The East Olds Dairy Farmers group won AFAC’s Award of Distinction for Communication and Lakeland College earned the Award of Distinction for Industry Leadership. Both Awards of Distinction are presented to individuals or groups who have made exceptional contributions to progress in farm animal care in Alberta and beyond.
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Featured speaker brings message encouragement to industry to continue to tell the good news in livestock
World renowned livestock welfare and handling expert Dr. Temple Gradin kept the crowd at the 2018 Alberta Farm Animal Care Livestock Care Conference enthralled as she spoke about animal welfare and many issues the industry faces today.
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Drs. Jennifer Brown and Egan Brockhoff shared a raft of exciting findings and research related to pig health at the 2018 Alberta Farm Animal Care Livestock Care Conference in Olds, Alta., March 15, 2018.
Dr. Brown spoke candidly about how the shift towards antibiotic free systems will be important when producers are moving onto new systems compliant with changing industry standards and expectations.
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Dr. Clover Bench spoke about the history of poultry health at the Alberta Farm Animal Care Livestock Care Conference in Olds, Alta., March 15, 2018.
She explained how one of the biggest shifts since the 1930s has been a move away from curiosity-based research to traditional scientific research covering a multitude of welfare areas.
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When colder temperatures hit and chickens are ‘cooped’ up, they are prone to becoming bored. This can lead to behavioural issues you may not normally see in your flock such as egg eating, feather pecking, and even cannibalism in severe cases.
Chickens generally do quite well in our Alberta winters, provided that the breeds you have are suitable to our climate and that they are provided a dry, draft-free, warm shelter with access to water that is not frozen. Chickens that are accustomed to the climate will still happily go outside in temperatures well below 0°C, so try not to keep them confined to inside the coop except for in the most frigid weather conditions.
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