Livestock Production
Technology Access Centre for Livestock Production (TACLP)
The Technology Access Centre for Livestock Production (TACLP) uses its resources — which include a 1,000-head capacity feedlot, commercial cow/calf herd, Purebred Red Angus herd, sheep flock, and broadacre native and tame pasture — to demonstrate and optimize technologies with potential to improve animal health and welfare, increase production efficiency, and enhance environmental sustainability.
Livestock producers, innovators, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) collaborate with the TACLP to develop, validate, and showcase new practices and technologies — moving them towards industry acceptance and commercialization.
Livestock research services at the TACLP include:
- Assessing residual feed intake (RFI) for cattle and sheep.
- Conducting research trials on beef cattle and sheep in pasture or feedlot settings at Olds College or client sites.
- Developing, optimizing and validating innovative on-farm technologies and practices.
- Organizing and delivering producer training sessions.
Highlights of Livestock Production Research:
Leveraging the funding support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the TACLP provides access to every stage of the production cycle — from seedstock to feedlot.
Recent project highlights show the livestock research team’s dedication to the goals of animal welfare, efficiency and environmental sustainability. These collective efforts reflect the livestock research team's commitment to animal welfare, efficiency and environmental sustainability. The TACLP is also integrated into Olds College academics supporting knowledge transfer, in-field training and volunteer experiences for students.
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Animal health and welfare studies included a pre-conditioning study in collaboration with the University of Calgary that looked at the impacts of various weaning techniques to better prepare calves for the feedlot. The goal was to reduce the necessity for preventative treatments when they arrive at the feedlot, reducing antimicrobial use overall.
The TACLP also conducts off-campus projects and fee-for-service work with collaborating producers — specifically Neilson Cattle Development who has been working with the College since 2020 with a total of six projects completed at its operation. These projects include further research investigating the impact of handling acclimation to reduce stress and improve reproductive performance in beef heifers. Acclimated heifers had lower salivary cortisol concentration — meaning less fearful/stressful — and an increment on pregnancy rate of 10.84% when compared to the control group.
Another collaboration was a study investigating different calf weaning methods combined (or not) to an adoption of a novel handling procedure on newborn calves known as tactile stimulation. This technique mimics natural cow behavior by gently rubbing the body of newborn calves for one minute and has demonstrated notable health and growth performance advantages. The TACLP is currently in the third year of testing this procedure at Neilson Cattle Development. This ongoing research aims to further explore and validate the benefits associated with tactile stimulation for newborn beef calves.
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Each year, the TACLP evaluates approximately 500 non-college animals during the feeding trial season through a variety of performance evaluations and research projects. These include ongoing residual feed intake testing via Vytelle feeding systems, basic growth and feed conversion tests, and behavioural assessments.
In its work with Neilson Cattle Development, the TACLP demonstrated by adopting handling acclimation, beef heifers had 7.5 times increased chances of becoming pregnant — pointing to improved efficiency in reproductive performance.
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With additional funding from NSERC through the Applied Research and Technology Partnership (ARTP) grant, the TACLP is supporting numerous industry partners and SMEs by validating remote monitoring technologies with the potential to improve soil health and increase rancher access to carbon credit programs, thereby improving environmental sustainability and climate change resiliency in Western Canada.
Alberta Innovates funded a study looking at the benefits of rotational grazing management compared to conventional grazing. Smart technologies were employed to monitor pasture productivity, animal health and performance, and remotely manage fence lines and watering systems.
The Floating Island Technology for Livestock Water Remediation project is a multi-year study that uses native wetland plants and floating island technology to treat feedlot runoff water, aiming to improve water quality for irrigation or livestock consumption.
Publication Articles
Emilie Edgar
Research Technician
Désirée Gellatly
Research Scientist
Brianna Gratton
Techgronomist
Yaogeng Lei
Research Associate
Alison Neale
Research Associate
Brittany Scott
Research Technician
Lyndsey Smith
Research Technician
Laio Sobrinho
Research Associate
Sean Thompson
Director
Contact Us
Sean Thompson
Director
403.556.8314
sthompson@oldscollege.ca
In the Media: TACLP
- Performance test results researched
- Floating flora for friendlier feedlot flush? Maybe
- Device builds fences out of thin air
- Researchers Look at Viability of No Fence Collars on Canadian Prairies
- Reducing fear in heifers can pay off
- One-minute spa treatment can boost calf health
- First Impressions
This article was originally published in the Apr/May 2023 edition of Canadian Cowboy Country magazine (Vol 26, No 6) - Updated Livestock Transport Regulations and What You Need to Know