Lots of snow!

[cowman]

Lots of snow this morning. Must be at least 5 inches and still coming down. I suspect this could bring on the scours! Still it is a good wet snow and should do a world of good for the grass. Hope it is general all over the west.

[pandiana]

Pretty awful isn't it! We also have lots of snow but then we often have snow when the rest of the province is dry. I understand Red Deer south didn't get this spring storm but will get snow this week.

How do you think this snow will affect the market? The analysts appear to be baffled by the drop in cattle prices, although theories abound.

[15444]

Here in Northwestern Ontario, we are much different. The snow is totally gone, frost is almost all out, and the land is starting to dry up. Didn't get much snow this winter, maybe two feet at the most.

[cowman]

Only two feet !!! Do you know we would kill for two feet of snow???
We did have a good snowfall this winter(probably close to two feet!) in Central Alberta. Something is just not quite right out here. It seems to me our climate is getting drier over the last 20 yrs. or so. I can't explain it and I certainly won't try to blame it on that old bugaboo global warming...but something just isn't right here?

[farmerboy]

Today for the first time this spring we went for a short walk in a pasture, because before this you could only walk wherever a tractor had driven. We still have a whole bunch of snow. The barnyards are just one big ugly mudhole. We won't be in the fields for at least 2 weeks. Why, at Easter we had such a terrible blizzard that we were housebound. Almost a foot of snow, and 2 weeks ago the same thing over again. Its bizarre. The dugouts by the house just filled last night. Once things start drying it sure should grow.

[cowman]

Sounds like you will have some grass! This spring has been weird to say the least. Where abouts are you at? How was your weather last year? Was it dry?

[farmerboy]

I'm from God's country,northeastern B.C,to be exact.We had it pretty wet last summer,but the fall was quite dry.A lot of grain crops drowned here,the forages did exeptionally well and so did the pastures.

[cowman]

I have a friend who is sending 150 head up to Fort st. John this summer. His rented pasture here went up to $40/AUM. He figures,even with the trucking, he will come out ahead.
I hear your area is booming with the big gas field discoveries. Has it affected you?

[farmerboy]

I can see that 40$AUM is too expensive,however sending your animals that far will amount to just about the same thing.Rates on community pastures are running around 9.- to 12.-$AUM.Whenever I send cows to Ponoka for example, it costs me around 30.-$ a head.The last few years I was pasturing my cows on a big ranch only twenty minutes from home.I had my own pasture and knew what my cows were bred to,I could pull my bulls when I wanted to and also wean when I wanted.This whole package cost me 13.50.-$AUM.Unfortunately that deal is not available anymore,so this year I'll be keeping my cows at home. Yes, all that oil and gas activity has us farmers very affected!The big centre is booming and since we're only 35 kilometres out of town,people are buying 1/4 sections build a huge house on it and use the land mostly only for quading or skidooing and maybe a few horses.Oh ,did I mention that they drive up the land price for everybody!! (Which is okay I guess, if you want to sell!) Even here in the north land is not an unlimited resource any more.A lot of people also buy some land/farms to hide their money from the oilpatch.Services for farmers in town have gone down the hole.We used to have Machinery dealerships in town.For my Case/IH equipment I have to go to Grande Prairie,which is "only" a three hour drive away(one way).For JD parts it's a bit closer,only 11/2 hour away! Truck dealerships are getting arrogant too,as they are only interested in selling new vehicles.Just last winter, my wife had to drive our daughter to town for a volleyball tournament.Since we needed some supplies,she took our one tonne diesel,which had been standing for maybe two weeks.On her way in to town on that cold morning the truck died a couple of times,however,she managed to limp to our local Ford dealership.Upon inquiring wether it would be possible for a mechanic to change a plugged fuelfilter,she was informed that it would not be possible,that she would have to wait t'ill the following week!! She was totally stranded, and I had to go and change the fuel filter which only took me about 1/2 an hour. We were right outside the shop window. We turned around and there were the mechanics staring at us through the window holding coffee cups and wondering what I was doing sitting in the engine in -30 weather.I bet you any money,had the truck been stinking of crude-oil,the job would have been done within the hour.Needless to say,I won't be going to that particular place anymore unless I absolutely have to. I hope services for farmers are better where you live.

[cowman]

I guess I should be thankful I live so close to a big city. We have a heavy duty mechanic 2 miles down the road. He has a well equipped shop and caters to the farm trade. He is very reasonable and does good work.
Where do you sell your calves? Your cull cows?

[farmerboy]

About half of beef producers sell their calves to southern Alberta, and the other half at the local auction market. Either way, the producer pays the trucking; either up front, or you get a bit less per lb. It costs about 3 cents per lb to ship them out to Ponoka, and you may get 3 cents more for the calves, so it is roughly the same as if you sell them locally. For the past 3 years at least, our steers have gone to the same local feedlot so he must like them because he keeps buying them. The cull cows we keep over winter because the price is usually down in the fall. We sell them in Feb. or March locally, unless we have some odds and ends, sometimes we put together a load with other guys to go to Ponoka where there are buyers and the odds and ends don't seem so odd there. I have been watching the prices of the auction markets, and Clyde seems to have the highest prices. Generally I don't like to put the calves on such a long haul because of excessive shrink, and Clyde would be a lot closer than Ponoka. I may market the calves there in the fall if their prices are still higher. By the way, when do you nap or sleep because a lot of your postings are done at 4 or 5 in the morning.

[cowman]

Oh I'm always up early. I'm still checking the tailenders that aren't done calving. I've always been a light sleeper who needs little sleep...five hours max!
I have a oil lease maitenance/reclamation business and am just starting to do a little work with that. It really takes off in a few weeks. I live in an area that has a lot of oil and natural gas.
There used to be a fairly large packing house in Grand Prairie. Is it still operating?
There was a group that sold a lot of good Blonde calves on the satelite from up in the Peace. They seemed to get a pretty good premium. The buyers were sure after those Blonde calves.