I spend more time than I like in front of a computer…
There is always tons of work to be done outside.
But there are many problems to solve on this ranch...
So it takes research.
Hours and hours of it.
I spent a great deal of time in the winter of 2024/25 working on feeding market pigs properly.
I'd heard all kinds of opinions on how to do it...
But none of them were right.
My pigs weren't getting to the weight I wanted, so I had to get it figured out.
And it's not just one internet search and you're done...it's tons of clicks and reading...
Rewording your search...digging deeper...
And with my background and training...
Reading all kinds of research papers...evaluating their validity and working on how to use their information in a pastured, regenerative setting.
For example...
One way to get animals to gain weight, is to mix antibiotics into their feed.
You may already know this.
If you didn't, you do now.
Back in 2010, when Monique and I were still living in Ontario, I wrote a 32 page essay on chemicals in the food supply.
At that time, the Ministry of Agriculture in that province had antibiotics in animal feed as a recommendation.
It's called "sub-clinical" antibiotic use...if you ever see that term, you now know what they're talking about.
That means, cattle, pigs, broilers, lamb, sheep, goats...take your pick...
The government was recommending that farmers include antibiotics in the feed to increase weight gain and improve feed conversion, meaning eating less and still gaining weight.
That practice, and the government recommendation for it continues today across Canada...Alberta is no exception.
And it works, so it is done by many, many farms and ranches in this province.
Antibiotics are not selective in what bacteria they kill...
Good guys (probiotics)…bad guys (pathogens)…antibiotics wipe them all out.
If you've taken antibiotics in the past, even as a child, and you've not taken probiotics as a follow up...
Either as a supplement or as fermented foods...
You have an imbalanced gut bacteria.
I'd stake my professional reputation on it.
When you take antibiotics, it wipes your bowel clean of all bacteria, not just an infection in your body.
So you leave your terrain empty, just waiting to be re-populated by whatever shows up...
If you're not putting good guys in...
Bad guys are moving in, setting up camp, and squatting for life.
So how long is an animal off antibiotics before they are processed?
It depends on the drug.
Penicillin is just seven days, while an animal specific antibiotic like centiofur is 28 days.
I've had people tell me that they are off antibiotics in time to not have any in their system.
That is unequivocally incorrect.
They are only off antibiotics long enough for them to have what is considered a "safe" amount of antibiotics in their meat...
Not complete clearance, only so-called safe levels.
It's why some of my customers that are allergic to penicillin and other antibiotics have allergic reactions when they eat grocery store meat.
Those meats are not completely free of antibiotics...there are antibiotics in the meat at levels someone else has determined is safe for you.
Those customers allergic to varying antibiotics that eat my beef, pork, chicken, turkey, or eggs...
Do not have allergic reactions...because I don't and never will use antibiotics to treat my animals.
Even if the meat you find in the grocery store was completely clear of antibiotics (and it's not)…
The animals being fed antibiotic feed will never achieve optimal health...I would argue that they are very unhealthy animals.
Just like you and I, antibiotics wipe out their gut bacteria, leaving them susceptible to illness and dis-ease...
Through poor digestion and absorption, and unhealthy intestines from an imbalanced gut bacteria.
So I ask those people that tell me that grocery store meat is completely clear of antibiotics...
"Were they given probiotics when they were taken off antibiotics?"
And they just stare at me blankly, or laugh at me like I don't know what I'm talking about.
They find the concept of giving animals probiotics ludicrous...who does that?
They think I'm just another pretty regenerative rancher...
Not a highly trained and experienced science based health care professional.
But it doesn't matter what or who I am...
They don't get it.
You can't wipe out your gut bacteria with pharmaceutical antibiotics and then think everything is fine.
A healthy gut is tied to strong immunity, clarity of mind, mental health, and so much more.
If you're eating grocery store meat, you are getting a dose of antibiotics...
Sure, it's considered a "safe level", but not a negligible level...definitely not zero.
You are most likely harming yourself with every bite.
I have antibiotic free meat...
Not safe levels levels of antibiotics...
I'm talking NEVER HAD ANTIBIOTICS EVER...
Not them, not their parents...nowhere in the chain were antibiotics fed to my animals.
And I do give my animals probiotics - my pigs, laying hens, broilers, and turkeys all eat fermented foods...
My milk fed pastured pork eats fermented non-GMO grains, hay, and raw cow's milk...
My laying hens, broilers, and turkeys all eat raw milk yogurt Monique makes here on the ranch.
Because I do get it...because it is what I have spent almost 30 years of my life studying...
And that is why you want to be filling your freezer and your family's bodies with the products that I produce.
That is why you want a highly trained and experienced holistic nutritionist producing the food you provide for your family.
My beef, pork, and poultry are...
- Never medicated ✔
- Never vaccinated ✔
- Never treated with or fed antibiotics ✔
- Never treated with larvicides or insecticides ✔
- Fed fermented non-GMO grains and hay ✔
- Pastured on fresh grass and moved every other day ✔
- Fed duckweed, snails, and freshwater shrimp from our permaculture ponds ✔
- Fed raw milk from our Jersey cow, Eleanor ✔
- Raised to be anti-inflammatory for YOUR family ✔✔✔
Make the best choice for you and your family...
Choose to eat meats that are never treated with antibiotics.
Your body and your family's bodies will thank you for it.
All the best!
Tim - CNP, OHP