Ranchers Line Up for Miles, Forced to Sell Cattle as TX Dries Up
Hope shrivels day by day in west Texas as ranchers facing a drought are selling cattle out of desperation while fearing that the worst is yet to come.
Drought conditions are impacting 97 percent of the state according to Drought Monitor. Although farmers can, in theory, bring in hay from other areas to feed cattle, sky-high energy costs make it too expensive to transport hay. And so they are reducing the herds, according to Local Profile, which wrote, “Last week, USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey reported that 80 percent of Texas’ pastures were in either poor to very poor conditions.”
“Millions of cattle went to slaughter strictly because of the drought because they had nowhere else to go,” rancher Jon Taggart said in a comment to the Forth Worth Star-Telegram, according to Local Profile.
At the Decatur Livestock Market, trucks were recently backed up a mile each way, owner Kimberly Irwin said, according to CBS.
The 2,600 animals unloaded was a number not seen since the 2011 drought.- READ MORE
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