http://www.vancouversun.com/news/thewest/Snowstorms kill hundreds cattle Cardston County declares emergency/3016251/story.html
Snowstorms kill hundreds of cattle as Cardston County declares emergency
By Jamie Komarnicki, Calgary Herald May 12, 2010
Ranchers in southern Alberta's Cardston County are in emergency mode after a barrage of spring snowstorms killed hundreds of cattle.
Losses are mounting as melting snow reveals calves that succumbed to the winter-like weather of the past couple of weeks, said Reeve Cam Francis.
The county declared itself a "disaster area" earlier this week, Francis said, noting that some ranchers lost more than 100 calves.
"It's been devastating. A lot of cattle got piled up from the wind, cows got trampled, some cows were pushed into the dugout and drowned," Francis said.
County officials haven't tallied the number of cattle lost.
The situation is particularly dire because the snowstorms hit during calving season, when the newborns are especially vulnerable, said Francis.
Shawn Pitcher is still tallying the losses, but figures up to 15 per cent of his 300-head herd was killed.
Furious winds drove the cattle close together, which in turn led to some of the calves getting trampled, he said. Other cows sought shelter in the low-lying areas, which, as the temperature rose, became filled with water. Cows became stuck in the mud or drowned, Pitcher said.
Now, the rancher is dealing with the diseases that have struck the survivors.
"We're treating calves like crazy, trying to get them over their pneumonia," Pitcher said.
"This could be a really crippling storm for a lot of producers."
Melvin Thomson said he and his son tried to lead their calving cows into a shed for shelter. In the whipping snow, it was impossible to find them all, he said.
"It just was a bad scene, bad weather," said Thomson, whose Rangeview Ranch southeast of Cardston has about 280 cattle.
Coun. Roger Houghton, whose area was hard hit, called the situation the worst to hit the county in four decades.
"It was the wind that did it all. It just drove everything," said Houghton.
County officials are urging the provincial and federal governments to step in with immediate aid for the affected ranchers.
But a manager with the provincial Crown corporation that provides farm income disaster assistance said while claims will be "expedited" through the system, there isn't new funding available for this particular case.
"This is what this program is designed for, to cover these things," said Vicki Chapman of Agriculture Financial Services Corp.
Compensation is generally doled out after producers have filed their annual taxes, but in some cases farmers can apply for an interim advance payment.
"If somebody is able to apply for their interim advance, we would certainly look at it and expedite it as fast as we can through our existing program," Chapman said.
But the county reeve said some of the ranchers are facing an immediate cash crunch and can't afford to wait for government aid.
"It would be nice if the safety nets would work a little quicker," Francis said.
"Really, with a disaster like this, you don't get any money flowing for a year. For some of these guys, that's too late."
The full extent of the cattle deaths won't be known until all the snow has melted, said Francis. Meanwhile, ranchers have begun the grim work of cleaning up the carcasses, he said.
Pitcher said the next problem is paying for additional feed -- a costly expense after already losing a chunk of his cattle herd.
"It just was a big expense loss in an industry where there's really no margins, even in a good season."
jkomarnicki@theherald.canwest.com
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/thewest/Snowstorms kill hundreds cattle Cardston County declares emergency/3016251/story.html#ixzz0nl6a0P15
Snowstorms kill hundreds of cattle as Cardston County declares emergency
By Jamie Komarnicki, Calgary Herald May 12, 2010
Ranchers in southern Alberta's Cardston County are in emergency mode after a barrage of spring snowstorms killed hundreds of cattle.
Losses are mounting as melting snow reveals calves that succumbed to the winter-like weather of the past couple of weeks, said Reeve Cam Francis.
The county declared itself a "disaster area" earlier this week, Francis said, noting that some ranchers lost more than 100 calves.
"It's been devastating. A lot of cattle got piled up from the wind, cows got trampled, some cows were pushed into the dugout and drowned," Francis said.
County officials haven't tallied the number of cattle lost.
The situation is particularly dire because the snowstorms hit during calving season, when the newborns are especially vulnerable, said Francis.
Shawn Pitcher is still tallying the losses, but figures up to 15 per cent of his 300-head herd was killed.
Furious winds drove the cattle close together, which in turn led to some of the calves getting trampled, he said. Other cows sought shelter in the low-lying areas, which, as the temperature rose, became filled with water. Cows became stuck in the mud or drowned, Pitcher said.
Now, the rancher is dealing with the diseases that have struck the survivors.
"We're treating calves like crazy, trying to get them over their pneumonia," Pitcher said.
"This could be a really crippling storm for a lot of producers."
Melvin Thomson said he and his son tried to lead their calving cows into a shed for shelter. In the whipping snow, it was impossible to find them all, he said.
"It just was a bad scene, bad weather," said Thomson, whose Rangeview Ranch southeast of Cardston has about 280 cattle.
Coun. Roger Houghton, whose area was hard hit, called the situation the worst to hit the county in four decades.
"It was the wind that did it all. It just drove everything," said Houghton.
County officials are urging the provincial and federal governments to step in with immediate aid for the affected ranchers.
But a manager with the provincial Crown corporation that provides farm income disaster assistance said while claims will be "expedited" through the system, there isn't new funding available for this particular case.
"This is what this program is designed for, to cover these things," said Vicki Chapman of Agriculture Financial Services Corp.
Compensation is generally doled out after producers have filed their annual taxes, but in some cases farmers can apply for an interim advance payment.
"If somebody is able to apply for their interim advance, we would certainly look at it and expedite it as fast as we can through our existing program," Chapman said.
But the county reeve said some of the ranchers are facing an immediate cash crunch and can't afford to wait for government aid.
"It would be nice if the safety nets would work a little quicker," Francis said.
"Really, with a disaster like this, you don't get any money flowing for a year. For some of these guys, that's too late."
The full extent of the cattle deaths won't be known until all the snow has melted, said Francis. Meanwhile, ranchers have begun the grim work of cleaning up the carcasses, he said.
Pitcher said the next problem is paying for additional feed -- a costly expense after already losing a chunk of his cattle herd.
"It just was a big expense loss in an industry where there's really no margins, even in a good season."
jkomarnicki@theherald.canwest.com
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/thewest/Snowstorms kill hundreds cattle Cardston County declares emergency/3016251/story.html#ixzz0nl6a0P15
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