Reading Time: 2 minutes If the media ever shows up at your farm, treat them like you would a “big hungry dog,” says PR consultant and media trainer Grant Ainsley. “You have to feed it, or it will howl, bark and eventually bite,” he said. “You can’t always control what happens, but you can control your reaction.” The worst […] Read more
Don’t wing it — or refuse comment — if your farm makes the six o’clock news
Consultant and media trainer Grant Ainsley has some basic advice for dealing with the media
The cattle industry hasn’t fully embraced animal welfare
The cattle sector has come a long way but there are still areas to be addressed and it should be leading the way
Reading Time: 3 minutes The children and I have a map marked with every road I drove in the 20 years in the 1980s and 1990s I spent speaking about animal welfare in Canada. There were a few empty spots, but those travels included hundreds of farm stops and thousands of participants. It was my mission to bring the […] Read more
Paying it forward — family’s donation to create animal welfare ‘win-wins’
Already a leader in the field, the U of C’s vet school will expand research to help both producers and the animals in their care
Reading Time: 3 minutes It is, by any measure, a lot of money. But her family’s $5-million donation to the University of Calgary’s faculty of veterinary medicine for animal welfare research is money well spent, says Cochrane-area rancher Wynne Chisholm. “We love animals and have a soft spot for cows. Cow-calf is underserved in terms of research,” said Chisholm, […] Read more
Transparency key to dealing with animal rights activists
Doing the ‘right thing,’ and owning up when things go wrong, should be at the core of any livestock operation — just ask the Calgary Stampede
Reading Time: 2 minutes As the battle over animal welfare heats up, ‘the greatest outdoor show on earth’ has some advice on responding to activists. “We have been on the ‘bleeding edge of the wedge’ in terms of activists targeting the Stampede because of the audience that we deal with,” said Bonni Clark, communications adviser for the Calgary Stampede. […] Read more
Western Hog Exchange to producers: Stop shipping injured animals
Chair Brent Moen says facility will now ‘walk the walk’ on animal care, and that includes cracking down on shipments of sick or injured animals
Reading Time: 3 minutes There’s no doubt in Brent Moen’s mind that Western Hog Exchange staff accused of animal welfare violations behaved inappropriately. “We were talking the talk, but not walking the walk,” said the chairman of the farmer-owned hog facility in Red Deer. “We had a significant disconnect between our procedure manual and actual implementation. We broke six […] Read more
New York Colony’s ‘furnished’ poultry housing wins sustainability awards
Furnished housing provides a more natural open environment, with nesting areas, scratch pads, and perches
Reading Time: 2 minutes State-of-the-art “furnished housing” for poultry has won the New York Hutterite Colony the inaugural Canadian Poultry Sustainability Award for both the table egg industry and the overall poultry industry honours. The Lethbridge-area colony was praised for being a progressive and forward-thinking egg farm, with a strong commitment to animal welfare and environmentally responsible farming practices. […] Read more
A new era of watchful food consumers
Consumers don’t just want to know more about how their food is produced — some want a very detailed report card
Reading Time: 3 minutes Last month, McDonald’s USA announced a “multi-faceted effort called ‘Our Food. Your Questions’” in which it invites people to submit their food questions via social media. “We’re proud of the food we serve our 27 million U.S. customers every day, yet we know people have unanswered questions,” said Kevin Newell, executive vice-president, chief brand and […] Read more
Ranchers give $5-million gift to boost animal welfare research
Jack Anderson and daughter Wynne Chisholm want U of C to be ‘No. 1 in terms of animal care and welfare research in the world’
Reading Time: 3 minutes Father and daughter cattle ranchers with a passion for animal care and welfare have donated $5 million to support research at the University of Calgary. Building on a commitment to best practices and the use of technology in their own operations, J.C. (Jack) Anderson and his daughter Wynne Chisholm from W.A. Ranches made the gift, […] Read more
Officials at Red Deer hog facility vow animal abuse won’t happen again
Western Hog Exchange chair says he doesn’t like animal rights group’s tactics but says its undercover video will result in ‘very positive changes’
Reading Time: 4 minutes The Western Hog Exchange has one message for the pork industry in the wake of animal abuse allegations at its Red Deer facility. “What we saw is not acceptable,” said Brent Moen, chairman of the farmer-owned exchange. “We’re introducing changes, and we’re taking responsibility for this. And we will make improvements to our process.” An […] Read more
Better animal welfare is also better for your bottom line
Consumers are beginning to demand higher animal welfare standards for livestock — but improving welfare isn’t ‘rocket science’
Reading Time: 2 minutes Animal welfare and beef cattle productivity are “inseparable,” says a federal research scientist. “Sick animals are not productive animals,” said Dr. Karen Schwartzkopf-Genswein. “Incidences of sickness and lost performance are really heavily linked to welfare.” Stressors like castration, transportation, weaning, and handling have been linked to things like slower rate of gain, greater chance of […] Read more
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