By Leslie Ballentine, Farming and food commentator
People forget that farming is a dangerous profession. I recently read about a symposium in Ireland on the danger of farm animals, in this case bulls. And a study into the situation found that, unlike dogs, no breed of cattle was “safer” than another. Authors of the study reported that when investigating fatal accidents, inspectors often hear that a bull could be considered ‘quiet’ for years and suddenly become ‘angry’ and attack.
Read All »
Posted by FFC on February 10th, 2011 :: Filed under
Animal care,
animal handling,
Beef cattle,
Canada,
Dairy cattle,
Farm lifeTags ::
agriculture,
animal welfare,
animals,
Canada,
cattle,
dairy cattle,
Farmers,
livestock
By Leslie Ballentine, Farming and food commentator
Some 10 million viewers got a unique opportunity to see inside a large US meat plant this week when The Oprah Show aired a guided tour of one of the world’s largest meat packing plants. The tour and the Cargill company staff helped to de-mystify a process that is largely mis-understood and maligned. I have been to many slaughter plants over my agriculture career, but here is a report on the experiences of one first- time visitor at another Cargill meat plant. The author is a nutritionist and not from a farm. Cargill operates plants in Canada as well as the U.S….
I just got back from west Texas where I toured a big industrial beef processing plant and I am still in shock by what I witnessed there. But I am not shocked in the way you might expect based on the negative portrayals of the beef industry that seem so rampant in the media. Rather, I am stunned by how humanely the animals were treated and by the detailed attention given to food safety at every stage of the process.
Read All »
Posted by FFC on February 2nd, 2011 :: Filed under
animal handling,
Beef cattle,
Consumers,
Food safety,
Meat/slaughter plantsTags ::
animal welfare,
beef,
cattle,
food,
food safety,
misconceptions
by Patricia Grotenhuis, lifelong farmer and agricultural enthusiast
January 7, 2011 – Growing up on a farm, I was one of the only farm kids in my class at school. For years I heard from people asking me about cow tipping and claiming to have gone cow tipping.
As hard as I tried, I know some of them didn’t believe me when I said it simply was not possible. Everyone seemed to know someone who knew someone who claimed to have done it.
The theory is that cattle sleep standing up, so when they are sleeping they are unsteady. All it takes is someone walking up and pushing on them to tip them over!
Read All »
Posted by FFC on January 7th, 2011 :: Filed under
animal handling,
Beef cattle,
Dairy cattle,
Education and public awareness
By Patricia Grotenhuis, lifelong farmer and agricultural enthusiast.
December 22, 2010 – During the summer, I attended the Canadian National Exhibition with the Ontario Farm Animal Council’s (OFAC) spokesrobot Oprah. Most of the questions we were asked were fairly general, but there was one comment which has stuck in my mind since then.
It is one I’m sure everyone in agriculture has heard at some point, and if they have not heard it yet, they will soon. While we were on our way to the parking lot at the end of the day, a gentleman stopped us and asked what Oprah was for. I briefly explained that she is an educational assistant sent to events such as fairs and festivals by the Ontario Farm Animal Council, and followed up by telling him who OFAC is and what it does.
Read All »
Posted by FFC on December 22nd, 2010 :: Filed under
Animal care,
animal handling,
Animal health,
Barn fires,
Codes of Practice,
Consumers,
Dairy cattle,
Education and public awareness,
Farm life,
Housing,
Innovation and technology,
Regulations,
Research,
Sustainability of the family farm,
Uncategorized
Farm animal councils in Canada, led by the National Farm Animal Care Council, have taken a lead role in promoting the Codes of Practice to farmers in this country. NFACC is also now leading the development of revised codes for a number of livestock species. We think this article sums the topic up well – OFAC
Animal Industry Comes Of Age
Laura Rance
EDITOR
Manitoba Cooperator
An animal-abuse court case based on the discovery of hundreds of dead, starving, dehydrated and injured hogs in a Notre Dame de Lourdes-area barn earlier this year could be precedent setting on two fronts.
The horrific conditions animal-welfare officers found when they were called to the scene and the number of charges laid against the owners of the barn may make this one of the biggest animal-abuse cases the province has ever witnessed.
But it is also the first time charges have been laid for failing to comply with an industry code of practice — standards of animal care developed under the leadership of these hog producers’ peers.
Read All »
Posted by FFC on December 13th, 2010 :: Filed under
Animal care,
Animal cruelty,
animal handling,
Beef cattle,
Canada,
Codes of Practice,
Dairy cattle,
Housing,
Pork
From horse whisperer to cow whisperer – we like the way this livestock handler relates to his animals – OFAC
For the full story and photos, visit http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j7bBWFLOlyxoJypwFO39EOgj5ecAD9HH4UR80
Cow whisperer aims to improve livestock handling
By MATT VOLZ (AP) – 10 hours ago
WOLF CREEK, Mont. — The herd of lowing cows parted like a wave before Curt Pate, who rode straight up to the bull and let him know who was in charge without making a sound.
Pate, a 49-year-old Montana cowboy who consulted on the 1998 Robert Redford film “The Horse Whisperer,” switched his focus to cows about five years ago and has been traveling the country teaching ranchers to think like cattle and use low-stress methods of handling livestock.
Read All »
Posted by FFC on August 11th, 2010 :: Filed under
Animal care,
animal handling,
Animal health,
Beef cattle,
Horses,
Research
