleaning their pipelines of Zilmax-fed cattle . So one short-term consequence of Tyson’s decision is that a useful tool for cattle feeders was pulled from the market for a time without any clear evidence that it was at fault. Fortunately, feeders do have an option and many will likely switch over to Optaflexx with the result that there will likely be a two to four per cent drop in the amount of beef coming to the market. The long-term implications are the stuff of pure speculation at this point. When so many people are willing to dismiss scientific evidence where food is involved it’s a bit disconcerting to see a major player be so quick to jump at the precautionary principle. Reynold Bergen in his research column this month compares conventionally raised cattle to those raised without implants, ionophores, antibiotics and beta-agonists. To produce the same beef would cost eight per cent more, require 12 per cent more cattle, use 11 per cent more feed, 10 per cent more land, four per cent more water and seven per cent more purchased fertilizer, and produce 10 per cent more greenhouse gas. I’d sure hate to see that swept away as a precaution. c

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

 THE INDUST RY

NewsMakers In a brief release last month the board of directors of the Canadian Charolais Association announced it had “decided to end the employment” of general manager Kelly Carson Kelly Carson during the probationary period set out in his employment contract. The association says it is in no hurry to fill the position and will rely on its current staff, and consultants where needed, to manage the breed’s business. Michael Latimer is the new executive director of the Canadian Beef Breeds Council (CBBC) replacing the retiring Doug Fee. He joins the CBBC after serving for the past four Michael Latimer years as general manager of the Canadian Angus Association (CAA). Latimer is a fifth-generation purebred rancher from Olds. The CBBC represents the national breed associations and works with individuals and organizations in Canada and around the world to promote Canadian purebred beef cattle genetics. The CAA does not plan to hire another GM at this time. Michel Tremblay received the Saskatchewan Forage Council’s Forage Industry Innovation Award at the group’s annual meeting earlier this summer. Tremblay worked as variMichel Tremblay ety testing program coordinator with the forage council for two years before he began a 20-year career as provincial forage specialist with Saskatchewan Agriculture. He played a leading role in the formation of the Saskatchewan Forage Seed Development Commission and participated in the creation of the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association.

Casey Vander Ploeg

a degree in political science Vander Ploeg worked as a journalist with the Taber Times and then served for over 20 years as a senior policy analyst with the Canada West Foundation, one of the nation’s leading policy think-tanks.

John F.T. Scott and Robert Francis have been appointed to the board of the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency. Scott is an economist and former president and CEO John F.T. Scott of the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers, a non-profit trade association representing over 4,000 grocery retailers. Francis is founder and president of Agriteam Canada Consulting Ltd. Robert Francis and brings to the board 26 years of experience managing and directing international projects and consulting assignments for financial institutions, funding agencies and governments around the globe. Allen and Lillian Patkau of Sandy Arrow Ranch in Saskatchewan are the 2013 recipients of the National Environmental Stewardship Award (TESA) presented at the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association semiannual meeting in London last month.

Allen and Lillian Patkau

Over the years, the Patkaus have implemented an environmental farm plan and holistic management practices to improve the sandy land on their ranch near Hanley just south of the sandhills along the South Saskatchewan River. They crossfence their pastures with electric wire, and use waterlines to keep cows in predefined areas, resulting in less soil impact and more control over manure. The Patkaus winter their cows on remote sites where the ranch needs additional organic matter, which also relieves the pressure on the home well. They plan to increase their carrying capacity through bale grazing, which can help build soil and facilitate increased water retention Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) has selected four outstanding rural Manitoba students as recipients for its 2013 MBP Bursary. Cassie Scott of Boissevain, Sydney Sprenger of Alexander, Raina Syrnyk of Ethelbert and Tyler Workman of Minto will receive $500 toward their studies at university. All four are children of active beef producers or active beef producers themselves. c

Casey Vander Ploeg is the new manager of policy and research for the Alberta and National Cattle Feeders’ Associations. He replaces Russ Evans. After graduating with www.canadiancattlemen.ca

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

 OUR HISTO RY

THE BEEF MUDDLE

y March 1944 war still dominated effect the price of grain-fed cows was runthe Canadian cattle market. ning below the floor price and cold storage A scarcity of beef in the early war facilities were filling up as stocks of frozen years had led to suspension of beef cattle beef doubled to 39 million pounds. Yet the exports to the U.S. to secure Canada’s needs. U.S. market remained closed. In examining Meat rationing soon followed to equitably the “beef muddle” in the March issue, Cattledistribute the beef across the country and men reported “the floor policy on beef had permit shipments to Great Britain and our been tested and found inadequate.” armed services overseas. This managed beef Not surprisingly U.S. cattle numbers market was operated by a Canadian Meat had also risen to record numbers during Board that was to buy up surplus supplies the war years, which further complicated of beef to support a system of floor prices the situation. in the countryside. The Wartime Food CorGeorge G. Ross, the chairman of the poration was the agency authorized to buy Council of Western Beef Producers had up surplus cattle for sale to the U.S. when spent 10 days in the East on the beef mudprices started to slide. dle but by this issue’s deadline no action By 1944 patriotic Canadian cattle prohad been announced by the government. ducers had responded to the call with such Meanwhile the fledgling Community Auca passion that cattle numbers had climbed tion Sales Association Ltd. reported a marked to record rationing3:32 stillPM in Page increase in business with 16 auction sales held WH PP - 7numbers. x 5 -_AGIWith 2013-05-01 1

during 1943. The majority of the cattle were sold at sales in Pincher Creek, Park Bend, Lundbreck and Cardston. Successful sales of “cover crop” cattle were held at Claresholm and Nanton, and one good sale at Macleod. In all, 7,200 head were auctioned off for a gross of $600,000. The cost of selling was reduced again from three per cent to two per cent, and an estimated 50 per cent increase in contributors was noted. “The auction sale method has in fact taken firm hold at all points served, and patrons have consistently obtained higher prices,” according to the Cattlemen’s article in that March issue. “The fact that these sales have operated on a co-operative basis for the past two years has also been a big factor in their continued expansion. On this basis it is their purpose to provide an efficient marketing system at cost to the producer.” c

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C AT T L E M E N · S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 3

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 health

By Debbie Furber

Pain, pain, go away Have you considered pain mitigation?

r. Nathan Erickson got a bit of a shock when he went online for some background research to a talk on pain mitigation at spring turnout that he gave at the University of Calgary Veterinary Medicine’s annual beef cattle conference earlier this summer. “Barbaric” was how one poster redflagged accepted husbandry practices like castration and dehorning when he typed “eat beef ” in the search box. “The top five hits were negative and some were from reputable, mainstream media sources. We have a lot of critics out there,” says Erickson, managing partner of Veterinary AgriHealth Services at Airdrie, Alta. As valid as castrating and dehorning may be to the welfare and safety of animals and producers alike, consumers increasingly see them as unnecessarily painful. Even though research has yet to show clear production benefits to pain control for calves, Erickson feels it’s important to keep the public image of our beef top of mind. “The ranching sector has a unique advantage in creating positive consumer awareness of animal husbandry because the public already romanticizes this sector of the industry, but the concept of performing painful procedures without pain control could quickly tarnish the positive view of calf production,” he says. Of course, a veterinarian’s and a producer’s perception of pain differs from that of consumers. For pain is hard to detect and measure in cattle. Their natural instinct is to avoid showing any weakness that would attract the attention of predators. So researchers must rely on behavioural, physiological and production changes to indicate pain levels while trying to screen out responses to other stresses like handling and weather. A recent study at the University of Calgary, for example, found calves castrated shortly after birth spent more time exhibiting behaviour associated with pain out to 25 days after castration. However, pain behaviour increased in non-castrates at days 24 and 25 as well. The simplest and least-cost strategy is to perform these procedures when calves are young. Although there is no evidence that the pain is any less at a young age, there are

 pa i n - f r e e d e h o r n i ng

The CORNUAL NERVE lies under the FRONTAL CREST

CORNUAL NERVE

FRONTAL CREST

CORNUAL NERVE

In six- to eight-month calves, LIDOCAINE is injected three-eighths to one-half inch deep Under the Frontal Crest Dee Griffin, 2103

fewer health risks in calves that are castrated and dehorned under two months of age. Pain medications for cattle include local anesthetics and analgesics. Analgesics include non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAID), which treat pain by reducing inflammation and fever. Those licensed for cattle include Metacam 20 (subcutaneous or intravenous), Anafen (intramuscular or intravenous) and Banamine (intravenous). All are effective, says Erickson, however, Metacam 20 is the only product labelled for pain control when dehorning. It also has a longer duration, up to 72 hours, than the other two, a low dosage and is easy to administer. Lidocaine and bupivacaine are common local anesthetics for cattle that are injected into specific nerves to block pain, just as a dentist does before filling a tooth. They take effect in two to five minutes and last from two to four hours. Dehorning

Next to the use of polled genetics, which has led to a 58 per cent reduction in the horned cattle population in Canada since 1992, disbudding within the first two months is the recommended means of dehorning. At

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

that age it removes the horn-forming tissue and surrounding skin before horn growth attaches to the skull. Based on his own experience, Erickson believes a dehorning iron with a lidocaine block is the best method. “A trained producer with a dehorning iron will be able to remove the horn bud in a controlled manner, cauterizing the tissue and leaving little chance of infection,” he explains. “Use of dehorning paste leaves a bit to chance in terms of how well the paste is applied and whether the paste spreads beyond the bud and damages the surrounding tissue, which can result in severe infection.” As horns grow, they form a bony base connecting with the skull. At this stage, horn removal is considered an amputation. Blood loss can be expected, and there is a risk of infection in the open wound. Research has shown that dehorning has a higher cortisol (a natural hormone produced in response to pain) profile than disbudding. Erickson suggests asking your veterinarian about options for dehorning because the best method will depend on the size of the horns. He definitely recommends using a lidocaine block and cauterizing the blood vessels with a cauterizing powder or a hot iron. He strongly

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health

discourages wrapping twine around the base of the horn to stop blood flow because it’s usually not adequate to stop bleeding and, if accidentally left on, the skin and skull may grow around the twine causing severe and unmanageable infections that can become infested with maggots. Oftentimes, these cases must be euthanized. The horn should be removed to its base to prevent regrowth. On a cool day, you may see puffs of air coming from the sinus, but if you can see into it, then you’ve likely removed some skull with the bone of the horn. Local anesthetic is injected into the hollow alongside the frontal ridge, about a finger’s length below the base of the ear to block the cornual nerve that runs from beneath the horn to just behind the eye. This should only be attempted after proper training from your veterinarian because the injection must be properly positioned in order for the block to work. An analgesic is recommended as well for longer-term pain control. Castrating

Use of small elastrator bands is recommended for castrating calves within 12 to 48 hours of birth because surgical castration on young calves can be risky. Ensure both testicles can be easily pulled into the scrotum before applying the band, he advises. If one testicle has not descended or is only partially descended, make note of the calf and surgically castrate it at spring turnout. Leaving a non-descended testicle in a calf is called a belly nut and will result in a stagy-looking calf, which may be discounted at auction because the calf will have to be castrated near to, or upon arrival at the feedlot. Not only will surgery at this stage be more painful and riskier, but it will add stress on top of weaning and commingling. Some studies indicate the Burdizzo method elicits a lower pain response than elastrators or surgical removal. Erickson recommends both an anesthetic and an analgesic for castration regardless of the method chosen, but an analgesic alone is much preferred over not using any pain control. Your veterinarian will be able to show you the proper way of injecting lidocaine into each cord to block the nerves. A recent review of eight separate studies found measurable differences in cortisol response in bull calves castrated non-surgically with and without pain control. Compared to calves that didn’t receive pain medication, the maximum cortisol response was 38 per cent lower in those given a local anesthetic, 20 per cent lower in those given

an analgesic, and 65 per cent lower in those that received both, suggesting there is an additive effect. Why do we avoid pain products? In one Canadian study, 25 per cent of producers listed cost as a reason but time was a bigger concern. Dehorning and castrations are often done in one day on hundreds of calves that also may have to be branded, tagged and given several vaccinations. A lack of understanding is probably another reason. In one U.S. study 45 per cent of veterinarians did not believe they knew enough about pain mitigation to discuss it with their clients. A United Kingdom study found a similar lack of knowledge among producers who also felt their veterinarians didn’t know enough about the topic. “Knowledge is a concern,” says Erickson. “As vets, we need to do a better job of discussing pain control, the benefits, the research, available products, procedures, and ease of use. As producers, we need to get together to develop better processing plans to fit pain control into what’s best for particular operations because each is a bit different.” c

“ As vets we need to do a better job of discussing pain control...” Dr. Nathan Erickson Airdrie, Alta.

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1. Giguère S, Huang R, Malinski TJ, Dorr PM, Tessman RK & Somerville BA. Disposition of gamithromycin in plasma, pulmonary epithelial lining fluid, bronchoalveolar cells, and lung tissue in cattle. Am. J. Vet. Res. 72(3): 326-330 (2011). 2. Based on label claims. 3. See ZACTRAN MSDS. ZACTRAN ® is a registered trademark of Merial Limited. © 2013 Merial Canada Inc. All rights reserved. ZACT-13-7557-JAD-E

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C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3 2976 Zactran CowCalf Ad-CC.indd 1

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doing More. using less.

A series on being ready for the farming challenges ahead

Beyond the picket fence Early Riser planters deliver photocopy stands By Bill Hoeg Case IH Planter Sales and Marketing Manager in North America

he planter is the most important piece of equipment on your farm. It will set the course for the whole season. If your seed isn’t placed accurately to maximize yield potential, you will see a direct impact on profitability. Purdue University research says that uneven emergence can reduce corn yields by 9 to 22 percent1. Significant plant spacing variability also is important and can reduce corn grain yields from 2 to 4 percent2. We recommend that farmers consider six agronomic drivers of seed placement accuracy when planting: • • • • • •

Proper seed depth Uniform seed depth across the planter and throughout the field Good soil-to-seed contact Uniform soil pressure all around the seed Accurate seed population Accurate in-row seed spacing

You often hear planter manufacturers talk about picket fence stands. They focus exclusively on in-row seed spacing and accurate populations, because those two features are easiest to control and demonstrate picket fence stands. However, the first four agronomic principles impact what many agronomists call “photocopy plants,” or uniformity of the plants. While both picket fence stands and photocopy plants are important, the biggest impact on yield is photocopy plants. At Case IH, we design equipment with agronomic principles in mind. Every individual plant counts, and that’s why we design our equipment specifically to help maximize yield potential. Case IH Early Riser® planters are designed to be agronomically correct and have multiple, patented features. The Early Riser row unit has 12 unique features that all contribute to earlier, more uniform emergence.

Measuring photocopy plants In side-by-side trials comparing the Early Riser row unit to competitors, Case IH has collected more than 162,000 measurements. Net Effective Stand Percentage (NESP) – a

measure of photocopy plants – was calculated. To measure the productivity of a corn stand, evaluate the plants: • 100% Productive – Plants at the same growth stage, where they should be. • 50% Productive – Plants one to two leaves behind are actually half “weed.” They do not add to productivity, and they take nutrients from 100% plants. • 0% Productive or Weeds – Any plants that are three or more leaves behind. The data demonstrated the Early Riser row unit produces 6 to 10 percent improvement over conventional row units, specifically: • 6 percent better NESP at 4 and 5 MPH • 7 percent better NESP at 6 and 7 MPH • 10 percent better NESP at 8 MPH Thanks to Case IH agronomic design, Early Riser planters consistently produce earlier, more uniform emergence and higher yield potential. To learn more about agronomic considerations at planting, photocopy plants, net effective stand and the agronomic design of Case IH Early Riser planters, check out our first Agronomic Design Insights video at www.CaseIH.com/AgronomicDesign.

1. Yield impact statistics based upon Purdue University Department of Agronomy Publication AGRY-91-01 "Stand Establishment Variability in Corn" 2. Yield impact statistics based upon Purdue University Department of Agronomy Publication AGRY-91-01 "Stand Establishment Variability in Corn." Based on a 200-bushel yield potential and 26,000 to 30,000 seeds per acre with spacing variability with standard deviation of about 2 inches.

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BE READY.

 Nutriti o n

By John McKinnon

a tough but right decision!

ast month’s announcement by Tyson Foods that it was suspending purchasing of cattle fed Zilmax caught a lot of people by surprise. According to a press release, there was a recent increase in lame or non-ambulatory cattle arriving at the company’s processing facilities. While no definitive cause for the lameness was given, the feeding of Zilmax was cited as a possible reason and hence the ban on purchasing cattle fed this product. Zilmax is a feed additive used to promote more efficient beef production. Like many growth-promoting products used by the North American cattle industry, Zilmax has undergone extensive safety testing by its developer, as well as had to go through regulatory scrutiny by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Hence the surprise when Tyson made its announcement. To understand the potential ramifications of this decision, it is worthwhile reviewing the types of products commonly used by industry to improve feed efficiency, minimize health issues and promote growth. These include hormonal implants, feed-grade antibiotics and beta-agonists. Hormonal implants have been used extensively as cattle growth enhancers since the 1950s. While there is a great variety of products on the market, they are essentially a series of pellets that are coated with a synthetic hormone or combination of hormones. The first generation of implants was based on estrogen or compounds with estrogen-like activity and were often found in combination with testosterone or progesterone, depending on whether heifers or steers were being implanted. More recent products include combinations of estrogen and trenbolone acetate, a synthetic compound with similar biological activity to testosterone. These implants are typically given in the middle third of the ear of the animal (i.e. the ear is discarded at slaughter). The hormones are slowly released into the animal’s bloodstream and promote muscle deposition in the animal. Their use typically results in an improvement in feed efficiency of five to 15 per cent and an improvement in average daily gain of 10 to 15 per cent or more. The active life of the implant ranges from 70 to 120 days or longer, depending on the product. The consistent improvement in feed efficiency has been the primary reason for their widespread use. No product class has undergone more scrutiny in terms of safety. Their use in the production of safe, wholesome beef has and continues to be approved by the CFIA as well as its American counterpart. Feed-grade antibiotics are used to promote efficient feed utilization and/or to enhance animal health. For

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example, the ionophore monensin sodium is widely used to improve feed efficiency and to control diseases such as rumen acidosis and coccidiosis. Ionophores act in the rumen by influencing the bacteria population in such a manner that a more favourable rumen fermentation of feed is achieved. As a result, more feed energy is available to the animal. Feed intake is reduced and as a consequence, feed efficiency is improved. Ionophores are a special class of antibiotics that have no counterpart in human medicine, thus there are no issues with development of antibiotic resistance. Feed-grade antibiotics are also used to control liver abscesses (i.e. tylosin; oxytetracycline) and to reduce morbidity and mortality rates in newly weaned calves (i.e. chlortetracycline and sulfamethazine). As with implants, these products when used according to label directions have been cleared for use in Canada. The newest class of feed additives is the beta-agonists — zilpaterol hydrochloride (Zilmax) and ractopamine hydrochloride (Optaflexx). These products are known as repartitioning agents and are used in Canada and the United States to enhance growth and feed efficiency during the last 20 to 40 days of the feeding period. While each compound has a slightly different mechanism of action, they are both effective in promoting muscle growth at the expense of fat deposition. Live and carcass weight gains are increased while feed efficiency is improved. As they are used in the last phase of growth when weight gain and feed efficiency are dropping off, their use greatly improves the overall efficiency of beef production. As indicated, all the products discussed have undergone extensive testing from both an efficacy and safety point of view. Their use has led to the efficient production of high-quality, wholesome beef and has positively contributed to the bottom line of beef producers. They also keep beef competitive and affordable at the retail level. At this point it is not clear what role if any that Zilmax feeding plays in lameness in finishing cattle. In making their decision to suspend the purchase of Zilmax-fed cattle, Tyson Foods indicates its action is based solely on concerns with animal welfare. To the credit of Merck, the producer of Zilmax, the company has at the time of writing temporarily suspended sales of the product in order to understand the issue and if necessary to develop steps to rectify the problem. Whatever the outcome, as an industry we should applaud these companies for putting animal welfare ahead of profits. In terms of maintaining consumer confidence in our industry and in the technology we depend on, their actions can only have long term benefits. c

John McKinnon is a beef cattle nutritionist at the University of Saskatchewan

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

 HEALTH

By Heather Smith Thomas

BOVINE RESPIRATORY DISEASE:

NO SIMPLE FIX O

ften called pneumonia or shipping fever, bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is one of the most costly diseases for the livestock industry, especially in feedlot cattle. Producers are always looking for better ways to prevent, diagnose and treat BRD. There are a number of research projects in the U.S. and Canada, addressing these issues. Dr. Eugene Janzen, assistant dean of clinical practice, veterinary medicine at the University of Calgary, says that even though some of the U.S. research is studying the biology of this disease, very little of that is happening in Canada. “There is a huge effort here looking at pharmaceuticals — vaccines and antibiotics — instead. This research is driven by the pharmaceutical industries and is more focused on trying to see if such-andsuch immunization program works better than another, or if this antibiotic works better than that one,” he says. “The results of this kind of research will probably be helpful for a certain period of time, but not forever,” he explains. Producers won’t be able to rely just on vaccines or antibiotics in the future. It will be more important to address management issues and basic things we need to know about BRD. “A project at Colorado State University has been looking at the incidence of BRD associated with accumulating groups of cattle at auction markets. The primary factor in making cattle susceptible to BRD traditionally has been commingling, pro-

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longed transit and multiple sourcing of livestock in an auction market system — and then moving them to a feedlot. Research has been comparing auction-derived animals at a feedlot versus those that just came straight from the farm,” says Janzen. “Today we have more computer/video sales. It is still an auction market, except that physically the cattle don’t go to an auction yard. They go from the farm to the feedlot,” he says. This may be healthier for cattle, with less stress and mixing. He feels it is important to study the mechanisms of BRD. “Two things have happened within my lifetime as a veterinarian. We have developed some very good vaccines against Mannheimia, so it is no longer the primary bacterial pathogen causing BRD in Western Canada. The pathogen that now causes the majority of problems is mycoplasma,” says Janzen. We now have good diagnostic tools for mycoplasma. “The original study was done by Dr. Debbie Haines at Saskatoon; many years ago she developed an immunohistochemical test for Mycoplasma bovis. Murray Jelinski, the Alberta Beef chair at Saskatoon, has looked at how important mycoplasma might be in the respiratory disease complex,” Janzen says. There are also studies showing how effective the use of antimicrobials on arrival (metaphylaxis) might be when animals come into the feedlot. “Those two things — good vaccines against Mannheimia, and

Dr. Eugene Janzen, University of Calgary

metaphylaxis at the feedlot — have made a difference, and have created a new or different respiratory disease than we older veterinarians grew up with,” he says. “One of the main pathogens that moved into this gap is Mycoplasma bovis. So why haven’t pharmaceutical companies made a vaccine for Mycoplasma bovis? The reason is that it is not simple. It requires a lot of microbiological effort,” says Janzen. There are some new diagnostic tests for respiratory disease, and these can be helpful when trying to sort out the cause of a BRD outbreak. Often there are multiple pathogens involved. Dr. Steve Hendrick, associate professor of large-animal clinical sciences at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine says research is being done at the Lethbridge Research Centre looking at BRD pathogens. “We are collaborating on that work. One of our grad students, Cassidy Klima, is collecting lung samples from calves that died with respiratory disease in feedlots. She’s gone through the samples and characterized the pathogens genetically, such as Mannheimia and some of the other pathogens that we know can cause BRD. It is interesting to see how much BVD she found circulating in these calves, so that virus may be a factor as well,” says Hendrick. “Another new thing that has attracted a lot of attention is technology to help us Continued on page 16

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H EA LT H

Continued from page 15

“Another new thing ... is technology to help us determine when the animal might be sick.”

With labour shortages, it is harder to find good feedlot cowboys, so this is one reason feedlots are interested in finding other ways to monitor pens of cattle. “As technology progresses it will be interesting to see if the cost will be low enough and the reliability good enough to bring some of these new techniques into general use,” says Hendrick. “The other problem we see is respiratory disease in baby calves,” says Janzen. “In the old days when many people calved in January, February and March, putting cows through the barn so calves didn’t freeze their ears, the calves often picked up patho-

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gens just from the confinement and contamination,” he says. But with later calving, some ranches have “summer pneumonia” in young calves. There are studies looking at this problem in cattle on community pastures. Often they have more trouble on the dry years, when conditions are dusty when gathering and working cattle. Dust can irritate the respiratory tract and make the animals more susceptible to problems. “When calves inhale dust into the respiratory tract, the first line of defence may be easily overwhelmed. If the inside of the nostrils and upper respiratory tract get

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determine when the animal might be sick,” says Janzen. Dr. Edouard Timsit and Dr. Karin Orsel at the University of Calgary are involved in research looking at ways to assist in early detection. “There is some resistance from us oldtimers on building a ‘pretend cowboy,’ using technology to monitor feed intake, water consumption, body temperature, etc., wondering how effective this can actually be,” Janzen says. “I am curious to know if a cowboy riding through the pen might be able to pick up subtle signs of sickness at that stage or even earlier,” says Hendrick. Some stockmen and cowboys have a sixth sense or “gut feeling” about the animals, even when there isn’t much you could put a finger on to say that a certain animal is getting sick. It’s hard to teach this skill, however. It takes close observation of cattle, and some of this ability to sense illness is innate and involves being tuned in to the animals. It’s a talent, like being artistic or musical, that seems to be somewhat inherent rather than taught.

You’re Invited! September 19 - 20, 2013

Join Canada Beef Inc.’s Board of Directors, staff and industry partners as we discuss the importance of having, building and maintaining a strong brand in today’s marketplace. At the Annual Forum you will hear from our board, marketing team, partners and others on many topics including: • Canadian Beef Brand Mark: what does it represent? • Industry panel: the value of the brand to our various partners. • What is on the horizon for Canada Beef Inc.? Thursday, September 19 A full day of presentations and information sessions, followed by a special dinner. Friday, September 20 The business meeting including a review of the company’s performance and election of the new Board. The Annual Forum is open to everyone. We hope you will join us. Thursday and Friday, September 19 and 20, 2013 Sheraton Cavalier, Calgary Alberta Check www.canadabeef.ca/producer for more information.

C AT T L E M E N · S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 3

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HEALTH

clogged with dust, the bacteria are not as examined the pathological mechanisms of a pathological lesion in the lungs, and if it readily exposed to nasal secretions which respiratory disease in cattle. was caused by an aggressive Mannheimia, tend to kill them or help flush them out. “Here in Western Canada we’ve gone the animal would be depressed and couldn’t If bacteria cling to the dust particles, they from seeing acute bacteria pneumonia to hide it. But those days, at least in Western can be sucked down into the lungs,” says seeing more chronic respiratory problems. Canada, are gone,” says Janzen. Janzen. Dust and irritation also inhibit Most of the cattle that die are suffering from Most people want a simple answer — a normal action of cilia — the tiny hair-like a chronic mix of pathogens. This is different vaccine or a treatment that will magically structures that line the windpipe and move from what we were dealing with 40 years ago. prevent or halt the problem. “BRD is somein wave-like motions, continually moving When I grew up we could give a sick animal what a management disease, especially the mucus, dust and foreign material up out of eight ounces of sulfamethazine and 10 ccs of way we put cattle together in a feedyard,” the respiratory tract to be coughed out. penicillin and it got better,” says Janzen. says Hendrick. “They don’t have enough “On dusty days, defence mechanisms of “In earlier times, we could wean calves immunity yet to handle all the new chalthe respiratory system can be readily overand watch them for about 10 days, or fill a lenges and they get sick,” he says. whelmed. You can measure this by the cowfeedlot pen with new cattle and watch them “I can understand the frustration of proboys talking about increased treatment rates. closely for four or five days, and then the epiducers who put in extra effort to have the Shortly after bringing the cattle to pasture, demic curve was over. All you had to worry animals preconditioned, especially if they such as mid-May, if they had a bad year for about was bloat or some other feed-related are marketed through an auction system. dust they are treating and treating those issue. Now it’s not that simple; an incidence They don’t necessarily get paid for those calves for pneumonia. Out of this experience of respiratory disease drags on for weeks or efforts,” says Hendrick. a protocol for communal grazing systems months. As the mix of pathogens increases, However, we may eventually run out of was developed. If ranchers planned to bring you get different kinds of pneumonia and options if we just depend on a vaccine or calves to those pastures, they were asked to some are harder to detect,” he says. a drug. “As we get better antibiotics, it just vaccinate for certain diseases,” he explains. “The mycoplasmas for example do not allows people to get away with sloppier manA research group at Oklahoma State produce a toxin, so those animals don’t agement, and then we lose ground in those University is looking at the pathology of look sick. The disease can be well advanced crucial areas when the antibiotics are no lonrespiratory disease. Several researchers, before we realize the animal has a problem. ger as effective as they were in the beginning,” Ad# NAHSB60040811 // IO#TBD Canadian Cattleman // L:in 7"x 5" // 4C” Rightsmight Managed Fotosearch_u19291179–insertion 2/6 including Professor Confer have//recently By contrast, earlier days,// there be Image: Hendrick explains. c

EarliEr. BEttEr. PaSS it on. give your calves the best protection colostrum can provide. Early annual revaccination with Scour Bos,® at 8-10 weeks before calving, gives cows time to produce colostrum with the broadest, most enriched defense against scours. that way, they pass on stronger, long-lasting protection for healthier calves and higher weaning weights. talk to your veterinarian about the advantage of vaccinating earlier with Scour Bos. Scour BoS

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C A T T L E M E N · S E P T E M B E8/12/11 R 2 0 11:32 3 PM 17

 health

By Debbie Furber

Early Detection key to BRD Cure

he bacteria that cause tough bovine respiratory disease (BRD) issues in cattle know no bounds. Mannheimia haemolytica, Pasteurella multocida and Mycoplasma bovis are found worldwide. These are commensal bacteria of the upper respiratory tract in cattle, meaning they do no harm if they remain in this normal location. It’s a different story, though, if they proliferate and get to the lungs, says Dr. Edouard Timsit, assistant professor of cattle health with the University of Calgary’s faculty of veterinary medicine. He has been studying the influence of early detection of BRD and the transmission of M. haemolytica in newly received feedlot cattle. Countless factors including stress from transportation and commingling, can set the stage for these commensal bacteria to proliferate to such an extent that they are inhaled into an animal’s lungs. Once there, they are uniquely equipped to skip around a calf ’s immunity to colonize, replicate and begin secreting the toxins and enzymes that cause inflammation and tissue damage leading to pleurobroncho pneumonia. Based on his findings, he says M. haemolytica doesn’t seem to be highly contagious during BRD outbreaks that occur duirng the first few weeks on feed. “This implies that prevention of BRD caused by M. haemolytica should focus on the host, not the pathogen. It would be more appropriate to correctly vaccinate cattle and reduce stress than to mass treat a group of cattle in order to try to get rid of a highly virulent strain,” he explains. Regardless of the bacteria at the root of the problem, early detection and treatment are crucial to achieving a complete cure. This was the focus of his message to producers at the UCVM Beef Cattle Conference earlier this summer. Getting on top of the diagnosis early will reduce the formation of lesions in the lungs early on, and lessen the odds of bacteria building resistance to antibiotics. Resistance can start to occur by natural evolution even before the first dose of antibiotics is given because of DNA

mutations occurring during bacterial replication, Timsit explains. At the outset, relatively few bacteria are present in the lungs and there’s only a remote chance that any would have resistance. As the time between infection and treatment lengthens the bacterial population continues to grow, and the odds start to favour growth of a resistant population. In one study with mice infected with P. multicodia, he says 33 per cent of the mice in the untreated control group had resistant bacteria in the lungs 48 hours after infection. Late treatment (32 hours after infection) was better than no treatment as only 10 per cent of the mice in the late-treatment group had resistant bacteria. Early treatment (10 hours after infection) proved best as none of the mice in this group had resistant bacteria in the lungs. Strategies for early detection

Visual appraisal alone simply can’t detect BRD in time to consistently achieve a complete cure, regardless of the expertise and number of pen checkers on duty, Timsit says. Feedlot Health Management Services of Okotoks, Alta., reported 35 per cent of the 2011 fall-placed calves in two highest-risk categories that succumbed to BRD after seven days on feed, died without treatment. This was not due to negligence, but because the outward symptoms of BRD were not visible before the lungs were irreversibly damaged. New technology is now offering hope for detecting disease before symptoms become obvious. Timsit successfully used rumen temperature boluses to remotely monitor body temperature changes in individual animals and found that disease could be detected an average of two days before signs of depression were obvious. Body temperature rises sharply within hours of an M. haemolytica infection, he explains. After the onset of a fever, the first outward symptom in most calves was nasal discharge, on average 19 hours later, and abnormal pulmonary sounds, 39 hours later. Approximately half of the calves showed signs of depression and a few

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“ It would be more appropriate to vaccinate and reduce stress than to mass treat a group of cattle in order to try to get rid of a highly virulent strain.” Edouard Timsit University of Calgary

showed eye discharge nearly 80 hours after fever onset. Dr. Al Schaefer and group at Lacombe Research Centre in Alberta demonstrated that infrared thermography cameras strategically placed at a watering bowl to obtain images of the eye/face area picked up abnormal body temperature four to six days before clinical signs of BRD were noticeable. Studies also indicate sick cattle spend Continued on page 20

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30 per cent less time at the feed bunk than healthy cattle. Equipment developed by GrowSafe Systems of Airdrie, Alta., to remotely monitor individual feeding behaviour is capable of picking up changes four days earlier than pen checkers are able to observe signs of BRD. Physical activity can be remotely monitored with a pedometer or accelerometer strapped above an animal’s fetlock to record the number of steps, time spent lying down, and frequency. In one study, the number of steps taken dropped from 11,000 per day to 6,000 on the day of M. haemolytica infection and stayed near that level until days five through seven, when the number of steps dropped as low as 4,000 per day. Another study of M. bovis infections in young dairy calves showed the distance travelled in a day dropped immediately upon infection and never did fully recover to the pre-infection level of more than 400 metres. At the end of 20 days, the calves walking less than 250 metres a day had more than 10 per cent lung tissue consolidation, whereas, those walking 350 steps or more, had less than 10 per cent. Cost aside, Timsit says the major drawback of these remote-monitoring technologies is their lack of specificity. Many illnesses and conditions cause fever, reduced feeding, or inactivity in feedlot cattle. Sometimes, as Timsit’s study showed, cattle may have a fever that never amounts to anything. More than 75 per cent of fever episodes detected by the rumen boluses lasted less than 47 hours and the fever disappeared without treatment. Elevated body temperature can be caused by viral infections (in which case an antimicrobial wouldn’t be effective other than to prevent secondary bacterial infections), an immune response due to natural exposure or vaccination, or hot weather. Other work suggests up to 90 per cent of calves pulled for abnormal feeding behaviour alone during the first few weeks on feed are likely to be perfectly healthy cattle. Timsit’s commercial-scale study to begin this September will identify BRD-specific patterns based on simultaneous and/or successive changes in body temperature and/or feeding behaviour, and/or physical activity. This will help to identify the best parameters to identify cattle that need to be treated. c

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The bacteria-stress connection in BRD Bacterial pneumonia remains a major cause of sickness, death and economic loss in the beef and dairy industries, despite having a greater understanding of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) and an array of vaccines and new antimicrobial drugs to fight it, says Dr. Anthony Confer, Oklahoma State University, Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, department of veterinary pathobiology. More than half the time, BRD is caused by more than one bacterial species and the main one varies from study to study. Mannheimia haemolytica and Histophilus somni are most often associated with fibrinous pleuropneumonia, which is the most common form of pneumonia in feedlot calves. Pasteurella multocida is generally at the root of bronchopneumonia, most commonly seen in very young dairy calves. Mycoplasma bovis is becoming more prevalent, and a newcomer, Bibersteinia trehalosi, which is normally a sheep pathogen, has been increasingly associated with fatal pneumonia in cattle. Most of the severe and fatal forms of BRD are the result of a stress-infectious agent, says Confer, who, during his presentation to the joint conference of the Canadian Meat Sciences Association and the Canadian Society of Animal Science conference at Banff, Alta., laid out four broad categories of factors that predispose a calf to developing BRD during the first few weeks at a feedlot. 1. Viral respiratory infection Viral respiratory infections, such as bovine herpesvirus-1, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus, parainfluenza virus-3, bovine respiratory syncytial virus, and bovine respiratory coronavirus are rarely fatal on their own, but they can cause damage to the respiratory system that makes it easier for bacteria to gain entry to the lungs and interfere with a calf’s immune response. Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), which causes gastrointestinal and reproductive disease, is now considered a major partner in BRD, although research results have been mixed as to whether calves persistently infected with BVDV increase the risk of respiratory disease for pen mates. 2. Environmental While studies in the past haven’t shown a clear connection between distance

travelled and the incidence of BRD, the latest research indicates that distance travelled and body weight loss during transportation are significantly associated with BRD, higher mortality, lower average daily gain and lower hot carcass weights in the U.S. where the average transport distance of calves entering feedlots was 698 kilometres. Wind speed, average wind chill and temperature change during transport were significant factors. 3. Management According to research, commingling of cattle from various sources is most likely the greatest BRD predisposing factor associated with sale-barn and order-buyer cattle. One study compared sickness among ranch-direct calves shipped at weaning, ranch-direct calves weaned 45 days before shipping, market calves and commingled calves (ranch-direct and market calves penned together after arrival). Single-source calves shipped 45 days after weaning had less sickness during the receiving period than those trucked to the feedlot at weaning or commingled. Castrating and dehorning at this time added to the stress and increased the risk of BRD. Fatigue, dehydration, nutrition, reduced air circulation, along with exposure to ammonia, diesel fuel and dust during transportation may be contributing factors. 4. Cattle characteristics Breed differences have been associated with BRD and there is some indication that crossbred cattle have the greatest resistance, however, research findings on these points haven’t been consistent. It has been suggested that breeding for cattle with quiet disposition may be warranted in light of findings from a few studies showing that calm cattle were treated less often for BRD and had better performance and carcass merit than excitable cattle. The role of genetics in BRD susceptibility and resistance is the subject of a major study in progress at Texas A&M University. Breeding for resistance comes with challenges because the heritability of BRD susceptibility/resistance appears to be low and it’s questionable as to whether the resistance would hold up because bacteria and viruses evolve.

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

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13-02-11 11:48 AM

 health

Photo: Tannis Linford

By Debbie Furber

Health is a shared responsibility on this co-operative pasture The BT usually grazes 800 pairs on 27,000 fragile, sandy acres

he BT Grazing Co-operative is the oldest of its kind in Alberta, dating back to 1952 when local producers formed a co-operative to take up a private grazing lease on 27,000 acres of provincial Crown land in the sandhills, about an hour north of Medicine Hat. Native prairie grasses and shrubs cover the rolling terrain that plunges into the basin of the South Saskatchewan River separating the lease from Canadian Forces Base Suffield to the west. BT president Barry Fischer, who has held the post for 23 years, says there are 17 members today. Most run mixed farms and many rely solely on BT for grazing. BT is always open to accepting new members, but according to the bylaws, they must be from the designated local area to buy shares in the co-op, graze cattle, vote at the meetings and, of course, help with the maintenance that goes into keeping the pasture running. The maximum is 80 shares per member and members have the option of selling their shares back to the co-op when they get out of cattle, or sell their farm holdings. The co-op owns all of the infrastructure, more than 65 miles of fence, most of which has been replaced in recent years, bull wintering facilities in the yard along with a house for the manager, and an array of livestock watering systems.

Manager Clint Linford has been with BT for seven years. He is the only full-time employee and other riders, including his wife, Tannis, are hired from time to time to help out with moves and sorting. With pastures ranging in size from two to eight sections, a crew of five seems to work well for gathering, sorting and trailing herds out of the larger pastures, he says. Take-in can be any time from mid- to late May when the tame crested wheat grass is ready to graze on the 10 quarters purchased by the co-operative in 1990 for the purpose of providing early-season grazing. The native grasses on the lease need rain and heat to really get growing, Linford explains, putting turnout on native grass around mid-June most years, which coincides with bull turnout. The herds stay in the breeding fields on high ground for eight weeks. Though he’d like to be able to switch it up a bit by starting the season on other fields now and again, it’s not manageable because the rough terrain in the river hill pastures isn’t ideal for breeding. BT runs five breeding fields: heifers, Charolais, Red Angus, Black Angus and Red Simmental, along with a season-round quarantine field added two years ago when some community pastures had trouble with sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) like trichomoniasis and vibriosis. A co-op bylaw restricts entry to cows

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with their own calves at side, which is a good indication that the cow isn’t harbouring any STDs, Linford says. The challenge was finding a way to accommodate members who want to bring in purchased cattle or females not bred by a BT bull and still safeguard the rest of the cattle. “New cattle go into the quarantine field for the first year and at the end of the breeding season we test the bulls again. If they are still clean, then the cows are clean and they can come into the regular herd with their calves the next season,” he explains. The quarantine field is a mile from the closest breeding field and, as an added measure, all of the cattle going into it are tagged with pink dangle tags for quick identification if any do get out. A problem with perforated ulcers, as confirmed by autopsies on the calves, seems to have been cleared up by setting out lick tubs containing diatomaceous earth for the calves at the salting caches, typically stocked with blue salt and tracemineral blocks. At least there hasn’t been a case in the two years since they’ve started with the tubs. All doctoring, checking and moving cattle is done from horseback using quiet stockmanship techniques so that the cattle remain calm and approachable. The LinContinued on page 25

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health

SUMMER

Continued from page 22

fords rely a lot on the cattle’s natural instinct to remain with the group. BT usually takes in approximately 800 pairs and requires one bull for every 20 to 25 cows plus spares in the event of injury. They know they will lose about 10 per cent to the semen test before turnout. This year’s bull battery stood at 42. BT takes care of the health and testing program for the bulls, but members are responsible for looking after cow and calf health programs for their own herds in whatever way they deem necessary while the cattle are at home. The president and the directors form the bull-buying committee. They look for ranch-raised bulls conditioned to rugged pasture terrain. Through the years, they’ve developed a list of breeders with a proven record of supplying bulls that work under these conditions. After the bulls are pulled, the females in each breeding field are sorted according to how they will leave at the end of the season, by truck or trailer, and moved to the river hill pastures for the remainder of the summer. Roundup happens when grass conditions dictate. In dry years, it can be as early as the end of breeding season, but in recent years it’s been around October 20. It takes the crew about a day to gather the cattle and another to sort them into home herds. Late in the season, if the weather turns cold, the older cows instinctively know it’s time to move, and each herd starts to gather in certain parts of the field that they know will lead home. The members trail their herds out on the same day from the north end of the range. Those to be trucked are sorted from horseback and penned in the the yard overnight, then leave the next morning. Range management

BT members know how easily this sandy land drifts away when vegetation gets sparse. Even a bull wallow can throw up enough sand to start slicing off surrounding vegetation when the wind is howling. The co-op has a policy of grazing half and leaving half for next year. Alberta Environment range management specialists annually assess the pasture and set an appropriate stocking rate, typically about 33 acres per cow for the season. In dry years members cut their allotments and supplement the pasture during breeding season, or arrange to pull their cattle earlier than usual. www.canadiancattlemen.ca

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Vehicle traffic is kept to a bare minimum. The only time Linford drives across a pasture is to restock the salt caches. Gravel is laid on the tire tracks of established trails used by gas companies to service wells on the lease, and the grass between the tracks is mowed to reduce the fire hazard and the chance of dry grass seed building up on the skid plates of vehicles. All but two of the dugouts have good quality water. To replace those two and supply the house and yard, the co-op purchased two shares in a rural pipeline constructed to supply a nearby town. It provides a trickle supply that fills large holding tanks with gravity-fed waterers. To protect the dugouts they use solar pumps to draw water into a tank. Linford says that has greatly improved the stability of the banks on their dugouts. As well, seven wells — five with traditional windmills and two with submersible solar pumps — lift water to holding tanks with gravity-fed troughs. A spring in the side of a coulee has been tapped with a culvert to fill two overflowing tanks giving time for the silt to settle out and provide clear, cool water. c

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C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

 health

By Roy Lewis DVM

WATCH FOR TETANUS It’s on the increase

n the last several years’ the incidence of tetanus has most definitely been increasing across Canada. This article will review some of the pertinent signs and prevention of this deadly disease. Tetanus is caused by the bacterium Clostridium Tetani that is the same family of organisms that cause blackleg. This sporeproducing bacteria causes fairly sudden death and treatment is often unsuccessful. There are differences in susceptibility to tetanus among the different species with horses being the most sensitive and cattle being more resistant. However, it has been in cattle where we have seen an increase in the number of cases. They are always associated with a puncture wound or cut such as a deep scrape to the genital tract of cattle during calving. Once susceptible animals have been exposed it takes one to three weeks for disease to occur and clinical signs to appear — a sawhorse stance, often prolapse of the third eyelid and lockjaw. The lockjaw caused by the contraction of the masseter muscles also causes tremendous salivation. Your veterinarian will most likely have you treat with very high doses of penicillin and give large amounts of tetanus antitoxin especially around the wound. As already mentioned recovery is very rare but has been reported in cattle. The best solution is prevention. One must be careful as very few of the blackleg vaccines contain tetanus. It is generally only in the 8-way or 9-way vaccines and you must check the label to make sure it is present. Your veterinarian can best advise as to which vaccine carries tetanus. In horses the yearly 3-way or 4-way vaccines will often carry tetanus, or you can get an individual vaccine for tetanus. Veterinarians will often ask when castrating your horse or suturing up a cut if the tetanus vaccinations are up to date. If not the horse will be given a booster shot. Often penicillin is given for a few days or if a long-acting shot is given this generally will protect your horse until immunity is established. Giving it yearly in the combination vaccines you need is the best approach with horses. Banding larger bulls with elastrators

Prevention is the best solution for tetanus. Treatment once the symptoms appear is often unsuccessful.

really increases the incidence if the bulls are not properly vaccinated. I have also seen it caused by vaccinating with a dirty needle and tail docking or shearing in sheep. In another case a dog attack on a lamb created the wound that proved fatal. Some producers have gotten away from vaccinating for this disease. The reason I think is simple: As the combination vaccines have been developed often hemophilus is combined with the clostridials and the combination does not include tetanus. Our clinic stresses tetanus especially if you are banding calves in the feedlot or castrating. Proper disinfection when needling or castrating will also go a long ways to preventing it. Banding creates an open wound for quite a long time. Retained placentas especially in horses have been known to cause tetanus so boostering at the time of treatment would also be a great idea. The good news is the tetanus vaccine in combination with the other clostridials is one of the oldest, and hence, cheapest vaccines on the market. Booster shots are imperative especially when you are banding or doing an open castration. Treatment is unrewarding in clinical cases. Ask your veterinarian what specific vac-

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

cine he or she recommends for your cattle, horses, bison, elk, camelids, sheep and goats. They should all be current in their vaccination for tetanus. This is a disease, which can also affect humans. Every time you see the doctor about a cut or abrasion they will ask you when was the last time you received a tetanus shot. People are usually boostered every 10 years or so. As with the other clostridial diseases another booster will give prolonged immunity. Most producers will booster the cow herd every few years. I have heard of cases in mares with retained placentas where proper administration of the clostridial vaccines has achieved 99 per cent protection. Calves born to protected cows receive protection in the colostrum, which will last for two months. I hope by keeping your herd current you will never see a case of tetanus or any other clostridial disease for that matter. They are not a pretty sight and prognosis once clinical signs appear is very, very poor. c Roy Lewis is a Westlock, Alta.-based veterinarian specializing in large-animal practice. He is also a part-time technical services vet for Merck Animal Health.

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8/1/13 4:46 PM

 vet aDv i c e

IBR PERSISTS

nfectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) is caused by bovine herpesvirus-1 (BHV-1). Other types of herpes viruses affect humans and cause diseases we know as chicken pox, cold sores, and shingles. One of the characteristics of herpes viruses is the ability to infect cells and then lie dormant for long periods before some stressful event lowers the immune response and triggers reactivation. Carrier animals generally do not develop clinical disease when infections resurface, but shed large amounts of infectious virus in nasal and other secretions. BHV-1 is highly contagious and spreads rapidly when cattle are crowded and commingled. Reactivation of latent virus and subsequent transmission of virus to susceptible animals is responsible for persistence of IBR in cattle populations, and is a reason why producers shouldn’t get smug about IBR no longer being a threat in breeding herds. Because BHV-1 virus can invade a variety of organ systems following exposure several disease syndromes are recognized as part of IBR outbreaks. In feedlots, IBR is commonly observed with eye infections (conjunctivitis) and respiratory disease. While all ages and breeds are susceptible, the disease is most common in calves over six months of age when the stress of weaning, transport and placement in feedlots often coincides with receding levels of natural immunity. IBR is often one of the agents in the cocktail of respiratory pathogens causing the complex respiratory disease syndrome labelled as shipping fever. Abortion storms in susceptible herds, a serious production disease made inconsequential by the evolution of highly effective vaccines, are starting to reappear in cow herds where vaccination success over three decades triggered complacency. Pregnant animals exposed to BHV-1 between 5.5 and 7.5 months of gestation are especially at risk. BHV-1 can also cause a variety of pustular-like genital diseases in both males and females, and serious systemic infections in calves, including involvement of the central nervous system. In unvaccinated, susceptible populations, IBR can affect up to 30 per cent of exposed animals. Herpes viruses in general have a relatively short duration of clinical immunity. Regular revaccination of the cow herd is important to establish an ongoing shield of protection against IBR infection. Abortion

Problems typically start with some breakdown in revaccination programs. Herds re-experiencing IBR abortions after the virus seemed to have disappeared have added a group of previously infected animals shedding virus, or a group of susceptible, unvaccinated replacements. In completely naive herds exposed to the virus, abortions can appear as storms. Abortion rates of five to 60 per cent of pregnant animals have been reported. The picture varies with the herd’s vaccination history and the residual immune status of all age groups. BHV-1 spreads rapidly within herds. Abortions from susceptible cows are generally not evident until 23 to 53 days following exposure to the virus. Usually, by the time the first abortion occurs all cows have been exposed. Abortions may occur sporadically. Vaccination in the face of an outbreak can alter the course of the disease, but usually does not stop or prevent additional abortions. Abortion has been reported in herds on two successive years

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

indicating that immunity following recovery or vaccination doesn’t approach 100 per cent. Abortion has also been reported in herds that institute regular vaccination programs. Sources of virus in these cases include: new additions (shedders), use of modified live virus vaccines, and in some cases involvement of wild ruminants (deer, elk). Abortion in herds can occur without observed signs of illness although mild respiratory signs and eye infections are not uncommon. Abortion can occur at any stage of gestation, but typically occurs through the second half. Death and absorption of the fetus may occur in early pregnancy and look like simple infertility. Following abortions, most animals recover and normal pregnancies follow. Diagnosis

As with all causes of abortion, starting with an accurate diagnosis is very important. IBR abortion occurs as a result of fetal death, and the fetus is usually partially decomposed. Producers should consult with their veterinary practitioner regarding submission of samples to a laboratory. BHV-1 can be easily isolated from lesions and detected in fetal tissue. Preventing IBR in breeding herds

Vaccinating pregnant females with certain types of modified live virus vaccine may produce abortions. Choice of vaccines, timing of vaccination, and managing vaccination programs in different age groups are important considerations. Producers really need to work with a veterinarian in designing herd vaccination strategies — both short and long term. At last count, around 30 vaccine combinations contain an IBR fraction. There are both modified live and killed vaccines; some administered subcutaneously, others intramuscularly, still others via an intranasal route. Some vaccines are designed for use in feedlot situations, while others are safe and effective in cow-calf herds. There are some cautions concerning using a modified live IBR vaccine on pregnant animals, unless the vaccine is a temperature-sensitive, intranasal vaccine. Heifers vaccinated only once with a killed product without receiving a booster may not develop protective immunity. Many contain bovine virus diarrhea (BVD) antigens, while a number are combinations of elements covering a variety of bovine respiratory diseases. Factors to consider: design of vaccine use in the face of an outbreak, routine vaccination of herds pre-breeding, vaccination of cows with calves at side and vaccination of replacement breeding stock being introduced into the herd. It is generally agreed that pre-breeding vaccination with a modified live vaccine, or a two-shot series with a killed product, is the most effective way of preventing IBR abortions. Producers buying breeding replacements should only buy from credible sources and not be shy about asking for letters of certification regarding IBR vaccination along with those signifying clinical freedom of Johne’s disease and BVD. c Dr. Ron Clarke prepares this column on behalf of the Western Canadian Association of Bovine Practitioners. Suggestions for future articles can be sent to Canadian Cattlemen (gren@fbcpublishing.com) or WCABP (info@wcabp.com).

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

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13-06-18 12:04

British Columbia Andrews A1 Feeders Gary Andrews 167 Dure Meadow Road Lumby, B.C. V0E 2G7 Ph/Fax: (250) 547-2219 Lot capacity: 650 9 2 8 Southern Plus Feedlots Bill Freding R.R. 1, Site 48, Comp 7 Oliver, B.C. V0H 1T0 Ph: (250) 498-3077 Fax: 498-3977 email: freding@telus.net Lot capacity: 6,000 1 5 9 2 8

Alberta Antelope Butte ranch ltd. Jim Lynch-Staunton Box 10 Lundbreck, Alta. T0K 1H0 Ph: (403) 628-2020 Cell: 627-6770 email: jim@jrtwave.com 9 2 BALLCO FEEDERS inc. Jeff Ball Box 127 Brant, Alta. T0L 0L0 Ph: (403) 684-3540 Fax: 684-3345 email: jeff@ballco.ca Lot capacity: 15,000 1 9 2 8 4

Barnett Farms Bill Barnett Box 1, Site 14, R.R. 1 Strathmore, Alta. T1P 1J6 Ph: (403) 934-4260 Fax: 934-4920 email: barnettfeeders@aol.com Lot capacity: 3,000 1 9 2 4 bear trap feeders Bob or Don Lowe Box 1499 Nanton, Alta. T0L 1R0 Ph: (403) 646-5550 Fax: 646-5697 Lot capacity: 4,000 1 5 2 9 Blue Ridge colony Eli Wurz Box 121 Mountain View, Alta. T0K 1N0 Ph: (403) 626-2388 Fax: 626-2394 Cell: 359-3287 Lot capacity: 350 9

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CAIRNS FEEDYARDS LTD Larry Cairns Box 8 Madden, Alta T0M 1L0 Ph/Fax: (403) 946-5897 Cell: 333-2400 Lot capacity: 5,000 1 5 9 2 8 4

Codesa Colony Box 300 Eaglesham, Alta. T0H 1H0 Ph: (780) 359-3022 Fax: 359-3004 Cell: 837-4342 Lot capacity: 2,500 1 5 9 2 8 4

calhoun cattle co. ltd. Rod, Carol or Jason Calhoun Box 72 Swalwell, Alta. T0M 1Y0 Ph: (403) 546-2655 Fax: 546-3831 Cell: 333-5440/333-5438 1 5 9 2 8 4

Cor Van Raay Farms Ltd. Box 64 Iron Springs, Alta. T0K 1G0 Ph: (403) 738-4528 Fax: 738-4435 2 4 5 8 7

Carmangay Colony Feeders Ben Wurz, Johnny Wurz Box 40 Carmangay, Alta. T0L 0N0 Ph: (403) 643-2456 Fax: 643-2410 Cell: 795-9806/795-9805 Lot capacity: 5,000 9 2 8 Cattleland feedyards ltd. Joe Gregory Box 2265 Strathmore, Alta. T1P 1K2 Ph: (403) 934-4030 Fax: 934-4594 email: karen@cattleland.ca Website:cattlelandfeedyards.com Lot capacity: 25,000 1 5 9 2 8 4 7 Central h Feeders ltd. Mark Hengstmengel Box 122 Iron Springs, Alta. T0K 1G0 Ph: (403) 738-4805 Fax: 738-4806 / Cell: 308-6632 Lot capacity: 2,700 2 9 chinook feeders Box 343 Nanton, Alta. T0L 1R0 Ph: (403) 646-2087 Fax: 646-2978 Lot capacity: 17,000 1 9 2 8 Claresholm Beef producers ltd. T.J. Larson Box 1043 Claresholm, Alta. T0L 0T0 Ph: (403) 625-2911 Fax: 625-2151 email: claresholmbeef@gmail.com Lot capacity: 13,000 9 2 8 Cleardale Colony Mike S. Stahl Box 159 Cleardale, Alta. T0H 3Y0 Ph: (780) 685-2800 Fax: 685-2704/ Cell: 834-7165 Lot capacity: 600 9 2 8 5 market analysis

de wilde feeders Box 142 Monarch, Alta. T0L 1M0 Ph/Fax: (403) 824-3635 Cell: (403) 634-3352 / 634-4026 email: adriandw@shockware.com Lot capacity: 5,000 1 5 9 2 8 4 7 Diamond 8 Cattle co. Cam VanEe Box 100 Pincher Creek, Alta. T0K 1W0 Ph: (403) 627-1525 Fax: 627-1524 Cell: 894-2178 email: barjw@hotmail.com Lot capacity: 7,500 1 5 9 2 8 4 7 Diamond H farms Ltd. Gabriel Hebert Box 123 St. Vincent, Alta. T0A 3B0 Phone/Fax: (780) 635-2699 Cell: 645-8695 Lot capacity: 2,200

grandview cattle feeders Ltd. Greg Van Vaerenbergh Box 336 Picture Butte, Alta. T0K 1V0 Ph: (403) 328-9775 Fax: 381-0250 / Cell: 317-9550 email: grandvu@la.shockware.com Lot capacity: 43,000 5 2 4 hagel feeders Ltd. Dan Hagel/Jason Hagel R.R. 1 Swalwell, Alta. T0M 1Y0 Ph: (403) 546-2187 / 546-3874 Cell: 312-7153 / 312-7154 Fax: 546-3949 Lot capacity: 4,800 1 9 2 8

2 health program

highland feeders Bern & Mike Kotelko Box 400 Vegreville, Alta. T9C 1R4 Ph: (780) 768-2466 Fax: 768-3888 / Cell: 632-1031 email: bkotelko@highlandbeef.com Website: www.highlandbeef.com Lot capacity: 36,000 1 5 2 8 7 High River colony Martin & Ed Box 5610 High River, Alta. T1V 1M7 Ph/Fax: (403) 395-2107 Cell: 652-8758 Lot capacity: 2,500 9 highway 21 feeders ltd. Ed Miller/ Lyle Miller Box 60 Acme, Alta. T0M 0A0 Ph: (403) 546-2278 Fax: 546-3709 Cell: 888-2539 (Ed) 888-3973 (Lyle) email: hwy21@wildroseinternet.ca Lot capacity: 20,000 1 5 2 8 4 7 hWY 52 beef producers ltd. Dwight Morhart/ Ryan Kasko Box 1250 Raymond, Alta. T0K 2S0 Ph: (403) 752-2333 Fax: 756-3434 / Cell: 795-7394 email: hwy52@shockware.com Website: www.kaskocattle.com Lot capacity: 15,000 1 5 9 2 8 4 7

FootHill Farms Henk Vanden Berg Box 793 Fort Macleod, Alta. T0L 0Z0 Ph: (403) 553-4290 Fax: 553-4291 Cell: 315-3969 Lot capacity: 5,000 1 9 2 4

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hairy hill colony Darius R. Hofer Box 35 Hairy Hill, Alta. T0B 1S0 Ph: (780) 768-3770 Fax: 768-2178 Lot capacity: 1,200 5 9 2 8

J.G. Larson Livestock James Larson Box 1982 Enchant, Alta. T0K 0V0 Ph: (403) 654-2819 Fax: 654-2089 / Cell: 634-1322 email: jlarson@cciwireless.ca Lot capacity: 4,500 1 9 2 8 Jonust Farms Ltd. Bradley Raugust Walter Raugust R.R. 1, Ponoka, Alta. T4J 1R1 Ph: (403) 783-2726 / 783-2202 Fax: 704-2302 Cell: 350-5265 / 350-8023 email: rbraugust@hotmail.ca or blackelk@telusplanet.net Lot capacity: 1,000 9 2 8

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4 trucking

7hedging

jubilee feedlot Wayne Forbes Box 5510 Westlock, Alta. T7P 2P5 Ph: (780) 349-2476 Fax: 349-5414 Cell: 349-0127 email: wayne@jubileefarms.ca Lot capacity: 6,500 1 9 2 8 4 Kasko Cattle Co. Ltd. Ryan Kasko Box 1266 Coaldale, Alta. T1M 1N1 Ph: (403) 345-4301 Fax: 345-3778 Cell: 795-2246 email: ryan@kaskocattle.com Lot capacity: 25,000 1 5 2 8 4 7 K-Belt farms Bruce Konynenbelt Box 90 Nobleford, Alta. T0L 1S0 Ph: (403) 824-3431 Fax: 824-3258 Cell: 634-4744 email: kbeltfam@shockware.com Lot capacity: 4,000+ 9 2 Kenwynn Farms Ltd. Brian McKinnon Box 129 Carseland, Alta. T0J 0M0 Ph: (403) 934-4114 Fax: 934-2122 Lot capacity: 7,500 1 5 9 2 8 KeHo lake colony Martin-Min Wurtz Box 125 Barons, Alta. T0L 0G0 Ph: (403) 757-2330 Fax: 757-2337 Lot capacity: 6,000 1 8 4 Klassen Agriventures Ltd. Myron Klassen Box 488 Linden, Alta. T0M 1J0 Ph: (403) 312-3577 Fax: 546-2445 email: Myron@klassenagriventures.ca Lot capacity: 5,000 1 2 4 5 8 9 Larson custom Feeders ltd. T.J. Larson Box 1227 Fort Macleod, Alta. T0L 0Z0 Ph: (403) 553-3110 Fax: 553-2828 Cell: 394-6496 email: larsonfeeders@gmail.com Lot capacity: 6,000 1 5 9 2 8 7

1custom order buying and selling

marnies Feeders Allan Johnson Box 151 Hughenden, Alta. T0B 2E0 Ph: (780) 856-2241 Fax: 856-2399 Cell: 842-0232 email: marniesfeeders@xplornet.ca Lot capacity: 8,500 5 9 2 8 4 Molenaar Farms Custom Feedlot John or Trevor Molenaar Box 268 Nobleford, Alta. T0L 1S0 Ph: (403) 824-3691 / 824-3590 Fax: 824-3691 Lot capacity: 6,000 1 9 2 8 4 J.F. Murray farms Shawn Murray Box 86 Picture Butte, Alta. T0K 1V0 Ph: (403) 732-4631 Fax: 732-4187 Cell: 308-0618 email: jfmurray5sn@gmail.com Lot capacity: 9,000 1 5 9 2 8 4 7

5 market analysis

Rocky ridge land & cattle Darcy Stewart/ Loren Stewart Box 65, Site 19, R.R. 2 Strathmore, Alta. T1P 1K5 Ph: (403) 934-4426 Fax: 934-9998 Cell 888-5083 Lot capacity: 3,000 9

Park road farms ltd. Allan Slomp P.O. Box 419 Nobleford, Alta. T0L 1S0 Ph: (403) 824-3676 Fax: 824-3677 email: prf@xplornet.com Lot capacity: 4,500 9 2

Roulston Farms Rob Roulston Box 152 Bruce, Alta. T0B 0R0 Ph/Fax: (780) 688-2284 Lot capacity: 1,000 9 2 8

penridge feeders Office Box 4 Swalwell, Alta. T0M 1Y0 Ph: (403) 546-0015 Lot capacity: 4,000 1 5 9 2 8 7 Poplar Lodge Ranch Ltd. Will Porter Box 12 Czar, Alta. T0B 0Z0 Ph: (780) 857-2056 Fax: 857-2057 email: willporter64@gmail.com Lot capacity: 3,500 1 9 2 8 RJ Feeders Ralph or Josie Kientz R.R. 1, Olds, Alta. T4H 1P2 Ph/ Fax: (403) 631-2373 Cell: 994-0581 Lot capacity: 1,700 1 9 2 8 4

9 backgrounding

2 health program

Schooten & Sons Custom Feedyard Ltd. John Schooten Shane Schooten Cody Schooten Justin Schooten Box 148 Diamond City, Alta. T0K 0T0 Ph: (403) 381-3883 Fax: 381-8809 Cell: 634-1459 (John) 634-1535 (Shane) 634-4116 (Cody) 634-5679 (Justin) email: schootenandsons@yahoo.ca Lot capacity: 10,000 1 2 4 5 7 9 8

8 pen sharing

4 trucking

7hedging

When BRD strikes, time is of the essence. Help minimize potential losses with a single injection of RESFLOR速, the only 2-in-1 treatment product that combines: - a fast-acting1, broad-spectrum antibiotic to help manage pathogens associated with BRD infection, and - a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) to help reduce fever

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Ask your veterinarian about the unique dual action of RESFLOR.

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Resflor is a registered trademark of Intervet International B.V. Used under license. Merck Animal Health, operating in Canada as Intervet Canada Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. MERCK is a trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. Copyright 息 2012 Intervet International B.V., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. All rights reserved.

Resflor Ad CanCattle Feedlot Guide.indd 1

13-06-18 12:20

Schwartzkopf farms Ltd. Bert or Brian Schwartzkopf Box 743 Coalhurst, Alta. T0L 0V0 Ph: (403) 381-4219 Fax: 394-2143 Cell: 360-2973 Lot capacity: 4,000 9 Shelter Valley land & cattle Sam McQuaid Box 131 Czar, Alta. T0B 0Z0 Ph: (780) 857-2720 Fax: 857-2827 Cell: 209-2373 Manager, Chris McQuaid (780) 806-6107 email: svlc@telus.net Lot capacity: 12,000 1 9 4 2 7 Shelter Valley Custom Feeding Sam McQuaid Cell: 780-209-2373 Lethbridge, Alta. Manager: Corey Conan Cell: (403) 894-1020 Lot capacity: 10,000 1 9 2 4 7 Signal Ridge Farms Russell Klassen Box 1287 Stettler, Alta. T0C 2L0 Ph: (403) 742-9762 Fax: 742-1828 1custom order buying and selling

Ph: (780) 675-9207 Fax: 675-5095 Lot capacity: 6,000 1 9 2 8 4

email: info@signalridgefarms.com Lot capacity 2,000 1 5 9 2 8 4 7 John Slingerland Box 1425 Coaldale, Alta. T1M 1N2 Ph: 403-345-2210 Fax: 345-6844 Cell: 382-9518 Lot capacity: 9,000 9 8 2 5 4

stankievech ranches Glen & Clare Stankievech Box 389 Trochu, Alta. T0M 2C0 Ph: (403) 442-2242 Fax: 442-3169 Cell: 588-6325 â&#x20AC;˘ Wintering cows Lot capacity: 2,000 5 9 2 8

South Cara Farms Ltd. Rick Cromarty Box 157 Provost, Alta. T0B 3S0 Ph: (780) 753-4767 Fax: 753-8455 Cell: 209-4414 email: socara@telus.net 1 9 2 8 5 south island farms ltd. Scott MacLean Box 249 Bow Island, Alta. T0K 0G0 Ph: (403) 545-2422 Fax: 545-2442 Cell: 952-1405 Lot capacity: 6,500 1 5 9 2 8 4 stafford feeders ltd. Ken & Chris Box 2243 Athabasca, Alta. T9S 2B7 5 market analysis

stauffer farm feedlot Murray Stauffer Jack Puddifant R.R. 3 Eckville, Alta. T0M 0X0 Ph: (403) 746-5737 Fax: 746-5739 email: stauff1@xplornet.com 1 5 9 2 8

stronks Feedlot Ed Stronks Box 870 Picture Butte, Alta. T0K 1V0 Ph: (403) 738-4106 Fax: 738-2193 Cell: 308-9997 Lot capacity: 6,000 1 5 2 8 4 7

9 backgrounding

2 health program

sundial livestock feeders ltd. Chris Tetreault Box 359 Bassano, Alta. T0J 0B0 Ph: (403) 641-3500 Fax: 641-3018 Cell: 633-0890 Lot capacity: 10,000 1 9 2 8 sunnybend Feedlot John B. Walter R.R. 1, Westlock, Alta. T7P 2N9 Ph: (780) 349-3542 Fax: 954-2636 Cell: 349-1740 Lot capacity: 2,000 9 G. Thompson Livestock Box 142 Iron Springs, Alta. T0K 1G0 Ph: (403) 738-4351 Fax: 738-4762 email: tlcbeef@telus.net Lot capacity: 18,000 1 5 9 2 8 4

thompson colony feeders Marvin Tschetter Box 160 Fort Macleod, Alta. T0L 0Z0 Cell: (403) 635-0340 Fax: 553-2958 Lot capacity: 2,000 9

8 pen sharing

4 trucking

7hedging

Tongue creek feeders ltd./ Roseburn ranches ltd. Peter Morrison Box 5910 High River, Alta. T1V 1P6 Ph: (403) 652-7410 Fax: 652-2936 Cell: 312-7909 email: cattle@roseburn.net Lot capacity: 16,000/12,000 1 5 4 9 2 8 tfS Expanse Ltd. James Bekkering 6311-56th Ave. Taber, Alta. T1G 1X9 Ph: (403) 223-9090 Fax: 223-9061 Lot capacity: 25,000 V.G. Feedlot Pete Stahl Veteran Colony Veteran, Alta. T0C 2S0 Ph: (403) 575-2169 Fax: 575-2190 Lot capacity: 1,000 1 9 2 4 H & R Vandenberg Farms Harold Vandenberg Box 454 Coaldale, Alta. T1M 1M5 Ph/Fax: (403) 345-3991 Cell: 382-7986 email: vanfarm@yahoo.com Lot capacity: 5,000 1 5 9 2 8 4 1custom order buying and selling

Vandenberg cattle co. ltd. John or Geert Box 531 Picture Butte, Alta. T0K 1V0 Ph: (403) 381-3302 / 381-6569 Fax: 381-3364 Cell: 380-0300 Lot capacity: 4,300 5 2 4 Vee tee feeders ltd. Don Davies Box 12220 Lloydminster, Alta. T9V 3C4 Ph: (780) 875-6231 Fax: 875-6232 Cell: 808-5607 email: veetee@mcsnet.ca Lot capacity: 6,000 1 9 2 8 7 Western feedlots ltd. Travis Hickey Box 5279 High River, Alta. T1V 1M4 Ph: (403) 652-3933 Fax: 601-8670 Website: westernfeedlots.com 1 5 9 2 8 7 West Ridge farms Jim Hurt Box 321 Crossfield, Alta. T0M 0S0 Ph: (403) 946-4198 Lot capacity: 1,300 9 2 5 market analysis

white haven farms Maggie Dulaney R.R. 4, Site 6, Box 1 Innisfail, Alta. T4G 1T9 Ph: (403) 227-2276 9

Fax: 273-4601 email: birchisland@imagewireless.ca Lot capacity: 8,500 1 5 9 2 8 4 7

willow butte cattle co. ltd. Kent & Janine Olson R.R. 3 Red Deer, Alta. T4N 5E3 Ph: (403) 886-4200 Fax: 886-4100 Cell: 340-9009 email: kent@willowbutte.com Lot capacity: 6,000 1 5 9 2 8 4 7

Saskatchewan bezan land & Livestock Ltd. Layton Bezan Box 1726 Regina, Sask. S4P 3C6 Ph: (306) 775-0412 Fax: 775-0444 Cell: 537-8898 Lot capacity: 1,200 1 5 9 2 4 7 birch island land & cattle co. Shayne Yewsuk / Mark Herman Box 236 Rhein, Sask. S0A 3K0 Ph: (306) 273-4600

9 backgrounding

2 health program

Border line feeders inc. Kevin Antworth Box 128 Ceylon, Sask. S0C 0T0 Ph: (306) 454-2250 Fax: 454-2216 Cell: 442-7401 email: ryan.blfi@sasktel.net Lot capacity: 12,000 15 9 2 8 4 Christopherson Farms Ltd. Lorne Christopherson Box 280 Weldon, Sask. S0J 3S0 Ph: (306) 887-2103 Fax: 887-2073 Cell: 961-5890 email: chfarms@skvelocity.ca Lot capacity: 3,500 1 9 2 8 dietrich farms ltd. Jim Dietrich Box 68 Mendham, Sask. S0N 1P0 Ph: (306) 628-4249 Cell: 628-7170 email: jdietrich@sasktel.net Lot capacity: 2,200 1 5 9 2 8 4

8 pen sharing

4 trucking

7hedging

Pound-maker agventures ltd. Brad Wildeman Box 519 Lanigan, Sask. S0K 2M0 Ph: (306) 365-4281 Fax: 365-4283 email: pma@pound-maker.ca Website: www.pound-maker.ca Lot capacity: 28,500 1 5 2 8 4 7

McQueen Feedyards Bill & Dave McQueen Box 35 Tessier, Sask. S0L 3G0 Ph: (306) 656-4465 Fax: 656-2042 Lot capacity: 6,000 1 5 2 8 4

Excellerator Genetics Ron Dietrich Box 116 Moosomin, Sask. S0G 3N0 Ph: (306) 435-9381 email: excellerator@sasktel.net Website: www.excelleratorgenetics.com Lot capacity: 4,000 1 9 2 4 7

Nine Mile Ranch Ltd. Myles Heppner Box 70 Spiritwood, Sask. S0J 2M0 Ph: (306) 984-2149 Fax: 984-2450 Cell: 883-7476 Lot capacity: 3,500 9 2

hagerty livestock ltd. Larry Hagerty General Delivery, Box 11 Stony Beach, Sask. S0G 4S0 Ph: (306) 345-2523 Fax: 345-2085 Lot capacity: 3,000 1 9 2 8 4

Red Coat Cattle Feeders Inc. Barry Boghean Box 86 Hazenmore, Sask. S0N 1C0 Ph: (306) 264-3844 Fax: 264-3206 Cell: 625-7355 email: rccf@yourlink.ca Lot capacity: 18,500 9 2 8 15

L & D feeders Dave & Lynne Baumann Box 39 Tompkins, Sask. S0N 2S0 Ph/Fax: (306) 622-4605 Lot capacity: 2,200 1 9 2 8

perrault feedlot Perrault brothers Box 182 Ponteix, Sask. S0N 1Z0 Ph: (306) 625-3750 Fax: 625-3978 Cell: 625-7804 Lot capacity: 1,000 1 5 9 2 8 4

M & T Feedlot Greg Thompson Box 336 Moose Jaw, Sask. S6H 4N9 Ph: (306) 694-5314 Fax: 693-8822 Cell: 631-7413 Lot capacity: 3,500 1 5 9 2 8 4

plains livestock Inc. Bruce Edwards Box 160 Porcupine Plain, Sask. S0E 1H0 Ph: (306) 889-4500 email: plainslivestock1@xplornet.ca web: www.plainslivestock.net Lot capacity: 10,000 1 5 9 2 8 4

1custom order buying and selling

5 market analysis

Ross L-Seven Ranch Chad Ross/Brian Ross Box 1087 Estevan, Sask. S4A 2H7 Ph: (306) 634-7301 Fax: 634-7762 Cell: 421-6346 • Custom grazing • Heifer A.I. • Cow/bull wintering Lot capacity: 2,500 9

9 backgrounding

2 health program

shur Transport exporting & trucking Norm Shurygalo Box 308 Beinfait, Sask. S0C 0M0 Ph: (306) 388-2329 Fax: 388-2321 Cell: 421-3482 email: shurtruck@hotmail.com Lot capacity: 800 1 5 9 2 8 4 Sunny slope Cattle Ltd. Don Bowyer Box 1744 Maple Creek, Sask. S0N 1N0 Ph: (306) 662-2901 Fax: 662-4450 Lot capacity: 1,500 9 2 Tyner Valley Stock farms Dave Taciuk Box 774 Wakaw, Sask. S0K 4P0 Ph: (306) 233-5959 email: d.taciuk@sasktel.net Td3L Hull Ranch Terry & Debbie Hull Box 160 Willowbrook, Sask. S0A 4P0 Ph/Fax: (306) 782-7295 email: tdhull@yourlink.ca Lot capacity: 1,100 9 2 8

8 pen sharing

4 trucking

7hedging

Vaughan Feedlot Lyle Vaughan Box 22 Canwood, Sask. S0J 0K0 Ph/Fax: (306) 468-2677 Lot capacity: 1,000 9 2 8 Watteyne Cattle feeders LTD. Wes Watteyne Box 262 Lafleche, Sask. S0H 2K0 Ph/Fax: (306) 472-3775 Cell: 472-7642 email: ws.watteyne@xplornet.com Lot capacity: 2,200 1 9 2 8 westwood Land & Cattle Company Kevin Woods Box 6 Moosomin, Sask. S0G 3N0 Ph: (306) 435-2102 Fax: 435-4833 Cell: 435-7313 Lot capacity: 10,000 1 5 9 2 4 7 wes Wiebe Wes Wiebe Box 1651 Swift Current, Sask. S7H 4G6 Ph: (306) 773-2171 Cell: 741-1220 • Winter cows Lot capacity: 600 9 8 1custom order buying and selling

Braun Farms Dwight Braun Box 209 Plumas, Man. R0J 1P0 Ph: (204) 386-2280 Cell: 476-6094 email: dwbraun@mts.net Lot capacity: 2,500 1 9 2 8 4

Manitoba Bar M Stock Farms Ltd. Brad McDonald P.O. Box 1345 Portage la Prairie, Man. R1N 3L5 email: cattlemen@hotmail.ca Ph/Fax: (204) 239-5928 Cell: 856-6293 Lot capacity: 1,800 9 2 Baseline Cattle Company Darren Grasby Alvin Smelski Box 639 Gilbert Plains, Man. R0L 0X0 Ph: (204) 629-9000 Fax: 548-2381 Lot capacity: 3,000 1 5 9 2 8 4

5 market analysis

Hamiota feedlot ltd. Larry Schweitzer Box 610 Hamiota, Man. R0M 0T0 Ph: (204) 764-2449 Fax: 764-2264 email: feedlot@goinet.ca Website: www.hamiotafeedlot.com Lot capacity: 13,000 1 9 2 8

Dana Johns Box 188 Kenton, Man. R0M 0Z0 Ph/Fax: (204) 838-2003 Cell: 365-7149 email: johnsdm@goinet.ca Lot capacity: 1,000 1 9 2 8 4

willow park ranch Ben Wurz Box 70 Tessier, Sask. S0L 3G0 Ph: (306) 237-9510 Fax: 237-9511 Cell: 220-0400 Lot capacity: 800 1 5 9

Double d livestock Danny & Debbie Vanbeselaere Box 255 Waskada, Man. R0M 2E0 Ph: (204) 522-3697 Cell: 522-6013 Lot capacity: 2,000 1 9 2

Foxwillow Christopher & Sarah Walwin Box 69 Hamiota, Man. R0M 0T0 Ph: (204) 562-3633 email: cswalwin@mts.net • Specialize in pedigree cattle Lot capacity: 600

9 backgrounding

2 health program

G.C. Klassen and sons Garry or Cindy Box 1152 Altona, Man. R0G 0B0 Ph: (204) 829-7706 Fax: 829-3676 Cell: 324-7405 Lot capacity: 500 1 9 2 4 PEnner feedlot Phillip Penner Donavon Penner Box 66 Kelwood, Man. R0J 0Y0 Ph/Fax: (204) 967-2009 Cell: 212-0221 Lot capacity: 650 9 2 8

8 pen sharing

4 trucking

7hedging

Rocking U feeders Box 779 MacGregor, Man. R0H 0R0 Ph: (204) 685-2264 Fax: 685-2135 email: rockinguf@hotmail.com Lot capacity: 10,000 1 9 2

Ontario Edenview Acres Ltd. Pete Sereda R.R. 1 Centralia, Ont. N0M 1K0 Ph: (519) 229-6383 email: edenview@quadro.net Lot capacity: 600

Rolling Acres Daniel Hofer Box 95 Eden, Man. R0J 0M0 (204) 916-3525 ext. 216 Lot capacity: 250 9 T.J. Livestock Thor Jonsson General Delivery Oakview, Man. R0C 2K0 Ph: (204) 768-2422 Fax: 768-3393 Cell: 739-3230 email: tjonsson@mts.net Lot capacity: 2,000 1 5 9 2 8 4

Daniel Jeffrey R.R. 2 Stratford, Ont. N5A 6S3 Ph: (519) 273-7843 Cell: 272-9001 Fax: 271-9382 Lot capacity: 900 9 2 8 4 7

Wild Rose cattle ranch Mark or Nicholas Symbol Box 18, Group 6, R.R. 1 Anola, Man. R0E 0A0 Ph: (204) 866-2683 Lot capacity: 240 9 2 8

1custom order buying and selling

wayne martin R.R. 2 7468 Wellington Road 8 Alma, Ont. N0B 1A0 Ph: (519) 638-3871 Fax: 638-3825 Cell: 589-5181 email: wsmartin@golden.net Lot capacity: 450 9 2 8 milldale farms ltd. R.R. 1 Norwich, Ont. N0J 1P0 Ph: (519) 468-2325 Fax: 468-2326 Cell: 532-8748 email: vanker@execulink.com Lot capacity: 550 5 9 2 4 7

5 market analysis

richard trimble 323 Belleriver Road Woodslee, Ont. N0R 1V0 Ph: (519) 839-5521 Fax: 839-6524 Lot capacity: 60 1 9 2

New Brunswick

Quebec Bovinor farme SĂŠbastien Tremblay 4200 Chemain des Ruisseaux St-HonorĂŠ de Chicoutimi, Que. G0V 1L0 Ph/Fax: (418) 673-4776 Cell: 812-1035 email: sebastien.tremblay@ videotron.ca Lot capacity: 270 2 9 Trans Claude Lussier Claude Lussier 4 North Hill Rd. Gould, Que. J0B 2Z0 Ph: (819) 877-5461 Fax: (450) 372-1185 Cell: 522-1876 4

Nova Scotia Van Oostrum Farms Andrew Van Oostrum R.R. 2 Berwick, N.S. B0P 1E0 Ph: (902) 538-7716 Fax: 538-1411 Lot capacity: 400 1 5 9 2 8 4

9 backgrounding

2 health program

Davanna Holdings Dean & David Acton 308 Cookville Loop Rd. Cookville, N.B. E4L 2A4 Ph: (506) 536-2508 Fax: 536-2826 Cell: 379-0024 email: davanna@xplornet.ca Lot capacity: 1,000 1 9 2 R.A. Farm Robert Acton 550 Cookville Road Cookville, N.B. E4L 2A7 Ph: (506) 536-2564 Fax: 536-4700 Cell: 364-7263 email: rafarm@nbnet.nb.ca Lot capacity: 1,200 1 9 2 8 4

Prince Edward Island beech hill Farms 127 Beech Hill Road Alberry Plains, P.E.I. C0A 2E0 Ph: (902) 651-2883 Fax: 651-2578 1 9 4

8 pen sharing

4 trucking

7hedging

ADD SAFE-GUARD ADD POUNDS

Safe-Guard TM (fenbendazole ) is a different class of dewormer than pour-ons and injectables. It works fast to stop internal parasites and the hidden damage they cause. These parasites suppress feed intake, reduce average daily gain, hurt nutrient absorption and immune function, reducing the health and performance of your cattle.1,2 Use Safe-Guard as part of your parasite control program for more pounds of high quality beef in the feedlot.3,4 Visit www.AddSafe-Guard.com for more information or contact your veterinarian. 1 Endoparasite control, L.R. Ballweber, Veterinary Clinics Food Animal, 2006, 22:451-461. 2Economic analysis of pharmaceutical technologies in modern beef production, J.D. Lawrence and M.A. Ibarburu, Iowa State University, 2007. 3Pasture deworming and (or) subsequent feedlot deworming with fenbendazole. Effects of grazing performance, feedlot performance and carcass traits of yearling steers, R. Smith, et al., The Bovine Practitioner, 2000, 34:104-114. 4A fenbendazole oral drench in addition to an ivermectin pour-on reduces parasite burden and improves feedlot and carcass performance of finishing heifers compared with endectocides alone, C.D. Reinhardt, J.P. Hutcheson and W.T. Nichols, Journal of Animal Science, 2006, 84:2243-2250.

Safe-Guard is a trademark of Intervet International B.V. Used under license. Merck Animal Health (known as MSD Animal Health outside the US and Canada), operating in Canada as Intervet Canada Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. MERCK and MSD are trademarks of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. Copyright ÂŠ 2012 Intervet International B.V., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. All rights reserved.

Safe-Guard bovine Ad CanCattle Feedlot Guide.indd 1

13-06-18 12:08

Introducing ZUPREVO

, the longest-lasting on-arrival antibiotic on the market today.*

Talk to your veterinarian about using ZUPREVO on arrival.

* Huang R.A., et al. (2009) J. vet. Pharmacol. Therap. 33, 227-237. Menge M., et al. (2011) J. vet. Pharmacol. Therap. Nowakowski M.A., et al. Veterinary Therapeutics, vol. 5, no. 1, Spring 2004.

Trademark of Intervet International B.V. Used under license.

Merck Animal Health, operating in Canada as Intervet Canada Corp.,Â a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. MERCK is a trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. Copyright ÂŠ 2012 Intervet International B.V., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. All rights reserved.

Zuprevo Ad CanCattle Feedlot Guide.indd 1

13-06-18 11:59

 Holistic R a nc hi ng

By Don Campbell

The Power of Paradigms

he word paradigm might be defined as “the way we see things.” How we see things determines what we do. What we do determines the results we get. When we want to make major improvements in our lives we need to change the way we see things. Paradigms are very powerful. They can also be harmful and limiting such as when they cause you to think you “know” and are therefore not open to new ideas. It is interesting to note that ignorance never blocks learning but knowledge can. We all have and use paradigms. It is very helpful to be aware of what yours are. Are they relevant to today? Are you using a paradigm that may have worked well for your father or grandfather but isn’t valid today? Are you tied to your paradigms or are you able to look at new knowledge and change when that will benefit you? Growth often requires a change in our paradigms. Look at your own situation. Depending on age you may have been operating in the same paradigm for 10, 20, 30 or more years. Chances are you are doing a good job within your paradigm. Any improvements are likely to be small. Now imagine you can change your paradigm. It’s like starting over. It’s like a whole new world. The possibilities for improvement are endless. I took my first H M training when I was about 40 years old. I was raised in a ranching family and had been ranching for about 12 years. I had plenty of paradigms and I thought I “knew” a lot of things. H M challenged my convictions and helped me to see things differently. The result has been positive change that is still ongoing. I am going to share some of my paradigm shifts in hopes it may encourage you to think about changes that might benefit you.

Paradigm Shifts

1. Old paradigm: We need to own the cattle on our ranch. Results: In the mid-1980s we were running about 1,800 yearling steers. This required a million-dollar loan with an interest charge of about $50,000 per year. New paradigm: We need to harvest our grass and be profitable. Results: We bought cows we could own free and clear. We custom grazed the remainder of our ranch. Our bank loan went to zero. The bank actually paid us $10,000 on our savings. The net benefit was a $60,000 difference in interest costs. In the new paradigm our risk dropped dramatically and we maintained our profitability. 2. Old paradigm: Overgrazing is due to too many animals. Results: We struggled with declining production and rising costs on a set land base. New paradigm: Overgrazing is a function of time. www.canadiancattlemen.ca

Results: We now utilize planned grazing. There is little or no overgrazing. We now enjoy increased production on a set land base. This has been going on for over 25 years and shows no signs of abating. 3. Old paradigm: Cows require water in the winter. Results: Our winter feeding options were limited by water availability. We spent lots of money developing watering sites. New paradigm: Cows can lick snow in the winter. Results: We saved money by not developing more water sites. We are now able to winter our cows in any location we choose. We are able to improve our land each year. 4. Old paradigm: Cows need to be fed each day. Bales need to be unrolled. Results: We were busy and winter feeding was expensive. New paradigm: Cows do just fine on bale grazing. Results: Our workload and our costs have declined dramatically. Our profit has increased. 5. Old paradigm: We need to make our own hay. Results: We were busy all summer. Our hay costs were high as our land is rough and not really suited to modern haying equipment. New paradigm: We can buy our hay. Results: In the summer we have time to concentrate on our grazing. This is work that we enjoy. Concentrating on the grazing results in more grass and more profit. Buying our feed helps improve our land. 6. Old paradigm: Grass that is not baled or grazed by Nov. 1 is wasted. Results: We tried to utilize all our grass by Nov. 1. Our land was deteriorating slowly. New paradigm: There is no waste in nature. Any residual grass is an investment in biological capital and improves our land. Result: We try and leave as much biological capital on the land as possible. Our land continues to become more fertile. We enjoy increased production off a set land base. I hope the above examples will be food for thought. All the major improvements in my life have come when I was able “to see things differently.” I suspect it will be the same for you. How do we maintain the “openness” to change? I am not sure. My thought would be to read good literature, associate with positive people and don’t be too quick to judge a new idea. I wish you success in building the future you desire. I think your progress will be quicker when you challenge your paradigms. Happy trails. c Don Campbell ranches with his family at Meadow Lake, Sask., and teaches Holistic Management courses. He can be reached at 306-236-6088 or doncampbell@sasktel.net.

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

 grazing

By Steve Kenyon

The Evolution of My Bale Truck

t was in 1999 that I drove by and saw Freddy sitting out in the field resting. He was old and decrepit but I could tell he had a lot of experience. He looked rugged but strong. I just knew right away that he would work well on my ranch. Freddy spent years helping me with chores and I owe him a lot. He is almost like family still to this day. Although he is unable to work for me anymore, he still keeps me company when I’m out in the yard. Freddy is a 1978 Ford three-quarter ton that I bought off the highway for $500. I remember the first winter dragging bales out to feed by just wrapping a chain around them. His tailgate was gone and his box was flimsy, but a tougher truck I could not have asked for. I bought an old welding deck, a set of tractor bale forks and a winch to give Freddy a better purpose. I had a welding shop put it all together and I had invented my first bale truck. I added a grain hopper as well for feeding pellets. Freddy spent many years helping out

on the ranch. He could not unroll bales except to push them around with his front bumper but he was sure fast at setting up a bale-grazing field. I started to invent attachments for my bale truck. I built an extension for the forks that allowed me to lift and load my heavy-duty panels. Even when I upgraded to a new bale unroller, Freddy was still always there as a rescuer and a backup. His front diff went, his tranny was weak, the engine smoked, but he still rescued the new truck countless times. If we could all pause for a moment of silence for Freddy, the best bale truck a rancher could ever have. In 2003, Freddy had been upgraded by a 1989 Chevy three-quarter ton with a Bale Buddy. This was a bale handler that was basically a back bumper. Buddy was a very handy unit that could not only move a bale but also unroll it when needed as well. The arms tucked away and you did not even know that it was a bale-handling truck. I had to strengthen up Buddy as he was not as strong as Freddy. I added a flat deck and reinforced the frame. I added a few more

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My advice is not to buy a bale truck, buy a truck and put a deck on it. They are not built to do the work of a tractor but they sure do it faster attachments to move panels, built a garbage dumpster and made changes and adjustments to move loading chutes and water troughs. Buddy spent years working for me as well but soon he was starting to show his age as the demands on him had increased a great deal. I needed to upgrade. The life of a bale truck is not pretty. Bouncing over frozen dung all winter takes its toll. Buddy had a hard life before I bought him and I put him through a lot.

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grazing

I learned a lesson. Never buy a bale truck. Buy a truck and put a bale deck on it. So in 2006, I stepped it up to my current bale truck. I bought a 2004 GMC one ton and bit the bullet. I put a brand new bale deck on her. She was a Cadillac of bale trucks but with a big payment as well. I wanted her to last for a while. I could carry two bales at a time with Bessy and she had extendable arms. She has worked hard for many years. My only complaint was she did not have enough clearance. Deep snow was an issue. I have been ranching for 17 years and I have yet to own a tractor. My bale truck is a part of me. When she is in the shop I feel that a piece of me is missing. They

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are very handy and versatile. From the trip to town, to pulling a variety of trailers, to feeding, to moving feeders and water troughs, the bale truck can do it all. I have even picked up a snowplow blade for her now. I also added a pellet feeder I made out of a large flotation tire. The versatility of a bale truck is a huge asset to my ranch. Now Bessy is showing her years and is teased quite a bit at the mechanics shop. The truck is worn out but thwe deck itself has quite a few more years in it. I’ll soon be looking for a replacement. Once again, my advice is not to buy a bale truck, buy a truck and put a deck on it. They are not built to do the work of a tractor but they sure do it faster.

I think for my next bale truck I am going to try a homemade pickup insert as I have found that the changeover of a deck is costly. This way when my next truck wears out, I can just remove the bale handler and slide it into the new one. Whether you make one from scratch or buy a brand new one, I highly recommend a bale truck for feeding. A picture tells 1,000 words so I hope you like my evolution of the bale truck at Greener Pastures. c Steve Kenyon runs Greener Pastures Ranching Ltd. in Busby, Alta., www.greenerpasturesranching.com, 780-307-6500, email skenyon@greenerpasturesranching.com.

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 researc h o n t h e r eco r d

By Reynold Bergen

SUSTAINABLE BEEF

“

ustainability” means different things to different people. To some, it means being able to pass a healthy business on to the next generation. To others, sustainability is about caring for the environment. Some define sustainability as maintaining society’s approval and confidence in how cattle are raised and beef is produced. They’re all partly right. Sustainability is like a three-legged stool, supported by economic viability, environmental soundness and social responsibility. The stool won’t be very well balanced unless all three legs are roughly the right size. In many cases, improvements in one aspect of sustainability contribute to improvements in other aspects. For example, economic viability and environmental responsibility appear to be very compatible. A group of scientists from the University of California (Davis) compared the growth performance and greenhouse gas production of steers on two different finishing programs in 2011 (Journal of Animal Science 89:2643). Angus-cross steers were sourced from one ranch and finished in two groups on a grain-based diet. One group was raised conventionally, using a Synovex Choice implant, Rumensin, Tylan and Optaflexx. The other group was raised on a “Never Ever 3” program, and received no implants, ionophores, antibiotics or betaagonists. Growth rate and feed intake were evaluated until the steers reached the 1,300-pound slaughter weight. For the last week of the trial, the steers were moved to a facility to measure how much methane (from animals and manure) and nitrous oxide (from manure) each group produced. The conventional system was more economically viable. The conventional group grew 34 per cent faster, 33 per cent more efficiently, and reached slaughter weight 29 per cent faster than the Never Ever 3 steers. Production cost was $142.52 lower for the conventionally raised steers than for the Never Ever 3 steers. The conventional production system was also more environmentally sound. The conventionally raised steers produced 28 per cent less greenhouse gas from methane and nitrous oxide than the Never Ever 3 steers. Because the conventionally raised steers grew faster, they reached slaughter weight sooner, and produced greenhouse gases for fewer days. In 2012, Jude Capper from Washington State University and Dermot Hayes from Iowa State University reported on the environmental and economic impact of removing growth-promoting technologies (like implants, MGA, ionophores, and beta-agonists) from the U.S. beef industry (Journal of Animal Science 90:3527). This modelling study considered everything from the manufacture of the fertilizer, herbicides and pesticides needed for feed production, the water for crop irrigation and drinking, feed and land requirements for growing the feed used by different classes of cattle, the fuel for transporting feed and animals, and the manure and greenhouse gases produced by cow-calf, backgrounding, feedlot finishing, dairy beef and cull beef and dairy cattle. The resource inputs and waste outputs from producing the same amount of beef using conventional versus growth-promotant free production systems were estimated and compared. Producing the same amount of beef without growth promotants

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would cost eight per cent more, and would need 12 per cent more cattle, 11 per cent more feed, 10 per cent more land, four per cent more water and seven per cent more chemical fertilizer. Producing the same amount of beef using the growth-promotant free system would also produce 10 per cent more manure (with 10 per cent more nitrogen and 11 per cent more phosphorus), and 10 per cent more greenhouse gas emissions. Producing beef more efficiently contributes to economic viability and environmental soundness at the same time. Consumers should be able to accept this. Most drivers know that cars with better fuel mileage are better for their pocketbook as well as the environment. But not all buying decisions are based on knowledge; individual beliefs, values and emotions also factor into the process.

“ Producing beef more efficiently contributes to economic viability and environmental soundness at the same time.”

This makes the social responsibility aspect of beef sustainability much harder to get a handle on. Ultimately, consumers communicate their true opinions and priorities about what is socially acceptable through the buying decisions they make (including the decision not to buy). Consumers who have a real preference for lower retail prices will favour conventional beef production systems. Consumers who value environmental sustainability, and understand that growth promotants reduce land, feed and water requirements and greenhouse gas and manure production will also favour conventional beef production. Consumers who don’t connect the dots between production efficiency and environmental responsibility may choose beef produced without growth promotants, even though this may not be the best environmental choice. The same goes for some who decide not to trust Health Canada’s veterinary drug approval process, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s inspection and residue-monitoring program, or science in general. Consumer choice is good, but accurately informed consumer choices are better. All industries are developing sustainability programs, from dolphin-friendly tuna and gorilla-safe cellphones. The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association recently joined the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. For more information on this initiative, visit www. grsbeef.org. c Reynold Bergen is the science director for the Beef Cattle Research Council. A portion of the National Checkoff is directed to the BCRC to fund research and development activities to improve the competitiveness and sustainability of Canada’s beef industry.

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BUILDING TRUST IN CANADIAN BEEF

Think inside the truck You ship your market integrity with every load of cattle

People who golf quickly learn the term “mulligan.” It’s a chance to take a shot over with no penalty because you flubbed it badly. There are no mulligans in cattle shipping. No chance to do it over if you make a poor decision. Every load of cattle that goes out the chute carries with it your personal and industry market integrity. It might as well have your name on the side, “I (your name here) made the decisions on what was loaded, how they were treated and what you’ll get as my customer.” Today’s cattle producers have the tools and knowledge to handle this. But in the rush of a busy work time it’s a good idea to make sure everyone on the processing and loading team knows what is expected. Remember especially new people who may not be familiar with things. A checklist

A simple rule is if you don’t want to walk

them down the main street of Vancouver or Toronto, or if you don’t want to eat them yourself, don’t send them. Here’s a reminder of the big issues. Physically fit. Check animals for any signs of physical issues that would make animals unable to handle travel. Things like cancer eye, or an inability to walk properly. If they can’t handle it don’t send them. Drug withdrawal. Simple. Make sure withdrawal times are met and check before sorting. Feed records may be separate from animal health so check them all so there are no surprises down the road. Broken needles. Check records and identify any animal with suspect broken needles. Simplest solution is to slaughter for your own use. If you do ship them, make sure the next owner or the processing plant is informed and that this contact information is recorded. Support your buyer. If you ship recently

vaccinated heifers or backgrounded calves to the next feedlot, let the new manager know what treatments. Something may happen to require an emergency slaughter. Note the date you did that for your own protection. Keep current records. Make sure the withdrawal check with date is on record. Set an example of due diligence for your family and staff and your customer. Trucking sense. Use accepted transport standards like checking for possible slippery floors and proper animal densities. The Golden Rule

Remember the Golden Rule of shipping. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” You would find it an inconvenience or an annoyance to receive cattle with incomplete or incorrect records. So make sure you support buyers with the information to make good decisions. The VBP standard

Trucking cattle can have high visibility with the public, and may be the only livestock they get to see.

Shipping is just one Standard Operating Procedure under the Verified Beef Production (VBP) program. Producers who are interested in continually improving their production standards are welcome to take a VBP workshop or review online. VBP outlines industry-sanctioned practices for food safety. Provincial contacts for VBP across Canada are available at www.verifiedbeef.org.

DEVELOPED BY PRODUCERS. DEVELOPED FOR CONSUMERS

One implant. That’s it. You’re done! Avoid the inconvenience and stress of re-implanting. Do it right. Do it once. Merck Animal Health, operating in Canada as Intervet Canada Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. MERCK is a trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. Copyright © 2011 Intervet International B.V., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. All rights reserved.

For more information, talk to your veterinarian or call our technical service at 1-866-683-7838.

® Registered trademark of Intervet International B.V. Used under license.

REV-XS Canadian Cattlemen QSHere.indd 1

13-07-24 14:49

 straigh t f ro m t h e h i p

By Brenda Schoepp

Wisdom through the Years

y grandfather used to say that, “Once in your life you need a doctor, a lawyer, a policeman and a preacher, but every day, three times a day, you need a farmer.” Today with the help of Facebook, this has become one of the most celebrated sayings in agriculture and is used in almost every country of the world. This little bit of wisdom has been echoed by urbanites in New York and by young women learning English in the Philippines, by pub-goers in Iceland and farmers in Australia. It has been tweeted thousands of times, was featured in India and has been asked for and promoted by John Deere and Bayer. These few copyrighted words have been stolen and retrieved, used and returned and all times, touched the hearts of anyone who knows food. It is the kind of wisdom that transcends all cultures and times and enforces our need for farmers on this earth. Every civilization has evolved around the production of food. The criteria were usually better soil, fresh water, storage and transport but soil and water were the main drivers. Across nations we see urban growth on the best of land, near clean water and ever evolving at ports for transportation. As the world shifts into intense urbanization, an estimated 80 per cent of the globe’s population will be living within 60 kilometres of shore. These core centres will be hard pressed to function without complete dependence on almost all their food needs. Despite the lead by cities on domestic food policy many will be fed by imported goods that log many miles to get here. Urbanization rouses the country as well as the city. As the generations leave the countryside for the treasures of urban life, little do we realize how this will change our world. In many areas, the pinch of labour shortages has left farmers feeling depleted. Equipment dealers are switching to pictorial manuals so foreign and illiterate workers can operate farm machinery. Families are bringing in other families to work on their farms to create a sense of belonging. And where cash is short and labour compounds the issue, women and children are forced to return to the fields. In many agricultural articles around the world, the call is for women farmers to fill the gap to avoid hunger and produce food for trade. It is estimated that crop production must increase by two per cent annually to keep pace with the needs of a growing global population. To do this, land will be taxed or in many cases broken. This creates ecological and environmental trade-offs that will be felt within a decade. In other words, all current action is likely terminal to some point and the fight for soil and water has just begun. Desertification is like a ground force

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pandemic and yet governments continue to work in isolation of the realities of this problem and its ultimate destruction of rural communities. Political history reflects the use of farmers and food as pawns in the trade arena. Both farmers and urbanites bear the responsibility of urban-centred land use policy, and both will share in the destruction of ecologies and environment. Neither of them in North America has voted with a food hand to ensure a long-term policy that is holistic in nature, thus not sacrificing the needs of one for the other. The Canadian way, politically stoic and comfortably divided, will not pave the way for our future. As we wait for some instant answer, those who need food will gather our land and resources. The fact that Grandpa’s statement has gathered international recognition from rural and urban folks, from companies and firms, from rich and poor tells us something. This is a deep statement of societal need. It drives home one simple message. You need a farmer in your life every day — three times a day — to live. Don’t underplay this theme. It is at the root of an agricultural revolution. And the speed of communication is faster than the speed of commerce. Small things inspire great change, and out there is a boy or a girl, man or a woman, with an unknown blue ocean strategy (www. blueoceanstrategy.com) that could transform the way we look at the producers of our food and at the true value of food within our societies today. All self-help books say that to be truly loved and to work at our capacity we must first love ourselves. This is not a play on narcissism but an actual need within a society so people appreciate the gifts they have as individuals. Farmers too, need to recognize that they are worthy, wanted and welcome in the lives of society as a whole. It starts with believing we do great things as individuals and as a collective community. Only when we see ourselves this way can we truly impact the policies and initiatives that shape our world. The Agri-Cultural Revolution may be simpler than we think, sparked by the traditional words of a wise and loving man and driven by technical innovation. Let us not be caught looking inward when the moment is short and opportunity abundant. It is our time. c Brenda Schoepp is a Nuffield Scholar who travels extensively exploring agriculture and meeting the people, who feed, clothe and educate our world. A motivating speaker and mentor she works with young entrepreneurs across Canada and is the founder of Women in Search of Excellence. She can be contacted through her website www.brendaschoepp.com. All rights reserved. Brenda Schoepp 2013

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 health TOPIC HEA D E R

ByBy Heather Authors Smith Name Thomas Space

Wet weather raises concern about leptospirosis in the west

Canada and the U.S. than in the west where environmental conditions are usually drier. “But here in Western Canada the last couple years we’ve had more rain, with more water standing around, and more opportunity for lepto to be transmitted. I’ve had clients call to say they’ve had a few more cows than usual turn up open since preg. check. Lepto is one possibility in the back of my mind,” says Hendrick. Vaccinating for leptospirosis is not routine in Western Canada. He did a study a few years ago with Dr. Cheryl Waldner at the University of Saskatchewan looking at cows’ immune response to lepto through seriology (blood samples). “We measured it when they went to pasture in the spring, and again when they came home from pasture in the fall. Some of the cows were actually vaccinated against lepto, and we were disappointed in their immune response; their titers to leptospirosis were quite low for some of the common strains. However, we don’t know if this suggests poor protection. Perhaps cell-mediated immunity is stimulated and is more protective after vaccination. This was not measured in our study,” says Hendrick. “In looking at titers, we had very few cows — even if they were vaccinated — going out to pasture with any kind of titer. They appeared to have very little exposure to lepto out at pasture, because when they came off they did not have much titer, either. This study was done in 2008, before the wet years,

so it would be interesting to see if there is any change now,” he says. Waldner says there hasn’t been much research on leptospirosis in Western Canada. “There were a few papers written in the 1980s but not much work has been done on lepto since then. A couple years ago we had the opportunity to look at a bank of serum samples collected from 200 herds in the fall of 2002. Less than one per cent of 1,539 tested calves were exposed to leptospirosis during their first summer on pasture. However, those were drought years; the dry conditions could factor into the low number of infected animals.” Today most producers in Western Canada are looking at a very different situation, after several years of heavy snowfall and wet summers. Large areas of pasture are now under water, and leptospirosis bacteria thrive in moist conditions. “There are two kinds of leptospirosis we generally think about in cattle. One is the host-adapted leptospirosis serovar, called hardjo. That one can be passed directly from cow to cow or from cow to calf, often through exposure to urine from the carrier animals — regardless of environmental conditions,” says Waldner. This was also the most common type identified in the calves that were tested in the fall of 2002. Where moist conditions play a more important role is by increasing exposure of

Photo credit: Dr. Cheryl Waldner

eptospirosis is a common bacterial infection of cattle worldwide. Clinical illness can be mild or severe, but this disease is economically significant because it is one of the most common causes of infectious abortion in cattle. “Lepto” is caused by spiral-shaped bacteria (spirochetes) that affect many kinds of animals, including humans. It is always of concern for people who work with animals, because it is a zoonotic disease. Leptospirosis is often present in wildlife populations, including rats and mice. The bacteria tend to colonize in the kidneys of carrier animals and are passed in urine, contaminating feed and water. The spirochetes can survive in surface water, stagnant ponds, streams, or moist soil for long periods, up to 30 days, at mild temperatures. Cattle that drink contaminated water or have it splashed into their eyes may pick up these bacteria. The disease is generally more common in moist climates and less problem in arid regions with no surface water. Lepto is a common cause of infertility, delayed breeding and early embryonic death, as well as abortions or birth of premature and weak calves. Dr. Steve Hendrick, an associate professor of large-animal clinical sciences at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon grew up in Eastern Canada and says there is more incidence of lepto in Eastern

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HEALTH

cattle to the non-host-adapted serovars — the ones that are sometimes passed to cattle from skunks, deer, canines, pigs, rodents and other wildlife. “When we collected blood samples from cows in a number of community pastures in the spring and fall of 2008 we did see higher rates of exposure, although some of the pastures we studied were still quite dry,” she says. “In our second study we only tested the cows (not the calves) but there was more evidence of exposure to the non-host-adapted serovars. For example, Lepto pomona (carried by skunks) was the most common one we found that year. In addition to at least 10 per cent of the unvaccinated cows that had been exposed before coming to the pastures, there was also evidence of infections acquired over the summer grazing period. More than two per cent of unvaccinated cows showed evidence of exposure sometime between pasture turnout and fall pregnancy testing. The differences in results between the two studies suggest that risk for exposure to lepto might vary with the location and annual changes in environmental conditions in Western Canada,” she says.

“From these two studies we have serological evidence in the last 10 years of some exposure to hardjo as well as the non-hostadapted serovars. However, the reported data from diagnostic labs in Western Canada do not include very many examples of lepto abortions,” says Waldner. “The occasional herd outbreaks reported were associated with the non-host-adapted serovars such as pomona. The host-adapted serovar (hardjo), especially in the U.S. where it is more common, tends to be seen with sporadic abortions (one or two cows or just a few at a time in a herd) rather than a herd outbreak,” she explains. “In some areas we are seeing more skunks, raccoons, etc. and the lepto prevalence may change,” says Hendrick. “Some of the different strains seen in various kinds of wildlife might migrate farther west than we are accustomed to seeing them.” When cattle are congregated for feeding, there may be more opportunity for transmission of lepto from wildlife coming into feeding areas, urinating in the hay. Some winters there are more deer eating with the cattle. There may also be coyotes moving

among the cattle, or rodents in haystacks passing bacteria in their urine. “This past winter we saw a lot of wildlife wintering with cattle. There was a lot of snow on the ground and it was harder for deer to find access to food. They became bold, coming into the feed yards more readily. And with swath grazing and bale grazing, the deer often eat with the cattle,” he says. “The hard part is getting farmers and ranchers convinced that they should investigate the cause if they start seeing a number of abortions or open cows. Many people just assume it’s due to neospora, but we may start to see more leptospirosis,” says Hendrick. If cows abort, try to figure out why. “We know that lepto causes midterm and late-stage abortions but I wonder if there are also some early abortions that don’t get recognized. We always recommend vaccination in the spring pre-breeding, but the lepto vaccine has very short duration of immunity. Some veterinarians recommend twice a year for the lepto component. To prevent lateContinued on page 40

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C AT T L E M E N · S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 3

h ea lt h

Continued from page 39

term abortions you need to give the vaccine in the fall,” he says. The decision to vaccinate varies from region to region and herd to herd. “We recently completed a survey of cow-calf producers and are waiting to hear what the final tally is on how many producers are currently vaccinating for leptospirosis,” says Waldner. “When we look at data we collected in 2001-02, about 10 per cent of producers were vaccinating for leptospirosis, compared to more than 80 per cent who vaccinated for BVDV,” she says. The choice to vaccinate depends a lot upon the local level of concern. It may depend on whether the herd has ever experienced an abortion problem, or whether the neighbours have, or they’ve heard of cases in their area, or whether their veterinarian recommends routine vaccination. DIAGNOSIS — “If someone suspects an outbreak, the cattle can be tested for antibodies in the blood indicating they have been exposed to lepto. Urine can be tested to determine if cattle are shedding lepto-

spires. Aborted fetuses can be examined for evidence of the organisms, but depending upon when the fetus actually died, it can sometimes be difficult to find the organism in the aborted fetus,” she says. “Infections with hardjo can be particularly hard to identify. Carrier animals can shed the bacteria but don’t have detectable antibodies in their blood,” she explains. The most common test used in herd outbreak investigations is a blood test, but it can miss hardjo infections. “The strain we’ve been most concerned about these last few years (hardjo) resides in the kidneys,” says Hendrick.“To test for this we can give the cows a diuretic like lasix to make them urinate — and collect a urine sample to test. The tough part is getting the urine sample to the lab. It needs to get there within 24 hours, and in many locations this would be a major challenge. This is why a lot of people use the blood test instead. It’s not as accurate as checking the urine, but sometimes we are stuck with the easier, cheaper alternative,” he says. Infections with other serovars can also be hard to diagnose if the blood sample from a cow is taken too long after the fetus has

been aborted. “By the time we see several abortions and begin an investigation, often the antibody concentrations have levelled off or decreased; the window when the organism is shed has passed,” Waldner says. TREATMENT — Cattle rarely become ill from lepto; it’s usually a mild disease that goes unnoticed unless a cow aborts. In a carrier animal you probably wouldn’t see signs of illness but the animal is unable to mount enough immunity to rid the body of the bacteria. Cattle can be treated, however, in an attempt to alleviate the carrier state, so the animals won’t be shedding bacteria in their urine (infecting other cattle). Oxytetracycline is commonly used for treatment. “Leptospirosis doesn’t have much antimicrobial resistance; there are several good antibiotics that do work well if the disease is caught early enough,” says Waldner. “Antimicrobials can work for treating sick animals (in the acute phase of the disease, usually with infection from the non-host-adapted serovars), and also can help clear carrier animals that are chronically shedding the bacteria,” most often seen with hardjo infections, she says. c

Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture Competition Join the young Canadians who are speaking up for agriculture. Are you passionate about agriculture? Do you enjoy sharing your views with others? Join the upcoming Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture competition. As part of this unique competition, contestants prepare a five-to seven-minute speech on one of five agriculture-related topics and present it in public. Cash prizes are available for two age groups: Junior (11 to 15) and Senior (16 to 24). The 29th annual Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture competition takes place on Saturday, November 2, 2013 at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto, Ontario.

Jeunes orateurs canadiens pour l’agriculture C’est à votre tour de briller.

For competition rules, a list of speaking topics and accommodation assistance please visit www.cysa-joca.ca. The application deadline is Sept. 30, 2013.

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Visit AGCanada.com/TCCA to watch

“This Country Called Agriculture” A new on-demand video series that delivers relevant news & information on today’s agriculture industry. TCCA Host Rob Eirich

This special series hosted on the CATV network, features several key agriculture related videos that cover a wide rage of topics, including: 

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 prime cuts

By Steve kay

The Zilmax conundrum

ill other beef packers follow Tyson Foods’ lead and stop buying cattle fed the feed supplement Zilmax? That’s one of the key questions that arise from Tyson’s decision, which takes effect September 6. Cargill, JBS USA and National Beef all have said they won’t change their cattle-buying practices. But if Cargill and JBS change their minds, this will have significant implications for Canadian cattle feeders. Tyson’s decision came out of the blue and led to speculation as to motives. Much of the speculation was erroneous. For example, Tyson won’t gain access for its beef to Russia or other markets that bans U.S. beef. Some of these bans apply to ractopamine (Optaflexx) and Zilmax is not ractopamine based. The speculation also showed how little outsiders know about Tyson. It bases its business around a set of “core values.” One of these is to “serve as stewards of the animals, land and environment entrusted to us.” Taking proper care of animals — treating them responsibly and with respect — is the right thing to do. It also makes great business sense. That’s why Tyson earlier this year unveiled its FarmCheck animal well-being program. Tyson’s Zilmax decision is a logical extension of this core value. It had amassed considerable data over the past year about cattle showing lameness at its plants and some that couldn’t walk. It referred exclusively to this in its August 6 letter to cattle feeders. Whatever Zilmax manufacturer Merck, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association or others subsequently have said to defend Zilmax, it’s clear that Tyson saw a connection between Zilmax and the cattle’s condition and felt compelled to act. JBS and Cargill, particularly the latter, declined to take Zilmax cattle in both the U.S. and Canada for a long time

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

but finally relented. Ironically, JBS says it will keep buying them but it has also acknowledged seeing increased incidences of ambulatory stress in steers delivered to its processing facility. That’s what Lily Callaway, a member of JBS’s animal welfare team, told attendees at a forum on beta-agonists at NCBA’s summer meeting the same day that Tyson’s decision was made public. I’m struggling to understand how JBS can reconcile these increased incidences with its decision to keep buying Zilmax cattle. It seems to me that JBS and other packers will be forced to follow Tyson’s lead, if only to counter a perception that they are indifferent to the issue of cattle well-being that Tyson based its decision on. Should this occur, cattle feeders in much of Canada would have to stop using Zilmax. George Morris Centre analyst Kevin Grier estimates that 20 to 40 per cent of the cattle fed in Alberta are fed Zilmax, with the possibility of its use being at the top end of that range. My research suggests that in the U.S., 60 to 80 per cent of all cattle on feed are fed Zilmax or Optaflexx, with their use split about 50/50. It’s clear that if other packers eventually stop buying Zilmax cattle, cattle feeders will turn to Optaflexx. Manufacturer Elanco must be watching with enormous interest as to what happens next. There’s another aspect of beta-agonists that must be noted. Their use has severely reduced cattle feeders’ flexibility in marketing cattle, as beta-agonist cattle must be marketed in a narrow time frame. Feeders must have marketing agreements with packers to ensure shackle space, which means pricing cattle on a formula based on cash prices. Yet the negotiated cash market for live cattle is now smaller in the U.S. and Canada than it has ever been. This is the real conundrum that the North American industry must attempt to resolve. c

A North American view of the meat industry. Steve Kay is publisher and editor of Cattle Buyers Weekly

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

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 CCA repo rts

By Martin Unrau

A successful semi-annual

he Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA) semi-annual meeting in London, Ont., is a time to get down to business and also a time of optimism. Regular CCA committee business, updates and policy discussion form the backbone of the meeting. The updates provided on the many initiatives in development or underway provide participants with a good understanding of the quality work the CCA does on behalf of producers. Several new, strategic initiatives afoot in the more public realm of the industry are added reason to feel optimistic about the industry. The work we do to improve efficiencies and competitiveness for producers is varied. Price discovery for our product is important, as is ensuring we have the key pieces in place to enhance competitiveness for the long term. A national basis price insurance program, effective business risk management programming and enhanced food safety for beef are all areas of discussion. The conversation continues around ongoing issues including tag retention and skilled labour shortages and the need to find sound solutions that actually work for industry as quickly as possible. As always, the producer representatives at our board table and various industry stakeholders seek opportunities for synergies with the CCA. In this regard we welcomed representation from Canada Beef Inc. at the CCA Foreign Trade Committee. This decision enables intelligence sharing between the CCA’s advocacy team and Canada Beef Inc.’s marketing team with a goal to enhancing Canada Beef Inc.’s efforts to market beef internationally and reduce in-house redundancies. The renewal of the Code for the Care and Handling of Beef Cattle is complete and the code is due to be published at the end of August or in early September. The code is an important tool that will guide cattle producers with science-based direction on issues of animal care and in areas such as pain management. BSE surveillance numbers to date this year are ahead of last year, with Alberta and Saskatchewan doing a great job to help Canada meet its surveillance obligations to the OIE. Let’s keep those numbers up through the remainder of the year. There was a lot of discussion generated around some programs that could be categorized as consumer advocacy. CCA’s approach here includes involvement in skillsbuilding initiatives like the Cattlemen’s Young Leaders program, and building knowledge in youth through a beef advocacy training program. These initiatives are as much about skills building as they are about the retention of young producers in our industry. Grooming these young producers to be effective advocates of the beef industry and having an effective strategy in place to

C at t l e m e n · s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

ensure their message reaches the intended audience — consumers — are all part of the mix. Producers see the value of these initiatives and are generally supportive of them; after all, improving competitiveness includes aiming to improve consumer perceptions about beef production and the beef industry. Public perceptions of Canada’s food safety system also play a role. The CCA is involved in practical food safety initiatives to address some of these issues. As always, the CCA supports a science-based approach to all matters in this industry. The CCA irradiation application is under review by Health Canada. Irradiation is a safe technology that, when combined with food safety interventions already in use, could virtually eliminate E. coli 0157:H7-related illness associated with ground beef. The CCA believes Canadian consumers interested in further reducing the potential for foodborne illness from bacteria like E. coli 0157:H7 should have the option to purchase irradiated beef, a choice U.S. consumers have enjoyed since 2000. Finally, I’d like to congratulate Allen and Lillian Patkau of Sandy Arrow Ranch in Saskatchewan, the recipients of the 2013 The Environmental Stewardship Award (TESA). This couple has done a tremendous amount of work to improve challenging conditions including saline soils and turn them into productive land for their cattle operation. The Patkaus received the award at the CCA semi-annual and I hope to one day visit with them at their ranch and see first hand the practices they have put in place and prospered from. Having the opportunity to learn innovative management practices from other producers is an indirect benefit of travelling around the country to events like the CCA town hall meetings and the semi-annual. I always try to take the opportunity to visit different operations and see the regional differences in the production practices in place. I usually get some good ideas on how I could improve practices at my place — and that’s what innovation is all about. It works both ways, with producers in the areas where we hold events taking the opportunity to learn more about what the CCA does. I know it can seem overwhelming at times to learn about the volume of work that this organization does, but it all serves a purpose and so I encourage you to become more involved. The outlook for the cattle industry is looking up right now and far better than it was in March. Per capita beef consumption is up in Canada and the U.S., which is great. We’re seeing an easing of the drought situation in the U.S. and lower corn prices, and here in Canada it’s looking like we will have decent feed supplies this winter. All of this is ample reason for optimism in the industry. c

Martin Unrau is president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

CSA_13#1.indd 1

8/21/2013 10:01:27 AM

 TH E IN DUST RY

NewsRoundup New Holland’s new haying equipment By Scott Garvey

NH’s new high-capacity 560 Roll-Belt round baler gets an improved pickup and an optional “Bale-Slice” feature that cuts hay into seven-inch lengths for greater bale density and improved feed quality.

“We’ve become much more sophisticated in making hay,” said Abe Hughes, II, New Holland North America’s vice-president of sales and marketing, as he stood in a Texas hayfield talking to members of the media at a new product introduction. “Oftentimes, I think, people just roll the dice and bale,” he continued. “There’s really a science to it. That’s what we’re trying to do here at New Holland, educate farmers, dealers and everyone else that there is a science to it.” That science, he added, has driven the design enhancements incorporated into NH’s 2014 model lineup.

Among the new machines introduced were the new 313 and 316 Discbines. With 13- and 16-foot cutting widths, these models have a variety of improvements over the previous H7000 Series. They use a simplified driveline, powering the new MowMax II cutterbar from just one side. That means a variety of components, including the shafts between the disc modules get beefed up. And there is new shear protection to minimize the time and cost required to repair a module if it hits an obstruction. “We have something we’ve created called a ShockPro hub,” explains Seth Doman, marketing manager for hay and forage crop preparation products. “It has five splines, so when you hit something one of these splines is going to shear

The new 313 and 316 Discbines offer 13- and 16-foot cutting widths. They get a simplified driveline and redesigned MowMax II cutterbar.

The two new large square baler models produce either a 3x3-foot or 3 x4-foot bale. They’re a close cousin to the LB4 balers built by NH’s sister brand Case IH.

The conditioning rollers on the 313 and 316 Discbine have been stretched to 125 inches (317.5 centimetres), up from 102 inches on the previous H7000 Series machines.

Photos: Scott Garvey

The new three-model line of Speedrower machines is capable of 24 m.p.h. (38 km/h) on the road and is available with Discbine or Haybine headers from 12 to 19 feet.

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

NEWS ROUNDUP

off instead of damaging the bearings and gears inside the disc module. The ShockPro hub costs about $50, instead of about $300 if you were to damage the module. It only takes about five minutes to change in the field.” For forage growers interested in a self-propelled hay-cutting machine, NH debuted the Speedrower, a high-speed windrower capable of road speeds up to 24 m.p.h. (38 km/h). It’s available with Durabine disc or HS Series Haybine sickle cutting heads, which range from 12 to 19 feet depending on which type you choose. The Speedrower comes in three models ranging from 126 to 240 horsepower. Inside the cab, which gets a spring suspension to help smooth out the ride, the operator has a 10-inch IntelliView IV touch-screen monitor that controls both the machine functions and auto guidance. “We’re the only manufacturer that has one screen for tractor functions and also for steering function,” says Doman. And NH had an all-new round baler to introduce, the 560 Roll-Belt, which is available in a dry forage or high-moisture version. Both offer a redesigned, wider five-bar

pickup with thicker, six-millimetre, rubbermounted tines and other heavier components. Inside the bale chamber, the new Bale-Slice option uses sickle knives to cut hay into seven-inch lengths. That creates bales that are 14 per cent denser with higher feed quality. “It cuts down on the waste,” says Curtis Hoffman, crop packing equipment marketing manager. “We have a Penn State study showing there’s an average of 23 per cent more daily gain in yearling heifers by slicing up the crop.” Aside from incorporating features that allow producers to put up better feed, engineers were also designing components for increased durability, explained product reps. “We’re shooting for lower cost of ownership for our customers,” said Hoffman.

Savory raises some eyebrows By Peg Strankman

Given Allan Savory’s reputation for promoting holistic grazing management it comes as a bit of a surprise to hear he ini-

tially vehemently opposed cattle ranching when he was working as a wildlife manager in southern Africa more than 40 years ago. He saw the damage that poorly managed cattle grazing was doing to wildlife habitat and thought that removing the cattle was the answer. The Savory Institute president and cofounder addressed about 275 people at the fourth speaker event hosted by the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency (ALMA) in Calgary. Savory spoke about the need to manage the world’s grassland areas under a holistic management framework. He was passionate about his belief that under his framework livestock grazing will create a functioning ecosystem. But he also spoke to the challenges of changing people’s beliefs. Two of the areas he said need to be addressed are policy change and increasing public awareness. Presenting at the Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) 2013 conference was an opportunity for him to engage people from many different walks of life. Savory shared the holistic management Continued on page 48

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News Roundup Continued from page 47

message that there needs to be a fundamental shift in policy and marketing to recognize the way people manage livestock. But it was the social media, specifically YouTube, that took the message forward to people with an intensity that had not happened before. Savory sees our institutions as barriers to change, describing them as, “almost water tight to new ideas.” The solutions, he believes, will come from individuals, which is why the Savory Institute works with entrepreneurs to create community-based hubs to affect a large-scale shift toward a holistic approach for agriculture. The institute’s goal is to establish 100 hubs worldwide by 2050. Currently a number of hubs are operating around the globe but Savory identified Canada as being conspicuously absent from that list.

He surprised many in the audience by condemning mob grazing, a term that has often been associated with holistic management in the past. He also did not like the concept of rotational grazing. Savory did not talk about best/beneficial management practices instead preferring to discuss the importance of a decision-making and planning process. He spoke to the need to understand the economic, social and environmental implications of all decisions. Constant monitoring is another theme in holistic management. Many of the principles identified are very similar to the concept of ecosystem management, an approach promoted by the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity. The approach was ratified by Canada in 1995 but has never been implemented by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. “Not one size fits all,” said Savory. “You have to define the context for your own life, for what you need and desire.” Judging from the animated conversations afterwards his presentations did make people think about their personal objectives. As one person said, “It certainly kick-started the conversation.”

Answer our survey — and have a go at winning one of our caps

We have a goal to be the best beef cattle magazine in the business. But we need your help. If you could just fill in this survey and return it to me, you would be helping us set the future editorial direction for Canadian Cattlemen. All you have to do is tell me what you like about the magazine, and what you

We’d appreciate it if you could tell us a little about yourself. It makes it easier for us to keep your main interests in focus  I’m ranching or farming Enterprise Total beef cattle Yearlings on feed/pasture Registered cows Fed cattle (sold yearly) Commercial cows Horses Calves on feed/pasture Other livestock

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don’t like. There’s also some space for you to tell us what you would like to see in future issues. ClIp And enClose your mAIlIng lABel. each month, we will draw one name from all the surveys sent in and send that person a Cattlemen cap. It could be you!

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2 1 Nutrition Comment Research Special features 5 4 3 2 1 Newsmakers Letters Calving Issue (Jan.) CCA Reports Custom Feedlot Guide (Sep.) Prime Cuts Stock Buyers’ Guide (Aug.) Straight From The Hip Animal Health Special (Sep.) Holistic Ranching Beef Watch (May & Nov.) What would you like to see? __________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ How much time do you and your family spend reading 1666 Dublin Avenue Canadian Cattlemen?  Under 2 hours  Over 2 hours Winnipeg, Man. R3H 0H1

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NEWS ROUNDUP

BEEF INNOVATIONS 2013 By Peg Strankman

Genomics is like the country singer who becomes a star overnight. Few recall the years of work needed to prepare for the instant recognition. The Canadian Simmental Association (CSA) hosted Beef Innovations 2013 in Calgary this July that was intended to highlight the research and the commitment being shown by the entire seed-stock industry to improving the genetics available to the commercial industry. Distinguished researchers from North America and Ireland spoke to topics such as genomics potential for the beef industry, and predictors of feed efficiency, tenderness, beef quality, and animal health. These types of traits are governed by many genes. Genomics technology provides the tools to examine an animal’s genetic makeup and test for DNA markers called SNPs, single-nucleotide polymorphism, and pronounced snips. SNP profiles for individual animals are generated using up to 50,000 SNPs spaced throughout the genome. SNP bull profiles are matched with the phenotypes observed from their offspring. Developing a valid SNP evaluation system means that any animal in that population, including embryos, can be evaluated with similar accuracy. This has the potential for faster genetic improvement unlike the traditional scoring of animals on their physical characteristics. Expected Progeny Differences (EPDs) based on observed physical characteristics used to determine a breeding value are limited by difficulty in measuring traits like meat quality and understanding traits due to complex inheritability. Dr. Wade Shafer, director of performance programs for the American Simmental Association, reminded people that 10 years ago companies were promising the world in a week from a hair sample. Many tests sold back then had virtually no accuracy. However, research has now given the Dr. Wade Shafer industry viable DNA tests that improve the accuracy of selection. But, as Shafer explains, “the U.S. Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) believes that information from DNA tests only have value in selection when incorporated into EPDs.” The greatest benefit is seen when phenotype, pedigree and DNA testing are

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combined into genetically enhanced EPDs (GE-EPDS). USDA meat researcher Dr. John Pollack spoke about the need for breed association and international co-operation in collecting large data pools and phenotypes from all breeds at an affordable cost. Many of the speakers addressed the importance of finding genetic markers for economic traits. Consumers identify tenderness as the most important palatability trait. Therefore, improving meat tenderness by selecting for bulls and replacement females with a markerassisted selection (MAS) for Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF) could result in a highervalued product. The trait has a moderate heritability of about 0.40. Work in the U.S. by

Weaber and Lusk (2010) found that DNA selection for bulls in the upper 30 per cent for WBSF each year would increase profitability of $9.60 per head for feeder cattle and $1.23 for fed cattle in 20 Dr. John Crowley years. Dr. John Crowley, University of Alberta/ Livestock Gentec, described the work of the Canadian Cattle Genome Project in developing a genomic prediction for another trait that is challenging to measure — feed efficiency (FE). It is now possible to get Continued on page 50

Join us for the first annual Canfax Cattle Market Forum, a power-packed day of dynamic speakers and discussions – dedicated to presenting information and perspectives on a variety of important factors affecting the Canadian Cattle markets. Tuesday, November 26, 2013 – Registration, Guest Speaker and Reception 7:00pm – 10:00pm Wednesday, November 27, 2013 – Registration and Plenary Session 7:00am – 5:00pm, includes breakfast, coffee breaks and lunch Location: Deerfoot Inn and Casino, 1000, 11500 – 35 Street SE, Calgary, AB (Deerfoot Trail south and Barlow Trail) For more information and to register online for the Forum visit www.canfax.ca or call 403-686-8407.

C AT T L E M E N · S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 3

News Roundup Continued from page 49

moderate accuracies of about 35 per cent within a breed but across breeds and among crossbreds the prediction accuracy drops to about 15 per cent. Improving these accuracies is a complex business. Feed efficiency, for one thing, is influenced by protein turnover, tissue metabolism and stress, feed digestibility, animal activity and a number of other factors. Feed intake is also expensive to measure. However, the components of FE are heritable. Dr. Bob Weaber, an associate professor/ cow-calf extension specialist at Kansas State University, says a 10 per cent improvement in feed efficiency (a two-pound reduction in residual feed intake or RFI) across the entire U.S. feedlot sector would have reduced feed costs for that industry by $1.2 billion in 2011. Similar benefits in the reduc-

tion of maintenance costs could be passed on to the cow-calf sector. He also identified enhancing production efficiency as a carbon-based commodity. More efficient use Dr. Bob Weaber of carbon inputs could potentially be traded as decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. In future Shafer expects the cost of genomics technology to drop as EPD accuracy on young animals improves dramatically allowing seed-stock producers to make increasingly rapid changes in animal selection. The big question is whether the industry will leverage these enhanced EPDs or continue to lose ground to competing proteins. The seed-stock industry has not been aggressive in using this technology to date because its customers have not demanded it. Shafer believes this will change once economic indexes begin to replace information-dense EPDs. Profit indexes are already popular with hog and dairy producers to tie economically rele-

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C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

POLICY

Sask. boosts caps on livestock loan guarantees

Saskatchewan’s Ag Ministry has raised the limits on the sizes of loans available to cattle and bison feeders and breeders under its Livestock Loan Guarantee (LLG) program. Individual maximum loan limits under the program will go from $300,000 to $500,000 under the Cattle Feeder option, and from $200,000 to $500,000 under the Cattle Breeder option. The combined individual maximum limit under both options goes from $300,000 to $500,000. Individual maximum loan limits have been increased from $200,000 to $500,000 under the Bison Feeder option, and from $125,000 to $500,000 under the Bison Breeder option. The combined individual STAMPEDE

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vant genetic traits to estimated future prices and costs so bulls can be evaluated on their future profit potential. “Genomics is not a silver bullet but it is certainly a powerful tool for genetic progress in the beef industry,” says CSA general manager, Bruce Homquist.

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N EWS ROUNDUP

maximum limit under both bison options has been increased from $300,000 to $500,000. Other changes include increasing the corporate maximum loan limit under cattle and bison feeder and breeder options from $300,000 to $1.5 million. Previously, corporate and individual borrowing limits were the same. LLG programs supervisors also now have the authority to allow interprovincial movement of cattle enrolled under the feeder and breeder options. The new rules are expected to help “reduce barriers to livestock expansion and reflect a modern and evolving industry,” the province said in a release. Using radio frequency identification (RFID) tags on calves as an alternative to brands is also now permitted under the Cattle Breeder option, the province said. The tagging date for calves under the Bison Breeder option has changed from Dec. 1 of the year of birth to March 31 of the year after birth, to align with the weaning process, the province added.

Coming To Alberta...

Blonde d'Aquitaine National Show, Sale & Meeting Coming To Alberta...

November 19--6, 21,2013 2010 October 4 Blonde d'Aquitaine

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November 19 - 21, 2010 Olds Cow Palace, Olds, AB

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s 10 am - noon: Blonde d'Aquitaine show: Female section in U............................National

leas-.e1. Jo 10Noon .pm: . . ...........................................Lunch . . . . . .Saturday, . . . . . . .November . National20“Silent” Auction animals begins Pam courtesy AlbertaofBlonde Association 1pm pm 2. .pm: d'Aquitaine show: Male Show section am .--.noon: show: Female section 210 . . ............................National ...................................National . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Blonde . . . . d'Aquitaine . Blonde National Blonde d’Aquitaine Noon ..........................................Lunch courtesy Alberta Blonde Association& cash bar 2 pm- -1 4pm: pm: ....Pre-sale hospitality courtesy Alberta Blonde Association

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IDENTIFICATION

pm pm:am: hospitality courtesy Alberta Blonde &Legion. cash barTickets $30 OldsAssociation Canadian pm-. 4-. 12 827pm . . . ....Pre-sale . . ...................................Banquet . . . Silent Auction of animalsat and other items begins closing

BIXS2 expected this fall

4 pm - 6 pm: ..........................................................National Blonde d'Aquitaine sale at Olds Canadian 7 pm - 12 am: ..................................Banquet Saturday October 521 Legion. Tickets $30 Sunday, November

The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA) has contracted Arcurve Inc., a Canadian-based software development firm, to create a simpler, faster version of the Beef InfoXchange System (BIXS). The second version of the BIXS will be somewhat stripped down making it easier to use and capable of quicker, more reliable interContinued on page 52

12 pm am -. noon: ..........................National Blonde annual general meeting Sunday, November 21 d'Aquitaine 1-5 . National Blonde d’Aquitaine Annual General Meeting; Ramada Inn Noon 1pm:..........................National ..............................................................................Lunch. 12 am --noon: Blonde d'Aquitaine annual general meetingTickets $15

7-10 . ..............................................................................Lunch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Blonde . . . . . d'Aquitaine . . . . . . . . Hospitality Room; Ramada Inn 1 pmpm 3. .pm:............National annual general meeting Noon - -1pm: Tickets $15 continued 1 pm - 3 pm:............National Blonde d'Aquitaine annual general meeting continued

Cattle will be on display throughout the weekend with

Cattle breeders will be on display throughout weekend with in attendance to the answer questions. breeders in attendance to answer questions. For more information contact:

For more information contact:

AlbertaBlonde Blonde Association Canadian Association Alberta Association Canadian BlondeBlonde Association ReedRigney Rigney 780-348-5308 403-549-2371 Reed 780-348-5308 MyrnaMyrna Flesch Flesch 403-549-2371 Box5959, 5959,Westlock, Westlock, AB T7P westwind@telusplanet.net Box AB T7P 2P7 2P7 westwind@telusplanet.net rigney@clearwave.ca www.canadianblondeassociation.ca rigney@clearwave.ca www.canadianblondeassociation.ca

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facing with existing software systems. It will also be significantly less expensive to build, maintain and update than the current version. The first instalment of BIXS2 is set for release this fall. Each successive release will offer additional benefits to the program. The new version will emphasize easy import and export of data and provide a tool to make it easier for producers to search out cattle with certain attributes in the BIXS database. The update is designed to follow the recommendations coming out of a review of the original software last winter based on interviews with producers, packers, feedlot operators, retailers, software developers and service firms. The BIXS database currently contains 140,000 animal records and more than 2.3 million carcass records. But national co-ordinator Larry Thomas expects those numbers to jump once the new version becomes available. He says a large feedlot and several software service firms are waiting for BIXS2 before they upload the records of their cow-calf and feedlot clients. BIXS is presently funded through AAFC’s Agricultural Flexibility Fund.

trade

AVAILABLE BACHELORETTE

We’re off to the WTO, again

On August 19 the government of Canada once again requested the establishment of a World Trade Organization compliance panel on mandatory U.S. country-of-origin labelling (COOL).

In a joint release Ag Minister Gerry Ritz and International Trade Minister Ed Fast said they had hoped to avoid having to once again resort to the WTO to resolve this matter. “However, despite consistent rulings by the WTO, the U.S. government continues its unfair trade practices, which are severely damaging to Canadian industry and jobs. “Canada considers that the United States has failed to bring its COOL measure into conformity with its WTO obligations. We believe that the recent amendments to the COOL measure will further hinder the ability of Canadian cattle and hog producers to freely compete in the U.S. market. “Our government, with the full support and active engagement of the Canadian industry, will continue to fight against this unfair treatment, which is also hurting U.S. industry and consumers. We continue to consult with stakeholders as we pursue a fair resolution of this issue. To respect Canada’s WTO obligations, our government will not act on retaliatory measures until the WTO authorizes us to do so.” A U.S. District Court judge was scheduled to hear arguments August 27 on the motion filed in late July by a coalition of meat and livestock organizations in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The rule was implemented on May 23 but USDA won’t start enforcing it until November. The coalition recently filed a motion with the U.S. District Court seeking a preliminary injunction to prevent implementation of the amended U.S. COOL regulation pending resolution of the coalition lawsuit filed July 8.

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NEWS ROUNDUP

The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association position remains that the only outcome that would bring the U.S. into compliance with the WTO ruling of July 2012 is to amend the COOL legislation to allow either a single mandatory label for all meat produced in the U.S. or to allow for voluntary labelling. The CCA has to date spent in excess of $2 million in legal and advocacy expenses to fight COOL.

meat

Lab burger fizzles

Science has done it again with the cooking of the first laboratory-raised beef burger at a rather showy Hollywood-like introduction last month in London. The in vitro burger is the culmination of research by Dutch vascular biologist Mark Post at the University of Maastricht. According to Reuters the Petri dish burger was made by knitting together around 20,000 strands of protein that had been cultured from cattle stem cells in Post’s lab. The tissue is grown by placing the cells in a ring, like a doughnut, around a hub of nutrient gel. Presuming Post is using the same tech-

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nology as in 2011 when he was interviewed by BBC he is extracting myosatellites — a form of muscle stem cell that is normally used by the body to repair damaged muscle — from mature animals to create his geek burgers. These are so-called “one way” cells that can only produce muscle cells and tend to organize themselves into muscle tissue. Salt, bread crumbs, egg powder, red beet juice and saffron were added to simulate a burger taste and colour. This is not an entirely new idea. In the mid-20th century, Dutchman Willem van Eelen proposed creating meat without killing animals, by the use of stem cells. He pursued his dream for decades, but made little progress until 1999 when he was granted a patent on the idea. In 2002, Morris Benjaminson at Touro College, New York, received a NASA grant to investigate making meat from muscle cells as a way to feed astronauts on deep space journeys. He used goldfish in his work. NASA eventually pulled the plug. In 2005 the Dutch government gave Dr. van Eelen two million euros to support his research into test tube meat. His studies into

coaxing embryonic stem cells to become muscle cells (apparently we don’t know how to do it with bovine cells); encouraging the tissue to grow and investigating growth mediums no doubt provided some of the basic knowledge for Post’s burger project. Van Eelen’s funding ran out about the time Post was offered $300,000 over five years put up by Google co-founder Sergey Brin to grow the first lab burger. The story created a flurry of newspaper headlines when it came out but does not appear to have raised the threat level among cattle organizations. In its weekly newsletter the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association says the reaction to the story was predictable. “Online readers found the idea of eating lab-grown beef distasteful at best. “It makes no sense to devote significant funds and resources to creating a hamburger in a lab when consumers already have a ready supply of affordable, delicious and nutrientrich ground beef available at the supermarket. When it comes to the great taste of beef there is no comparison — particularly if the choice is between beef harvested from sustainably raised animals, or threads of protein grown in a Petri dish.” c

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

 NEWS AB OUT YOU

By Deb Wilson

PurelyPurebred  The Canadian Angus Association has formally recognized a newly identified recessive genetic condition called Developmental Duplication or DD. The Angus Society of Australia, with the assistance of Dr. Jonathan Beever of the University of Illinois has been investigating the cause of calves born with extra limbs/heads (polymelia) since 2011. Dr. Beever has identified the genetic mutation that causes this syndrome in beef cattle and developed a DNA test to help identify carrier animals and avoid affected calves. To date, only 20 affected calves have been reported. From low occurrence of affected calves and the higher probable frequency of the mutation in the Angus populations, Dr. Beever concludes that in most instances the cow suffers early abortion and the chance of seeing affected calves is low. The most common result is open cows because of embryonic

loss with the less common result being calves born with more than four limbs and/or one head. As both of these results impact producer profitability, a DNA test is now available as a tool to identify carrier animals so that cattlemen might avoid breeding them. Similar cases have been reported in other beef breeds, both Bos Taurus and Indicus; this is not an Angus-specific issue. The impact of this mutation will be much lower in the Canadian Angus population than the American and Australian Angus populations. AI companies are already working with Dr. Beever to ensure that genetics currently being marketed are tested. At this point, only Black Angus cattle have been tested.  Showdown is an annual July summer cattle show organized by the Canadian

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Junior Angus Association. This year 59 participants took part in Armstrong, B.C. The grand aggregate awards at Showdown 2013 were presented to Keely Adams from Forestburg, Alta., in the junior division (ages nine-12); Meghan McGillivray from Kamloops, B.C in the intermediate division (13-16) and Allison Speller of Monte Lake, B.C in the senior division (17-21). To win a grand aggregate award the Junior must compete in at least eight of the 14 Showdown competitions. These include: conformation, showmanship, literature, sales talk, card judging, scrapbook, photography, art, graphic design, team grooming, farm sign, team judging, print marketing and public speaking. Points are based on participation and how they place in the competitions. The winners receive a grand aggregate buckle at the final Showdown banquet. STAMPEDE

By Gerry Palen

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www.canadiancattlemen.ca

PURELY PUREBRED

 Ted and Mina Serhienko sold T Bar C Cattle Co. Ltd. and Today’s Publishing Inc. to Chris Poley as of June 1, 2013. Shane Michelson of Michelson Land and Cattle is also joining the T Bar C as a marketing representative. Ted and Mina will continue to be a part of the team as senior advisers. Today’s Publishing publishes Canadian Simmental Country, Limousin Voice, Today’s Angus Advantage and Herefords Today under the editorship of Bryan Kostiuk.  The Cattlemen’s Young Leaders (CYL) Program has finalized its list of mentors for the 2013-14 program and, in keeping with past years, the rollcall reads like an A-list of the beef cattle industry’s who’s who. Here is a list of the 2013 mentormentees: • Betty Green (Fisher Branch, Man.) and Carollyne Kehler (Steinbach, Man.) • Cherie Copithorne-Barnes (Jumping Pound, Alta.) and Claire Windeyer (Calgary, Alta.) • Corinne Gibson (Fir Mountain, Sask.) and Becky Page (Didsbury, Alta.)

• David Bolduc (Stavely, Alta.) and Lance Leachman (Maidstone, Sask.) • Dennis Serhienko (Maymont, Sask.) and Meghan Black (Bloomfield, N.B.) • Doug Wray (Irricana, Alta.) and Cuyler Huffman (Williams Lake, B.C.) • Garnet Altwasser (Brooks, Alta.) and Kelcy Elford (Caronport, Sask.) • Heather Travis (Mississauga, Ont.) and Austen Anderson (Swan River, Man.) • Johanne Ross (Minnedosa, Man.) and Carla Schmitt (Saskatoon, Sask.) • Marty Seymour (White City, Sask.) and Noa Mullin (Feversham, Ont.) • Michael Latimer (Calgary, Alta.) and Amanda Elzinga (Sherwood Park, Alta.) • Mike McMorris (Guelph, Ont.) and Daniel Doerksen (Gem, Alta.) • Scott Dickson (Red Deer, Alta.) and Shelby Froland (Hughenden, Alta.) • Rod Guilford (Clearwater, Man.) and Andrea Bertholet (Hartney, Man.) • Rory Francis (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) and Daniel Muir (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) • Tim Wiens (Regina, Sask.) and Debra Murphy (Altario, Alta.) CYL mentorships include participation

in industry events such as the Beef Value Chain Roundtable, Beef Innovations Symposium, International Livestock Congress, the Calgary Stampede Cattle Trail and the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. Started by the CCA in 2010, the CYL program provides industry-specific training and mentorship opportunities to young producers. Funding for the program is made available through UFA Co-operative Ltd., the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency (ALMA), Cargill, and Farm Credit Canada at www.cattlemensyoungleaders.com.  Michael Latimer recently stepped down as the general manager of the Canadian Angus Association (CAA) to accept a new appointment as executive director of the Canadian Beef Breeds Council. He brings an extensive range of experience in the cattle industry in brand marketing and management. While with the CAA he participated in a number of strategic planning sessions for the Canadian Beef Breeds Council. CBBC president David Bouduc says he is looking forward to workContinued on page 56

PU R E LY PU R E B R E D

Continued from page 55

ing with Michael on the ongoing projects managed by the council such as international market development funded by the Canadian Cattlemen Market Development Council and the Legacy program, as well as the CBBC-BIXS value chain system with a view toward promoting the purebred sector at home and abroad.  Canada Beef Inc. will hold its annual forum September 19, 20. Experts from all along the beef value chain will provide insight into the business of branding Canadian beef on the 19th. The business portion of the forum on the morning of the 20th will include a review of the company’s performance and the election of the new board of directors.  Hereford Week in Canada was another huge success, July 31 to Aug. 2 in Brandon, Man. The Canadian Junior Hereford Association’s national junior show Bonanza had 200 cattle entries with 135 juniors and 125 adults registered. Every province in Canada was represented as well as juniors from the United States, Australia and Denmark. This year’s theme was “All Dreams Lead To Bonanza 2013.” As well as the cattle shows, Juniors participated in public speaking, literature, advertising, multimedia, photography and great griller competitions.  Bonanza was held in conjunction with the 122nd annual meeting of the Canadian Hereford Association. Alberta researcher Dr. John Basarab and rancher/genetic consultant Sean McGrath gave presentations on the residual feed intake research project being run in collaboration with the CHA

(see following item). For the first time, the breed broadcast its meeting to members via the Internet. Livestock Media Plus out of Moose Jaw carried the live broadcast. In the business sessions the members adopted a new logo for the CHA that will be unveiled in January 2014. Burt Grundy of NBG Polled Herefords in Ontario was elected as president of the association for 2013-14 and Daryl Kirton of 3-D-L Herefords from British Columbia vice-president.  The residual feed intake (RFI) research project is a three year collaboration between the Canadian Hereford Association (CHA), Olds College, Cattleland Feed Yards, Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, University of Alberta and Livestock Gentec which is funded through the Idea to Innovation Program, Natural Sciences and Engineering Council (NSERC), and co-operating Hereford breeders that began in 2012. The CHA assists researchers in measuring the RFI of 900 Hereford bulls with the goal of coming up with a Residual Feed Intake (RFI) EPD. Trial 1, consisting of 200 bulls, finished the test in late January 2013 and 100 more bulls (Trial 2) were on test and finished in mid-April. There are already over 60 bulls confirmed for the next two trials scheduled for the Winter 2013-14 (200 spaces) and Spring 2014 (100 spaces). The bulls are tested on a growing ration under normal feedlot management practices for research projects. The data will help the breed develop genotype-based EPDs for feed efficiency, ultrasound carcass EPDs and yearling growth. Bulls need to be six to 12 months of age on test, with sound temperament. For details contact the Canadian

The board of directors of the Canadian Hereford Association. Top row (l to r): Jean Tetreault, Que.; Wally Pugh, Alta.; Albert Rimke, Man.; Nels Nixdorff, Alta.; Andy Schuepbach, Alta.; Murray Andrews, Sask.; David Reid Sask.; Andy Carter, N.S. Bottom row: Doug Mann, Man.; Gordon Stephenson (CHA general manager); Burt Grundy (president), Ont.; Doug Finseth; Daryl Kirton (vice-president), B.C.

C at t l e m e n · s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

Hereford Association at: 1-888-836-7242 or herefords@hereford.ca.  Despite the flooding the Calgary Stampede Cattle Trail sponsored by the Canadian Beef Breeds Council and Livestock Gentec attracted a number of the 88,241 who took in this year’s stampede. Doug Fee, the former executive director of CBBC says the event attracted international guests from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, France, Germany, Guatemala, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Scotland, U.K. and U.S. “We thank all the breed associations for their participation and Livestock Gentec for their enthusiastic support and commitment to this worthwhile endeavour,” said Fee.  The Farm Animal Council of Saskatchewan (FACS) is offering three media training workshops for representatives of the agriculture industry this fall. With consumers, and media, paying more attention to agriculture today there’s a greater need for industry representatives to develop an effective, professional presence. The sessions are: • Wed., Oct. 23, Room 43, College of Educaton, U of S in Saskatoon. This is a full day of media training in which participants will learn how to get their message across effectively in television interviews and media scrums. • Wed., Dec. 4, Galaxy B, Travelodge Hotel, Saskatoon. This second session is a social media workshop dealing with the basics of putting your message out on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and Pinterest in the morning and a separate, more advanced session, in the afternoon. For details on the workshops or to register contact FACS at (306) 249-3227 or email: facs@sasktel.net.  The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association has established a Young Cattlemen’s Council to encourage younger producers (18-35) to get involved in the current issues facing the beef industry and offer a youthful viewpoint to the various committees of the CCA. The founding council members are: Erika Strande from B.C.; Jake Meyer, Tyson Low and Brodie Haugan from Alberta; Eric Buyer and Jeff Yorga from Saskatchewan; Ben Fox from Manitoba; Warren Schneckenburger from Ontario and Daniel Muir from Altantic Canada. For more details visit the YCC Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/YCC.beef. c

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

 Market Su mma ry

By Debbie McMillin

TheMarkets Fed Cattle A combination of tight supplies, strong basis, current feedlots, and a weaker Canadian dollar all contributed to fedcattle prices holding firm through the summer of 2013. While the spring highs were posted in June, the overall strength in the market has kept fed-cattle prices above $118/cwt since May. By midAugust, cash cattle were trading at an average $119.06, $6.41/cwt more than 2012 and $11.85/cwt better than 2011. The cash-to-cash basis remained seasonally narrow through the first three weeks of August averaging -6.25/cwt under the U.S. compared to the historical normal basis for August of -8.25. Cattle-on-feed numbers in Alberta and Saskatchewan were up one per cent on August 1 from last year, but placements and marketings were down. The marketing numbers were partially due to the flooding that closed Cargill’s High River plant in June. Placements were down seven per cent in July, and heifers outnumbered steers for the first time since 2008. Steer slaughter across the country is down five per cent in 2013 at 816,737 head, heifers are off 15 per cent year to year, at 484,453 head. While there is some uncertainty around Tyson’s announcement that it will stop slaughtering cattle fed Zilmax and

the consequent temporary suspension of Zilmax sales by Merck Animal Health, it is expected to reduce the tonnage of beef available through the fall which should support fed-cattle prices. However, any increase in price could be softened by consumer resistance to higher retail prices and the expected large supplies of competing meats forecast for this fall.

Feeder Cattle Lower grain prices and eager buyers pushed heavier feeder-cattle prices above year-ago levels by mid-August. Good demand for cattle coming off grass kept numbers moving through auction or forward priced for delivery in September. The bulk of the 850-lb. grass cattle will be marketed through the next few weeks. At mid-month 850-lb. steers averaged $141/ cwt, nearly $10 above last year. The 850 basis is wide at -19.29/cwt. Last year at this time it was -4.33 but historically the feeder basis tightens through August and early September. To the end of the first week in August Canadian exports of feeder cattle totalled 166,660 head, 64 per cent more than last year. The majority of the feeders were heading for Nebraska; Washington state was No. 2. Lower local barley prices are supporting calf prices, with Lethbridge barley quoted $10 per tonne less than last year’s price at press time and Omaha corn trading $2.30

per bushel under a year ago. The lower cost of gain on both sides of the border will support the fall feeder run. By mid-month 550 Alberta steers had climbed nearly $4/ cwt to average $153.75, just $1.25 under last year.

Non-Fed Cattle Both local and export demand continue to drive the non-fed market. While domestic cow slaughter is down four per cent at 261,868 head, exports to the U.S. are running 89 per cent ahead of last year, at 167,469 head year to date. Improved moisture across much of the U.S. has kept more cows on pastures, which buoyed the export trade. D1,2 cows set new highs during our reporting period, climbing above $80 for the past three weeks and averaging $82.65 in the second week of August. That’s $3/ cwt above last year’s price and $21 better than the five-year average. Butcher bull demand also remains strong, with prices averaging $91.50/cwt in mid-August. Domestic bull slaughter is only 2,534 head to date but export shipments climbed to 39,066 head, which is 57 per cent above a year ago. c Debbie McMillin is a market analyst who ranches at Hanna, Alta.

More markets 

 DE B’S OUTLOOK Fed Cattle The industry is current and fed-cattle prices are expected to be strong through late fall. A strong basis and good summer demand have kept sellers up to date and supplies of fed cattle on both sides of the border are pegged to tighten. The reduced tonnage expected due to the current events around Zilmax should also support prices. Feeder Outlook The smaller North American cow herd and subsequent calf crop coupled with a more attractive cost of gain and

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improved fed-cattle market should have buyers eager to compete in the fall feeder market. Feeder supplies will increase seasonally over the next few months, however, good fall grazing conditions will spread out the numbers. Typically the fall run pressures calf prices, which may be the case in 2013, however, optimism and tight supplies should limit the downside and possibly lead to a somewhat contra-seasonal trend this fall. Buyers will be watching higher feeder prices versus expected spring fed prices for risk management opportunities. One caution is the

effects of the new COOL rule on export demand. Overall, however, expect price support and a good fall run. Non-Fed Cattle Demand for grinding and trim cuts will likely trump the typical seasonal slump in cows as we move into the fall. Cow marketings have been steady throughout the year, which may cut into the supply somewhat, but fall volumes will still be greater than last year. Near-term prices will face some pressure as these larger numbers come to town, but the downside will likely be limited.

C a t t l e m e n · s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3 57

M A R K ETS

Break-even Prices on A-Grade Steers

Market Prices

140

190

ALBERTA

130

170

120

160

110

150

100 90 155 145

Steer Calves (500-600 lb.)

180

140 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

ONTARIO

135

130

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

D1,2 Cows

85 75

125

115

105 95 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Canfax weighted average price on A-Grade steers 2013 2012

Break-even price for steers on date sold 2013-14 2012-13

August 2013 prices* Alberta Yearling steers (850 lb.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $136.55/cwt Barley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.83/bu. Barley silage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72.88/ton Cost of gain (feed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78.03/cwt Cost of gain (all costs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102.99/cwt Fed steers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119.22/cwt Break-even (December 2013) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124.52/cwt Ontario Yearling steers (850 lb.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $137.41/cwt Corn silage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52.64/ton Grain corn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.33/bu. Cost of gain (feed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95.16/cwt Cost of gain (all costs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120.58/cwt Fed steers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121.86/cwt Break-even (February 2014) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130.45/cwt *Mid-month to mid-month prices Breakevens East: end wt 1,450, 183 days West end wt 1,325 lb., 125 days

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Ontario

Alberta

2013 2012

Ontario prices based on a 50/50 east/west mix

Market Summary (to August 10) 2013

2012

Total Canadian federally inspected slaughter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,565,592. . . . . . . . . . 1,715,417 Average steer carcass weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 871 lb.. . . . . . . . . . . . . 872 lb. Total U.S. slaughter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,211,000. . . . . . . . 20,512,000

Trade Summary Exports 2013 2012 Fed cattle to U.S. (to Aug. 3). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231,243.. . . . . . . . . . 228,789 Feeder cattle and calves to U.S. (to Aug. 3). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168,586.. . . . . . . . . . . 102,108 Dressed beef to U.S. (to June). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218.14 mil.lbs.. . . . .261.40 mil.lbs Total dressed beef (to June). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306.01 mil.lbs.. . . . 344.82 mil.lbs IMPORTS 2013 2012 Slaughter cattle from U.S. (to June) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 *Dressed beef from U.S. (to June) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179.70 mil.lbs. . . . . . 166.33 mil.lbs *Dressed beef from Australia (to June) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.80 mil.lbs. . . . . . . 14.52 mil.lbs *Dressed beef from New Zealand (to June) . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.85 mil.lbs. . . . . . .28.34 mil.lbs *Dressed beef from Uruguay (to June) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19.39 mil.lbs. . . . . . . 13.38 mil.lbs Canadian Grades (to August 10) % of A grades +59% 54-58% AAA 22.2 22.0 AA 27.8 8.3 A 1.8 0.1 Prime 0.2 0.6 Total 31.0 52.0 EAST WEST

Total graded 358,754 1,188,654

Yield – 53% Total 12.0 56.2 2.2 38.3 0.0 1.9 0.9 1.7 15.1 Total A grade 98.1%

Total ungraded 18,022 162

% carcass basis 79.0% 86.8% Only federally inspected plants

C at t l e m e n · s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

 market ta l k

By Gerald Klassen

Feeder Cattle:

Longer-term price Outlook

e are halfway through 2013 and heading into the fall run for yearlings and calves so it is not surprising I’ve received many inquiries regarding the feeder cattle price outlook over the next six to eight months and the fundamentals for replacement cattle. Feed grain prices have dropped sharply from the high levels this past spring and forage conditions remain favourable across Western Canada. Feedlots are starting to experience positive closeouts and with lower feed grain prices moving forward, there appears to be renewed buying enthusiasm for feeder cattle. The cow slaughter continues to exceed expectations and U.S. cow numbers will likely show a year-over-year decline on January 1. U.S. feeder cattle prices for replacements over 800 pounds have reached historical highs at certain auction markets while the Canadian market appears to be lagging. The function of the feeder cattle market is to encourage heifer retention and herd expansion which will result in a very volatile market. All these risks need to be taken into consideration by cow-calf producers when planning their marketing program for the upcoming year. In the previous issue, I discussed the feed grain price outlook. Since writing that article, crop conditions have been favourable in Canada and the U.S. At the time of writing this article, barley in southern Alberta is trading in the range of $230 to $235 delivered at the feedlot which is down from $285 in spring. There is potential for further downside through the harvest. U.S. corn will likely move into southern Alberta later in October adding more pressure to local feed grain prices. I wouldn’t be surprised to see barley trade under $200/mt in the Lethbridge area during the fall. Forage conditions are abundant across Western Canada and cow-calf producers will have plentiful supplies through the winter which will allow the small cow-calf producer to hold calves longer than normal. Lower feed grain and forage prices this fall should add on $15 to $20/cwt over year-ago levels on the feeder cattle price structure during the fall period. The second major factor influencing feeder cattle prices is the expected price of fed cattle. Many feedlots experienced significant equity erosion during the first half of 2013 and only recently have fed prices moved back up above break-even for most pen closeouts. I’m expecting positive feedlot margins for the remainder of 2013 which should encourage feedlot buying interest for replacements. U.S. beef production is expected to experience a sharp year-overyear decline during the fourth quarter of 2013 and first quarter of u.s. quarter beef production (million pounds) Quarter

2010

2011

2012

Estimated 2013

Estimated 2014

6,251

6,411

6,283

6,172

5,795

6,547

6,559

6,475

6,490

6,235

6,768

6,737

6,584

6,480

6,230

6,741

6,492

6,57 1

6,195

5,845

TOTAL

26,307

26,1 99

25,913

25,337

24,105

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

2014. The futures market has potential to incorporate a risk premium due to the uncertainty in production. Carcass weights could be record large in the final quarter but lower slaughter numbers will result in the lower supplies. Equity markets are currently trading near all-time highs and the economy is moving into an expansionary phase. Looking at past history, the cattle market is highly correlated with the equity markets but over the past year, we’ve seen the cattle market divorce from the overall economy. Retail beef prices continue to trend higher but the average American consumer is not spending as much on food in order to increase overall consumption. Therefore, average per capita consumption of beef will be lower as the retail market discourages consumption through higher prices. For this reason, we haven’t seen the cattle market move in line with equity markets as in the past. U.S. GDP was only 1.7 per cent during the second quarter and we need to see a GDP number above 2.0 per cent to realize the overall benefit of increased consumer expenditures on the cattle market. This is a rule of thumb. Looking forward, the cattle market has some catching up to do to get in step with the overall economy. Without going into detail, fourth-quarter U.S. GDP is expected to move above 2.0 causing consumers to spend more on beef products at the retail and restaurant level. Lower beef production and higher consumer spending should result in fed-cattle prices slowly trending higher throughout the fall period. This will bode well for feedlot margins and spill over into the feeder cattle market. The last major factor to consider is available feeder cattle supplies. From January through June, the U.S. cow slaughter was 1.624 million head, up from 1.588 million head last year for the same period. It appears that cow numbers will show a year-overyear decline on the January 1 inventory report. The lower feeder market during the spring did not encourage heifer retention that was significant enough to expand the herd. It is difficult to forecast how the cow-calf producer will respond over the next six months with the cow herd at historical low levels. At this time, we have to be conservative on the estimates expecting a small decline in the cow slaughter and heifer retention at levels high enough to maintain current herd dynamics. In any case, the U.S. feeder cattle pool could be down 1.0 million head from last year. Canadian year-todate feeder cattle exports to the U.S. are running 64 per cent above 2012 and this stronger export trend will likely continue. In conclusion, lower feed grain prices, a stronger fed market and a year-over-year decline in feeder cattle supplies should result in stronger prices for calves and replacement cattle. This will be the year that cattle feeders, who have been absent over the past couple years, start to feed again in a custom feedlot or background calves in their own pens. I’m fairly optimistic for the fall period and I think we will see a more profitable period for all sectors involved in beef production. c Gerald Klassen analyzes markets in Winnipeg and also maintains an interest in the family feedlot in southern Alberta. He can be reached at gklassen7@hotmail.com.

C at t l e m e n · S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

 GOINGS O N

Sales&Events EVENTS

September

10-12 Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show, Canada’s Outdoor Park, Woodstock, Ont. 15-18 Agri Biotechnology International Conference, Marriot and Telus Convention Centre, Calgary, Alta., www.abic.ca/abic2013 18-20 Canada Beef Annual Forum, Sheraton Cavalier, Calgary, Alta.

October 1-3 4-6

lltech Global 500, RDS, Dublin, Ireland A Olds Fall Classic, Olds Ag Society, Olds, Alta., www.oldsagsociety.com 22-23 Livestock Gentec 4th Annual Conference, Coast Plaza Hotel, Edmonton, Alta., www.livestockgentec.com

ACS – Media Training Workshop, F U of Sask., Saskatoon, Sask., facs@sasktel.net or 306-249-3227 25-26 23rd Annual Edam Fall Fair — Commercial Cattle Show and Sale, Edam Community Centre, Edam, Sask.

2-9

armfair International, Northlands, F Edmonton, Alta. 6 Canadian Gelbvieh Association AGM, Northlands, Edmonton, Alta. 6-9 Agritrade, Westerner Park, Red Deer, Alta. 6-10 Canadian Limousin Association National Show and Sale, Northlands, Edmonton, Alta. National Gelbvieh Show, Farmfair 7 International, Edmonton, Alta. 10-16 Canadian Western Agribition, Evraz Place, Regina, Sask.

December

lberta Beef Producers Annual A General Meeting 4 FACS — Social Media Workshops, Travelodge Hotel, Saskatoon, Sask., facs@sasktel.net or 306-249-3227 9-11 Canada’s Forage and Grassland Association Conference and AGM, Olds, Alta.

February 2014 4-5

anitoba Beef Producers 35th Annual M General Meeting, Victoria Inn, Brandon, Man., www.mbbeef.ca

Sales September

Page 8 23 50 19 50 16, 39 IFC, 3 51 OBC 52 37 26, 27 33 45 52 53 40 49 12, 13 55 51 5 48

Page 50 52

Highway 21 Feeders International Stock Foods John Schooten & Sons Custom Feedyard Ltd. 50 Jubilee Farms 50 Klassen Agriventures Ltd. 50 Kubota Canada 6 a-h Lakeland Group/Northstar 14 a-p Matchmakers Select 52 Merck Animal Health A1-A12, 35, IBC Merial 11 New Holland 24, 25 Northlands Farmfair International 43 Novartis Animal Health Canada 17 Plain Jans 52 Real Industries 51 Ridley Block Ops/Crystalyx 54 Salers Assoc. of Canada 52 Scotiabank 21 Stauffer Farm Feedlot 50 The Cattle Range 7 Vermeer Corporation 29 Zoetis Animal Health 9, 47

Search ag news and stories from the sources you can rely on. 60

est of Canadian Agrimarketing Awards, B Chateau Frontenac, Quebec City, Que. 26-27 Canfax Forum, Deerfoot Inn, Calgary, Alta.

2-4

November

 ADVERTI S E R I N D EX Ag Growth Industries Agriculture for Life Ballco Feeders Buhler Manufacturing Calhoun Cattle Co. Ltd. Canada Beef Canadian Angus Assoc. Canadian Blonde d’Aquitaine Canadian Charolais Assoc. Canadian Gelbvieh Assoc. Canadian Hereford Assoc. Canadian Limousin Assoc. Canadian Shorthorn Assoc. Canadian Simmental Assoc. Canadian Welsh Black Society Canadian Western Agribition Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture Competition Canfax Cattle Market Forum Case-IH Crowfoot Cattle Company Direct Livestock Marketing Ford Motor Company Canada Greener Pastures

C at t l e m e n · s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 3

iamond Shorthorn Production Sale, D Highwood Livestock, High River, Alta., www.diamondshorthorns.com

November

29- 30 Crowfoot Cattle Co. Complete Red and Black Angus Dispersal, at the ranch, Strathmore, Alta., www.crowfootcattle.com

March 2014 1

avidson Gelbvieh and Lonesome Dove D Ranch 25th Anniversary Bull Sale, Bull Yards, Ponteix, Sask. c

 Event listings are a free service to industry.  Sale listings are for our advertisers. Your contact is Deborah Wilson at 403-325-1695 or deb.wilson@fbcpublishing.com

Network

www.canadiancattlemen.ca

Make ZUPREVO your on-arrival antibiotic of choice for cattle at high risk of developing BRD. TM

The longest-lasting on-arrival antibiotic on the market today1 High and sustained concentrations in the lungs for up to 28 days1

Ask your veterinarian about the Breathe Easy Pledge, and how it can help you further reduce the impact of BRD on your operation.

1. Menge, M., Rose, M., Bohland, C., Zschiesche, E., Kilp, S., Metz, W., Allan, M., Röpke, R., Nürnberger, M. Pharmacokinetics of tildipirosin in bovine plasma, lung tissue, and bronchial fluid (from live, non-anesthetized cattle). J. Vet. Pharmacol. Therap. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2885.2011.01349.x. ZUPREVOTM is a trademark of Intervet International B.V. Used under license. RESFLOR® is a registered trademark of Intervet International B.V. Used under license. Merck Animal Health, operating in Canada as Intervet Canada Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. MERCK is a trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. Copyright © 2013 Intervet International B.V., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA. All rights reserved.

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