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Udder health influences kid mortality, milk quality

Udder health influences kid mortality, milk quality

Veterinarian describes what producers can do

Glacier FarmMedia — Udder challenges such as mastitis are ongoing concerns for dairy and meat goat producers. But healthy udders not only ensure proper milk production, they affect kid performance in meat goats, said Dr. Rosie Busch from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. Why it matters: Attention to udder health and milking conditions

Managing your stallion

Managing your stallion

A stallion's psychological health should be given as much weight as physical health

Stallions play an integral role in equestrian pursuits as they impact both performance and reproductive success. But stallion welfare is often marginalized due to historical practices, misconceptions or business considerations. Stallions often receive excellent physical care, but their basic psychological needs for social interaction and movement are frequently disregarded in favour of breeding priorities and

The new program is a centralized system for Canadian sheep traceability.

New traceability program soon to be available for Canadian sheep farmers

Program aims to help improve flock management and information availability

The Canadian Sheep Federation (CSF) AgroLedger, a digital traceability program, is launching a pilot program for early adopters before its sector-wide release. The CFS-funded program will be made available at no cost to Canadian sheep producers to bring them in line with government regulatory amendments that close the loop on full traceability. “We understand that all the

Rusty patch bumblebees are native bees that are now listed as an endangered species.  
photo: USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Lab/Creative Commons

Another bad season for bees

Experts explore the reasons for bee population declines -- and ways to mitigate the problem

Beekeepers reported high losses over the winter and experts are exploring the reasons and seeking ways to mitigate future colony declines. Ian Steppler, president of the Manitoba Beekeepers Association, said Manitoba’s losses this year are extremely high. “We’re nearly at a 60 per cent loss right across Manitoba right now, the highest loss in Canada


“The consensus is that general efficacy, countable efficacy of that product — Apivar — is quite variable.” – Rhéal Lafrenière.

Varroa mite protection product for bees losing its punch

Producers may need multiple prongs of varroa mite control with some of their go-to solutions starting to lose potency

Beekeepers will have to watch their varroa mite levels more closely and be prepared to look past Apivar for other control measures, provincial apiarist Rhéal Lafrenière says. Why it matters: Parasitic varroa mites feed on both adult bees and developing brood, causing weak and malformed bees, high mortality and, associated with that, winter losses due

The province’s horse breeders say they’re being frozen out of drought relief programs.

Horse breeders push back against AgriRecovery exclusion

DROUGHT | The horse industry argues its ranches were equally drought stricken as its beef-producing neighbours

Horse breeders in Manitoba are questioning why PMU horses are the only equines eligible for feed and animal transportation programs through AgriRecovery. “There are a lot of horse breeders in the province of Manitoba who have foals on the ground that are just as big and contributing just as much, if not more, to Manitoba’s

beehive frame without honey

U.S. honey crop stung by climate change

Drought-weakened bee colonies shrink North American honey crop, threaten almonds and fruit Gackle, N.D. | Reuters — There was barely a buzz in the air as John Miller pried the lid off of a crate, one of several “bee boxes” stacked in eight neat piles beside a cattle-grazing pasture outside Gackle, North Dakota, about 150


Gut microbiome critical to horse health

Immune, neurological and hormonal systems can all be affected Although invisible to the naked eye, the horse and human cannot exist apart from the biology and ecology of their microbiome and the microbiome is being heralded as the next most important bodily system. There is emerging evidence that the gut microbiome with its complex interactions

U.S. tests OK for CFIA chronic wasting disease certification

U.S. tests OK for CFIA chronic wasting disease certification

ELK | The allowance is meant to help producers enrolled in herd certification, but sending their animals to the U.S. for slaughter

elk The allowance is meant to aid producers enrolled in herd certification, but sending their animals to the U.S. for slaughter

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has eliminated one irritating piece of red tape for Canadian-born elk slaughtered in the U.S. Canada’s voluntary Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Herd Certification Program will now accept test results from American labs. Results can now come from labs certified under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health