Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Gayle Ecker, Equine Industry Vision Award Winner for 2015

Gayle Ecker, director of Equine Guelph, has been awarded the prestigious Equine Industry Vision Award for 2015.

The award, presented at the American Horse Publication Tally-Ho at the Alamo Seminar in San Antonio, Texas on Friday, June 19, 2015, recognizes Ecker’s innovation, vision and commitment to the equine industry.

Sponsored by Zoetis, the award is intended not only to recognize outstanding leadership, creativity and service to the horse industry, but also to benefit the industry by inspiring these qualities in others.

“This award represents an amazing achievement for my dedicated staff who stay focused on the Equine Guelph vision of developing programs to support horse health and welfare for Canada and beyond,” says Ecker. “The recognition from our peers in the horse industry in North America is amazing to have and it is also thanks to the support from the Advisory Council members, our wonderful sponsors and donors, and the passionate volunteers who help us move forward with our vision. I would also like to thank the American Horse Publications Group and Zoetis for developing such an award to recognize achievements in the horse industry in North America and it is an honour to receive this on behalf of Equine Guelph.”

Equine Guelph, a not-for-profit Centre at the University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, serves the horse and its industry through education, research, healthcare promotion and industry development. Founded in 2003, Equine Guelph is supported and overseen by equine industry groups and is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of horses.

Ecker received the distinction of being ‘short-listed’ for the Equine Industry Vision award from a record number of 25 nominees to one of four finalists. The other three finalists included: EQUUS Foundation, a charitable foundation providing financial support and services to equine charities across the United States; Jim McGarvey, Chairman of the Board, Back Country Horsemen of America; Juli S. Thorson, Editor-at-Large, Horse & Rider.

The AHP Board of Directors, plus a Zoetis representative, select the award winner based on their performance related to their achievements, and demonstration of key attributes, including vision, innovation, leadership, commitment, dedication and willingness to serve, original and effective ideas, services, and programs, as well as high professional standards.

The Equine Industry Vision award has been presented thirteen times since its inception in 2002 to top industry professionals and equine institutes. AHP director, Chris Brune says, “It represents that these individuals and organizations are being recognized for making a real difference in the horse world.”

Ecker has been with Equine Guelph since its inception, and played an instrumental role in its birth. She has dedicated her energies to advancing the equine industry through education and communications of research findings.  Ecker and her team have been leaders in equine education, developing award-winning programs, including over 20 online courses supporting health and welfare, as well as courses in business development – all part of the Equine Studies Diploma.  Another award-winning program, the popular “EquiMania!” has proven to be a favourite with youth and family.  This interactive exhibit, promoting safety, welfare and career opportunities was a popular feature at the World Equestrian Games in 2010.  Other feature programs include large animal technical rescue training, horse owner online tools, equine welfare assessment training, promotion of the new Equine Code of Practice and several other innovative programs.

Many congratulations go out to Ecker from her peers, supporters and the multitude of horse lovers that have been inspired, educated and motivated by her tireless efforts and contributions to the horse industry through her work with Equine Guelph.

Views: 83

Comments are closed for this blog post

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Senior government adviser 'astonished' at Ministers' failure to act swiftly

A senior advisor to the Scottish Government has said he was ‘astonished’ at Ministers’ failure to act swiftly on clear warnings that the Covid virus was ‘vastly more dangerous’ to the elderly and the vulnerable. Professor Mark Woolhouse, who was a member of the Scottish Covid-19 Advisory Group (C19AG) from March 2020, gave evidence to Baroness Hallett’s inquiry that ‘the single most important intervention was always to protect those most vulnerable to severe disease’. Despite this, he said, he and his C19AG colleagues struggled to get Ministers to listen and act on this crucial point despite delivering ‘at least half a dozen direct briefings to the First Minister’ on aspects of the pandemic. The professor, a leading expert on tracking infectious diseases, said: ‘I was astonished throughout those early stages, March through April 2020, how difficult it was to get people to accept that this virus was vastly more dangerous to the elderly, the infirm and the frail than it was to young,

Canada seeking to expand PHL agri role after success of dairy, hog collaboration

CANADA is seeking to expand its footprint in Philippine agriculture following the success of some of its collaborations in the Philippine hog and dairy industries, a Canadian government official said. Diedrah Kelly, executive director of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Agriculture and Agri-Food Office, said at a food security forum late Monday that the use of Canadian technology in some Philippine farms has yielded efficiency and productivity gains. “As a result of this technology, the yield on those cows is about a liter more (of milk) each day than what they had previously,” Ms. Kelly said. “Canadian technology and genetic material are being provided for both pork and dairy,” she added. The technology-sharing supports the Philippines’ drive to expand its dairy industry. The Department of Agriculture (DA) said it set a target of 5% of the Philippines’ dairy requirements to be serviced by domestic production within the next two or three years. The Philippines currently imports about 99% of

This little piggy is in a selfie

Tourists love picturesque places — if a photo can do well on social media, you know that tourists are going to dig that attraction. However, at the New Forest National Park in southern England, tourists seem to love the pigs that roam the park, almost 600 of them. They seem to be so obsessed that they have befriended them and are constantly taking pictures with them. Some of them took it to an extreme and took selfies with the phone near their snouts, while other park workers have also noticed the tourists leaping out of their cars and following the piglets down a busy road. While a few other tourists have taken a more respectful and gentle approach. The visitors have now been labelled the “piggy tourists”, a social crime that has annoyed people at the park as well as those in charge of animal welfare. The reason there are so many pigs in the park is becuse of a yearly ritual called “pannage”, where the swine are released to eat up all the acorns and nuts that could otherwise be toxi

Pig finds new forever home after Albuquerque highway chase

A 1-year-old pig that led New Mexico authorities on an Albuquerque highway chase has a new permanent home, officials said. The pig was spotted on the Interstate 40 off-ramp to Louisiana Boulevard on Nov. 11 and video captured at the scene shows Albuquerque officers chasing the slippery swine through the roadway. The pig was eventually taken to Albuquerque's Westside Shelter and Albuquerque Animal Welfare announced on social media that the animal has found a new forever home. The new owners, who dubbed the pig Boar-is, said they saw his plight on the news and knew he needed to become a new member of the family. The owners, Jerrod and Katherine Hinchman, have another pig named Swine-nona. "When we saw him running, we just saw his little spirit and how hard he was working to survive. And we just knew that he would fit right in with our pig," the Hinchmans told KRQE-TV. The couple said their property has a sturdy fence, so Boar-is will not be going on anymore highway adventures anyti

duBreton Responds to Health Canada's Pause on Cloned-Animal Novel Food Policy

duBreton acknowledges Health Canada's decision to indefinitely paused its proposed update to the novel food policy governing foods derived from cloned cattle and swine, as well as their progeny. The organization's recent announcement credits the hold to the volume and nature of feedback received from both industry stakeholders and the public. As a Canadian leader in responsible and ethically raised pork production, duBreton welcomes this pause as an important opportunity for Canadian food officials to deepen engagement with producers, retailers, and most importantly Canadian consumers. "Canadians expect clarity, transparency, and meaningful consultation on issues that directly touch their food supply," said Vincent Breton, duBreton President. "As producers, we consider it our responsibility and believe our governing food authorities should too." duBreton reached out to Health Canada following the novel food announcement and received confirmation, gene-editing technologies are not in

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service