The lengthy cold weather in the province over the past month has been tough on cattle producers in Mountain View County, says Brian Roger, chairman of the county’s agricultural service board.
Frigid conditions impact operations in a number of ways, including financially, he said.
“With the temperatures we saw in February lots of feed, extra feed, has been taken up,” said Roger. “More bedding and more feed is needed just to keep the animals warm and that costs money.
“And calving is another issue. It’s taxing on producers when checking every two hours is probably not enough to keep the little guys warm.”
The unseasonably cold conditions have lasted for more than a month across the region.
“It’s been a long haul,” he said.
The coming of spring means producers will now have to be mindful of pasture conditions, he said.
“Lots of pastures were in poor condition going into fall so we are going to have to get some regrowth before any animals are turned out,” he said.
“We are going to be feeding well into May, unless we get a real phenomenal spring with some good moisture.”
There are dry pasture conditions in many parts of the county, he said.
“And we haven’t had a lot of snow, less than usual, that’s for sure,” he said.
On the upside for grain growers in the area, barley prices are good right now, he said.
“A lot of barley is going into feedlot rations,” he said.
The county’s agricultural services board is made up of county councillors and appointed public members. It advises the county and province on agriculture-related issues and concerns.
Duncan Milne, Mountain View County councillor and ag services board member, echoed Roger’s comments about the impacts of recent cold weather.
“Calving out in that real cold weather has been a struggle for the cow-calf guys, especially the purebred guys,” said Milne. “When it's 35 or 40 degrees below you’ve got to be on the calves right away. I understand it has been really stressful.”
The need for additional food for cattle is certainly an added expense for producers, he said.
Meanwhile, hog producers are facing a particular challenge right now with the discovery of cases of the porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) virus in the province.
“The producers in the county are having to increase their biosecurity to keep PED off their operations,” he said.
There have been no reports of PED on county-area hog operations, he said.
