Sat, Nov 21 2009
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Much of state still suffering from drought By EDDIE GLENNTahlequah Daily Press Carson’s family raises cattle, and they decided to liquidate their herd.
“We figured the ponds are going dry and the hay is going to be too expensive,” he told the AP. “So we just made the decision to go ahead and sell them.” Hulbert rancher Bob Patterson said that even though Cherokee County may not be as dry as other parts of the state, the hay prices are likely to force small cattle producers into selling their herds, too. “The hay situation was pretty bad last year,” he said. “I think it’s going to be somewhat bad this year. The prices probably aren’t going to go down much.” Patterson has gone to a couple of farm auctions recently, and has seen 4-foot by 5-foot round bales sell for $65 to $70 each. He saw a barn full of smaller square bales from two years old (at the top of the stack) to five years old (on the bottom). All sell for $7.50 a bale. The problem, Patterson said, is two-fold. Not only has the drought decreased the amount of hay available in the state, but the price of diesel fuel has made it even more expensive to produce what hay is baled. “Diesel is $2.50, $2.60 a gallon, and when you start pulling one of those big heavy balers, running it sometimes eight hours a day, you’re talking about a lot of money,” said Patterson. “I think you’re going to start seeing more big corporate operations, because the average Joe just can’t afford to pay for the hay, feed, fertilizer, and everything else that it takes to raise cattle. I’m sure there are going to be some small farmers who just sell out and do something else.” 
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