Wood and Deer Ticks are in Abundance in Alberta

Wood ticks are certainly a problem on the prairies this summer, especially in more southern regions.

 

Sherri Roberts, a regional crop specialist in southern Saskatchewan is battling one of the most serious tick borne illnesses, Lyme Disease. "The symptoms will continue until you get treated.  I, fortunately, caught it really early.  I got on the antibiotics with an extremely good understanding doctor.  I was on doxycyclene (antibiotic) 100 milligrams twice a day for a month and have seemed to have beat this disease because I caught it so early.  If you are unfortunate and you don't understand that you have the disease and you don't get treatment right away, it can last and linger."

 

Roberts has battled Lyme disease three times.  "My second case of Lyme disease that I had, I actually battled it for 10 years before I was able to conquer it and get through it.  Everybody's immune system is different, how it responds to treatment.  The big key is don't ignore these types of symptoms, if you have them, get to a doctor."

 

The good news is there is treatment, according to Roberts.  "There is, if you can get on it right away. At one time they thought they had a vaccine for it but it didn't work.  They do have a vaccine for dogs and that does work.  It is a concern that everybody that's outdoors should be thinking about. Right up with tick sprays, tape up the bottom of your pants if you know for sure you are going into long grass.  By all means every time you come in from outdoors shed your clothes, and do a tick check for sure."

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.