I am located in southern manitoba, canada. Would it be possible for me to
keep an outdoor pond, and if so, is there anything special I would need to
do compared to if I lived in a location that had mild winters. Thank you.

Sure you can.
Put either a floating stock tank heater in it to keep a hole open in
the ice, or drop in one that stays on the bottom, near the pump, if
you have a waterfall, and keep the falls going all winter.

Picture of my falls in the winter. :-)
http://loricase.com/ponds/koi.htm

Lori