Cattle grazing on a range infested with velvet lupine in eastern Washington state. Producers will want to know in advance about any potentially hazardous plant life before turning cattle out on unfamiliar land.

Prevention and responsibility can be shared

Animal Health: Crop growers and cattle producers can benefit by working together

In writing for the past several years for Grainews it was nice trying to create articles that had application to the cattle, grain and mixed farmers out there. Better long-term solutions are created by looking from both sides of the fence at a problem. These create win-win situations, where both sides of a deal, trade […] Read more

Pretreated calves usually need a booster for mycoplasma once they arrive at a feedlot.

Lower stress, lower mycoplasma

Animal Health: The secondary respiratory and joint disease can be limited with prevention

Feedlot owners and backgrounders across this country always have one question for me: “Is there anything new out there to combat mycoplasma?” While there are a couple of vaccines licensed for cattle, they do require multiple shots. Vaccines help, but focusing on decreasing stress and other diseases can limit mycoplasma infection. Mycoplasma comes in many […] Read more


Administering an injection on cattle

Follow these tips for safe cattle injections

Administering medications properly can improve efficacy and decrease risk

Over the last two decades, great strides have been made in standardizing beef cattle injection techniques and methods. Today, there are animal injection best practices that have become widely known in the beef industry as “just the right thing to do.” These cattle injection techniques are recommended to help farmers produce safe beef for the […] Read more

(Canada Border Services Agency video screengrab)

Canada taking first step toward lifting border restrictions

U.S. border restrictions still in place until at least June 21

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada on Wednesday took a cautious first step toward easing COVID-19 border restrictions, saying it was prepared to relax quarantine protocols for fully vaccinated citizens returning home starting in early July. Canada’s air and land borders have allowed for only essential travel since March of last year, and Canadians coming home […] Read more


This heavy styrofoam cooler has been modified with holders for two needle guns.

Cooler heads prevail to protect vaccines

Vaccines stored in conditions that are too cold or too warm can be compromised

Whether you are vaccinating cattle now or later this winter, it’s important to protect most products from freezing to preserve their quality and effectiveness. By exposing the vaccines to freezing temperatures we were compromising the level of immunity we were trying to give the cows. Here at Whittington Creek in northern Idaho, we’ve been down […] Read more

Learn the one-handed sub-Q injection method

Animal Health with Roy Lewis: Easier, safer and just as accurate

It is worth revisiting information from a research trial completed more than 10 years ago on subcutaneous administration of the drug Micotil from Elanco, which adds credence to using a one-handed subcutaneous administration technique. This technique is much safer for the producer to administer as well as a labour saver. This study also proves it […] Read more



Risk of tetanus in cattle increasing

Risk of tetanus in cattle increasing

Animal Health: Your best approach is to prevent it through vaccination

In the last several years tetanus has most definitely been increasing in incidence across Canada so it is important that producers know what to look for and understand measures to prevent this deadly disease. Tetanus is caused by the bacterium Clostridium Tetani that is the same family of organisms which causes blackleg. This spore-producing bacteria […] Read more


Putting thought into changing vaccine lines

Putting thought into changing vaccine lines

Animal Health: With a bit of planning, it is possible to switch from one manufacturer to another

There are many difficult decisions to be made when changing the brand or manufacturer of a vaccine line. The real comparisons can be made when you know what specific diseases you need to vaccinate for in your herd, whether to use a modified live, killed, or combined program and rate the effectiveness of your original […] Read more

Vaccine reactions are normal — to a point

Vaccine reactions are normal — to a point

Proper injection practices help avoid infection, contamination

Noticeable reactions to a vaccine injection are becoming more common, as more vaccines are now given subcutaneously and especially with vaccines using oil-based adjuvants. The adjuvants are designed to protect the vaccine and give a much higher immune response, but reactions in the form of lumps are an expected albeit undesirable result. As many of […] Read more