Progressive Dairy Canada Guest Blog

HERd Management: Sharing your agriculture story: Tips for getting started

April 9, 2026

My new life on the farm was an adjustment not only for me, but for the people around me. Sharing my journey helped bridge that gap. What began as updates for friends and family slowly grew into a way of building understanding for people both inside and outside the agriculture industry.

Getting through winter on the farm

Getting through the winter months can be a challenge in rural settings. Having a positive mindset, making mundane tasks exciting and finding small things to look forward to can make a difference this winter season.

January 6, 2026

Katelyn Duban

Shorter days and quieter routines leave more space for isolation to creep in, making winter feel heavier than the wet snow on the end of your shovel. Here are a few lessons I’ve learned along the way that I think can help farmers get through the winter months.

5 ways to stay energized during a challenging season

December 31, 2020

Kimmi Devaney

Energy is generally in high demand and short supply during a challenging season, and 2020 threw one crisis and challenge after another at us.

HERd Management: Past lessons, future success

May 31, 2018

Jess Campbell

I was raised in the country, in a red brick Victorian on 2 acres. I was not, however, raised on a farm. To now be a third-generation dairy and cash crop farmer is far beyond, as a girl, what I thought my life would be like.

Cultivating cross-border friendships, one letter at a time

June 28, 2017

Patricia Grotenhuis

Growing up, I had multiple pen pals. There was my cousin in Quebec, the daughter of family friends, a goat farmer and various exchange partners. Nothing could beat the thrill of a personal letter arriving in the mail.

HERd Management: Always learning

November 30, 2016

Jess Campbell

I am not a farm girl by nature. Although I was raised in the country, I did not live on a farm. I certainly had friends who were farmers, was a member of the local 4-H horse club and even helped our neighbours milk their cows a few times.

Tractor meals to avoid

October 10, 2016

Emily Morrison

‘Tis the harvest season and that means farmers on tractors for hours and hours. If your farmer is like mine, he appreciates food once or twice a day. Yes, some might think bringing my husband food is an act that dates us back to the ’60s or a time when a woman’s time wasn’t valued.

HERd management: School is always in session

August 1, 2016

Janet Bremer

“I want to be a teacher when I grow up,” I declared after my first day of kindergarten. I began alphabetizing all of my books on my bookshelf and, just like the school library, I included a check-out card inside the front cover of each book.

How I stay ‘progressive’ with a 50-year-old tiestall barn

January 29, 2016

Tim May

I always look forward to getting the latest copy of the Progressive Dairyman magazine in the mail. Who can resist drooling over those high-tech robots and big, fancy freestall barns?

Some thoughts on the food ‘free’ frenzy

January 1, 2016

Crystal Mackay

Trends continue to snowball with labels about what’s in a food product being expanded to how that food was grown or processed. Gluten-free, antibiotic-free, hormone-free, cage-free, everything-else-free labels are multiplying. It seems almost every day I see a new announcement from a company or a grocery store ad or a label on something I go to buy that has a claim like this.