Rain boosted cattle sale by $1000

PRODUCER believes he gained more from the increase in cattle prices generated from the rain rather than the rain itself.

Everyone on the Southern Downs is hoping for a full rain gauge this week. Picture: Erica Murree

DRY AS A BONE column in Bush Telegraph by Gerard Walsh - A lighter look at rural life

IT WAS the $1000 rain of a couple of weeks ago for our family down on the farm.

While we had a total of 28mm for the week and nothing since, it would be hard to argue that the rain grew $1000 worth of grass.

We need follow-up rain and plenty of it and, like everyone with a farm or a garden and that is pretty well all of us, we have our fingers crossed for rain later this week.

Our $1000 rain was the extra money we received for cattle after the rain.

After meeting the market with 14 calves two weeks ago, it rained and we sold more calves last week and are selling five heifers and cows today.

The rain gave us another $1000 in the second week of our selling program.

The heifer calves, which made $1.38 a kilogram in the first week, made $1.80 in the second week.

We didn't sell steers in the first week but the estimate was about $1.70 and a week later they made $2.30.

If you multiply the difference in price and the weight of the cattle, I come up with something like $1000.

That will pay 40 per cent of the rates on the farm, a month of loose lick for supplementary feeding of the remaining cattle or the annual registration of one vehicle.

No twine

A FEW months ago, I was wondering if a cow that was poor and died had swallowed some hay twine.

I occasionally find some twine that has obviously been chewed by a beast and after the cow died last year, I put a stock frame around the carcass to hopefully stop the foxes destroying the evidence.

My covering the cow didn't work as there was no string to be seen.

The bottom line is, hay twine is a real worry if swallowed by cattle.

Trespasses

I JUST hope someone can come up with a use for 90 per cent of Australia where livestock are run.

There are people in this world who don't want to see a beef industry at all.

Some of the criticism is about intensive animal husbandry but there are some anti-farm activists who want to end the industry.

If we don't have beef, we won't have export income, small towns and communities will die and the dream of owning your own farm will be a thing of the past.

Areas like Marlborough near Rockhampton are cattle only. We can run sheep for wool at Greymare but dingoes put us out of the industry. Not everyone can grow wool, there is already more than enough on the market.

Originally published as Rain boosted cattle sale by $1000