July 2014 3.00 AFARM BUILTTWO - AGCanada

Temperatures might be rising on your cattle operation thissummer, but there’s another thing you can elevate – yourbottom line. That’s because with the Case IH Summer SalesEvent, new Farmall , Maxxum and Puma series tractors –along with our complete line of hay tools – are available at aspecial rate. But hurry, this deal only lasts a limited time. Seeyour dealer or visit caseih.com/specialoffers for more details.0% FINANCING FOR60 MONTHS*on new Farmall and Maxxum series tractorsand hay & forage equipment.0% for 24 months** followed by the customerqualified rate on new Puma series tractors.*For commercial use only. Customer participation subject to credit qualification and approval by CNH Industrial Capital Canada Ltd. See your Case IH dealer for details and eligibility requirements. Down payment may be required. Offer good through September 30, 2014. Notall customers or applicants may qualify for this rate or term. CNH Industrial Capital Canada Ltd. standard terms and conditions will apply. This transaction will be unconditionally interest free. Example: The interest rate will be 0.00% per annum for a total contract term of 60months: Based on a retail contract date of June 15, 2014, with a suggested retail price on a new Farmall 105U with L735 loader of C 94,500.00, customer provides down payment of C 18,900.00 and finances the balance of C 75,600.00 at 0.00% per annum for 60 months.There will be 59 equal monthly installments of C 1,260.00 each, the first due on July 15, 2014 and one final installment of C 1,260.00 due on June 15, 2019. The total amount payable will be C 94,500.00, which includes finance charges of C 0.00. Taxes, freight, set-up,delivery, additional options or attachments not included in suggested retail price. Offer subject to change or cancellation without notice. New Farmall series tractors, new Maxxum series tractors and new major Case IH hay and forage equipment (round balers, small squarebalers, disc mower conditioners, large square balers, SP windrowers & headers, sickle mower conditioners and PT forage harvesters and headers) are eligible for 0% financing for 60 months.**For commercial use only. Customer participation subject to credit qualification and approval by CNH Industrial Capital Canada Ltd. See your Case IH dealer for details and eligibility requirements. Downpayment may be required. Offer good through September 30, 2014. Not all customers or applicants may qualify for this rate or term. CNH Industrial Capital Canada Ltd. standard terms and conditionswill apply. Example: The interest rate will be 0.00% per annum for 24 months followed by a customer qualified rate of 4.99% per annum until June 15, 2019. Total contract term is 60 months. Based ona retail contract date of June 15, 2014, with a suggested retail price on a new Puma 145 CVT tractor with L765 Loader of C 165,310.00, customer provides down payment of C 33,061.00 and financesthe balance of C 132,249.00 at 0.00% per annum for 24 months followed by a customer qualified rate of 4.99% per annum until June 15, 2019. There will be 4 equal annual installments of C 27,996.57each, the first due on June 15, 2015 and one final installment of 27,996.54 due on June 15, 2019. The total amount payable will be C 173,043.82, which includes finance charges of C 7,733.82. Taxes,freight, set-up, delivery, additional options or attachments not included in suggested retail price. Offer subject to change or cancellation without notice. 2014 CNH Industrial America LLC. All rights reserved. Case IH is a trademark registered in the United States and many other countries,owned by or licensed to CNH Industrial N.V., its subsidiaries or affiliates. CNH Industrial Capital is a trademark in the United States andmany other countries, owned by or licensed to CNH Industrial N.V., its subsidiaries or affiliates. www.caseih.com

THE INDUST RYNewsMakersAaron and Adrienne Ivey of Ituna are the2014 Outstanding Young Farmers (OYF)for Saskatchewan. The Iveys operate a mixedcattle and grain farm in partnership with Aaron’s parents. Aaron and Adrienne purchasedtheir first land in 2000 after completing theiragriculture degrees. For the past 15 years,they’ve focused on expanding their cow herd,their land base and their family which nowincludes Noelle (eight) and Colton (six). Formore on their operation see our story, Counting on Forage, May, 2013, Canadian Cattlemen. Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmersfor 2014 will be chosen in November.The Canadian Angus Association (CAA)presented the Kasko Cattle Company ofCoaldale, Alta. (photo below) with itsWestern Feedlot of the Year Award at itsCarcass 101 event in June. The familyowned custom feeding and farming business was started in 1979 by Les Kasko andlater grew to include his sons Ryan andGreg and son-in-law Todd. Kasko CattleCo. now operates four feed yards in Albertawith a capacity of 44,000 head of cattle andmore than 40 employees.In 2010 Ryan Kasko allied with fellowRob Smith, CAA CEO (l to r); Ryan Kasko andBrian Good, CAA.Alberta feeders Les Wall, Ed Stronks, Leighton Kolk and Shawn Murray to form theAllied Marketing Group, which was namedthe first brand feeding partner for CertifiedAngus Beef in Canada.Cor Van Raay, thefounder of Cor VanRaay Farms has donated 5 million to LethbridgeCollege and the University of Lethbridge,jointly, to establish theCor Van RaayCor Van Raay SouthernAlberta Agribusiness Program. The 5 million will be shared jointly between the university and the college to establish endowedstudent awards, business-related academicprogramming, an agriculture entrepreneurin residence at Lethbridge College and aninnovation and entrepreneurship programat University of Lethbridge.Dr. Gord Atkins, a dairy practitioner fromAlberta was presented with the Merck Veterinary Award at the Canadian VeterinaryMedical Association’s annual convention inmid-July. Jean Gauvin, a companion animal practitioner from Lachine, Quebec isthe new president of the CVMA.Rangeland consultant Kelly Williamsonfrom Pambrun is the 2014-15 president ofthe Saskatchewan Forage Council. Joininghim on the executive are vice-presidentRyan Sommerfeld, a Gelbvieh breeder anddirector on the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’sAssociation from Medstead, past presidentAaron Ivey from Ituna, and finance chairDave Kerr of Lashburn. New to the boardof directors this year is researcher GregPenner from the department of animaland poultry science at the University of Saskatchewan.Obioha (Obi) Durunna,PhD, PAg, is the newregional livestock specialist for the SaskatchewanMinistry of Agriculturein Weyburn. He replacesBob Klemmer whoObioha Durunnaretired last year. Originally from Nigeria, Obi has a master’sdegree in quantitative genetics from the University of Manitoba, and a PhD in genomics from the University of Alberta. His PhDresearch evaluated the genetics and genomics of feed-efficiency reranking in crossbredcattle. He worked as a forage beef researcherat the Agriculture and Agri-Food CanadaBrandon research station until he moved toWeyburn in April.Doug Gillespie of Neville was elected presidentof the SaskatchewanStock Growers Association at its annual convention in June. ShaneJahnke of GouldtownDoug Gillespieis first vice-presidentand Bill Huber of Lipton second vicepresident. Finance chair Helen Finucaneof Regina and past president HaroldMartens of Swift Current round out theexecutive.The University of Saskatchewan has added toits forage lineup withthe recent appointmentof Dr. Bill Biligetuasas assistant professorof forage crop breedDr. Bill Biligetuasing with the university’sCrop Development Centre. He received abachelor of science in grassland sciencesand an M.Sc. in rangeland managementfrom the Inner Mongolia Agriculture University in China and his PhD in perennialforage management and physiology fromthe University of Saskatchewan. c6C a t t l e m e n · J u ly 2 0 1 4www.canadiancattlemen.ca

our histo ryBy Mrs. A Jussila, Manyberries, Alta.aunt kateFrom Canadian Cattlemen, June 1947About 14 miles southeast ofManyberries in the southeastcorner of Alberta, lives a whitehaired old lady, Mrs. Rebecca Cross,commonly known as Aunt Kate, andloved by all who know her.Her farm was for many years entirelysurrounded by Higdon range and herunpretentious house has been an oasis formany a weary rider. Everyone has beenwelcome at her home, but especially is thistrue of the cowboy. Who knows how manyhave been invited to unsaddle their mountsand eat one of Aunt Kate’s chicken dinners.No matter what the time of day, they werealways welcome.In the spring of 1948 Aunt Kate wastaken to the Medicine Hat General Hospital with a serious heart condition. Whilesitting there by her bedside one afternoon,I was joined by Mrs. Gilchrist, a neighbourof Aunt Kate’s. On another visit she toldme she had been visited there on differentoccasions by Mr. and Mrs. Chay Gilchrist,Mr. and Mrs. Harry Hargrave and MackHigdon. She added in her quaint southernaccent, “It ain’t many high ups that wouldcome to see a poor widder woman.”At that I wondered how much dependedon the “poor widder woman.” My surmisewas borne out by the words of Aunt Kate’sattending physician, Senator (Dr.) F.W.Gershaw. He said, “She must be a wonderful person. She was half dead when she wasbrought in here and still brought in an armful of pussy willows to brighten the hospitalwards for others.”Generosity and thoughtfulness such asthis surely must come from the heart. Itis true that by her generous giving awayof everything she had, Aunt Kate hasremained poor in this world’s goods.Perhaps spiritually she is far richer thanmost. As Chay Gilchrist has said, “Maybeshe is far richer than the rest of us. Somepeople get so attached to material thingsthat they lose sight of the things thatreally matter.”How true that is! The true friendlinessand hospitality is typical of the cow country. Could we but keep alive this tradition ofthe old West.During the many years on the prairie,Aunt Kate naturally had many dealingswith cattlemen. Perhaps the most amusingof these was when she traded Mack Higdoneight cats for a mule.Aunt Kate’s life has been an active one,filled with hard work. Today she is able totake a few steps at a time. The evening sunis slowing setting on a life that can havefew regrets. The heart that has had onlykindness towards humans and animalsalike, beats weaker now. Again she is inhospital and there is little left but to waituntil that good range boss lets down thepasture bars and a good servant can gohome to rest. cFor more of the past from the pages of ourmagazine see the History section at www.canadiancattlemen.ca.SIGN UP NOW!FREE FOR6 MONTHS!Managing yourfarm made easyPRESENTED BYSpray Field SW2Due March 6, 2014Spray Field SW2 Spray Field SW250% CompleteAssigned to JohnDue March 6, 2014PlanEasily schedule jobsand activities, shareacross your operation.AssignLet your team know what,where and when jobs arescheduled.0% Complete,Assigned to JoeDue March 6 , 2014Spray Field SW2100% CompleteAssigned to JohnDone March 3, 2014Used 2,000 L InsecticideUsed Sprayer for 2 hrs Transfer Barley to Bin 20% CompleteAssigned to JohnDue Sept 26 , 2014 Fertilize Field SE3 Service Sprayer 3432100% Complete,Assigned to FrankDone Sept 26 , 2014100% Complete,Assigned to DavidDone Sept 25, 2014 TrackManage your farm indetail, from your desktopor smartphone.Available for iPhone and Android Mobile Phones.FarmDock is an easy to use mobile app that allows you to plan, assign and trackactivities on your farm. It's simple to set up, simple to use and can be quicklycustomized to fit your operation.Built with input from real farmers, FarmDock tracks and reports key information across onefarm operation or several. Smartphone and desktop versions allow sharing of information witheveryone, on the go. Reports and reviews of activity are available in real time.Ready for more? Start tracking your farm operation inone minute with our FREE 6 MONTH FARMDOCK TRIAL!Visit farmdock.com for more details,or scan the code to download the app.It's your farm at a glance, or a task in detail. FarmDock keeps information organized,accessible and ready for reporting. You're in charge, customize it to fit your way of doing things.www.canadiancattlemen.caC a t t l e m e n · j u ly 2 0 1 4 7

MANAGE M E N TBy Debbie FurberA FARM BUILT FOR TWO700 cows, a feedlot, two people and it worksApicture-perfect scene of 700black cows set against a canvasof white transforms to pairs ona collage of gold and green as Bryce andDawn McKenzie put the final touches ontheir calving season. They have the strokesdown pat after 38 years in the beef business and share some insights on howthey manage a large cow-calf and backgrounding operation on their own.Swath grazing has been a focal point sinceBryce stumbled across the idea in 1988. It wasa dry year and some grass he had cut didn’tseem worth baling. It was a pleasant surprisewhen the cows found it later under the snowand cleaned it up. Figuring that worked well,he tried a few more acres the next year, andthe next, eventually adding spring-seededoats to be cut in July for grazing later on.Back then, the operation was muchsmaller. He grew up on a grain farm a fewmiles away and in 1976 bought an emptyquarter along Highway 7 east of Rosetown,Sask., to start his own beef operation witheight cows, a bull and a dream! The couplehas a knack for repurposing good usedbuildings to meet their needs and overtime has moved in their home and five hiproofed barns, each for a specific purpose.Today, the cows and heifers swath grazebaler oats from December 1 through toMarch 15. There hasn’t been a winter yet theyhaven’t stayed out the full 100 days, Dawnsays. They graze together on a quarter sec-8C A T T L E M E N · J U LY 2 0 1 4tion at a time and the swaths are laid downin such a way that the herd has to walk acrossthem on the way to the water bowl. With700 animals traipsing back and forth, it’s notlong before snow and ice on the swaths getkicked aside and they’re into new swaths.Lots of portable windbreak fences cutthe wind chill considerably, but they’ll startsupplementing with grain for extra energyif it gets below -28 C. There’s not enoughsunlight hours on those short winter daysto give the cows a chance to warm from theoutside in, Bryce says.They plan for one acre per cow for the100 days, or 700 acres total. Underseededwith fall rye, the fields do double duty inspring for the new pairs and bulls. The fallrye greens up early drawing the cattle acrossthe stubble to spread them out as they cleanup remaining swaths.The bull battery is kept fully charged withone for every 15 to 17 cows to ensure 75 percent of their calves arrive in the first cycle.They’ve switched to range-raised AngusSimmental bulls and have definitely seenthe promised 20-pound weaning weightadvantage using the hybrids compared tostraight Angus bulls.Since finding some bloodlines that areadding length and depth on the calves without compromising calving ease, they’vebeen keeping the bulls longer and buyingin more of the 70 Angus-type replacementheifers needed each year.The herd is brought into the yard a coupleof weeks ahead of calving starting April 1.Pastures with a clear view from the diningroom window are reserved for this purposeand readied by pushing up the snow aheadof time to give the cattle lots of dry ground.The calving pasture leads up to the barnarea where there is a large bedded corral surrounded by windboard fencing. The animalsare free to come and go during the day, thenare locked into the bedded area at night toensure new arrivals are safe and sound.Feeding in the afternoon helps keep theherd on a daytime calving schedule, sothere’s not much night checking as long asthe weather co-operates.New pairs are moved out of the calving pasture each evening and morning, with heiferpairs going to their own pasture and maturepairs to another. Moving the pairs out helpsprevent mismatches and mis-mothering andspreads the herd over more ground to reducecrowding as it doubles in size.A large pen directly back of the barn is fornew pairs in cold weather and those needing extra time to mother up. Bryce designeda handy calf carrier attached to the back of afour-wheeler to get new pairs up to the barnarea quickly and safely. The calf rests on itsbelly with legs dangling through the frameas if in a standing position and the cow follows right along behind.The two calving barns don’t see asmuch use as when calving started in Feb-www.canadiancattlemen.ca

managementruary, but they still come in handy whenweather turns ornery. The area below thehayloft in one barn is insulated with ahome-built maternity pen in an enclosedroom and permanent pens across thealley. The back section is open to be usedas a loafing area for calving cows and canbe set up with pens as needed. This areaand the second insulated barn with temporary pens are cleaned out after calvingto be used for storage.Calving days are busy from sun-up tosundown patrolling calving pastures onfour-wheelers. They expect about 30 calvesa day at the peak of the first cycle. Thestanding record is 125 calves in four days.Procedures are kept to a minimum during calving. As soon as possible after birththe bull calves are banded and each calfreceives a dangle tag numbered to matchthe dam’s. These are prepared ahead ofcalving and kept organized in a large traybuilt for this purpose. Details of the birthsare recorded in a pocketbook to be enteredinto the computer each evening.Their rule of thumb is to give the cowswhat they need to take care of their calves,Bryce explains. In addition to their regular health and mineral programs, the cowsreceive vitamin ADE shots and a scoursvaccine ahead of calving. They’ve foundthis makes the calves stronger at birth andthe vitamins and immunity pass throughthe milk to get the calves off to a good start.Toward the end of calving they’ll start mov-ing the pairs over to a swath-grazing fieldgreening with fall rye. The pairs are movedfarther from the yard as the calves get older,starting in one of three 40-acre paddocks thateach hold 30 to 40 pairs. Another three 80-acrepaddocks hold 50 to 60 pairs apiece. Two 160acre pastures hold about 80 pairs each andthen there’s a quarter section of grass.It works like a fine waltz in real life,Dawn says. The smaller groupings helpspread out the pairs to reduce crowding instormy weather compared to running allof the pairs together on a quarter. Lots offour-foot-high windbreak panels are set upin random fashion around the pastures socalves can easily find spots out of the wind.Their efforts have combined to essentially eliminate early-calfhood illnesses.Coyotes are more likely to take a calf thanscours, he says. It’s not unusual to spot themsneaking into the calving pasture as theyscan the area wit

CNH Industrial Capital is a trademark in the United States and many other countries, owned by or licensed to CNH Industrial N.V., its subsidiaries or affiliates. www.caseih.com *For commercial use only. Customer participation subject to credit qualification and approval by CNH Industrial Capital Canada Ltd.