Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) remains one of the most significant health and economic challenges in both beef and dairy production.

Success starts at birth. A recent BCRC webinar highlighted just how critical those early decisions are, from precalving management to colostrum intake and postnatal care. It’s about stacking small advantages, such as nutrition, environment, timing and intervention, right from the start.

Depending on the year, beef producers in western Canada notice their cattle rubbing and developing bare patches of hair during late winter or early spring. Although lice are often suspected, follow‑up checks by producers and veterinarians show that they are rarely the cause.

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.

BVD remains one of the most economically significant infectious diseases affecting cattle worldwide. While many producers vaccinate routinely, the virus can still circulate quietly within herds, reducing performance long before obvious clinical signs appear.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Although Benjamin Franklin was referring to fire prevention when he wrote that phrase, the same phrase can have literal implications when it comes to saving pounds through scours prevention in calves.

Physical hazards – from swallowed wires to toxic plants – can be devastating, not only to the cow but in certain instances can cause late-term abortions or permanent birth defects in the calf crop.

Castration is a management procedure that reduces animal aggression, prevents unwanted breeding and improves meat quality. No matter what method is used, all castration procedures cause pain, as measured by stress responses in the animal. Explore new products that are helping to reduce that pain and increase productivity.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) began enforcing its revised livestock transport regulations in 2022, which reduced the maximum travel time for weaned calves from 48 to 36 hours before a mandated break and increased rest periods from five to eight hours.

Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) is a fast-moving upper respiratory disease that can quietly drain profitability in beef and dairy herds. It spreads quickly through close contact and, like other herpes viruses, it doesn’t leave the herd once it arrives.