By Jean Clavelle
W
ell, it’s that time of year. Cattle are coming home from pasture, calves are being weaned and sent to feedlot and horse enthusiasts are enjoying the last few pleasant riding days left of the season. No one plans to have one, but accidents do happen especially when animals are involved. And whether you are the one involved in a motor vehicle accident or an innocent bystander it’s important to know what to do and how you can help when livestock are on the loose.
The top 5 things you need to know about livestock in an emergency:
- Livestock do not understand lights and sirens mean pullover. This will definitely not make them stop.
- When an animal feels cornered, it will fight or try to run.
- Livestock view us as predators and their natural instinct is to flee from predators.
- Prey animals are herd animals and become extremely agitated when isolated or separated from other animals. Single animals are extremely dangerous animals.
- Once livestock are excited or scared it will take at least 20 to 30 minutes to calm them back down.
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Posted by Farm and Food Care on October 4th, 2013 :: Filed under
animal handling,
Animal welfare,
Beef cattle,
Broiler Breeders,
Chickens,
Horses,
Misconceptions,
Pigs,
Poultry,
Sheep,
Transportation,
Turkeys,
Uncategorized,
Veterinarians,
WeatherTags ::
agriculture,
animal care,
animal welfare,
cattle,
pigs,
Poultry,
Transportation
By Jean Clavelle
T
his year marks another triumph for the “We Care” billboard campaign initiated by the Farm Animal Council of Saskatchewan (FACS). The program, which began in 1996, feature beef, bison, horse, chicken, egg and swine producers with their animals and are posted around busy thoroughfares of Saskatoon, Regina and Moose Jaw.
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Posted by Farm and Food Care on September 20th, 2013 :: Filed under
Activism,
Agricultural Advocates,
Agriculture Education,
Animal care,
Beef cattle,
Broiler Breeders,
Canada,
Chickens,
Consumers,
Dairy cattle,
eggs,
Faces of Farming,
Farm life,
Future of Farming,
Horses,
Media,
Pigs,
Pork,
Poultry,
Sheep,
Speaking out,
UncategorizedTags ::
activists,
agriculture,
animal care,
animal welfare,
beef,
Canada,
chicken,
dairy cattle,
eggs,
Faces of Farming,
pigs,
Poultry
By Patricia Grotenhuis
Taking over shares in her family farm while majoring in molecular biology and minoring in statistics at the University of Guelph was not what Kelsey Ottens pictured herself doing when she finished high school.
Ottens, now in her fourth year at the University of Guelph, was looking for a summer job two years ago when her parents approached both her and her brother about buying the family’s broiler breeder farm from them. A broiler breeder farm breeds chickens for other farmers to raise for meat. The siblings now own the majority of the farm. Her brother runs the farm while Ottens helps with management decisions and works at the farm on weekends and during holidays from school.
“It was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up. It’s a part time job, but way more interesting than other jobs I could have had,” says Ottens. Although she is not sure what life holds for her at the end of university, Ottens says she will probably have a career off of the farm, but continue farming.
Kelsey Ottens
Because of her commitment to farming, Ottens is featured in the 2013 Faces of Farming Calendar published by Farm & Food Care Ontario. Her page is sponsored by the Ontario Broiler Chicken Hatching Egg Producers’ Association.
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Posted by Farm and Food Care on September 3rd, 2013 :: Filed under
Agriculture Education,
animal handling,
Broiler Breeders,
Canada,
Faces of Farming,
Farm life
by Patricia Grotenhuis
Farming is just in the blood for some people, as is the case with Jim Patton, a sixth-generation farmer from near Alliston.
Patton was not always sure he was going to farm. He decided to attend the University of Guelph after doing a project on the importance of agriculture in his final year of high school. He graduated with a diploma in agricultural business, and returned to the farm.
Broiler breeder farmer Jim Patton
Once Patton returned to the farm, he began making changes to modernize the family’s business. Patton is featured as the month of September in the 2012 Faces of Farming Calendar, published by the Farm Care Foundation, because of his dedication to making improvements.
In 1998, Patton began keeping broiler breeder chickens. These are roosters as well as the hens who lay fertilized eggs that will hatch into chickens raised for meat. In 2000 he added raising pullets (young hens) to the farm. In addition to the birds, Patton also grows corn, soybeans and wheat. He makes it a point to go to as many industry conferences and workshops as he can, including a three-day training course at the University of Alberta and a no-till(age) conference in Cincinnati. He sets a personal goal to bring at least one idea home to implement on the farm from each event that he attends. This interest has also led him to the Innovative Farmers of Ontario association – where he now serves as a director.
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Posted by FFC on September 19th, 2012 :: Filed under
Broiler Breeders,
Chickens,
Education and public awareness,
Environmental Farm Plan,
Family vs factory farming,
Farm life,
Innovative Farmers of Ontario,
Pullets,
UncategorizedTags ::
Canada,
chicken,
farm,
Farmers,
Poultry,
technology
