What are cow numbers doing in your area????

[ProFarmer]

Cow numbers in our area have gone down from 600 on our 6 mile road in the last ten years to 200 last year to 100 now. In our RM in western manitoba we are less than 25% of the numbers of 10 years ago and down 25% from last year alone. Pig numbers on family farms are 0,Dairy farms are 0. The government and the public better stand up and take notice quickly... What are other areas finding? We can't all be grain farmers. DU is picking off most of the excess pasture land and keeping it for ducks.

[grassfarmer]

Don't know the specific numbers are here but the trend will be the same. I guess it's a natural progression - potential for better grain prices and woeful profitability in beef production will see the beef herd shrink to the size it takes to graze the land too difficult to farm and to utilize the grain producer's by-products.

[per]

Now when someone stops in to inform of cattle out I am pretty sure they would be mine. 2 of the 3 next door cow guys are grain guys now.

[frustrated1]

Same steady decline here. There are cattle around but the exodus started 2 years ago with some guys. Established well groomed herds. Very surprised at a couple of guys who quit, they spent hours every day with the cows, just fed up and quit. With the drought this year it pushed several more out. No feed and no longer cared to lose money. Just done. I'm just guessing but would say 30% less in 2 years.

[coppertop]

number of people in the business is
declining here, but the larger operators
are buying up cows now with the
depressed bred cow market. The large
feedlot/cow/calf operators here are
trying to tie up all the available
pasture in the area, which deters the
smaller cow/calf producer from buying
more cows.
Minister George will be in Thorsby on
Friday, hopefully he has a large
contingent of cow/calf producers there
to chat with him about what is happening
in the cow business, just in case he
hasn't been paying attention or getting
proper information from his staff !!

[kato]

Personally I think that when the powers that be are counting cow numbers for official statistics they are way wrong. I'm sure they think that there are a lot more cows left than there really are.

Fifteen years ago there were probably close to three thousand calves backgrounded in this immediate area. (Ten miles each direction from us) Last winter there were 175, and they were in our yard. Everyone else is gone. As for cows, within our immediate area two herds left last year, one other neighbour is seriously considering quitting, and we are also doubting our own sanity.

Some fine morning someone will wake up and say "Where did they all go?". Maybe then those left standing can get a shot at making a living once more.

The sooner the better....

[smcgrath76]

There are lots of cows and cowherds gone
in this neck of the woods. The cowherds
concern me a lot. It is always people
that build neighbourhoods, communities,
schools, etc. Not sure that is really
being taken into consideration. I have
said before, someone will have cows and it
may be exactly that or very close (someONE
or someTHREE).

[ProFarmer]

We have lost 3 300 cow herds in the last couple of years many more have cut in half and a lot more including our selves seriously thinking about downsizing..... It is to much work for a small or nonexistance of profit.I am getting tired of all the specalists saying next year will be better, bull---t the one I believe was a buyer saying three more years,I don't think I can what that long..