Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) remains a leading health concern in Canadian feedlots. Currently, pen riders quietly surveying thousands of cattle daily are a feedlot’s main defence against this challenging disease.

Whether up north in last summer’s ash or down south in the dust, winter feeding is nearing its end, and the need for a grazing plan is mounting. Year over year, producer efforts to balance grazing and growth will hopefully result in profitable calf crops as well as healthy grasslands.

Despite poor winter weather, 53 hardy individuals gathered in Kelliher, Saskatchewan, on Jan. 15, 2026, for a virtual fence field day. Roughly half of the attendees traveled an hour or more to attend, highlighting the strong interest in the emerging technology across the Prairies.

Although cattle can survive for a limited time without water, even short-term deprivation leads to declines in feed intake and health risks, particularly increasing mortality hazards and affecting fetal development during winter.

Bull buying strategies are a critical component of success for cow-calf producers across Canada. With operations ranging from small family farms to large-scale commercial enterprises, an important question must be asked: Do purchasing tactics differ depending on the size of the farm or ranch?

John and Deanne Chuiko and their children, Matt and Rylee, operate the family ranch, CJ Ranching, in St. Walburg, Saskatchewan, that was homesteaded by John’s grandfather in 1941.

Canada’s federal government ended its Community Pasture Program in 2012, which had provided grazing for 220,000 cattle owned by 2,500 producers in the Prairie provinces. Months after the announcements, the involved governments initiated a plan to transition federal pastures to patron operation.

Genetic advances in the cattle industry have resulted in animals with rapid growth rates and increased production efficiencies, requiring critical minerals and vitamins. As cow-calf producers strive to become more efficient through extended grazing programs such as fall/winter swath and bale grazing, the industry standard of providing free-choice mineral and vitamin supplements to herds often results in sporadic consumption by individual animals.

Trevor and Cheryl Branvold raise registered Angus on a farm near Wawota, Saskatchewan, that’s been in Cheryl’s family since it was settled in 1888.

The calendar never lies. While it may feel like New Year’s celebrations have scarcely fizzled, the calf crop is on the ground, the winter feed supply is dwindling, and patches of green grass are beckoning.