46 Better Farming | October 2024 Follow us on @BetterFarmingON OILSEED MARKETS CROP ROTATI IMPROVING AIR QUALITY MARCH 2024 $9.50 PLANNING YOUR GOLDEN YEARS? Retirement 101 MANAGE YOUR FARM BUSINESS Room to Improve A CENTURY OF COLLEGE ROYAL The U of G Tradition BE CAREFUL OUT THERE! Pesticide Safety 54 30 26 38 14 TELL US HOW you’re growing: Paul.Nolan@BetterFarming.com We’re still growing. Still striving. Just like our farming readers. We’ve been bringing you this magazine for some 25 years now, and so far in 2024 we’ve been publishing bigger editions and printing more pages than ever before – going all the way back to 1999. Have we peaked? No way. We’re working as hard as ever, and our commitment to excellence continues – for Ontario’s commercial farmers and the agriculture industry across Canada. This landmark year serves as a perfect moment to express our gratitude to our devoted readers and valued advertisers. Each edition we publish reflects your ambitions and achievements. Your professionalism inspires us, and your spirit drives us. Thank you to our readers and advertisers for being the true essence of this magazine. Your continuing support is what makes our work so rewarding. Paul Nolan Publisher & Editorial Director Livestock during lambing, but there were still some pretty heavy hit years. “Around four years ago, we implemented a non-lethal strategy specific to coyotes. With other predators like pine martens, we still have to use lethal interventions. They will step straight through a fence and devastate lambs.” Her strategy includes an electrified bottom wire to reduce dig-throughs, flashers, and human urine sprayed around the perimeter fence. They also have several livestock guardian dogs. “It wasn’t born of a place of wanting to be altruistic toward coyotes, but it was more about how I can glean the best result for our flock with infrastructure that I can set and forget,” she continues. “I’m okay with front-end-loading work and investing to upgrade the system if I know that for the next few years or decades it’s just maintenance.” Hawkshaw says the system has worked well for them, but they did experience challenges when maintenance was neglected. With life challenges arising and the responsibility shared across too many people, aspects of the approach were not kept up. “There’s only so much you can do in a day, and so much of our losses came from human error and not enough time and human resources.” She says that as the sole manager and improved fences, she can feel more confident that everything has been done correctly. She has invested in electric fence with zone alerts and a remote to turn the fence off for fixes. “If I’m resenting going back and forth, the odds of me missing something are a lot higher if I’m not enjoying it,” explains Hawkshaw. “Having a system that supports me to make good fixes quicker means it’s more likely we will have a better functioning system I can rely on more.” She says their livestock guardian dogs also play a significant role in the system. “If you bring in a livestock guardian dog, they are not a house dog,” says Hawkshaw, who recommends prioritizing training and farm demands before purchasing a dog. “Field size and the way you treat the dogs also matters.” O’Brien also encourages producers to review the dog’s background to ensure they are suitable for the work. “If it’s a producer’s first time buying a guardian dog, what’s typically most available is pups, and they want to make sure they buy a pup from an actual working livestock guardian dog versus someone who chooses to have them as a pet,” says O’Brien. Hawkshaw says that everyone is just trying to do the best they can for their herd or flock. “You do the best you can for where you’re at, and everybody’s experience will be different based on geography, budget, and pressure.” BF
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