The End... But Really Just the Beginning

Well it looks like this will be my last post before I submit my Google Analytics report (summarizing the number of followers, comments, views, etc. my blog received over the May 1st - July 1st competition period) to the judges of the 2011 Summer Synergy marketing competition! But have no fear... my blogging days are not coming to a screeching halt just because the competition is over! I have a very busy summer and LIFE ahead of me and I plan on sharing all of my exciting agriculture adventures with you! 

Thank you to each and every person who has followed along these past two months and I hope you will stay tuned for my future updates!

Go Wild, Go West!

What a weekend!! I can't think of a better way to celebrate the end of the school year and the beginning of what I know is going to be the best summer yet! We started the weekend off with the rodeo Friday... it was a bit chilly but we braved the weather and had a great time! The Friday night fireworks were cancelled due to the stormy weather and put on hold until Saturday night. Saturday morning saw the Sundre Parade roll through town, followed by the afternoon performance of the Sundre Pro Rodeo! The weather was good and it was another awesome rodeo - especially with the fun events like wild cow milking and wild horse race! Saturday evening was the third performance of the rodeo followed by wicked fireworks show and cabaret. Sunday afternoon was the fourth and final performance of the rodeo in the beautiful sunshine! 

I operated the main video replay camera for the rodeo throughout the four performances of the pro rodeo again this year and thankfully it didn't rain on me too much! I also got to hang out with all my best friends and Colin so it was all in all an awesome weekend! GO WILD, GO WEST see you at next year's Sundre Pro Rodeo!! =)

Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?

Where have all the cowboys gone? To the Sundre Pro Rodeo of course!! Last night I had a boot scootin' time at the Sundre Pro Rodeo Kick-Off Concert & Dance with the Allen Christie Band (local superstar!) putting on a great show! With a kick-off like that it's sure to be an awesome weekend! If you're not too far away and are looking for something epic to do this weekend then I'd definitely suggest making your way out to the Sundre Rodeo Grounds! I will be busy running the video replay camera all weekend and enjoying all of the festivities that light up my little hometown... check back for an update on Monday!


In the mean time check out the Allen Christie Band... and have a listen to some of his great tunes... like my personal favourite The Old Bronc Saddle!
http://www.myspace.com/allen_christie

Agriculture For the Future

Home sweet home... FN Ranch!

Agriculture is more than just a job to producers, and more than just the source of food for consumers. Agriculture fuels the world, both metaphorically and literally! Agriculture is the driving force behind communities, and essentially the basis of the world's economy. So it only seems logical that agriculture must be preserved for the future. Why is it then that farmers and ranchers often get paid below what their products are worth and are treated as being less important, less educated, and less valuable than someone such as the CEO of a transnational company. Farmers and ranchers are the CEO's of their own companies which provide the most essential product for life on earth... food. Farmers and ranchers may not be educated in the same way as a CEO, however they are certainly educated by hands on learning in their own field of work and know how to do things I doubt any CEO of a big name company could even begin to be able to accomplish. Farmers and ranchers today are also becoming more proactive in educating themselves off the farm/ranch with programs such as AFAC, Verified Beef Production, Alberta Environmental Farm Plan, and Farm Safety courses.

Nothing like newborn calves to remind you why you love agriculture!

The days of the family farm are all too often only memories of the past as generations of farming and ranching families are being forced to sell their heritage, lifestyle, and livelihood as a result of poor market prices, unfortunate set-backs such as B.S.E., and ultimately not being paid enough for their products to break even yet alone make a profit. However, agriculture is an evolving business and commodity and as things seem to be taking a much overdue turn for the better in regards to market prices, it seems that there may be a few of us young agriculture enthusiasts crazy enough to still want to get into the business that we are so passionate about. Call us die-hards, suckers for punishment, or foolish dreamers... but we ARE going to make this industry work, and we ARE going to find the profit in an industry that was historically the majority of the population's occupation. Yes, it will be an uphill battle, but I have faith that one day this crazy world is going to come full circle and agriculture is going to be supremely important in the eyes of everyone once again. We all need to eat, and the world's population is growing rapidly, so when people's focus shifts from getting food for cheap to just being able to get food... the farmer and rancher will become more than just the common man. 

Thinking about life at the most beautiful place on Earth... Ya Ha Tinda!

What all this brings me to is my own future in agriculture. I plan on being involved in agriculture for a long time to come. I've already got a pretty good start on my life in agriculture growing up on a ranch, participating extensively in the 4-H program, junior cattle shows, etc. After I graduate (next year... wish it was this year - thanks Mama J for holding me back so I'd be the old fart in my class haha) I plan on taking the Agriculture Management program at Olds College and then from there getting a degree in Agribusiness either from Olds College or the University of Alberta. Right now my thoughts are that I would like to work for Alberta 4-H and/or be an agricultural event planner at some place like Northlands. I also want to keep doing photography on the side. Of course I would like to have my own ranch and have a large herd of cattle and some horses. I'd also love to carry on showing some of my own cattle. 4-H has been a huge part of my life and I'd love to be able to give back and become a leader of a beef and/or horse club. I hope that my children will want to be as much a part of ranching, 4-H, and agriculture in general as I have been. 


But plans don't always go how you think they should... so I guess we'll see! No matter what I know I want to stay involved in agriculture as well as keep on advocating for agriculture! 

Adventures in Artificial Insemination

I wrote my English 20-1 final exam this afternoon... and now all that is standing between me and an awesome weekend at the Sundre Pro Rodeo is my Biology 20 final tomorrow morning! When it comes to biology I must say us farm and ranch kids sure have an advantage in the biology classroom. Sure, not all of us are straight A students... but we can tell you (in a way only a true farm kid can) how its bred and born, and then some!!

This spring at my place "FN Ranch" (F for my dad's last name Frischke, and N for my mom's and my last name Nybo... not "Effin Ranch" like some people who see it think haha!) we are artificially inseminating (A.I.) 3 heifers, 2 two year olds, 1 three year old, 1 four year old, 1 five year old, and 2 six year old cows from our commercial herd with club calf bull semen. The "A.I. Girls" are quite the varied lot. We've got crosses of just about every breed including Angus, Gelbvieh, Hereford, Saler, Simmental, Shorthorn, and Maine Anjou. The bulls we have used this year are "Tyson", "Walks on Water", "Rainmaker", and "Eye Candy". I am super excited about the calf crop next year!! 

"Tyson"

"Walks on Water"

"Rainmaker"

"Eye Candy"

Artificial insemination is a meticulous process that depends largely on good timing and sound herd management. Because we don't have an entire herd of cattle to inseminate we've opted to inseminate on natural heats (when the heifer/cow is naturally "in heat" and ready to be bred) instead of going through the process of synchronizing all of the females to come into heat at the same time. Inseminating on a natural heat has a distinctly greater chance of the heifer or cow actually conceiving (fingers crossed)! The only thing that makes this process more difficult is that you must watch your herd well in advance of the time you want to breed to determine when each animal cycles and mark this on your calendar. When it comes time to breed you will have a better idea of when each animal should be coming into heat, although you still need to watch closely every day for signs of heat such as females riding or being ridden by other cattle, bawling, wandering away from the herd, etc. Roughly twelve hours after you detect an animal that is in standing heat (will stand when mounted by another cow) is optimum time to get the straws (what the semen is in) out of the nitrogen tank (that keeps the semen at the right temperature to stay alive) and get them into your heifer/cow! It's a good idea to have a "clean up" bull out on pasture once everything has been inseminated in case something doesn't catch, and that way you will still get a calf in the spring... even though it might not be from your first pick of a bull. 

So there you have it ladies and gentlemen... the adventures of artificial insemination! It's not too glamorous, and you sure get a lot of mosquito bites standing out in the pasture figuring out who's in heat today... but by golly let's hope it's worth it come next spring when I have some big, hairy, awesome show calves on the ground! 

Beyond the Brand

Me roping in the calf pen.

Happy first day of summer everyone!! Am I ever glad it has finally arrived... and today, here in Sundre at least, it's sunny, hot and actually feels like summer! 
With summer comes branding season - a busy and fun time of year on the ranch! Once all the calves are born cattle ranchers bring their mama cows and calves in off of pasture and the branding begins! There are two ways of branding: the traditional rope 'em, wrestle 'em, brand 'em (fun!) way, and the more modern run them through the chute and brand them when they are locked in the head gate and squeeze or tipped over on a calf table. Because the calves are already being contained for branding, its a prime opportunity to also castrate the bull calves that you want to make steers, implant those steers, and vaccinate all of the calves. The fun part of branding is that it's usually a big social event, especially when you have a "traditional" branding where lots of hands are required to rope, wrestle, brand, castrate, vaccinate, and implant calves. Neighbours gather at each other's ranches to help each other, and the favor is returned when they need help themselves at their own branding. Good food and drinks, and lots of laughs are shared throughout the day!

Dragging calves to the branding fire.

Branding is the traditional way of marking your cattle as your own, however there is an entirely new meaning to "branding" in the agriculture industry and the world as a whole! In this modern world is seems everything has a "brand". Companies, products, and people can all have their own brand. For example, Nike, Coca-Cola, and Oprah are universally known brands that with just one symbol or word are recognizable the world over. So what does this all mean for agriculture? Well, by creating a "brand" beyond the one you put on your cattle or horses, you open up a world of possibilities for your ranching business. Creating a brand can mean a lot of different things depending on what you want to achieve from your operation. For example, if you raise organic food you can create your entire brand around the fact that you grow/raise this "niche market" product. Some things to consider when you're creating your own brand:

Branding irons make a permanent mark on the animal's hide.

1) A catchy name - nothing captures your potential customers attention better than a catchy name.
2) Logo - creating a logo can be as simple or complex as you would like... creating the logo itself is relatively simple and inexpensive, how you use it is where your creativity plays a role. You can use a logo on websites, letterheads, clothing items, or really anything that you want to advertise yourself on.

Lots of help makes fast work!

3) Create a website - nothing is more frustrating than hearing about a cool company but not being able to find them on the web! Creating a dynamic, interesting, informative website is one of the best ways to get your brand out there. You can do this yourself or by employing a web designer. 
4) Media - get your brand noticed by employing every possible mean of social media... facebook, twitter, blogging, etc. 
5) Get out, get involved - if possible, try to go out to trade shows, competitions, etc. that will get your name and your brand out in the public eye.


Even if you don't have a specific company, you can still brand yourself! If you advocate for agriculture, such as myself, public speak, judge, event plan, do photography... anything! You can become your own brand! And maybe, just maybe, someday you'll be another one name wonder like Oprah, Shania, Reba, Rihanna, Shakira, and J. Lo! 


So go out and get busy promoting yourself or your company as a "brand" because just like with cattle and horse brands, you need your very own unique one to stand out from the rest of the herd! 

What's For Dinner!?

Nothing on the stove yet tonight? No problem... check out one of my favourite steak recipe "Steak Diane":

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 12 to 14 minutes

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients:

2 6-ounce filet mignons trimmed of all fat, chilled

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons butter

2 to 3 shallots

1 lemon

Fresh chives

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon brandy

1 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley, finely minced

Preparation:

1) Season both sides of the meat with salt and pepper.

2) In a heavy skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat.

3) Add the steaks to the skillet and cook for about 3 minutes on each side for medium-rare meat.

4) Move the steaks from the skillet to covered serving plates to keep them warm.

5) Finely mince the shallots.

6) Juice the lemon.

7) Finely chop the chives.

Brandy and heat make for a good fire show!

8) Add 2 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons shallots, and the mustard to the drippings in the skillet (still over medium heat).

9) Cook for only 1 minute.

10) Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon chives, and the Worcestershire sauce to the skillet.

11) Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.

12) Remove from heat.

13) Add the brandy to the mixture and pour immediately over the steaks.

14) Garnish the steaks by sprinkling them with 1 tablespoon minced parsley. 

Mmm!! I love steak and I love cooking - awesome way to get my fix for both! What's your favourite steak recipe... or any good home cooking recipe for that matter!? 

Source Cited: http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/steak-diane.html

Photograph Sources: 

http://www.123rf.com/photo_3432031_steak-tartare-with-cornichons-croutons-and-an-egg-yolk.html

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcf_oiVIHatZnn8de2YXu4Mfa2DEgTDLBF6N-9ENoRzxzRpIrfbCEvcnNQFG3jMrgTjD5A8jK41VhDhf1SniAns1r8anqnPQmgSOBHp9Mm4qTA97-r6-w9k7DfIQct86-juXDdbLbmCCQ/s1600/mail.jpeg

http://www.meatcookingexpert.com/442/steak-diane-sauce-perfected

Alberta Environmental Farm Plan

Alberta producers are conscious and considerate of minimizing their impact on the environment. All producers want their land to be usable for generations to come, and for their practices to have the least amount of impact on the environment as possible. Maintaining water, soil, and air quality and biodiversity contributes to these goals. Therefore, implementing an Alberta Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) can help producers sustain production, manage risks, provide a healthy landscape for the next generation, and maintain market access. 

Consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about how their food is produced and the safety and quality of those products. Ensuring consumers that their food is coming from operations that take pride in their environmental sustainability can be a key marketing strategy for producers. Alberta has a reputation of producing healthy food in a healthy environment, making us a leader in world markets.

Why Implement an Environmental Farm Plan

- Improves farm health and safety

- Builds acceptance of the operation among neighbours and the public

- Increases personal satisfaction and knowledge

- Adds value to the farm property

- Agriculture sustainability 

- Reduces farm inputs like herbicides, insecticides, fertilizers, and fuel

- Demonstrates to the public, governments, regulators, lenders and/or investors that you are managing your environmental risks 

- Increases your understanding of your legal requirements related to environmental issues

- Identifies what you are already doing well and pinpoints where improvements could be made 

Environmental Farm Plan Process

1) Introduction & Preparation

- Participant expresses an interest to the local EFP resource person

- Participant preparation includes collecting soil reports and actual distances to water sources

- EFP Technical Assistant preparation includes searching for water well reports and aerial photos  

2) Discussion with Resource Person

- Led by the local EFP resource person

- Participant: Learns to use the EFP workshop to assess his/her potential environmental concerns and receives information on technical resources 

3) Completion of Farm Plan at Home

- Participant completes chapters that apply to his/her operation

- Identifies and prioritizes situations that need to be addressed in the Farm Plan

- Completes Farm Plan

4) Submission of Farm Plan for Review

- Participant submits Farm Plan to the local EFP resource person for review

- Resource person offers technical suggestions to strengthen the Farm Plan and ensures appropriate risk mitigation; and returns Farm Plan 

5) Continuous Implementation of Farm Plan Improvements 

- Puts Farm Plan into action through beneficial management practices and according to priority timetable

- Re-evaluates Farm Plan each year

You receive a workbook and CD free of charge with your participation in the Alberta Environmental Farm Plan Program. 

For producers the Alberta Environmental Farm Plan is a way of ensuring our hard work will be sustained for years to come on this land, and for consumers it's a way of being guaranteed that your food is healthy for you and is being produced in the most environmentally friendly ways. I'd say a definite win-win situation!  

Source Cited: http://www.albertaefp.com/index.html

Photograph Source: http://farmhousephotography.blogspot.com/

Our Fearless Leader is Now Bald!

Those 4-H roots are showing! 

Rob Smith, past 4-H member, Calgary & Southern Regional 4-H Specialist, and soon to be CEO of the Canadian Angus Association is now a baldy!! Rob competed against current President of the Canadian Angus Association Kirk Wildman and Assistant General Manager Michael Latimer to get the most donations for The Red & Black Baldy Fundraiser for the Kids With Cancer Society and Canadian Angus Foundation. 50% of the proceeds went to the Kids With Cancer Society and the other 50% went to the Canadian Angus Foundation to support junior cattle events and rural development initiatives across the nation. 

Rob, Mike & Kirk with their new 'dos!

The current President of the Canadian Angus Association, Kirk Wildman, a past North West Region 4-H Ambassador, set up this fundraiser in response to the support his family has received from the Kids With Cancer Society.  Kirk and Jill Wildman’s eldest son, Thomas, has been braving leukemia since last September and the Kids With Cancer Society has been an inspiration to them, as it has been for far too many Alberta families enduring this challenge. 

What a great fundraiser and one last hurrah for the legendary Rob Smith! I don't recall a provincial event that Rob wasn't at, a question he couldn't answer, or a time he wasn't promoting the vast benefits of 4-H. He certainly helped me discover my potential and encouraged me to get the most out of 4-H! I'll never forget times like him driving the Calgary Region kids to Provincial Judging and him belting out "California Girls" as we rolled into Vermilion or doing an impressive imitation of Simon Cowell as one of the talent show judges at Club Week! He has certainly been a driving force for 4-H in my region of Calgary, and will be greatly missed by all! 

Buckaroos & Bison

I got my new palm cowboy hat today from Double N Ranch Gear/Cow Kid Cowboy Gear (Chelsea & Aaron Cunningham of Sundre) and it looks AWESOME!! Custom shape and band... the works! If you haven't already check out their websites www.doublen.ca and www.cowkid.ca as well as on facebook https://www.facebook.com/doublenranchstore and https://www.facebook.com/pages/COW-KID-Cowboy-Gear/145647455478929?ref=ts 

So now that I've got my sweet buckaroo hat squarely on my head (yes I'm still wearing it as I write this!), time to talk about a presentation in Sundre my family and I attended last night about reintroducing Bison to Banff National Park.

The Eleanor Luxton Foundation has launched the initiative "Bison Belong" which is in support of reintroducing Plains Bison to Banff National Park. The proposed plan is to bring approximately 100 disease free bison from the herd that already exists in Elk Island National Park. The bison would be free roaming over approximately 3000 km2 of habitat in Banff National Park, within which 600 km2 is considered optimum bison habitat with 100 km2 of winter range. There are no plans to build fence around the entire perimeter of the bison's range, however there will be the 600 km2 core bison zone, with a surrounding zone entitled "contain area" and a further surrounding zone entitled "control area". If the bison roam further out of this zone they will fall under the "Stray Animals Act". Beyond these measures, there will be a few fences put up in key places to keep the bison contained. These fences would be low and high off the ground (for other ungulates and predators to jump over or go under). Plans are to add on to the existing Stud Creek horse fence at Ya Ha Tinda in order to keep the Bison out of the Ya Ha Tinda as per request by the government of Alberta. Historically First Nations hunted bison, and because the bison do not have a large number of predominant natural predators, it is proposed that the local First Nations groups surrounding Banff National Park will be permitted a small annual cull of the bison herd to keep numbers in check. 

As with any big change there are many opinions and concerns surrounding the reintroduction of bison to Banff National Park. Bison are very dangerous and unpredictable animals. Between 1978 and 1992 five times as many people were killed or injured by bison as by bears in Yellowstone National Park (21 by bears, 56 by bison). Granted, there are more bison than bears in Yellowstone National Park, however bison are listed as the second most dangerous animal in North America behind the Alaskan Brown Bear, having killed more people than the Grizzly Bear in third place. Although they look cumbersome they can run up to 56 km/h and cover long distances. This poses a major concern for public safety with the large number of uneducated tourists that frequent the Banff area. Tourists all too often are uninformed or choose to ignore the warnings telling them about the dangers of approaching wildlife and this could pose a major threat to the safety of many of Banff Park's visitors as well as residents. Recreation on foot, bike, horseback, etc. will all be at risk with the reintroduction of bison. Many horses have never seen a bison, making an already bad situation of coming upon a herd of bison worse with a spooked horse under you. The effect bison will have on the other ungulates such as the elk (who have been declining drastically in numbers due to over predation) is not completely known. It is predicted that reintroducing bison will only cause there to be a slight rise in the already larger than ideal population of prey species, particularly wolves, however this is not for sure. Bison are naturally nomadic animals, and therefore keeping them contained will be an ongoing problem. If a herd of bison want to go somewhere they will go, and no river, valley, or fence will stop them. This is not only a concern for the public but also for land owners and farmers and ranchers in the surrounding area where the bison are likely to wonder into. A major concern for the agriculture sector extending away from Banff Park's boundary is the damage to crops and livestock should they come onto private land. Finally, the transmission of anthrax, brucellosis and tuberculosis from domestic cattle to the bison population and back is of concern for supporters of the initiative, producers, and the public. 

On the other side of the barbed wire fence is the fact that the bison were historically a part of the ecosystem in Banff National Park and according to park policy things are to be as close to natural state as possible. Bison are also good for churning up the ground after a prescribed burn. The reintroduction of bison to the park would be a large tourist attraction generating more revenue for Banff and surrounding area as well as Alberta as a whole. An increase in herd numbers could in the future potentially allow for a hunting season on bison. 

I'm still undecided for sure on the issue. Change is always difficult, and this change could go terribly wrong. Sure it would be neat to see bison roaming wild like they historically did, but is the danger it poses to the public, the ecosystem, and the surrounding agriculture producers worth it? What's your take on the situation?


Source Cited: http://www.bisonbelong.ca/en/

Rain Is A Good Thing!

Rubber boots... check, slicker... check, boat... well how about a calf sled? Yesiree it's a wet one out there! Today alone we have had nearly 60 mm of rain! A little more and I think I'll be floating to school tomorrow! But I'm not complaining - sure the dreary weather is a little depressing but like Luke Bryan says "Rain is a Good Thing!" especially when you are a farmer waiting on the rain to get your crops and pastures growing! Now we just need some sun (let's hope we get a good shot of that next weekend for the Sundre Pro Rodeo!!) and we'll be set.

Back in my wild pony racing days!

The weather is putting off most of our outdoor endeavors on the ranch so I guess that gives me a good excuse to do some studying for my upcoming finals next week. Once finals are over it's RODEO TIME!!! I've got to put a plug in here for one of my favourite events of the year... the Sundre Pro Rodeo! Here's the details:

Thursday, June 23rd - Rodeo Kick Off BBQ, Concert & Dance - Sundre Community Centre 

6:30 pm - Doors Open

7:00 pm - Kodiak BBQ

8:00 pm - Allen Christie (AWESOME local country entertainer) Concert and Dance

Cash Bar, All Ages Welcome

Friday, June 24th

(Wear red to support our troops)

9:00 am - Slack (free admission)

11:00 am - 3:00 pm - Rodeo Warm Up BBQ at ATB Financial

3:00 pm - BS Bingo behind the grandstand

6:30 pm - Pre Rodeo Events (including mutton bustin' and junior barrel racing)

7:00 pm - Professional Rodeo Performance & Crowning of Miss Rodeo Sundre 2011

Dusk - Fireworks

Saturday, June 25th

(Wear pink to support Breast Cancer Awareness) 

7:00 - 10:00 am - Free Pancake Breakfast in Sobey's parking lot

10:00 am - Parade

12:30 pm - Pre Rodeo Events

1:00 pm - Professional Rodeo Performance

7:00 pm - Professional Rodeo Performance

Following Rodeo - Cowboy Cabaret featuring T.C. & Company at the Sundre Hockey Arena $10/person at the door

Sunday, June 26th

12:30 pm - Pre Rodeo Events

1:00 pm - Professional Rodeo Performance

ADMISSION TO RODEO: Adults $15, Students 11-17 $10, 10 & Under FREE

Wild Cow Milking! Quite possibly my favourite event! (The big screen in the back is where my video replay is shown)

It's sure to be an awesome weekend, and I'll be running the main camera for the video replay during all four of the rodeo performances once again this year! I can't wait! But first I need to get some studying and tests out of the way!

Me operating the video replay camera at last year's Sundre Pro Rodeo... and getting to rub elbows with the big guns (that's Mike Copeman beside me!)

The Girls Have Arrived!

... heifers that is! Every year we take about 50 yearlings (either steers or heifers) from Marshall's Feedlot in Bowden to graze on our pastures over the summer. The feedlot does this in order for the animals to reach a larger weight before they are finished on more expensive feed (barley, alfalfa, corn, oats, low grade durum wheat, chick peas, potatoes, sugar beet pulp, silage, etc.) when they return to the feedlot in fall.


Today our lot of 50 yearling heifers arrived on a liner from Marshall's! We processed them, putting Cydectin Pour-On on their backs to control parasites and writing numbers on their tags. Then the girls got turned out to the nice lush grass!

Kisses anyone?

All the colours of the cow rainbow!

Putting numbers on the heifer's fly tags to identify them.

Cydectin Pour-On is used to control parasites.