Dairy barn burns to the ground near Guelph

Sep 02, 2014

A dairy barn caught on fire around 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday [September 2] at 5436 Wellington Road 29 in Rockwood, Ont. The farm is located north of Guelph Lake near Knapps Country Market.

Fire crews from the City of Guelph, Guelph Eramosa, Centre Wellington, and Puslinch were dispatched to battle the blaze. According to a source, the flames surpassed the height of the silos before the structure collapsed and burnt to the ground. There was a steady rain for most of the afternoon which helped minimize the hot flames.

The farm has been in the family for several generations. It is currently owned by Scott and Katrina Gordon. They have a 50-cow milking herd and about 40 heifers of Guernsey cattle. The old bank barn functioned as a tie-stall operation. Most of the cows were outside on pasture at the time of the fire. It is unknown if any livestock perished in the blaze. No farm workers were injured.

While it is unknown what caused the fire, it is believed to have originated upstairs in the barn where the hay and straw was stored. Gordon was working in the barn at the time when the fire broke out and called 911.

Thanks to the help of neighbouring farmers and the dairy community, the cows that were rescued have a safe place to stay for the night. Animals have already been transported from the scene. However, the Gordon family is looking for a more permanent home for their herd until they are able to rebuild.

(Contributed photos)

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.