Its finally warmed up after a record cold February and beginning of March. We nearly hit the thawing mark today.
Its been a low snow winter adding to the concerns we are in a continuing dry spell. Somehow we grew an excellent crop last year on the minimal amounts of rain we got. I can't see it happening two years in a row.
Our most profitable crop, canola, has taken a serious hit thanks to China rejecting imports from Richardson Grain. Politics. Using the farmer as bargaining chips as usual. That represented about 40 percent of our export market. Prices had been mediocre prior to that and took a drop after the news hit. So its 1990s prices for our canola. Yet the seed companies are expecting us to pay 4 times what we paid for seed in the 1990s.
Got the 4 yearling calves hauled out last week so cattle feeding is a little slower here now with only 4 cows and the bull left. They seem a little quiet and depressed. Missing the young ones I guess.
The recent warm weather gave me the opportunity to take the drone up for a short flight over the yard. And of course I shot a bit of video.
Maybe the cattle think the drone is a dangerously big bee! - lol
ReplyDeleteLoved seeing your place from the air!
ReplyDeleteI was going to show Scott and suggest he buy himself a drone/camera, but when I saw the cattle running from it, I had second thoughts. Still I think he'd have a lot of fun with such a toy and wouldn't it be handy if you haven't seen a cow/calf pair or something and need to go looking?
Scott says a cow will stand off from the others, head hanging low, for several days after a calf dies. He finds it a heartbreaking sight.
It only makes sense, just as it does that your herd is missing its youngsters.
Kate
Kate, that drone was great helping me find a cow and new calf hiding in 7 foot tall cattails last summer. I could not have found her otherwise. Keep in mind that my cattle are a bit anti-social and easily spooked. Some cattle may not be alarmed by the drone. I want to take it up over the new bison herd one day when they become more at home in their new range.
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