Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Farm Animal Care is seeking input from livestock producers, their farm organizations, and others in the sector to assess the state of animal welfare in the province. “Livestock welfare is important to all industry stakeholders, as well as the bodies that regulate the sector, and practices continue to change and evolve,” said Annemarie Pedersen, […] Read more
How is Alberta doing in terms of animal welfare?
Resources for pain management in beef cattle
Reading Time: < 1 minute As of Jan. 1, producers must use pain control when castrating bulls older than six months. The change followed a move in Jan. 1, 2016 requiring pain control when dehorning calves that have horn buds attached (that is, ones older than two to three months). The Beef Cattle Research Council has information on mitigating pain […] Read more
Cora Scheele elected new AFAC chair
Reading Time: < 1 minute Cora Scheele of Linden is the new chair of the Alberta Farm Animal Care (AFAC) board of directors. “Alberta Farm Animal Care plays an important role in the province, representing all livestock sectors by communicating the industry’s best practices to producers and sharing our story with the public,” said Scheele, a hatching egg producer. James […] Read more
Breakfast on the Dairy Farm an award-winning idea
Over 3,400 people have attended the annual summer event
Reading Time: < 1 minute A group of Olds-area dairy farmers who developed an innovative consumer outreach program are this year’s winner of Award of Distinction for Communication from Alberta Farm Animal Care. “Six years ago the East Olds Dairy Farmers group, which is made up of several dairy farm families, developed the idea to host a breakfast for their […] Read more
Audits and blogs: How to drive change and win over consumers
Temple Grandin has long been an agent of change and says individual farmers can be, too
Reading Time: 4 minutes Livestock producers, you are doing good things — at least Temple Grandin thinks so. “I have been in this industry for 45 years, and there has been a lot of improvement,” she said at Alberta Farm Animal Care’s Livestock Care Conference last month. But the problem is that so few people — including, sometimes, producers […] Read more
These are the five freedoms I believe every child deserves
As we nurture our children, we need to think about creating an environment in which they can thrive
Reading Time: 3 minutes I have been immersed in imagery lately while going to presentations on the animals and the people of this world. There have been beautiful photos of hope and human engagement as well as tragic visuals of war, rape, hunger, abandonment, and homelessness. I have enjoyed striking images of wild animals, endangered creatures, and lost habitat. […] Read more
Duane Landals named 2017 Carl Block Award recipient
Reading Time: < 1 minute An Alberta veterinarian has been named the recipient of a national award for outstanding contributions to animal health. Dr. Duane Landals of Onoway has been given the 2017 Carl Block Award by the Canadian Animal Health Coalition. For more than 37 years Landals has “contributed significantly” to veterinary medicine, both in Canada and internationally. He […] Read more
Nominate an exceptional livestock welfare leader
Deadline for nominations is Feb. 15
Reading Time: 2 minutes Alberta Farm Animal Care initiated its awards of distinction in 2001 to recognize individuals or groups who have made exceptional contributions in the field of livestock welfare. These individuals or organizations work hard to advance the mandate of AFAC and the welfare of livestock in Alberta. They apply new, innovative ideas and management practices to […] Read more
Talk to family, friends about farming
This holiday season Melodie Chan wants producers to avoid what she calls the “spiral of silence,” which can happen around the dinner table, over beers or even in the gentle lull between turkey and pie if farmers don’t speak up when they hear misinformation about agriculture. “What are we afraid of?” asked Chan, speaking at […] Read more
AFAC appoints new executive director
Reading Time: < 1 minute Annemarie Pedersen is the new executive director of Alberta Farm Animal Care. Pedersen is an agricultural communications expert and a former industry relations director with Canada Beef. The livestock welfare organization, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary next year, promotes best practices in livestock care and handling. Among the programs it supports is the ALERT […] Read more
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