From the Barnyard | Mike Graves
I wish I weren’t writing
this today. I wish I was
quoting a strong, promising
cattle market. Instead
it will be the bad tidings
last weeks market brought.
5 to 15/100 lbs cheaper on
all classes – “especially the
unweaned,fleshy, full, off
colored or merely plain
cattle – which fell off the
chart”- the losses were so
drastic, according to The
Cattle Range.
I visited Amos Kropf last
week over chili at Starz,
and he wanted to talk
about anything but cattle.
I cant blame him,and when
a cattle feeder gets blue,
the rest of us suffer. Cattle
feeders have been blue
awhile now, and are on
the verge of leaping out of
buildings in Amarillo.
The market correction
we are currently experiencing
will affect all of us here
in agriville. When the value
of your calves are reduced
by as much as 50%,butcher
cows by even more, and
we still have too much red
meat in storage- the outlook
for a quick recovery
is bleak. I’ve mentioned
this before, main street in
rural towns depend on our
money; they may not like
us tracking in cow mud,but
they miss our money when
we don’t come in.
In other words, the
1300$ heifers we bought
during the summer are
worth about 850$/head
today. Because they are
decent crossbred cow
makers, they have a future
right here on the ridge, and
most likely not see an auction
within the foreseeable
future. I just hope my wife
keeps working.
And, that’s all I’ve got
this Christmas week. May
the blessings of the magi
encourage us all to spread
the good news.
“Go tell it on the
mountain,over the hills
and everywhere!!”
John 3;16
