We are very pleased to share that Samantha Lalonde successfully defended her MSc thesis this morning! Sam has worked very hard for this achievement and we are very proud of her!

This was our group's first ever webinar defence and a total of 24 people joined the meeting, in addition to Sam and her thesis committee. It was great to see this show of support and interest during these unprecedented times.

Follow the link below to read the great article about Jo Ann's master's research! She did an amazing job in the interview and as always we are very excited to share news about our research focuses! 

https://agbio.usask.ca/alumni-and-giving/agknowledge_issues/2019/in-the-right-light.php

Congratulations to Dr. Bethany Baker (PhD) and Celma dos Santos (MSc) on their convocation this morning! This is a very important celebration of all of your hard work over the past few years ladies!

Samantha Lalonde started working as a Breeder Service Specialist with Maple Leaf Foods in Ontario today. We are very proud of her and know she will be a valuable addition to the poultry industry!

We are beyond excited for Sarah, who is headed to the Roslin Institute at the University of  Edinburgh in Scotland to earn her PhD! Sarah will be studying how genetic selection for beak shape may reduce damage caused by feather pecking in laying hens with Dr. Vicki Sandilands. While we have loved having Sarah in our group and will miss her very much, we are excited to support her on her way to becoming Dr. Struthers!

The annual Poultry Science Association held their annual general meeting in Montreal, Canada this year from July 15-18.

The meeting attendance was 1,441 attendees from 50 different countries. A record number 715 abstracts were accepted. Karen was very busy at this years meeting as she was the program chair (for which she did an outstanding job!) and was elected as 2nd Vice President on the PSA Board of Directors. She also received the Novus International Inc. Teaching Award for demonstrating "outstanding success in the classroom as well as a dedication to professional improvement".

Each member of our lab group is proud to have Karen as a mentor. We know how hard she works and are thrilled that she continues to be recognized as an exceptional educator and distinguished researcher!

Our staff and students also did an amazing job presenting their research at the meeting, with 3 of our students receiving awards of excellence. The following presentations/posters were presented at the meeting:

"The effects of simulated transport conditions on pullet blood physiology, body temperature, and behaviour" - Kailyn Beaulac

"Effects if simulated transport conditions on meat quality and core body temperature of brown strain end-of-cycle hens" - Kailyn Beaulac

"Understanding how infrared beak treatment affects the beak tissue and the healing response of brown and white feathered layer pullets" - Sarah Struthers

"Effect of myo-inositol and phytase on laying hen behaviour and welfare" - Eugenia Herwig

"Effect of phytase and myo-inositol supplementation on the expression of inositol transporters in the small intestine of laying hens, and blood and yolk inositol concentrations" - Eugenia Herwig

"The impact of various in-ovo wavelength spectrums on behaviour of Lohmann LSL-Lite and Lohmann Brown pullets under mismatched photoperiods" - Tory Shynkaruk

"Investigating the effect of CO2 concentration on the efficacy of gaseous euthanasia of broiler chicks on day of hatch" - Bethany Baker. Student Certificate of Excellence recipient

"Evaluating the impact of age on the efficacy of CO2 euthanasia for broilers in early life" - Bethany Baker 

"The effects of different wavelengths on broiler production" - Bruna Franco

"Does wavelength in a photoperiod program impact boiler fear and stress levels" - Bruna Franco. Student Certificate of Excellence recipient

"The influence of environmental stressors during simulated transportation on the behaviour and physiology for white-feathered end-of-cycle hens" - Carley Frerichs

"The impacts of simulated transportation on meat quality of white-feathered end-of-cycle hens" - Carley Frerichs. Student Certificate of Excellence recipient

"The effects of simulated transport conditions on pullet meat characteristics" - Samantha Lalonde

"The effects of simulated transport conditions on pullet blood physiology, body temperature, and behaviour" - Samantha Lalonde

Pictured left to right: Dr. Peiqiang Yu, Dr. Fiona Buchanan, Dr. Karen Schwean-Lardner, Dr. Bethany Baker, Dr. Jennifer Brown, Dr. Susantha Gomis, and Dr. Hank Classen

Celma successfully defended her MSc thesis on "In-ovo lighting impact on chicks' hatch traits, growth and behaviour" this afternoon. We are very proud of her and wish her the best as she moves onto her next adventure as the production manager for a hatching egg farm near Waldheim, SK.

The 2019 Prairie Poultry Meeting took place in Edmonton, AB on June 10-11. 

This meeting gave students an opportunity to present their research results and proposals to other students as well as faculty, government, and industry members. It also gave everyone involved the chance to learn about different research happening across the Prairies and network with fellow researchers.

​We are so happy for Carley, who has accepted a position with Egg Farmers of Alberta as their Farm Programs Coordinator. Today is her last day at the U of S and we wish her all the best in her new position!