About seven years ago, Jelinski read an Australian study that said one of the number one risk factors for spreading bovine respiratory disease was cattle sharing water bowls.

“We got to thinking, maybe there is something in the water. We’ve never looked at that,” said Jelinski, who holds the title of Alberta research chair for beef cattle health and production medicine.

Around that time, Stuart Thiessen, owner of Namaka Farms, which has a large feedlot in Alberta, opened another feedlot in Outlook, Sask.

Jelinski said the opening of the new feedlot was an opportunity to do research in a feedlot that had never had a single animal in it. The researchers could examine the bacterial populations of water bowls and see how they changed as animals were added.

Viral and bacterial effects contribute to BRD. Animals become feverish and have trouble breathing. They stop moving around as much and reduce their eating and drinking.

Even before an animal walked into the new feedlot, there was already antimicrobial resistance present.

As animals were added to the feedlot, the number of resistant genes within the water bowl increased. There was already activity in the water bowls.

“You’re looking at a biofilm, a mass of bacteria that’s growing in those watering bowls, which is a great place to grow stuff because they’re heated,” he said.

Food from the animals’ mouths also falls into the bowls.

“If you go to any feedlot and look at the watering bowls, you probably see a kind of slime at the water area interface,” said Jelinski.

“That’s full of all sorts of environmental bacteria, and the more you treat, the more you’re going to see increased resistance,” he said.

The researchers wondered if they could find the bacteria that caused bovine respiratory disease in the water bowls.

Graduate student Daniel Kos began looking for certain types of bacteria related to BRD in the water bowls, but there was certain type of bacterium that could not be isolated from the others.

“The level of BRD pathogens in that watering bowl is going to be pretty low compared to all the environmental stuff that’s growing in there,” said Jelinski.

The team spent over two years trying to develop a media to isolate those BRD bacteria from other background bacteria.

“We could never do it,” said Jelinski. “We believe they’re there.”

The significance of how much BRD is in the water bowls is unknown.

Jelinski said monitoring water bowls for bacteria was much easier and much less time consuming than giving cattle a nose swab.

The team wanted to see if antimicrobial resistance could be monitored through the water bowls.

They were able to show that when more antimicrobials were used, antimicrobial resistance increased. Furthermore, they were able to find antimicrobial resistance for certain medications.

Kos looked at all the genomics data published by the National Centre for Biotechnology Information and analyzed that data as one data set. All researchers who do genomics research and publish must load their genomics data into NCBI GenBank.

Kos was able to find one of the shortcomings of the study by looking at 4,000 files of genomic data. Most of the data was unable to say where the cattle got sick from BRD. Even a person looking at the data and finding antimicrobial resistance wouldn’t be able to know basics such as whether an animal died with BRD or if the animal entered a feedlot with it.

Jelinski said the research showed that the North American profile for BRD pathogens are different than elsewhere.

“We have more antimicrobial resistance. It’s probably related to how we raise our cattle and larger feedlots. You don’t see 20,0000 or 30,0000 head feedlots in Central Europe,” said Jelinski.

Cattle in North America are raised using more antimicrobials, and using more antimicrobials results in more antimicrobial resistance. However, low levels of antimicrobial resistance genes can show up anywhere on the planet.

“But, no doubt, the more you use, the more you’re going to end up selecting for it,” he said.

Jelinski said additional research is being done to try to show a relationship between the antimicrobial resistance in agriculture and antimicrobial resistance that develops in humans. At this point, antimicrobial resistance has not crossed over from animal to human.

In the last couple of decades, health professionals have come up with prudent use guidelines to mitigate the use of antimicrobials, said Jelinski.

“You can do that, but you can only do it to some extent. Like in a hospital, you have to use antimicrobials. In a feedlot, you have to use antimicrobials,” he said.

The researchers found that some genes were basically able to shut down the antimicrobial resistance genes.

Sometimes there is a shift in the DNA that inactivates the gene as well.

“Why is this important? It’s because if I want to figure out what your antimicrobial resistance profile is in your feedlot, and in cattle, and I want to do it phenotypically by swabbing and plating and doing that, the problem with that is that takes time. It can take days, if not longer, to come up with the results, depending on the bacteria and how slow they’re growing,” he said.

Because of the speed and accuracy of results, everyone is moving toward genomics, he said.

“The problem there is you don’t always get a perfect fit, but it’s fast and relatively good,” he said.

About 10 or 12 years ago, it cost $1,000 to sequence a genome, and now it’s $100 and continuing to drop.

The next step is to look at probe capture, which involves taking a swab, grinding up all the DNA in the swab, sequencing it and reassembling it to find out that’s in there.

Probe capture allows researchers to basically pull the genes or types of genetic sequences of interest out of the sample, while the rest is washed away.

If there is a low-level antimicrobial resistance gene in a large sample, a researcher could use it with probe capture, pull out the sample and see it. The probe capture is much more discriminating and sensitive and can target specific genes the researchers want to see.

Currently, probe capture is more expensive and more time consuming, but Jelinski expects that could come down in time.

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The college and the Saskatchewan and Manitoba governments on Thursday announced the two provinces will each step up their funding commitments to the college, raising the number of subsidized seats for new students each year.

Saskatchewan, which until now has subsidized 20 new students per year, will raise that number to 25 starting in 2023-24, and Manitoba’s count will increase to 20, up from 15, at the same time.

British Columbia already announced this spring that it would double its subsidized seat count at WCVM to 40 starting in 2022-23.

Veterinary schools in Canada serve defined geographic regions, and only students who meet the residency requirements in those regions can apply to attend. The terms of the cost-sharing interprovincial agreement (IPA) between Saskatchewan, Manitoba and B.C. for WCVM cover provincial enrolment quotas and the residency status of applicants to the college.

As of next year the expansions will bring the agreed-upon total of subsidized IPA seats at WCVM to 88, also including one from the three northern territories and two Indigenous students through the college’s education equity program.

Alberta had been a party to the WCVM IPA until 2020, when it stepped out of the partnership and reallocated that support to its veterinary program at the University of Calgary.

The WCVM until now has had 20 non-subsidized, non-IPA seats, which give preference to students from the three partner provinces but are also open to residents of the territories or Alberta if they’re not filled by Saskatchewan, B.C. or Manitoba residents.

A WCVM representative said via email that the college will advertise those 20 non-IPA seats as available until it confirms whether B.C. plans to maintain its IPA quota at 40 beyond 2022-23.

“The provinces’ support allows more students from Saskatchewan and Manitoba to achieve their dreams of a career in veterinary medicine,” WCVM dean Dr. Gillian Muir said in a release. “It’s also a sound investment in protecting the health and wellness of all animals — from companion animals and wildlife to livestock that play a critical role in Canada’s agriculture industry and the country’s economy.”

Factors including a “rapid increase” in pet ownership, more veterinary professionals reaching retirement age and a “limited number of graduates each year” have led to shortages of veterinarians and registered vet techs across Canada, the college said.

That shortage is more glaring in rural communities, where vet clinic service is essential for livestock producers and the ag industry.

Manitoba’s ag minister Derek Johnson, in a separate release, said that province’s additional seats will be “targeted for the support of commercial livestock, such as cattle, bison and pigs as well as sheep and goats, in rural areas to address this critical labour market need.”

Saskatchewan didn’t say whether its new seats would specifically favour livestock vets, but did say the increase would “help address the growing need for veterinarians across the province, particularly for large animal and mixed animal veterinarians in rural Saskatchewan.”

In 2022-23, Saskatchewan is providing $11.9 million to the WCVM, with an additional investment of $539,000 in 2023-24, which over the four-year veterinary medicine program will mean an increase of $2.2 million by 2026-27 over 2022-23, the province said.

Manitoba, meanwhile, said its funding contribution to WCVM will increase by $539,200 for 2023-24 to a total of $7,009,600, in turn bringing its total contribution in 2024-25 to $7,642,400.

“Increasing the number of students who can attend vet school and enter the profession is the logical first step in addressing the veterinary shortage,” Michelle Streeter, a fourth-year WCVM student from rural Manitoba, said in that province’s release Thursday.

“I am also hopeful that Manitoba’s decision to increase seats draws more students from the Prairies who are interested in working in rural mixed animal practice, since agriculture is such an integral part of so many local communities.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The province’s Loan Forgiveness for Veterinarians and Veterinary Technologists program was first announced in April last year, offering forgiveness of 20 per cent of an eligible provincial student loan debt, for up to $4,000 per year, for up to five years, or $20,000 maximum.

To be eligible, a program participant licensed to work as a veterinarian or veterinary technologist in Saskatchewan had to have started working in a designated “rural or remote” community — or with livestock services in designated communities — on or after Jan. 1, 2021. The loan forgiveness program started taking applications Jan. 1 this year.

The eligible vet or vet tech has had to be either “new to the profession or new to the community” and had to have been employed in that community for a minimum 12 months and provided at least 400 hours’ service in that community.

The change announced Tuesday extends the same level of loan forgiveness to those working at any Saskatchewan practice that “offers veterinary services to livestock stakeholders from rural or remote communities.”

That expanded criteria would also cover mobile veterinary services, among others, the province said.

“This expansion will ensure that veterinary professionals providing services to smaller communities are eligible for the program,” provincial Advanced Education Minister Gord Wyant said in a provincial release Tuesday.

Wyant described the move as “a positive step forward in addressing the need for veterinarians and veterinary technologists in rural and under-serviced communities in Saskatchewan.”

The Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association “had raised concerns with the government previously around the qualifying parameters for this program,” SCA chair Arnold Balicki said Tuesday in the same release.

“We truly appreciate that (provincial officials) took our concerns to heart and made the necessary changes to allow clinics in larger centres such as Prince Albert, who also serve rural clients, to now qualify.”

Balicki, for example, ranches at Shellbrook — about 45 km west of P.A., the province’s third-biggest city.

The beef cattle industry, among others, “is facing a shortage of vets which can negatively impact our industry, our ability to expand, our need for an established vet/client relationship for access to drugs and even animal welfare,” he said. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The B.C. government and the U of S on Monday announced the province will now put up almost $10.7 million to double the number of provincially subsidized students to 40, up from 20 previously, in the WCVM’s doctor of veterinary medicine (DVM) program for 2022-23.

Veterinary schools in Canada serve defined geographic regions, and only students who meet the residency requirements in those regions can apply to attend. The terms of the cost-sharing agreement between Saskatchewan, Manitoba and British Columbia for WCVM cover provincial enrolment quotas and the residency status of applicants to the college.

In both 2020 and 2021, 12 students from B.C. were admitted to non-provincially subsidized seats at WCVM, requiring an additional $55,000 in tuition per student.

The province said its additional funding of $1.2 million allows the WCVM to waive those tuition fees for the 24 previously admitted B.C. students who were not in a provincially subsidized seat.

The interprovincial agreement (IPA), subject to renewal every five years, was most recently renewed in 2020 and had until now committed $134 million in funding to the college for the 2020-25 period.

Until now, the current agreement has provided for 58 subsidized IPA seats at WCVM: 20 each from Saskatchewan and B.C. and 15 from Manitoba, one from the three northern territories and two Indigenous students through the college’s education equity program.

The other 25 non-subsidized non-IPA seats available each year give preference to students from the three partner provinces but are also open to residents of the territories or Alberta if they’re not filled by Saskatchewan, B.C. or Manitoba residents.

“Increasing access and affordability to veterinary medicine education helps us to address the shortage of veterinarians in B.C. and build a robust workforce,” Anne Kang, B.C.’s minister for advanced education, said in the province’s release.

“In follow up to our government’s commitment to address B.C.’s labour market needs, we’re investing in seat expansions so that more students receive the quality training needed to support farmers, ranchers and families throughout the province.”

“Veterinarians play a critical role in supporting B.C. farmers and food security,” provincial Agriculture Minister Lana Popham said in the same release. “The additional seats at WCVM will support farmers’ businesses and the welfare of their animals as well as ensuring we have a resilient food supply and food economy for the years ahead.”

“This increased investment enables more B.C. residents to achieve their dreams of becoming veterinarians,” WCVM dean Dr. Gillian Muir said in a university release. “It also allows the veterinary college to better serve the diverse needs of communities throughout B.C., to support the health of companion animals and livestock, and to protect food safety and animal welfare.”

The cost-sharing agreement had included all four western provinces until 2020, when Alberta stepped out of the partnership and reallocated its support to its veterinary program at the University of Calgary. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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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 in beef cattle effectively; practical ways to manage pain in real-life conditions; and a producer’s responsibility when it comes to pain management.

For links to these resources, a list of licensed pain control products, and a webinar with Dr. John Campbell of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, visit “Pain, Pain, Go Away” on the Beef Cattle Research Council website.

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“This has nothing to do with bad treatment of animals — it has to do with better treatment, better protocol, better records, and better looking after of the animals so when they get to market, they will be better for people to eat,” said John Simpson, who operates Simpson Ranching near Cochrane with his daughter Christie and son Luke.

“The industry has moved to an industry that wants to know what kind of upbringing the animals have had, what kind of feed they’ve had and what kind of drugs they’ve had, if any.”

Topping that list is bovine respiratory disease, the most common and costly disease in the cattle sector. That’s also an area where Dr. Edouard Timsit — the inaugural Simpson Ranch Chair in Beef Health and Wellness — is an internationally renowned expert.

Timsit, an assistant professor of cattle health at the University of Calgary’s faculty of veterinary medicine, was one of five experts considered for the chair, which Simpson has been working on for a decade.

“We selected Edouard to be an advocate to the community, to try and bring the industry forward to where the consumer is going,” said Simpson. “He was the one who had the biggest vision for the whole of the industry.”

Timsit (who is also a part-time feedlot consultant at Feedlot Health Management Services at Okotoks) doesn’t just focus on cow-calf production, feedlots, or research, and has set a goal of developing an overall strategy for bovine health and wellness, he said.

“I plan to use the chair’s funds to tackle important issues facing the beef industry such as a reduced access to antimicrobials, but also to help the beef industry with any emerging challenges,” Timsit wrote in an email.

He plans to continue his work on bovine respiratory disease, but will also work with his colleagues from the University of Calgary’s vet school, the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, and international experts to identify areas that urgently need research. (Timsit earned a DVM in Belgium and a PhD on bovine respiratory disease and epidemiology in France before coming to Calgary in 2012.)

The $2-million endowment will be used for projects that don’t easily find support from other funding agencies, Timsit said. This includes applied research and extension and training of producers. He said he would like to see more research on preconditioning of calves before their entrance into feedlots. Other priority areas include zoonotic diseases, reproduction, lameness, and beef quality. He also plans to work closely with the beef cattle community to identify and address emerging issues.

“As these funds are not tied to a (specific) project, we will also be more reactive/proactive when facing emerging issues,” said Timsit.

It’s an approach that will both produce results and address consumer concerns, said Simpson.

“I believe it will go a long way to move the industry to what the consumer is wanting. I think that’s where the industry needs to go,” he said. “Timsit has a five-year assignment as chair and will be working with ranchers and industry people to try and figure out whether we’re going the right way or not.

“I think he’ll figure it out in the first six months.”

The endowment was praised by Craig Dorin, a 2016 winner of the province’s veterinarian-of-the-year award and a longtime advocate of practices such as low-stress weaning and pre-weaning vaccination to reduce disease in feedlots.

“There’s no doubt that we need more research in the beef cattle industry at a lot of different levels,” said Dorin of Veterinary Agri-Health Services in Airdrie. “The Simpson family has had a long history of supporting the University of Calgary.

“This chair and the role that Edouard is going to play is going to raise the profile of the U of C vet school even more than it already is. This is just another step in us becoming a premier educator of veterinary students.”

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The American Veterinary Medical Association’s (AVMA) Council on Education, the accrediting body for veterinary colleges in North America, recently confirmed Saskatoon-based WCVM’s status as “Accredited (w/minor deficiency).”

“Minor deficiency” refers to “items that have minimal or no effect on student learning or safety and are typically resolved within one year,” the WCVM said Friday in a release.

AVMA council accreditation, granted for up to seven years at a time, is meant to assure colleges meet or exceed minimum standards in veterinary medical education and provide education that prepares students for entry-level positions in the profession.

The “minor deficiencies” to be fixed in WCVM’s case include having adequate signage in patient isolation areas and a clarification of admission requirements on the college’s web site, WCVM said.

Much of the work in resolving those issues has already been done or is near completion, WCVM dean Douglas Freeman said in the college’s release.

The WCVM’s accreditation followed a “comprehensive self-study” submitted to AVMA last August, followed two months later by a council-appointed team’s five-day site visit, which included meetings with WCVM students, faculty, staff, alumni and other stakeholders.

Alberta funding

That said, the WCVM noted, the AVMA council’s final report on accreditation acknowledged the Alberta government’s announcement that it won’t renew its participation in the WCVM’s four-province funding agreement after 2020.

Alberta announced in October it will gradually pull its $8 million in annual funding from the WCVM and instead expand the veterinary school at the University of Calgary.

That decision didn’t affect the WCVM’s most recent accreditation, the college said, but it noted the AVMA council will now require “regular updates” on the status of the interprovincial partnership and college funding.

Evidence of financial stability, the WCVM said, is “a critical part of the accreditation process.”

“It’s worrisome when a veterinary college loses a quarter of its annual operating base,” Freeman said. “But we are working within the college and with regional partners to address this challenge with creative solutions.”

The AVMA council also recently confirmed full seven-year accreditation for another Canadian vet school, the Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward Island.

“To prepare for our site visit last fall, we began to prepare 16 months in advance,” AVC dean Dr. Greg Keefe said in a release Thursday.

That included a “detailed self-study” submitted last summer to the AVMA council, he said, followed up by a week-long visit by a team made up of representatives from the AVMA council, the AVMA itself and the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association. — AGCanada.com Network

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If you haven’t done so already, the first few months of 2018 would be an excellent time to develop a relationship with a beef veterinarian.

Starting late in 2018, Health Canada is introducing a couple of important changes affecting the way animal antibiotic products can be accessed by producers. And having an established Veterinary-Client-Patient Relationship (VCPR) will be an important part of a smooth transition.

The key point is, starting Dec. 1, 2018, all livestock producers will need a prescription from a licensed veterinarian before they can buy a medically important antibiotic for therapeutic use in livestock production.

This applies to all beef cattle sectors using antibiotics — cow-calf operators, feedlots and feed mills (and really all sectors of animal agriculture including beef, dairy, hogs, sheep, horses, fish, and even bees). The new policy doesn’t just apply to injectable products, but also includes some boluses and calf scour treatments, as well as Component and Compudose implants.

At the same time, the new policy does not apply to certain antimicrobials such as the ionophores, which are not considered to be medically important in managing disease in humans.

Prescription needed

Many of the antibiotics used for animals are already only available through prescription. However, some common products traditionally available without a prescription through farm and feed supply outlets will soon require a prescription. (An example is in-feed products such as tylosin and tetracycline.)

For cow-calf producers in Alberta, products will only be available from a veterinary clinic or licensed pharmacist. Commercial feed mills will be able to manufacture and sell a medically important antibiotic in feed pursuant to a veterinary prescription under current provincial regulation in macro premix, micro premix, supplement, or complete feed formulations. But dispensing details still need to be worked out.

Producers who have established a VCPR— that veterinary/client/patient relationship — with a licensed veterinarian, will be able to obtain a prescription for a given amount of product for perhaps a full year (depending on the circumstance) enabling them to buy it as needed and for use according to advice of the veterinarian.

For example, a cow-calf producer in consultation with their veterinarian can determine, based on their records and herd history, they will likely need X number of bottles of tetracycline (like Liquamycin or Bio-mycin) to treat pink eye, or X number of bottles of Nuflor to treat foot rot throughout the year. A prescription can be written to cover that estimated need and then the producer can buy medication as needed up to the estimated amount, or up to the expiry date of the prescription.

Producers who already have a veterinary/client relationship likely won’t see any change in normal practices.

“I believe this is good legislation and the right thing to do for any industry that produces food,” said Craig Dorin, a veterinarian with Veterinary Animal Health Services in Airdrie. “It is important that antibiotics used in food animals have an appropriate level of regulation.”

Addressing the issue

These changes are being made because of increasing concern about antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in bacteria in animals as well as in humans.

Research indicates AMR is developing in beef cattle, and some antimicrobials used on the farm or in the feedlot are not working as well as they once did. Antimicrobial resistance is also developing in human patients, though there is no compelling evidence that antimicrobial use in Canadian livestock production is contributing to AMR in human medicine.

Reports say as many as 23,000 Americans die annually due to issues related to antimicrobial resistance to drugs and computer forecasts say that by 2050, as many as 10 million people globally could die from issues related to antimicrobial resistance.

Health Canada is seeking to better manage antimicrobial use and hopefully even reduce the amount of antibiotics used in animal agriculture with the aim of reducing or slowing the development of AMR in animal pathogens. It also hopes to demonstrate that products are only used when needed, at the appropriate dose and within the recognized withdrawal times. It will help stem a growing public perception that the livestock industry casually uses high rates of antibiotics without regard for animal, environmental, or human health conditions.

“It’s really about bringing the livestock industry in line with the way antibiotics are handled on the human health side,” said Keith Lehman, chief provincial veterinarian. “You need a prescription.”

No one should be surprised these changes are coming, said Murray Jelinski, a professor in large-animal clinical sciences at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon.

“Whether anyone thinks it is a good or bad move is really irrelevant,” said Jelinski. “Europe, for example, is already ahead of Canada in this regard, and other countries around the world are moving in this direction — this is really a global movement hence it is incumbent upon Canada to do its part.”

Some have described the increasing rates of antimicrobial resistance (to currently used medicines) and the rise of “superbugs” as “one of humanity’s greatest concerns,” said Jelinski.

Policy details

Most of the details for cow-calf producers in Alberta have been sorted out, said Dorin.

On-farm feed mixers — with a prescription — can buy micro and macro premixes, supplements, and complete feed from a commercial feed mill or from a licensed veterinarian or pharmacist under current regulation.

Other changes include new restrictions (which came into effect in November) on importing antibiotics manufactured outside of Canada. Producers had been able to import antibiotics and other animal health products under “own use” rules. Now, producers can no longer import medically important antibiotic products and need a prescription to access those products in Canada.

The regulations do allow for producer access to a range of veterinary drugs listed on Health Canada’s List B, which can still be imported by producers themselves for their own use, but not sold. This includes pour-on endectocides and growth implants such as Cydectin, Ivomec, Ralgro and Synovex to name a few. They must be finished products in commercial form, with proper packaging, and registered for use in Canada.

Growing awareness of using products responsibly has resulted in an 11 per cent reduction in the use of antibiotic products in Canada in the past year, said Jean Szkotnicki, president of the Canadian Animal Health Institute.

Be prepared

Producers need to plan ahead for these new rules, said Karin Schmid, beef production specialist with Alberta Beef Producers.

“Producers will need to establish the veterinary-client-patient relationship in order to obtain a prescription and maintain timely access to treatment of their animals,” she said.

They should also talk to their vet about common herd health challenges they may encounter, she added.

“Perhaps pink eye is a common problem at certain times of the year or in certain pastures, for example — so as part of the herd health plan you can anticipate some of those needs and have the prescriptions and medications in place so they are on hand when you need them,” said Schmid.

Having a VCPR and prescription in place are key elements in being prepared.

If a producer discovers on a Saturday afternoon a case of pink eye in an animal that needs to be treated, for example, they won’t have the option to run to a local farm supply outlet and pick up a bottle of penicillin. It also means, a producer can’t just stop in at a veterinary clinic and pick up an antibiotic from staff if there is no veterinarian on duty.

A VCPR doesn’t usually involve a formal written agreement.

But it means the veterinarian knows the operator, visits the farm or ranch to get an understanding of the operation, sees how animals are cared for, and is confident the producer will be responsible in following medical advice and properly use any products as directed. Establishing a VCPR starts with a producer sitting down with a vet to discuss his or her livestock operation and provide some record of animal health treatment protocols. It may or may not involve a farm visit.

The Alberta Veterinary Medical Association has five requirements for VCPR:

• The veterinarian has assumed responsibility for making clinical judgments regarding the health of the herd and the client has agreed to follow the vet’s instructions.
• The veterinarian has sufficient knowledge of the herd through examinations and ranch visits.
• The vet is readily available for followup evaluation or has arranged for emergency coverage, and continuing care and treatment.
• The veterinarian provides oversight of treatment, compliance, and outcome.
• Patient records are maintained.

The producer’s part of the VCPR is allowing the veterinarian to take responsibility for making clinical judgments about animal health, asking appropriate questions, and following instructions. The veterinarian’s part of the VCPR involves making judgments; accepting the responsibility for providing medical care; keeping written records; advising clients of the benefits and risks of different treatment options; providing oversight of treatment, compliance, and outcome; and arranging for emergency care.

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That was the message from Cheryl Waldner, a professor in large-animal clinical sciences at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan.

“You need to get the cattle cycling at the start of the breeding season and we need to get conception rates to ensure herd fertility,” Waldner said during a recent Beef Cattle Research Council webinar.

Normal open rates in a herd are about six per cent, according to data from the Western Canadian Cow-Calf survey, which covered 64,000 breeding females, she said. But there was a lot of variation — ranging from about two per cent to 12.5 per cent (or more) for individual herds. For heifers (which tend to have higher open rates), the average was 8.5 per cent, but ranged anywhere from zero to 24 per cent in some herds.

So what can you do to beat those average numbers?

“When you breed in May or June, you get slightly lower open rates than herds that start breeding in July or later,” said Waldner.

However, the difference isn’t huge, and she advises caution before moving breeding dates.

“If you start to breed calves in the last weekend in February or March, keep in mind that we are pushing cows a little harder if they are being asked to get pregnant in the summer breeding season,” she said.

Pasture management and nutrition are important considerations during this time.

“It’s not enough just to get cows pregnant,” she said. “We need to make sure that cows carry calves to term and deliver a healthy calf.”

The survey didn’t find abortions to be an issue — the typical herd had less than one per cent of abortions for both calves and heifers. And there was no correlation between late-season breeding and abortions.

“Abortion rates are low and they’re not particularly seasonally dependent. That’s good news,” said Waldner.

Stillbirths are generally about 1.8 per cent for cows, and 2.7 per cent for heifers, with the risk lower for cows bred in June, July and August versus those bred earlier. As well, cows bred in May and June had slightly lower pregnancy rates. Droughts also had an impact on stillbirths, and this was seen particularly in research done in 2001 and 2002.

Improving the odds

Body condition score is a key factor in open rates.

The scoring system used in Western Canada runs from 1 (thin) to 5 (heavy), with most cattle falling in the 2 to 4 range. Those with a 2 (visible short ribs) had open rates 3.5 to 4.3 times higher than those with a 3 (short ribs that can be felt with hand pressure).

“The surprising thing for me was that when we looked at cows that are 3.5 — on the heavier side — they were more likely to be pregnant than cows that were a 3,” said Waldner. “Cows that were 3s were 1.2 times more likely to be open than cows that were 3.5.”

Cows with a score of 2.5 also experienced a dip in pregnancy rates but there wasn’t a huge decline in pregnancy rates with cows that were a 4 or 4.5.

Body condition score is also linked to abortions.

Those with a score of less than 3 were 1.6 times more likely to abort while cows with a body condition score of 2 or less pre-calving were three times more likely to have a stillborn calf. Those with a 2.5 score were 1.5 times more likely to have a stillbirth than 3s. (However, thinner cows — 2s or less — are likely to need a hard pull during their calving.)

Copper levels affected pregnancy rates, especially in two- to three-year-old cows. Of 2,000 cows sampled in 2014, 43 per cent were found to be copper deficient, and 88 per cent of herds had at least one deficient cow.

It also pays to vaccinate.

Vaccinating for bovine viral diarrhea, campylobacter, and infectious bovine rhinotracheitis can also improve pregnancy rates, and prevent abortions, said Waldner.

Cows vaccinated for BVD and IVR also got pregnant a week earlier than cows that weren’t. Those on community pastures and not vaccinated were three times more likely to be open and two times more likely to abort.

Visit the Beef Cattle Research Council’s website on body condition scoring to learn more.

The post Don’t risk a wreck in your cow’s reproduction this spring appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

The loss of a pet is an extremely difficult time for pet owners. Tissue and organ donation is a commonly accepted practice in people. However, it is not widely known that tissue donation from pets is an option for owners saying goodbye to their pets.

For more information contact Chantal McMillan cjmcmill@ucalgary.ca or Elizabeth Snead liz.snead@usask.ca.

The post Help needed for vet feline research appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.