AI-generated summary
The agricultural sector faces workforce challenges, increasing the value of working dogs.
Internationally renowned working dog trainer Gary White is in the business of training humans. He travels Australia and the world, hosting workshops designed to help handlers get the most out of their working dog. Participants bring their pup and test them in the yard, while White coaches them through training drills. "It's more about teaching the handler where they've got to be and what they've got to do," White said. "And when they know, they can actually teach their dog." ... (Full article preserved with paragraph breaks)
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
Continued increase in working dog prices due to high demand.
Likely · Short term
Charlie Smith and fellow agriculture workers founded Young Ag Network CQ in Rockhampton to address the lack of social and networking opportunities for young people in central Queensland's agriculture industry, hosting events that foster professional connections and friendships to retain youth in the sector.
Seven state and territory finalists from across Australia are competing for the national 2026 AgriFutures Rural Women's Award, to be announced at a gala event in Canberra on September 8. The award recognises women driving change in rural communities through initiatives in language education, veterinary training, skin cancer prevention, agritourism, space infrastructure, water management technology, and veteran support programs.
Near Bordertown in South Australia, turkey farmer Lucy Dodd prepares 6,000 free-range birds for Christmas amid rising anxiety over H5N1 avian influenza spreading from wild birds to domestic flocks, with local reports of mass die-offs in seabirds and detections in mammals, while free-range producers face biosecurity challenges and potential mandatory housing orders that could undermine their farming model.
The spread of varroa mite in Queensland is wiping out feral honey bee populations, forcing Australian horticulture growers to rely on commercial pollination services and face surging costs.
A Victorian farmer has sent a $40,000 invoice to the state government after losing over 160 livestock to wild dogs, following the March 2024 ban on lethal dingo control in north-west Victoria.
Lucas Findley's property in North West Queensland successfully planted cotton after floods, showcasing the region's cropping potential. A $5.3 million government and industry investment aims to expand cotton, grain, and pulse production by 2035, diversifying traditional cattle country.