Letters – for Dec. 16, 2010

“Silent” purchasing public speaks up Just a quick comment on the 10,000-plus signatures submitted by the Winnipeg Humane Society to Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives. I’ve seen several comments over the months on polls and surveys from various producer groups that say that it is only special-interest animal-welfare groups that really care about change.

Clock Ticking On Open Sow Housing Decisions

Awatershed in sow housing is coming to Manitoba in the next five years and pork producers are unprepared, says a University of Manitoba swine specialist. Many hog barns will soon have to retool their aging equipment, including gestation stalls, said Laurie Connor, who heads the University of Manitoba’s animal science department. Producers need to decide


Stall-Free Petition Tops 10,000 Signatures

Bill McDonald hauled a garbage bag half full of paper into the deputy agriculture minister’s office last week to press his case against sow gestation stalls in Manitoba. The bag contained petitions carrying over 10,000 signatures demanding the province pass laws to eliminate the stalls. “We thought it was significant to show the government physically

Farmers, Province Spar Over Pig Cleanup Duty

Farmers and the government disagree over who’s responsible for cleaning up the mess that follows livestock abuse cases. Producers say Manitoba Conservation should have had a plan to remove pig carcasses from a barn earlier this summer in what authorities call one of the worst cases of animal cruelty ever seen in the province. But

New Animal Welfare Laws Give Enforcement Officials New Power

Manitoba’s new Animal Care Act gives enforcement officers sweeping powers to investigate and prosecute cases of animal abuse whether they are in the city or on the farm, the province’s top animal welfare officer says. “We really have police powers. We can enter and collect evidence. You must cooperate with me when I ask you


Notre Dame Hog Case Headed To Court

A farm couple from the Rural Municipality of Lorne faces multiple charges of animal cruelty in what authorities call one of the worst cases of livestock abuse they have ever seen. Martin and Dolores Grenier have been accused of 23 counts under the provincial Animal Care Act after more than 2,000 pigs were found starving

In Brief… – for Oct. 7, 2010

Deer ticks now across province:The deer ticks known to harbour the bacteria that cause Lyme disease can now be found throughout Manitoba, including their “well-established” population in the southeast, according to U of M entomologist Terry Galloway. Until this season’s fieldwork is done, it’s not known if deer tick populations have also “established” themselves in

Downed Animal Transport Now Forbidden

It’s now illegal to ship a “downer” animal to sale or slaughter in Manitoba. The Animal Care Amendment Act proclaimed last week prohibits the loading and transportation of animals not fit to travel. The new law fills a gap created by the federal Health of Animals Act, which also prohibits transporting downers. That law only



Morris Stampede Opens After Calgary Controversy

“You can have a catastrophe happen to any horse at any time.” – DR. KEN JOHNSON The Manitoba Stampede and Exhibition, which celebrates its 47th anniversary in Morris this week, expects to avoid the controversy which annually dogs its larger counterpart in Calgary. Unlike the Calgary Stampede, which regularly experiences dead and injured animals during