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The two-year drought Live Oak, McMullen and surrounding counties are currently enduring is having a devastating effect on farming and ranching. This natural disaster has cost the area countless dollars in economic losses, but more importantly is slowly destroying the agriculture industry.

“This is the second year of the drought; 13 inches total last year and our normal is 28-29 inches. So far this year all we have had is 8/100ths of an inch of rain,” said Bill Wieding, an area cattle rancher and former manager of the Three Rivers Co-op.

Livestock is stressed and ranchers must choose between reducing their herd size and buying feed. “If it doesn’t rain in the next two weeks, farmers won’t be able to plant grain. If it doesn’t rain within the next four weeks, farmers will lose their chance to plant milo too. Either way, it will take a couple of months for the crop to grow,” said Wieding. “If a rancher doesn’t have enough hay put away he will have to sell. We need to pray for rain,” continued Wieding.

During a drought, feed costs represent the largest portion of operating cost for commercial cattle ranchers. Hypothetically speaking; it takes about three round bales of hay to feed 25-30 head of cattle a week. At $60 a bale that comes to $180 a week for 25 head. Additionally, you need to supplement the hay with 400 to 500 lbs. of salt feed (example: 1/2 grain, 1/4 protein, 1/4 salt) and that runs about $270 a ton. Plus the cattle need molasses at $100 a barrel and “cow cake” at nearly $10 a bag. These figures are hypothetical as it all depends on the size and weight of the cattle and where you buy your feed. However, it comes down to 50-60 pounds of forage per day or about 2% of their body weight plus a grain supplement. Adding to the drought dilemma are the dried-up earthen tanks. Many ranchers have reached the point where they will need to pipe-in or haul-in water. “Even if it started raining today, the land is so dry and cracked it will take a while for there to be enough run-off to fill the tanks,” said Wieding.

“I’ve talked to some of the ranchers who lived through the drought of the 1950s and many say this drought is worse,” said Lloyd Koerth, of Whitsett. In addition to ranching, Koerth is a past world champion bull rider.

“From 1954-1956, we never put a combine in the field for three years. It rained enough every year to get a crop up. It would get 6-8 inches tall and just dry up and blow away,” said Wieding. “This drought is similar to the one in the ’50s except now there is enough coastal [grass] to keep the dirt from flying around,” continued Wieding.

“During those years it got down to pear burning because no one was making hay and you could hardly get any shipped in. We burned all the pear along the fence road; we cut it off and loaded it on a truck and hauled it off to the cattle. That was a lot of hard work,” Wieding said.

Every rancher has his own way of raising cattle. Koerth pointed to one of his herds and said, “There are two bulls in this pasture. That one over there is 7 years old and the other is 3 years. I use pure bred bulls on crossbred cattle to get what they call the hybrid vigor. I keep the sire and the dames and sell the offspring. None of the heifers are kept for reproduction. This stock is very good natured. That is why we try to keep this breed stock; because they pass on their gentle nature.”

“When a heifer gives birth, I get the calf weaned at seven months, supplement them for a while before putting them on full feed for 120 days and then take them to the auction. This is where the good thick T-bones come from. After a heifer is 10-12 years old she is sold for slaughter and other purposes like hamburger and cheaper cuts of meat,” Koerth said.

Koerth looked out at the pasture and pointed to a cow with a little calf. “Now she just had that calf within the last week or so.” His eyes filled with concern as he continued, “This drought is hard on calves. The cow’s milk is not the quality it should be because she isn’t getting natural nutrients.”

Meanwhile, at the Live Oak County auction barn, ranchers with trailers full of cattle were patiently waiting in line on Sunday afternoon to unload cattle for Monday’s auction. “We have seen more cattle coming in and ranchers are getting less money per pound. A six-month-old calf weighs about 400 pounds and they go for about 85 cents (per pound) as compared to $1.20 last year. A heifer goes for about 50 (cents),” said Ricky Heineke of the Live Oak County Auction Barn. Ranchers are losing approximately $200 a head from pre-drought prices.

“Everything got so out of hand when oil went up $120 a barrel. Everything else went up and now that oil has gone down nothing else has,” said Koerth. “Livestock prices are set by the stock market and what people are willing to pay for things. With all these lay-offs how many people are going to go out and buy a nice $10 steak dinner? Instead, they go out and buy a $2 piece of chicken,” Koerth said.

Yet, ranchers in this area know, “Droughts are a regular occurrence ... more so than ‘wet’ years,” said Tom Shelton, Sr. of McMullen County. “Our county has gone from wide open prairies with tall grasses (that hold what little moisture may fall) to our present brush coverage which doesn’t hold water ... all runs off. It took 100 years, but it’s the flora we have today.”

Shelton too remembers the days of burning pear. “The ‘burning of the pear’ (cactus); kerosene, then gasoline and followed by propane. Labor was cheap. Feed was on parity with the livestock receipts, i.e., low... all of those factors for survival are no longer with us. I burned ‘an awful lot of pear’ these last 20 years of my lifetime of raising livestock. Now, propane costs prohibit pear-burning, and operational costs are completely off the parity charts.”

National Weather Service predicts this part of the country will experience continued dry conditions with temperatures above average. So why don’t ranchers cut their losses and sell their entire herd? “A lot of people have breed stock they have raised and they hate to part with them because it would be hard to replace them,” said Wieding. “Because some ranchers have a loss in them to begin with, they are praying for rain, so that they can recover some of their money. Others can’t sell because they don’t own their cattle outright. The bank or someone else has an interest in them,” Wieding continued.

“Our immediate families kept their ranches and livestock through the 1937-38, 1942-44, the 6-year-drought of the 1950s and the current drought,” said Shelton. “Our livestock bloodlines were started in the 1920s and 1930s by our parents ... we do not have the flexibility of a steer operation which can sell out then buy back. Once our bloodlines are ‘lost’ ... (they are) truly gone,” Shelton said.

One thing is certain in the cattle business; raising cattle is not an easy way to make a consistent living. You have to have a heart for it, these ranchers would agree.