Calla Wahlquist

3 weeks ago | theguardian.com | Calla Wahlquist Rural |Calla Wahlquist

The RSPCA has warned it may not be able to investigate animal cruelty complaints against horses unless it receives more funding, as it reports a surge in the number of horses subject to cruelty complaints in the past 12 months. As drought conditions continue in Victoria, RSPCA Victoria said it had received almost 800 animal cruelty reports concerning horses this financial year, a 37% increase on the number of reports received at this point last year.

2 months ago | theguardian.com | Calla Wahlquist

Donald Trump has singled out Australia for not importing American beef. But do we even need it and what will US tariffs mean for our producers?

2 months ago | theguardian.com | Calla Wahlquist

New South Wales has temporarily banned the import of hay from parts of south-east Queensland as a precaution against invasive fire ants, which are on the move in large numbers thanks to flooding from ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. But the Invasive Species Council said the move is a Band-Aid response and accused the Queensland, NSW and federal governments of dropping the ball in suppressing fire ant numbers within infested areas.

Jan 28, 2025 | theguardian.com | Calla Wahlquist

There are six numbers saved as favourites in my phone: my partner, my parents, my sister, my best friend, and the after-hours emergency number for the local vet clinic. In the past three years I’ve called the latter more than a dozen times. The most recent was at 2am one night in May. My horse Mickey, a thoroughbred who collects vet bills like it’s a competition and he’s winning, was showing signs of colic – the dreaded abdominal pain that is the leading cause of premature death in horses.

Dec 7, 2024 | theguardian.com | Calla Wahlquist

The quickest way to tell the difference between an eastern brown snake and a copperhead is to nearly step on it. If it strikes, it’s an eastern brown. If it stays still as you jump back, it’s a copperhead. Thankfully, the snake I nearly stood on this week as I walked distractedly through the horse yard was a copperhead. Lowland copperheads are the seventh most venomous snake in Australia, but they are also shy and only bite when severely provoked. They are pretty common here in the Macedon Ranges.