The scale and integrated structure of the proposed experimental farm, Farm@UP, is the first of its kind in the country and the continent, said Prof Barend Erasmus, dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, during its introduction to potential private sector partners. According to Dr Hinner Köster, president of the UP convocation and […]
By Koos du Pisani (sponsored content) Commodity organisations in the red meat industry – the Red Meat Producers’ Organisation (RPO), the former National Emergent Red Meat Producers’ Organisation (Nerpo), the South African Feedlot Association (SAFA) and the Red Meat Abattoir Association (RMAA) – realised the South African red meat industry has the potential to compete internationally, […]
The enthusiasm and display of quality animals showcased the passion and commitment of communal farmers towards their development and progress. The selected animals, chosen from regional flocks, were indeed of the best quality that the communal areas of the Eastern Cape have to offer. The number of entries, 102, was similar to previous years. There […]
Although it is encouraging that Steenhuisen recognises the seriousness of animal diseases, the process of finding solutions has been dragging on since 2000, says Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist of Agbiz. Biosecurity, with animal diseases being the biggest concern, has been a much-discussed issue, especially over the past three years. Sihlobo says conditions such as foot-and-mouth […]
Most riders have heard about ‘Monday morning sickness’, ‘tying-up syndrome’ and polysaccharide storage myopathy in horses. Tying-up, also known as exertional rhabdomyolysis, is a condition that causes muscles running over the hindquarters to tighten and cramp up. Recent studies have highlighted links to training and feeding strategies in racehorses that can also be applied to […]
A few years ago, when South Africa was struck by an outbreak of cryptosporidiosis, a leading cause of diarrhoea in sheep, Johan Barnard was forced to rebuild his stud, Johanri Dormers. As a result, he now runs a lucrative operation producing top-class animals. This is evident in the number of Johanri animals that achieved South […]
The Letelle sheep breed has European origins. It descends from the Rambouillet or French Merino, the development of which can be traced back to 1786, when King Louis XVI of France purchased more than 300 Spanish Merinos (seven wethers, 41 rams and 318 ewes) from his cousin King Charles III of Spain. The Rambouillet, a […]
The Letelle sheep breed has European origins. It descends from the Rambouillet or French Merino, the development of which can be traced back to 1786, when King Louis XVI of France purchased more than 300 Spanish Merinos (seven wethers, 41 rams and 318 ewes) from his cousin King Charles III of Spain. The Rambouillet, a […]
It has been known for centuries that feeding horses grain makes them fast and furious, the type of energetic behaviour required of racehorses and carriage horses. A complete absence of grain, on the other hand, is also undesirable, as working horses will lack the energy to pull ploughs in winter, and sport horses will be […]
The Beefmaster is a composite breed developed in the early 1930s by rancher Tom Lasater in Texas, US. It was the result of the systematic crossing of Hereford and Shorthorn cows with Brahman bulls. The US Department of Agriculture recognised the Beefmaster as a new breed in 1954. The Beefmaster was produced to thrive under […]
